Robot vacuums and your Wi-Fi

Roam the house but connect on one band only.

What this kit needs from a network

2.4 GHz client that moves through the whole house while it works.

Bands: 2.4 GHz only on most models. It will not see a Wi-Fi name that is 5 GHz only, and setup fails silently if your phone is on the 5 GHz half of a split network.
How it's found on the network: Cloud for maps and control, local discovery during setup.
Background discovery traffic: Moderate during setup.
Guest networks: Setup fails.
Separate IoT network (VLAN): Fine on an IoT network.

• Set up with the dock near the router if you can, then move it.
• Keep your phone on 2.4 GHz during setup.
• Stand next to your router while you set it up, then move the gadget to where it lives.
• Put your phone on the 2.4 GHz network name for the setup, or use one name for both bands so the phone can follow.
• If your router splits bands into two names, turn the 5 GHz one off for five minutes rather than fighting it.
• Turn mobile data off on your phone during setup — some apps quietly use it and never find the gadget.

• Roaming between mesh boxes mid-clean can pause the map. Newer models cope; older ones don't.

Roborock robot vacuum 58/100
Roams the whole house on a 2.4 GHz-only radio, so it drops out in exactly the rooms it's meant to clean.
Most common complaint: "Device offline" partway through a clean, or setup fails at the Wi-Fi step.
iRobot Roomba 62/100
Same 2.4 GHz-only story as other robots, with a slightly friendlier setup process when it goes wrong.
Most common complaint: Cleaning finishes but the map never uploads, or the robot shows offline on its dock.

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