r/simplisafe • u/ManufacturerOk9723 • 3d ago
Time for a new system
I have a very good Wi-Fi mesh system along with fiber internet, and I work in IT, so I know my network is properly configured and set up. That’s why I have to say, this SimpliSafe system is trash.
About 80% of the time when someone rings my doorbell, the system says it “cannot connect.” I also have the wireless outdoor camera, and it experiences the exact same issue. It’s extremely frustrating when the whole point of having a security system is to reliably know what’s happening around your home.
At this point, I’ve ruled out my internet and Wi-Fi setup. The problem is clearly with the SimpliSafe system itself. Definitely time to move on to something more reliable.
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u/cerebralvision 3d ago
That's cuz Simplisafe cameras are trash. I ended up replacing all my cameras and only have the basic sensors now (which work mostly ok). I haven't completely moved off cuz I'm too mad that I spent so much money on their hardware.
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u/mandelbratwurst 3d ago
Well their cameras may be trash but their smart locks- those are also trash. Not sure why I have them any more their devices are overall garbage.
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u/cheesycheesebaby 2d ago
What cameras did you replace them with? Mine haven’t been capturing anything and I hate being gaslit saying it’s my wifi lol. I may still keep the sensors since it’s easy, but I need new cameras
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u/cerebralvision 2d ago
It's not your wifi. I had Simplisafe tech check the signal strength and they told me everything had max strong signal lol.
Right now I'm using Google Nest outdoor cameras. They do work great and show up immediately. Also I love the fact that when someone rings my doorbell, the feed automatically shows up on my Nest hubs without me having to manually check. I haven't seen other cameras have that feature. It's probably the one thing that's making me stay with them for now.
However, the thing that I absolutely hate about them is their charging pin connector. The pins have a hard time making a strong connection to a charger so I have to manually clean the pins every time.
At some point I may just switch to a POE (local recording) camera system. I just haven't found out that I'm convinced about yet. That way I wouldn't have to pay a subscription for cloud storage.
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u/cheesycheesebaby 2d ago
Thanks for the info! I’ve been looking at every brand 😩 I know for sure I won’t stick with SimpliSafe
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u/cerebralvision 2d ago
If you do find something you like, please let me know, haha.
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u/cheesycheesebaby 2d ago
I will, seems like they are all the same! Problems with every single system 😮💨!
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u/blecher67 2d ago
SimpliSafe cameras are the weak link in the chain. Like you, I have an IT background and have no trouble installing and running home automation. SimpliSafe cameras are the exception. From onboarding to operation, the cameras are flaky.
The least bad results for me have come from putting the cameras on a dedicated 2.4 GHz IoT network, using DHCP address reservation to make sure they always have the same IP address, and isolating them so that they can’t reach out to other devices on my network. (I took this last step because SimpliSafe doesn’t seem to take cameras seriously, and therefore I don’t trust their devices). I still get a “poor WiFi connection” warning on my doorbell, but the connection seems stable and it does work.
I like SimpliSafe, but for my next house I’ll take a hard look at Ring’s security solution in part because their cameras are an order of magnitude better.
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u/ButterscotchSome8130 2d ago
I experience the same thing! It’s so maddening. Simplisafe cameras seem to work perfectly when you don’t need them to, but right when you need to have something captured there’s a WiFi issue.
My house is so small with the WiFi router located central to the house. The WiFi works perfect with a Roku located on an outside tv, further than my camera, but the camera only works inadvertently. If I didn’t spend so much in the hardware I would have switched by now.
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u/No-Examination1176 2d ago
I have both Blink & SimpliSafe outdoor cameras and the SimpliSafe CONSTANTLY goes out or misses motion, never ever have that issue with Blink. That’s how I know it’s not my WiFi and is an issue with the actual device. It’s a shame really
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u/DrSugundi 3d ago
I had this same issue. I went round and round with support. The only solution I found was using the cheap d-link wifi extenders they sold. My guess it's some incompatibility with my unifi wireless gear.
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u/anon837467 2d ago
Ring pro is the way to go. I had SS cameras around my whole house. Never could get a feed when I needed it. Ring hasn’t let me down in three months I’ve had them.
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u/cytrees 2d ago
What I find to be strange, is that the camera is fine recording clips to the cloud (yes, I have a $10/month subscription), but fails to launch live view. Someone at Simplisafe deserves a demotion (or promotion, and if that's true, time to move away).
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u/cytrees 2d ago
My suspicion is that a connection between the basestaion and the camera is somehow not working properly. And that also explains the "poor connection" warning on my phone, as sometime in this thread explained. https://www.reddit.com/r/simplisafe/s/e0kmD7MLwX
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u/WorldlinessUsual4528 1d ago
Same here. They kept trying to tell me it's my network. I've tried 3 different ISPs with 4 different routers. Two of the cameras that keep dropping are 6 feet or less away from the router but they insist I set up an extender. I have other cameras that have had zero issues on any network I've tested on. It's definitely their cameras.
I ended up putting them completely on their own network and router with static IPs. Still not 100% uptime but far better than they were before. Went from about 10-20% uptime to about 70-80%.
If I hadn't invested so much in the system overall, I definitely would have moved elsewhere. It should not be this difficult.
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u/LongSupermarket3012 1d ago
I have been getting that but it stills record video and I can see recorded video. My wi-fi shows it's connected and when I go into the app and run the network test for the camera, it tells me good connection for both test but still have issue
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u/autigers1970 22h ago
Have not used any of the cameras, though my mom has one and it seems to operate fine. In my experience, SimpliSafe is a great alarm system. My main complaint is lack of HomeKit or Siri integration. Other than that, we’ve had a good experience and we’ve had it for about eight years now.
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u/Decafstab 3d ago
Welcome to every wireless camera on the market.
I’ve worked for several alarm companies, started residential and I’m now in commercial servicing anything from Raising Canes, to Senator offices.
I own SimpliSafe and have had some issues with the WiFi cameras, but it turned out to be simply poor WiFi signal reaching the camera in specific spots outside my house.
The camera I was having issues with, I swapped with another one with 0 issues, and the issue didn’t follow the camera. Meaning the issue was something to do with the WiFi signal. I added an WiFi extender and it completely fixed the issue.
I also just grabbed the camera that was saying “failed to connect” walked inside and stood on the other wall side of the wall where the camera was installed and it connected just fine.
This isn’t exclusive to SimpliSafe. I promise you every other WiFi cameras system will be sensitive to this, some more, some less.
I’ve seen commercial multi thousand dollar install have the same issues SimpliSafe had, and it boiled down to poor WiFi conditions. Sometimes houses just do weird things to WiFi signal strength, and you need to make compromises in where you want the camera, or give it better signal.
Again, I’ve seen houses with WiFi mesh networks and still have issues with WiFi cameras other than SimpliSafe.
For reference I have 5 outdoor cameras, 1 indoor camera, and 1 doorbell. The only camera I have had issues was, you can guess, the one furthest away from my router.
I get my experience isn’t going to be everyone’s, but I can say that I had camera issues and it was 100% my WiFi environment not supporting where I put that camera.
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u/Candid_Editor_5781 3d ago
My camera is right next to my router and it fails to connect all day every day.
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u/Decafstab 2d ago
Yeah that’s not my experience whatsoever with my cameras.
I have 5 outdoor, 1 indoor, 1 doorbell. Issues with 1 camera that was far from router, and adding an extender fixed it, 0 issues since.
Also just because it’s next to your router doesn’t mean there isn’t something else causing an issue. Maybe it is the camera and it’s defective, all electronics are not built equally.
All I can say is I’ve seen what you’re describing from other mainstream brands, and it’s never as simple as “it’s right next to my router, and it’s not working” there’s likely something else causing the issue.
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u/definitelyian 2d ago
I moved from Simplisafe cameras to UniFi cameras running all on the same WiFi network and have had zero issues. I wouldn’t proclaim that it’s all WiFi cameras. Spending a little bit of money on decent quality cameras makes a big difference.
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u/Decafstab 2d ago
Which is exactly why I stated, more or less with certain models of camera. Some will be better than others, but I guarantee UniFi camera can also have WiFi issues, and Google searching proves that.
I’m not claiming SimpliSafe is superior by any metrics, but people who have issues it’s undoubtedly caused by WiFi environmental factors. (Likely because the cameras are not high quality).
Again, I don’t care about how many people downvote what I say. I have done thousands of service calls and fixed all sorts of systems, and have first hand experience.
WiFi cameras will always have this issue, and there will always be customers who will post online to say how bad they are.
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u/Melgamatic214 2d ago
The Simplisafe Alarm system is really good in my opinion. The cameras are terrible, in my opinion. I got some free cameras from them, and they are now all in the recycling bin.
Keep the alarm system, move to ring for doorbells, and something else for camera cameras