# wi-fi



## rcd902 (Nov 2, 2010)

So....my new Kindle connected to the wi-fi network at my work without problem yesterday....for a while. It lost connection at one point, and would never re-connect. Now, I'm at a different location, and i cant get it to connect here either. Very strong signal strength. Correct password. All I get is the "Unable to connect to wi-fi network" message.


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## cargalmn (Sep 29, 2010)

Have you tried doing a reboot yet?  (the kind where you slide the power button over and hold it for around 20 seconds)

I was having a similar problem and a reboot cleared it and the problem hasn't repeated...


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## rcd902 (Nov 2, 2010)

No.....I did a 'restart' from the menu...but haven't tried that. I'll give it a shot.


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## HappyGuy (Nov 3, 2008)

Ummm ... is WiFi turned on?  Just askin'  Having worked a help desk, you'd be surprised at the number of calls I got about broken computers that weren't plugged in.


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## sptrout (Sep 21, 2010)

Is the router's (s) SSID turned on?  My K3 will NOT connect to a router if the SSID if turned off.  Turn it on, and it will connect within 5-10 seconds.  BTW - - I use all the other available security options in my Wi-Fi network, so SSID is the only possible cause of my problem.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

If the SSID is not broadcast, the Kindle will not find the network automatically. . .but you can tell it to look for it.  Go to settings from the home screen.  Click 'view' on the 'WiFi Settings' section and you'll see at the bottom a link that says 'enter other Wi-Fi-Network'.  There you can enter infor for networks where SSID isn't broadcast, among other things.


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## sptrout (Sep 21, 2010)

Ann in Arlington said:


> If the SSID is not broadcast, the Kindle will not find the network automatically. . .but you can tell it to look for it. Go to settings from the home screen. Click 'view' on the 'WiFi Settings' section and you'll see at the bottom a link that says 'enter other Wi-Fi-Network'. There you can enter infor for networks where SSID isn't broadcast, among other things.


I have done what you suggest several times and it cannot find my router (K3 about 3' from router ). When I am in my router's setup screen all I have to do is turn on the SSID and the K3 will connect within seconds without me touching it. Turn it back off, and the K3 loses its connection. I am using firmware 3.0.3, but I have had the same issue with the two previous releases. Luckily I have no interest in using my K3 for Internet surfing so the only time it needs to be connected is when I download a book.


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## cargalmn (Sep 29, 2010)

sptrout said:


> I have done what you suggest several times and it cannot find my router (K3 about 3' from router ). When I am in my router's setup screen all I have to do is turn on the SSID and the K3 will connect within seconds without me touching it. Turn it back off, and the K3 loses its connection. I am using firmware 3.0.3, but I have had the same issue with the two previous releases. Luckily I have no interest in using my K3 for Internet surfing so the only time it needs to be connected is when I download a book.


Why not just leave the SSID turned on? I believe that's how most folks have their routers configured - that's how we have ours set up and we don't have any problems...


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## sptrout (Sep 21, 2010)

cargalmn said:


> Why not just leave the SSID turned on? I believe that's how most folks have their routers configured - that's how we have ours set up and we don't have any problems...


I agree that most do leave their SSID turned on (and do not change the router's default name), but they really should not. It is step #1 (although a very small step) in having a secure network. I do have several other devices on the wireless side of the router and none of them have a problem with the SSID being turned off so it is a small problem with the K3. I have read on several boards about people having problems connecting and I always comment that SSID may be the issue. Could be that my K3 has a problem, but I am not sure it is a big enough problem for me to do anything about it (replace it). If I liked surfing the Internet then it would be a problem.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

Hmm.  Well, all I can say is our SSID is NOT broadcast. . .but when I told my Kindle what it was and provided the password, it connected without any problem. . . . .That said, if I'm home and want on the internet I use a computer.   I really only turn wireless on when I want a book that's not already on my Kindle.

I have also heard that the Kindle needs a no higher than "g" network and some folks who have "n" routers have had problems.  But that's total hearsay and I've just told you all I know!


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## sptrout (Sep 21, 2010)

Ann in Arlington said:


> Hmm. Well, all I can say is our SSID is NOT broadcast. . .but when I told my Kindle what it was and provided the password, it connected without any problem. . . . .That said, if I'm home and want on the internet I use a computer.  I really only turn wireless on when I want a book that's not already on my Kindle.
> 
> I have also heard that the Kindle needs a no higher than "g" network and some folks who have "n" routers have had problems. But that's total hearsay and I've just told you all I know!


I think that my K3 must have a "bug" that is preventing it from connecting to a router with the SSID turned off. BTW - - My router is a pre-N router so that is not an issue here. I guess I need to decide if I want to return the unit or just turn on the SSID if this becomes more of a headache than it is today.


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## emalvick (Sep 14, 2010)

I found that turning the SSID on as suggested allowed me to connect easily, but as soon as it turned off it disappeared as suggested in an earlier response.

However, when I entered the SSID directly as Ann suggested for the hidden network, I have no problem whether the network is hidden (as I have it by default) or not.  As for broadcasting the SSID or not, I don't think it is terribly important for security.  If your wireless network is truly secure, broadcasting the SSID shouldn't hurt anything. WPA or WEP encoding provide the real security that will keep people from randomly access your wireless network with perhaps the exception of dedicated hackers who can probably figure any system out.

As an aside, I had a roommate that was a computer science major that was able to hack almost any wireless network including those with the SSID hidden.  He was able to detect the presence of the wireless signal even though the SSID wasn't broadcast, and once that happened, he was pretty much able to find his way in.  Since then WPA2 and other improvements have occurred, but he made it sound like someone would always figure ways around if they wanted to.  In my current residence I do hide the SSID because almost every house has a wireless network.  In that case, while my network might be detectable, a hacker would see the other non-hidden networks rather than trying to ID the specific signal being detected.  It's always easier to go after what's visible when there is a lot of visible options.


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## sptrout (Sep 21, 2010)

Well, I finally found the answer (at least for me).  When entering the network ID, if I enter all letters in upper case the K3 will now connect correctly even though they are all in lower case in my router.  I do not believe that this is typical networking operation, but I am satisfied that all appears to be working correctly now.

Did I miss this detail while reading K3's Manual?  I do not remember it saying that all "network ID letters have to be in upper case," or do I just have a unusual situation?


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## Elk (Oct 4, 2010)

Weird.

SSID's are case sensitive.  I would expect the Kindle SSID set-up to be case sensitive as well.


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