GX7: Software bug in Panasonic Image App on Android?

I use the Wi-fi feature on my GX7 to connect to Samsung android-based phones such as the Note III. The Panasonic Image app refuses to connect to the camera unless I turn off Mobile Data on the phone, after which it instantly connects. The problem with this is I often forget to re-enable Mobile Data and wonder why my phone is not browsing properly.

I can't think of a good technical reason why accessing data over the air while connected to a camera over wi-fi should need to be disabled.

Does anyone know if this is indeed a bug, or do Panasonic regard it is a "feature" ? It has been present for many months now with no sign of a corrective update.

That's fascinating, when I am well and out of bed I will test it with my nexus5. I shoot remotely a lot (camera on a pole) and have suffered big WiFi dropouts when near wire mesh fencing.
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Adrian

My Android phone quit working with the image app a few months back until I changed a setting. The problem was they added a "feature" that tests WiFi connections to make sure they can connect to the internet and drops them if they cannot. Since the GX7 cannot connect your phone to the Google servers it gets dropped.

See my earlier post for details on the setting I changed in my phone to correct this. Your phone may be different.

Dave Lively said:

My Android phone quit working with the image app a few months back until I changed a setting. The problem was they added a "feature" that tests WiFi connections to make sure they can connect to the internet and drops them if they cannot. Since the GX7 cannot connect your phone to the Google servers it gets dropped.

See my earlier post for details on the setting I changed in my phone to correct this. Your phone may be different.

Click to expand...

+1

I'm guessing the OP's "mobile data" turns off/on the "Auto Network Switch" setting. I have mobile data on, and it works fine (with the auto switch off, Samsung Galaxy S3). Do as Dave points out in his link and see if it works with your devices.

Interesting. I have confirmed your findings. I get a stable connection either by turning off Mobile Data (Settings: Connections: More Networks: Mobile Networks) or by turning off Auto Network Switch (Settings: Connections: Wifi: Advanced).

Auto Network Switch is billed as Samsung's way of finding "unstable" networks, but the definition of unstable appears to include not being able to see the internet, which of course will happen if the wi-fi connection is from the phone to a GX-7 and not to a wi-fi access point connected to the internet.

If I connect by switching off Auto Network Switch I get an error message warning me that the network is unstable and advising me to enable Auto Network Switch. Crucially, the link to the camera stays up, contrary to earlier reports I have read. Possibly Samsung have changed this behaviour recently. The error message also hints at the need for the connection to be able to fall back to using Mobile Data if the wi-fi connection cannot see the internet. If I connect with ANS on, and then switch it off (leaving Mobile Data on throughout) I remain connected.

However in my house I have multiple Wireless Access points and I need ANS enabled. If I turn it back on, but leave Mobile Data on, the phone never finds the camera in the connection dialogue. If I turn off Mobile Data it connects instantly. After connecting I can re-enable Mobile Data and stay connected.

So the bug would appear to be that the phone requires Mobile Data to be off, or access to it disabled via ANS, just long enough to make a connection, and doesn't care if it comes back on later. I hope someone from Panasonic's Android team is reading this.