Issue apparently related to high resolutions for some reason

Nov 28, 2019 10:47 GMT  ·  By

If Wi-Fi stops working on your Raspberry Pi and can’t find a way to fix it, stop worrying because you’re not alone in this.

By the looks of things, the Raspberry Pi 4 Wi-Fi bug is caused by higher resolutions, with developer Enrico Zini explaining in a blog post after a series of tests that everything appears to be working correctly at resolutions of 2048x1080 pixels or below.

In other words, if you go anywhere beyond this point, you should expect the Raspberry Pi 4 to lose Wi-Fi connectivity, and according to this linked post, it doesn’t even matter what port or cable you’re using.

No workaround for the time being

One of the novelties on the Raspberry Pi 4 is the dual-monitor support, which is powered by two microHDMI ports. And while you’d be tempted to believe that one of the ports is the culprit for the bug, Zini says the same behavior is experienced with both of them.

And after trying two different HDMI cables, two SD cards, four power suppliers, and even three Raspberry Pi 4 units, the conclusion is just one: there’s something wrong with some devices and the workaround isn’t as straightforward as some expected it to be.

What’s more, it appears that many other Raspberry Pi 4 buyers encountered the same problem, so it’s pretty clear this bug isn’t necessarily an isolated incident. But at the same time, it’s not super-widespread either, so further investigation is required to determine the actual cause of the issue.

For the time being, the only way to go is to stick with a lower resolution, and given that 2048x1080 appears to be working correctly, this is the highest you can get without a fix.

I’ll continue to monitor this issue and let you know when a fix is discovered.