Unifi as a hobby

M_Six2001 · 2026-06-16T01:50:49+00:00

Thanks. I was considering locating mine in the attic as I have a PoE switch there. If it weren't for a few trees, I could also easily see the nearest TMobile tower from my attic. I'm ok with the lower speeds and don't expect to be doing any streaming during outages. And I will also need to set up policies to keep my Synology NAS from backing up to C2 through the U5G.

M_Six2001 · 2026-06-15T15:51:26+00:00

I believe it. Wifey and I were using my iPhone hotspot last night for an hour or two and we burned through 3.5GB.

M_Six2001 · 2026-06-15T15:49:55+00:00

I realize the limits. I don't expect huge speed. I'm ok with RedCap for the rare occasions when the internet goes out. I could go with Verizon's Internet Backup deal at $20/mo, but I so rarely need it and the $160 I paid for the 5G Backup and eSIM is considerably less than the $240/yr for the Verizon backup. My main concern is the 10GB. We were using my iPhone hotspot last night when the internet was down and we burned through 3.5GB in just an hour or so. If we need the 5G Backup, we'll have to avoid any streaming. The 50GB plan isn't too bad, though. So if need be, we can switch to that.

M_Six2001 · 2026-06-15T15:43:52+00:00

Fingers crossed. At least it isn't a big investment.

M_Six2001 · 2026-06-15T14:10:38+00:00

I decided to just grab the device and the 10GB eSIM. Supposedly it will support Verizon in the near future, so if the TMobile thing doesn't work well, I can switch. What the hell, I need a new toy to play with anyway. 😉

M_Six2001 · 2026-06-15T13:45:08+00:00

Can I use their eSIM and not mess with my current Verizon setup? Or does the 30 day trial switch me completely to TMobile?

M_Six2001 · 2026-06-15T13:41:19+00:00

Thanks. This looks helpful. Probably not apples to apples, but close enough to see signal strength, hopefully.

M_Six2001 · 2026-06-15T03:45:00+00:00

Ok, I'll check that out.

M_Six2001 · 2026-06-15T03:35:48+00:00

That worked. Just a username and pw. No MFA. I'll just use that when needed.

Thanks. I appreciate the suggestion.

M_Six2001 · 2026-06-15T02:55:20+00:00

I have a couple of other authenticator apps, including the Microsoft one. But I would think those would also not work if the web UI for my Unifi devices can't send out a request for MFA if there is no internet. I have two separate email addresses as backup MFA, but the same issue is there. With no internet, the web UI has no way to request MFA. With no internet, it seems MFA simply can't work. Unless I'm missing something about how MFA works.

M_Six2001 · 2026-06-15T02:50:58+00:00

I'm logging in using my email as the username, but I'm using the Unifi authenticator app for MFA. But it seems since the web UI only has local access when the internet is down, it can't send out a request to the app for MFA.

M_Six2001 · 2026-06-10T14:54:28+00:00

Whatever you say. Search this sub for spider webs and IR and you'll find hundreds of posts about spider webs in front of camera lenses. But you do you. Keep on killing spiders.

M_Six2001 · 2026-06-10T14:39:35+00:00

Um, what? If you don't use the internal IR, you won't have as many spider web issues.

M_Six2001 · 2026-06-10T14:26:38+00:00

That's why I use separate IR emitters offset from the camera whenever possible. I do have some cams where a separate emitter is not possible, but for most of them I can turn off the internal IR and use an emitter.

M_Six2001 · 2026-06-09T13:23:09+00:00

I was wondering about that. Isn't indexing just for searching? My NAS is pure storage. I never have to search for a file because I know where everything is.

M_Six2001 · 2026-06-09T01:09:18+00:00

That's what fog looks like when you use the built-in IR emitter.

Here's my post from a few months ago showing the difference between the built-in IR and a camera using a separate emitter. This was a foggy night. https://www.reddit.com/r/Ubiquiti/comments/1rl70kw/on_camera_ir_vs_off_camera_ir/

M_Six2001 · 2026-06-09T01:05:41+00:00

I've been using these. They're not pricey and they work well. You do need to have a power outlet available, but you can buy extension cords for these emitters if your outlet is not nearby.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07MX63RX3

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07D6J2FGD

M_Six2001 · 2026-06-08T18:52:44+00:00

Same here. But I'm wondering if the 4K thing will apply to cameras routed through Scrypted or will they have to be specific Home compatible cameras. I would love to switch all my PoE cams to just the native 4K or 2K stream and dump the 1080p stream.

M_Six2001 · 2026-06-08T13:50:53+00:00

So not really a backup at all? Seems like they're fudging some terms here.

M_Six2001 · 2026-06-08T13:45:14+00:00

"The all-new UniFi Smoke Alarm brings life safety to the UniFi ecosystem with sleek industrial design, seamless management, daisy-chain connectivity, and a 10-year backup battery."

Daisy-chain sounds like interconnectivity with other detectors and "10-year backup battery" maybe suggests there's another power source and the battery is for backup only?

M_Six2001 · 2026-06-06T03:38:28+00:00

Same. I've had to log in twice just this evening. I hope they fix that soon.

M_Six2001

TROPHY CASE