Wifi is problematic for surveillance cameras because they are always streaming and passing data. And the data demands go up with motion and then you lose signal. A lost packet and it has to resend. It can bring the whole network down if trying to use it through a wifi router. At the very least it can slow down your system.
And you are currently experiencing this...
Unlike Netflix and other streaming services that buffer a movie, these cameras do not buffer up part of the video, so drop outs are frequent. You would be amazed how much streaming services buffer - don't believe me, start watching something and unplug your router and watch how much longer you can watch NetFlix before it freezes - mine goes 45 seconds. Now do the same with a wifi camera and it is fairly instantaneous (within the latency of the stream itself)...
The same issue applies if it is hard-wired trying to send all this non-buffer video stream through a router. Most consumer grade wifi routers are not designed to pass the constant video stream data of cameras, and since they do not buffer, you get these issues.
Reolinks will not be a step up.
There is no F-stop/aperture setting in these cameras like there is in normal picture cameras. However it is an important element of the total performance and it shows up in the "gain" setting of these cameras. The larger the aperture (smaller f-stop number), the more light the camera can pull...
ipcamtalk.com
You need to either hardwire it or spend money in a nanostation that can provide wireless transmission of video. A wifi camera does not exist that doesn't experience dropouts and other issues you are experiencing.
Dahua, Amcrest, Lorex, Hikvision all have the capability to view on your phone. Now it comes down to your budget.
For cheap, many of us have found this to be a great contender. Some will use the wifi if it is close to their router, but you can hardwire it as well.
