#1:Arlo Essential Spotlight Camera - 1 Pack - Wireless Security, 1080p Video, Color Night Vision, 2 Way Audio, Wire-Free, Direct to WiFi No Hub Needed, Works with Alexa, Black - VMC2030B
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5.0 out of 5 stars Hidden fees and poor suuport
Reviewed in the United States on October 11, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
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Update on camera. This has hidden fees that address not disclosed. The camera firmware needs updating, but this requires a few that they charge to update the firmware. And it is not cheap. 149.00 to have technical support and to update a camera. Customer support is outsourced to some foreigner that doesn't speak or understand English. So my advice get another camera.
Very pleased with the purchase of our ARLO essential spotlight camera. Very easy to set up and install. The mount that comes with it is perfect and supports the camera very well. The clarity of the video capture is perfect. The audio capture is impressive too. By setting the zones, it helps with the notifications of activity in the zone(s). Being able to take still pictures is a very useful tool. We love this camera and the functions it provides. The cost after the promotional period is set perfectly at 2.99 per month. paired with our in home security system our total cost is still below 30.00. Compared with ADT at 59.99 this is a bargain. Highly recommend.
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Jumpingjackjim
5.0 out of 5 stars Plays well with your existing Arlo stuff, some other brands of smart stuff, and works efficiently.
Reviewed in the United States on October 11, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I bought this camera as an add-on for my Arlo Pro 2 4-camera system. The cameras for the Pro 2 are difficult to find new and just as expensive as this camera, so I tried this Arlo Essential Spotlight camera. They advertise a longer battery life, a higher-quality night-time color picture, and the spotlight. So far I am very happy with those claims. I'm now at the maximum number (5) of cameras that a free subscription will allow. It added itself to my base unit with no issues at all. The Pro 2 cameras and the Essential Spotlight camera will also work with some other systems, including Samsung Smart Things. I use the Samsung Smart Wi-Fi plug switch to control a light, and I can use its phone app to run my Arlo. An issue: the Samsung App likes to arm and disarm my system at random times. I'm working at figuring out the reason and maybe a fix; meanwhile back to the Arlo phone app for my cameras. The Samsung app also seems to be controlling my phone wi-fi and turning it on and off randomly. Another minor annoyance: the spotlight isn't all that bright nor does it stay on but about 10-15 seconds. There might be controls for that in a paid subscription but none on a free setup. By the way, you get a 30-day subscription trial with the purchase (covering ONLY this new camera). No bright/time controls in it. At night it's bright enough to startle a lurker but that's about it. I WISH IT STILL USED THE MAGNETIC MOUNT SYSTEM THE ARLO PRO 2 USES. I'm still satisfied; if I choose to go with the paid subscription and add a sixth camera, I will buy another Arlo Essential Spotlight camera.
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Jennifer
5.0 out of 5 stars Great so far
Reviewed in the United States on January 4, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: XLVerified Purchase
I bought two cameras, one for a high traffic area and one for a lower traffic area. After two months, the front door high traffic camera is at 50% battery life which is better than I expected- this camera can trigger up to 20 times per day for me. The back door triggers about 4 events per day and is still at 90%! There is a slight delay in video- you miss the first few seconds of the ‘event’ once the camera turns on. But the picture is clear, night vision with or without spotlight is great, the app is easy to use, set up was quick and easy, and I have not experienced the disconnecting problems others refer to. I liked them so much I recently bought another to add. I would recommend
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TommyBoy
5.0 out of 5 stars Can't Believe It's All Working
Reviewed in the United States on May 9, 2021
Color: BlackSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I’m really quite amazed. I purchased the Orbi 4g LTE modem-router for non-cable WiFi connection and matched the Orbi to 4 Arlo Essential security cameras. Should work, right? Never did anything like this before. Like so many of these electronic combinations that I’ve theorized about in the past, I assumed this wouldn’t work either. I talked to several advisors – Orbi technicians, Arlo community contributors. Everyone said it should work. And it did!!!! Amazing!!
The Orbi LBR20 was a bit of a challenge. The Obi app was skittish … worked sometimes, sometimes got stuck. The password used to set-up my Orbi account (Netgear) was not the same as the password needed to activate the Orbi modem-router for Internet connection; the Orbi password is printed on the label at the bottom of the Orbi unit … Oh, that password.
PureTalk (really AT&T) indicated that they had coverage for my barn’s Zip Code but could not guarantee the Sim card would work with Orbi LBR20 … not quite the confidence booster I needed. Ok … so brave as I am, I purchased the PureTalk Sim card and a 6 Gig data plan.
After everything arrived, I first tried to connect the Orbi wireless modem-router to the Internet using the Orbi app as instructed. Nothing automatic here. After several tries, the Orbi app asked for the APN number of my Internet service provider. What’s an APN for goodness sake? Googled “PureTalk APN” and came up with “RESELLER”. I entered “RESELLER … then my PureTalk phone number as the only User ID I knew and then my PureTalk password. No contact and no Internet. Frustration!! The next day, I called PureTalk and asked for the APN number, user ID and password. After transferring through 4 different technical service associates, I received the information (APN = RESELLER, User ID = Not set up yet, Password = Not set up yet). So, I entered “RESELLER” and nothing else (no User ID and no Password). Success!! Internet access!!! Oh, so you don’t need a password in this case!! But … I was now connected to the Internet through a Orbi 4g LTE wireless modem-router … no cable. Once I got the password and APN right, Orbi activated as promised.
The next step was to see if the Arlo Essential WiFi cameras would connect to the Orbi LBR20 and then connect to the Internet. The Arlo app was needed to activate the cameras. The Arlo app worked more reliably and consistently than the Orbi app. One by one, each of the Arlo Essential cameras activated. I could see my home office on each of the cameras. Amazing!!! What vanity looking at myself on all four cameras!!! Still, this was at home … and not 25 miles away … in the middle of nowhere. To be safe … I purchased two antennas to attach to the Orbi (not provided in the Orbi box), just in case the Orbi needed the extra help in capturing the wireless signal in the rural Midwest. The Orbi had no problem at home. Every WiFi device in the house wanted to connect to the Orbi … I had to resist. But would the same happen at the barn?
I unplugged everything and transported the Orbi and the Arlo Essential cameras to the barn. Located the Orbi 14 feet above ground. Plugged it in. Immediate Internet connection!!! You’ve got to be kidding!!! Installed the Arlo cameras. Each of the cameras … one by one … immediately linked to the Orbi … just like at home. You’ve got to be kidding!! Now … 25 miles away with no cable … I have the views as shown below.
There are still questions. The jury is still out. What will the battery life be for each of the cameras be? I fully charged the cameras yesterday; today they are at 92-94 %, though was experimenting with features a lot yesterday. The WiFi signal from the Orbi to the Arlo cameras appears strong. The barn is wood frame with steel siding. Two cameras show four bars and two show two. One of the cameras showing two bars showed four bars yesterday. I may need to reposition the cameras. So … everything is still new. We’ll see.
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CMcD
5.0 out of 5 stars great quality for the price, impressive
Reviewed in the United States on September 10, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I'm having so much fun with this camera. I'm 73 yrs old and I downloaded manual. Easy to understand. I practiced by setting it outdoors at night to see what I would find. Next morning I had pictures of a mouse, bunny, and coyote. Excellent photos. During daytime I recorded a friend in the yard. My friend was impressed when I shared the video on cell phone. Again excellent quality. I'm so excited for quality at this price. Haven't tried all options yet, but I have no doubt they'll operate as good as the ones I've already tried. I'm ordering another one for other side of house. They can be hand-held, screwed to wall, lay on ground (I did all) and videos are great. You can even take snapshots, talk on it, use spotlight, scare coyotes, share with friends via emails,You Tube, use siren, etc etc etc.
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Old Salt
5.0 out of 5 stars Arlo Essential XL Spotlight - Does the job
Reviewed in the United States on February 5, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: XLVerified Purchase
I've installed 4 of the Essential XL Spotlight cameras at my property. I was attracted to this model because of the claimed 1 year battery charge life. I also signed up for the Arlo Smart coverage to get the added features, including differentiating detection between people, vehicles, animals and other. After 1 week, I find that the camera's features result in very good alarm coverage of the perimeter of my house. Motion detection is excellent and somewhat exceeds the claimed range. The ability to define activity zones is very helpful. The spotlight is a little weaker light than I had envisaged, but does definitely improve nighttime video. Battery life versus the claimed 1 year is still to be determined, as I've only had the cameras one week, but I am encouraged by the fact that they are all at 97% - 98% battery charge.
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Rebecca71
5.0 out of 5 stars Easy install and set up
Reviewed in the United States on November 30, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
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Love my Arlo system. Ive had them for 2 yrs now. Only 1 out of 3 broke (i dropped it like 15 times and now it doesnt charge so battery has to be remived and charged) but camera still works like a champ through the snow and rain! Easy set up and install. Love the wireless setup. I just go around every so many months and pull down with a step ladder and grabbers and recharge. It all depends on my recording schedule. Full time recording and full time at home the batteries last a month but then we have alot of movement around my house! If you are looking for a security system for when you are away or at night and dont want to spend alot of money or be monitored by a company full time this is great. Personally just upgraded to two more so 5 in totall on my system. Have been great in catching the bear sneaking up and eating my chickens!
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John M
5.0 out of 5 stars Does exactly what I expected it to do
Reviewed in the United States on February 14, 2022
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: XLVerified Purchase
I’ve spent a lot of time going back-and-forth on buying my first surveillance camera. I looked at all the options and each one of them seem to have a trade-off or two. After a few weeks of use, I can say that this camera is a very good option. Set up was very easy. I had no trouble at all pairing it with my Orbi Wi-Fi mesh system. It was also very easy to mount out on the exterior of our house. The resolution is very good and it recognizes both people activity and automobile activity without fail. I was catching some motion alerts from large trucks going past my house however a slight tweak in the motion detection area solved that. When I get an alert, it takes about 5 to 10 seconds for me to get to the live view. Granted you do have to pay the recurring storage fee in order to save and have full access to all your event library but it’s a fairly nominal fee (although this will increase if I add another camera). So far, the battery appears to be almost completely full since install (however I don’t leave the live feed up for long usually). Overall a solid performer.
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T.V.P
5.0 out of 5 stars My piece of mind
Reviewed in the United States on July 24, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
We did our research on all the options, RING, NEST, KUNA and ARLO. We choose ARLO. We liked the solar aspect available for most models. As we age, a ladder is risky business for my husband and I. We are happy with the ease installation. The app for set up is great. T
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Camera + Solar charger = best combination
Reviewed in the United States on May 20, 2022
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
Due to recent robberies, I decided on a name brand camera that I can place out of sight but still view the area I need. The field of view and picture quality are exactly what I need. My network is a mesh system that I can not turn off the 5 ghz band. You can get the camera to connect to the network via the app even if phone is on 5G and camera is on 2.4g. You can complete setup using the website once the camera is on the network. Setting up monitor zones and notifications is very easy. Arlo Cloud storage is free for 90 days. Combined with Arlo doorbell in one place to review makes it easy to do remotely. It also works well to view on Alexa FireSticks and TVs.
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Little Camera - Quality and Price
Reviewed in the United States on September 2, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I bought my Arlo a couple of weeks ago because our building garage floor will soon be resurfaced and I will be parking outside for a week in September. My plan is to park right in front of my unit. To keep an eye on my car, my Arlo is positioned to view the street in front of my place. Set up was a breeze. The color is great. The audio is great. The videos are super. It picks up movement very well and sends me a notification. I am very pleased with my Arlo Camera and less worried about parking my car on the street. Thank you!
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j
5.0 out of 5 stars We LOVE Arlo
Reviewed in the United States on January 8, 2022
Color: WhiteSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
This is our second set of Arlo cameras we've purchased for ourselves; just to upgrade and add additional cameras. We also purchased an additional set for my in laws who love them!!! They are so easy to set up and keep an eye on the house, inside and out, while we're away. As well no subscription required was a huge reason we initially started purchasing these. We did purchase the solar panels also to assist in charging our outdoors ones since they're in high areas. The battery life is amazing also, but that depends how much use the cameras get. I could go on and on but most importantly...We will be Arlo customers for life.
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Tom
5.0 out of 5 stars It's rechargeable
Reviewed in the United States on July 4, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
Very easily was picked up by my current Arlo 4 camera system. The main thing I was worried about is does this thing have a recharging cable and is it rechargeable. Buying one of these cameras with the non chargeable battery inside is basically stupidity. If you can't charge it don't buy it. Get the hd if you can. You're gonna feel pretty stupid if something happens and you go to get the footage and you can't make out anything. Since this is my 5th camera I haven't mounted it I basically move it where I want it that day if I'm going to have a delivery I can move it outside if I want to watch something specific I can move it there as long as it's within Wi-Fi range
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Cynthia G.
5.0 out of 5 stars Very clear video
Reviewed in the United States on December 22, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: XLVerified Purchase
We have this in our backyard. When we go outside at night to let the dogs out, I appreciate the spotlight feature. And the notification message I get on my phone also identifies that it's an animal on screen, not a human. I didn't realize it would do that so I really like that feature. The video is clear, it captures sound, and the battery lasts a very long time. We ended up getting more cameras for other parts of the yard.
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Danielle
5.0 out of 5 stars Better than expected
Reviewed in the United States on October 23, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I received this camera in yesterday and immediately plugged it in to charge. Later that evening I began trying to connect. I had already downloaded the app and set up an account before receiving the camera. All were very easily done. I could not get it to connect. Then after taking my time I realized I was trying to connect to the wrong camera. One I figured that out connection was quick. A couple minute firmware update and I was off. I toyed with all the settings and put it in the second story window and had my daughter to run around the back drive to set it off and to see the night vision settings. All in all I am very impressed with this product. I set myself up as the main administator and sent links to my wife and daughter so they can have access to it as well but not change settings. I will be ordering more.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Easy to set up and Good Picture
Reviewed in the United States on October 21, 2020
Color: BlackSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I am 2 days in on these cameras and found them very easy to set up. My only hiccup was I chose the wrong essential camera option in the app. Once I chose the other set up was a breeze. There isn't a manual in the box, but it is readily available online so I pulled it up on my laptop to assist me during set up.
Battery life so far is great even with some squirrels setting off the motion detection (I have since turned animal detection off) and us coming and going quite a bit I am still at 99%. The manual explains where the motion detection is on the picture so it was easy to narrow that to my porch, my driveway, etc. to avoid picking up every car or dog walker that went by. You can also set the motion detection to trigger with animals, people, vehicles or other motion to customize your usage. You can also set the motion detection sensitivity.
Video quality is very good both during the day and night! There is a bit of a lag (a second or two) from the time it is triggered to it notifying my phone for me to look at the camera and then again with the camera loading but it is recording the entire time. I think that is understandable and do not find it terribly inhibitive. The only glitch I have had so far is the microphone sometimes not connecting when I tried it. That could be a result of my own wi-fi. I noticed my signal strength is not as good at the front door as it is in the back and driveway. I may need to boost that.
I looked at others (blink, ring) and the reviews always turned me off. I searched for recommended cameras and found these which seemed to have the best reviews at this price point. Overall, so far, I am very satisfied with my purchase.
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Jack Bonhomme
5.0 out of 5 stars Great replacement camera for our established Arlo Pro 2 line of cameras
Reviewed in the United States on March 13, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
We already have the Arlo Pro 2 4 pack cameras and needed an extra camera for another room in the house. We were planning on purchasing another Pro 2. Turns out they've been discontinued, though still available at a discounted price. But when you look at the specs on the Essential Spotlight camera, it can do everything the Pro 2 does AND it's less money. Plus we have the added bonus of the spotlight. So far the new camera is working just as well as our Pro 2's, but with the added benefit of a MUCH LONGER battery life. It appears we will be able to go quite a long time before we need to recharge the essential camera.
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Angela Burnett
5.0 out of 5 stars Clearly Amazing
Reviewed in the United States on April 8, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I purchased this to actually catch a raccoon living in my attic. The first night of having the camera installed in the area I needed, allowed me to get rid of that pesky raccoon in my attic. The clarity is perfect and it was quick to detect movement so I could act fast. The audio is a little slow but that is ok because that was not the focal point for me. I liked the alarm feature on the camera as well, even though it was not necessary for this situation but great in others. The best part about this camera is there are no wires, plug-in and charge and put anywhere you want to monitor any area without having to worry about wiring and you can monitor on your phone, tablet, or computer.
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Mekutataki
5.0 out of 5 stars Great value for the money!
Reviewed in the United States on September 27, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
we have several of these cameras, they work great. Just make sure when you add a camera, it us compatible with your basestation. We ended up needing to buy a new basestatoon when we added an essential camera to our pro system.
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SDeuel
5.0 out of 5 stars Wouldn't connect, 3 others did great??? PROBLEM FIXED!!!
Reviewed in the United States on November 23, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
Wouldn't connect, 3 others did great??? Worked with tech support and basically did everything over and over but they did take the time to try to check phone/wifi settings. At the end of the day, this unit just wouldn't connect as if there was something blocking it. Sent it back for a replacement. We'll see what happens....The 3 other cameras all work great! Story's not over yet.
Working with Spectrum and ARLO got the solution fixed!!
Camera works great!
4.0 out of 5 stars Somewhere between an Arlo Pro 2 and 3 -- plus Wifi
Reviewed in the United States on July 14, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
This camera is perfect for what it does. It gives you all the benefits of having an Arlo camera (battery powered, great app, reliable smart alerts, etc) without needing a base station. In my case I have a very large property and have covered much of it with outdoor wireless access points so my WiFi coverage is MUCH larger than my base station coverage. I have three Arlo Pro 2's that cover that area and I have two Arlo Go's (send data over Verizon instead of WiFi) that cover locations outside my base station coverage area. With the Essential camera I can replace the Go's no problem. Bottom line for me is that these are an perfect fit for anyone with a large area and is comfortable setting up access points (I recommend Ubiquiti's line of switches, gateways, and access points).
The reason I give it 4 stars instead of 5 is because I believe this camera is needlessly hobbled. The first issue is that it has a micro USB port for charging instead of the magnetic charging option on the Arlo Pro 3's. The second issue is that the battery is not removable/replaceable. For some this may be a dealbreaker and it almost is for me. I can only hope they come out with a Essential Pro camera that has direct-to-WiFi, but also the replaceable battery and magnetic charging.
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Jill G.
4.0 out of 5 stars Yay! No base station required!
Reviewed in the United States on August 2, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
The base station has always been the weakest link: it goes offline frequently and I lose all my cameras. Finally, there’s a wireless Arlo that doesn’t require a base station. It works well. My biggest complaint is that it doesn’t have a removable battery, so I can’t have a spare charged and ready to swap out.
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Cat Lady
4.0 out of 5 stars Not Ready for Prime Time!!
Reviewed in the United States on August 9, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
Got this on Friday, charged it up over night, spent 3 hours Saturday trying to get it to work then chatted online for another 3 hours before we finally got it up and running. There is no manual for this yet and the google searches are misleading for this new Arlo camera. The chat reps were also not too familiar with it, and they had to install and uninstall camera many times, reset factory settings, some things could only be set up on the website, others only on the phone. I was ready to return it when the camera suddenly started to work. Turns out it only captures up to 15 -20 feet away. Arlo is a good company so hope they get these glitches fixed soon.
Update: Very disappointed. Only works when it wants to. I've had it 5 days. Has only worked 2 days. Battery already dropped to 60%. Get responses from Arlo email support that helps. Aafter a week it is finally up and running. Would give it a 5 star except for the difficult start-up.
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Lynda B.
4.0 out of 5 stars Camera can handle all security situations.
Reviewed in the United States on August 11, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
Handles all security situations. knows when it is a package, it knows when it is a person, Knows when it is an animal. I don't know how they make that work. Can choose security area to monitor. Battery is amazing, twice as long and the PRO 2 battery. HD handles nicely most lighting situation except direct sunlight, still better than my Arlo Pro 2. Security light is good to help improve video of what set off the camera. It has a siren and E911 option but have not used it. The sound and microphone is very clear. Cool to access WIFI directly without using a base and has its own schedule. No wires to use this camera. The only thing that I have found annoying is that to use these cool features of this camera is that you have to subscribe to their Premier or Elite Service. I am considering replacing my other 4 Arlo Camera's including my Pro 2 on a single base to be all Arlo Essentials cameras.
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Jon
4.0 out of 5 stars Great camera! Hurt by the battery life / motion detection range
Reviewed in the United States on September 23, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
The camera quality and overall motion detection is great and well worth the extra 30-40 bucks compared to those Chinese knockoff cameras. First of all it has it's own dedicated app that you can set motion zones and it comes with 3 months trial of their service. Obviously it having an SD card would be way better with a free compared to $2 a month. The motion detection overall is great but I just wish it was a bit farther I also loveeee the spotlight feature it deters people from getting close at night. The battery life is decent mine activates a lot so maybe that's why but I usually get to about 70% after 6 days or so mines close to my window so I can charge it up by leaving one of my power bricks connected to it and charging it in about 30 minutes so not too bad if I have to do that every few weeks.
Not sure if the camera has this feature if someone can let me know. But the ability to record a few seconds before an event so that you miss full events less often? Sometimes I get videos of someone passing the camera but not them approaching it.
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Team Redline
4.0 out of 5 stars Ready to go, out of the box!
Reviewed in the United States on October 5, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
Super simple setup! It legit took me longer to look up my Wifi password than it did to get the first camera up and mounted. I am initially giving this only 4 out of 5 stars due to the battery drain. I have Wifi extenders arriving today and if they help the battery life, I will change this rating.
Things we like so far:
1) Very easy to set up. All three cameras found my Wifi and we were instantly online
2) Simple to install the app on different devices. We loaded it onto our Android and Apple based phones as well as one tablet. All work GREAT! (one drawback, if you login, you bump off whoever else may have been logged in which actually makes sense)
3) Great picture quality and motion sensing. We have not yet modified the reporting area because the cameras are covering exactly what we want.
4) Auto spotlight feature at night is GREAT! I'm sure that scared away Mr. Raccoon this morning as he was investigating the pumpkin decorations on the front porch! Backyard is not quite as clear at night, but that is understandable since it's a much larger area--we could still clearly make out the critters that paid the yard a visit.
5) Ease of mind. Working from home due to Covid, my office is in my house where I can't always hear the doorbell/knock. This ensures I always know when people are at my door.
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Latayna Sikes
4.0 out of 5 stars I like it but…
Reviewed in the United States on March 21, 2022
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I recently purchased a new home and wanted to get new cameras. I already had the Arlo Pro 2 cameras so I decided to upgrade. When I saw the essential spotlight cameras, I was excited. The price was good, I liked the new features and it connected to my existing base. What Arlo fails to tell you is that after 3 months, you no longer get the 7 day video storage notifications unless you sign up for a subscription. I only purchased the cameras because of my experience with the Arlo Pro 2. Had I know Arlo would pull this, I would have never put the essential cameras. Don’t get me wrong, I do like the spotlight and the color night vision features. I am just disappointed that I got the wool pulled over my eyes because they decided to keep that little tidbit to themselves. According to the support tech at Arlo, if you upgrade your base station, you should be able to get the 7 days worth of video storage. The only thing is, the upgraded base stations are out of stock. In the meantime, you can connect a USB toggle and view the notifications that are saved there on your computer. Unfortunately, you cannot view them from your phone.
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dogsareup
4.0 out of 5 stars So far so good, but battery indicator issues on app and web page (UPDATE - fixed by firmware update)
Reviewed in the United States on November 29, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I just received my Arlo Essential Spotlight camera a few days ago, and have been mostly happy with it. It was really easy to set up, good video, able to identify people and animals from other movement, and notifies me with emails and on the phone when it detects motion. The one issue I have is that the battery indicator on both the app and on the web page does not update. At first I thought I was not charging it properly as I would plug it in to charge and it would not show the percentage increasing or even show the lightning bolt to indicating it was in the process of charging. At one point, I ended up restarting the camera and after I did that, it showed it was charging and it updated the percentage. It showed 100% along with the lightning bolt charging indicator for 24 hours, even after I had unplugged it from the charger. I am not sure if this is a problem with the device or if it is an issue with the firmware. I will be contacting Arlo support to see what they have to say.
UPDATE 12/1: I tried the Arlo chat support - pretty useless. Had me try things like logging out and back into app, reinstalling app, etc. Latest said to let battery run completely down and then charge again. Anyway, I posted the issue on the Arlo community forum and someone (I believe from Arlo) responded that their developers are looking into the issue and hope to have a fix soon. In the meantime, I have found that if I restart the camera from the app or website, it updates the battery indicator with whatever it is at the time of the restart, though it does not update it again until another restart.
Update 12/9: After posting on the Arlo community forum, I got some useful help. Arlo was aware of a battery indicator issue and released a firmware update a few days ago to fix it. I waited for the update, which never pushed to my phone overnight as it was supposed to. I finally synced (reset) my camera and it received the update just after the sync. Finally now it is showing the actual battery level, and it shows the lightning bolt charging indicator when it is plugged into charge. Yay! I advise anyone having issues with an Arlo camera to use the Arlo community forum for help as they are very responsive and helpful.
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Logan Schlechte
4.0 out of 5 stars Awesome Camera with a sub-par mount
Reviewed in the United States on October 20, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
Great camera to throw up anywhere, it only records when there's motion and the app keeps all your recordings neatly organized by date. The battery isn't great if you have high traffic, I set mine to only run at night and it records 80-100 clips a night, giving me a few weeks of battery. Keep the camera accessable, and it's better for front porch watch (2-3 clips a day).
My only problem is the mount, which is a screw to hold a ball joint in place, in a flimsy plastic shell. It works, but my camera will slide, or I have to over tighten the screw to hold the camera weight in place.
Overall I'd buy another, but upgrade the mount.
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J. Salzenstein
VINE VOICE
4.0 out of 5 stars Not the best Arlo devices (cameras)
Reviewed in the United States on December 1, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I've had three versions of the Arlo cameras and these are my LEAST favorite. I realized they are the "essential" (ie "basic") line, but at this price - and being Arlo - the video quality should definitely be better than it is, especially at night.
These are also sold as alternatives to the old spotlights (just light, no camera) but the light on these cameras is TERRIBLE- it rarely goes on unless there's a bear 10-feet from the camera, and even then it goes off after a few seconds. I've played with the settings for HOURS to adjust the range, sensitivity, etc. and gave up out of frustration. I'm now debating whether I should just give them away and buy the Spotlight Cameras or go with a new system. I've got 6 cams inside and don't really want two systems, but I also don't want to spend more money on Arlo products if they aren't going to work well - especially since I just spent this much on cameras that are all but useless...
4.0 out of 5 stars Probably better out there for the money
Reviewed in the United States on March 17, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: XLVerified Purchase
It randomly goes offline. Ha full charge with the optional solar panel. I am using the 4g hotspot made by the same company. I have other devices hooked to the hotspot and they stay connected. Makes me doubt the camera as I never know when it will be offline. I keep the spotlight off as it is used to monitor wild game. The IR is mediocre at best maybe 10’ of view in front of camera using IR only.
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Gatefan1565
4.0 out of 5 stars Good Camera, Recharging Sucks
Reviewed in the United States on December 5, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I needed another Arlo camera to add to my Arlo system. I purchased this one thinking it was just an older unit similar to what I already had. While the video quality is what I had expected, I was surprised to realize it did not have a removable battery. In spite of that, I chose to keep the camera and mounted it on my home. It works well and the only downside is taking the camera off to recharge it. It is not a big issue as we do it when we are home and it does not take long to recharge.
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J. Priddy
4.0 out of 5 stars Great detailed video, short battery life.
Reviewed in the United States on January 29, 2022
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
This camera takes great videos. We have is pointed at a feral cat house so we could watch the animals come and go, and the detail is amazing, even at night. I took one star off for the battery life, which was less than a week. It gets triggered about 50 times a day, mostly for less than 20 seconds. We have Arlo pro 2 cameras in other locations around the house that get triggered as frequently as the cat house cam, but the batteries on those cameras last at least a month.
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James Gstettenbauer
4.0 out of 5 stars Camera's function well,once you can figure out how to set up with minimal information
Reviewed in the United States on February 25, 2022
Color: WhiteSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
While reviewing these camera's on Consumer report as the best available wireless type security cameras, I was amazed that the company provides little to no package information on basic set other than to download their app and it will guide you through. I had issues connecting them to the app, even though I was sitting next to my home wi-fi router at high signal strength they still did not connect. Once I got two of the three to connect they went offline. I eventually had to "chat" with the company over the app and resolved the issues, yet it took five sessions since I had to go out from the chat to their app and do the function only to lose the chat. I am pleased with the video quality and performance.
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MrsSloPok
4.0 out of 5 stars Great Camera, Just Not Enough Users Allowed
Reviewed in the United States on March 31, 2022
Color: BlackSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I know a few people and businesses who use the Arlo camera. I have no complaints on the look, the way it works, records, quality, etc. The reason I returned this camera, is because myself, my Husband nor my daughter could be on the Arlo app without it booting one of us out. I recommend changing it where multiple people can be on it at the same time. If you're the only one who would be using it, it's perfect!
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D. Owen
4.0 out of 5 stars Battery Life Needs Improvement
Reviewed in the United States on January 28, 2022
Color: BlackSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I like the clarity of the footage with the Arlo Essential. I don't understand the night-vision footage. Sometimes it shows in color, and other times, it is B&W. So far, it hasn't been a big deal. My only con would be the battery life. If I use the spotlight feature, it drains the battery. I had to recharge the camera after 1-week. After I turned off the spotlight feature, I got 4+weeks before recharging.
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sheila
4.0 out of 5 stars Battery is already draining - it’s been less than a month
Reviewed in the United States on May 24, 2021
Color: BlackSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
This camera is pretty great except motion detection kinda sucks. If someone walks by super fast or gets in and out of room quick it doesn’t pick it up. It’s more so if you’re moving at a normal speed, at least that’s what I’ve noticed with mine. I like that it’s wireless but the battery is already draining by the end of the week for sure and it hasn’t been a month yet since I’ve bought it. It was good for the price I guess, about $100 bucks- said it was on sale so I’ll take it.
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M. Reed
4.0 out of 5 stars Great product
Reviewed in the United States on October 6, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I like the camera and the ease of setting it up. The video looks great both day and night vision. The spotlight is a nice touch and with HomeKit support I’m able to daisy chain event triggers which is an awesome feature. What I would like to see improvements on is the amount of time it takes to actually connect to the camera and view the area. The delay is both in-home WiFi which is on a GIG Speed and outside connection. It takes over 30 seconds at times to connect and respond to alert. By the time it connects what triggered the alert is now gone and missed the opportunity to talk if needed.
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sol
4.0 out of 5 stars Wireless. Intuitive. Good quality image.
Reviewed in the United States on December 6, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
Since I’ve already had a hub and other arlo cameras I bought 3 more to cover outdoors. They are very easy to charge and install. I had read somewhere that you needed a new hub if you wanted to have more than 5 cameras. And that’s why I started looking at other brands and options. But it didn’t seem the case. I have 8 on the same hub. I haven’t tried the subscription features yet but it works great with motion detection and the quality of image is good. There’s a bit of a delay when I try to see it live. But it could also be my wifi range. I just got a resetear to see if it fixes this
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Debbie
4.0 out of 5 stars Easy Set up and Motion detection
Reviewed in the United States on May 3, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
This camera was very easy to set up with the Arlo system I already have in place. It took just seconds to install. I spent more time opening the box then I did on the installation. The camera quality is very good and it detects everything. I did not give it 5
Stars because the battery does not hold a charge and I have to remove the whole camera and charge it every couple of days. This camera does not have a removable battery like my other ARLO cameras so that too is not cool.
3.0 out of 5 stars Poor battery life, poor reception
Reviewed in the United States on March 7, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
Pros:
Great video quality, good night vision, sensitive motion detection, completely wire free, microphone and speaker work really well.
Cons:
VERY poor battery life. Arlo claims 4-6 month battery life. If the temperature is below 45 degrees, expect 4-14 DAY battery life. Above that temperature it gets marginally better. You better put these somewhere very accessible because they need to be charged all the time. Even when they aren’t being activated.
Constant connection issues. All 4 cameras are less than 100ft from my router, and very often the cameras “appear offline” at various times, even when fully charged. They will not alert to motion if they are “offline.” One camera I had to factory reset just to get it to come back.
If you have the membership, which is absolutely required to have any functionality with the cameras, allows you to set up activity zones. Which would be nice if they actually worked. If it’s in the detection zone of the camera It will detect motion even if no activity zone is set. One of my cameras monitoring the driveway constantly detects vehicles in the road, even though it isn’t in the set activity zone
Color night vision with the spotlight is basically useless if more than a few feet from the camera. The spotlight isn’t bright at all and I have all of them turned off and just use regular night vision, which is actually good.
Arlo claims the battery life and reception is better with a base station or smart hub. After 4 months of using these, I have ordered one and will update if battery life is improved. For the price of these cameras, they are not worth the money just because they need to be charged so often. And you need to remove the whole camera to charge, and set it up again after it is charged
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Francisco Rivera
3.0 out of 5 stars Buyer beware! Does not record without subscription!
Reviewed in the United States on March 16, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: XLVerified Purchase
First, we are users of Arlo and are generally happy with Arlo. This product was sold to us via Amazon under false advertising. In its description, it said that no fees were required. That is not true. It worked very well with the Free Arlo Smart Trial. After that, it would not record any activity. Upon investigating and trying everything to get it to work, we Googled it and it said that this camera will not work, record that is, without paying a subscription. This is not fair. We will be asking for a refund. This camera does work well otherwise.
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koilover
3.0 out of 5 stars Great camera when it works
Reviewed in the United States on November 15, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
Really like that this camera has color night vision when recording, except it has now stopped recording. I still get the alert but no recording. Tried to do the online chat with tech support and it was obvious that she had no clue about the differences between my Arlo Pro 2 and my Arlo Essential. After an extended wait after being put on hold, a message came up that no one was available and I was disconnected. I HATE trying to get thru on the phone, last time I called I was on the phone for 70 minutes and did not get a resolution to the issue. Like the camera if I could get it to work right, the tech support and customer service stinks
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Gene C.
3.0 out of 5 stars Not homekit friendly. Slow response time when viewing live
Reviewed in the United States on June 2, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
Not a fan. Quality was fine. Camera looks slick. I’m sure it would have worked great.
I haaaaate the response time. Takes at least 4 seconds to pick up movement when viewing live.
I hate that it’s not homekit accessible. I don’t want to buy another hub. I just want it to connect right away. This is near false advertisement. Emphasize the specific hub needed to make this work with homekit please. I ended up returning the product and got a Logi Circle View instead. That one connected seamlessly and works soooo well with homekit. I can save the footages and video on iCloud.
Arlo does not let you store footages or video on iCloud.
I do like the floodlight feature that’s about it.
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Musicman
3.0 out of 5 stars Works well, but...
Reviewed in the United States on November 15, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
The Arlo app works very well for setup and management of their cameras and doorbell. The Essential cameras work quite well and pick up motion reliably, but a few negatives. 1: please note that after I set them up, I read that the rechargeable camera battery is not replaceable, so when it eventually no longer recharges, you throw the camera away (this is noted on their support page, but not in the camera description or specs). Shame on Arlo for generating this type of waste (really Arlo, be a little greener!). This is why a 3 star rating. 2: The spotlight works well for night vision, but if there is part of a wall in view next to the camera, the wall lights up and the rest of the field of view darkens obscuring what you want to see (this may be true for most cameras).
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Chris
3.0 out of 5 stars The pros...and the cons
Reviewed in the United States on September 22, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
A friend suggested the Arlo doorbell, which has been nothing but great and reliable - the thing is smart and really does know the difference between people, animals, and packages. I mean. I caught a zoomed in bee on camera and it flagged it as an animal... How cool is that?!
These cameras, on the other hand, have been a random source of frustration (and also fun). Of course, since I love the doorbell so much, I thought the videos would be just as good. They're really not.
Pros:
- the detection technology seems to be fine, just like the doorbell
- though I'm sure most modern cameras have this feature, I really enjoy the geofencing portion. We have indoor and outdoor cameras, so it's nice to know we don't have to record ourselves all the time inside. You can use both geofencing and schedule, which is super nice if you only want to record at night or when you leave the house.
- you can speak through the cameras too, though I'll get more into the quality of this later
- and of course, all the fun features that come with a modern camera setup - watching my cats laze about from my phone when I'm away from the house, etc
Cons:
- the aforementioned speakers are frankly quite terrible. My voice is output so quietly that it's nearly impossible to hear - unless I speak with a headset from my phone
- the app is randomly buggy and it's a pain in the butt. Sometimes it takes a bunch of retries just to turn my cameras on and off. Sometimes cameras disconnect themselves from the network and I don't want to climb a ladder in the dead of night to reconnect them (but they'll mysteriously reconnect by morning). Sometimes we stop getting notifications and have to turn a camera on and off again (if I'm lucky, that's the usual solution). Everything generally seems to work slowly and the app is a nightmare to use sometimes (even though it looks polished)
- one of the biggest cons (which seems to be fixed now) was that the cameras previously had issues with switching automatically to night mode and if I forgot to manually turn them on and off (and make sure my outdoor lights were off at the time), it would show them pitch black and not record anything. That's a HUGE security risk and completely defeated the purpose of them. Again, seems to be fixed now. But definitely not a fun experience.
There's a certain degree of quality that seems to be lacking in the Arlo cameras unfortunately. I've only had them for a short while, but it's too late for me to swap them out after spending all that money (plus I do love the doorbell). I'd urge anyone reading this to shop around. If you get them and, like me, you're used to bootleg cameras, they're not terrible. But I do wonder if there are better brands out there.
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Alyssa
3.0 out of 5 stars Microphone feature is worthless
Reviewed in the United States on March 7, 2022
Color: BlackSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I bought 6 cameras all together. After the 3 month trial you pay $9.99 for motion notifications on all cameras or $9.99 per camera for continous video. Not a fan of the subscription but it is what it is. I needed to feel safe and these cameras have given me that. The microphone feature on all six cameras is totally worthless. No one outside can hear you. I bought these partly for that feature so I'm pretty disappointed in that. If it weren't for that issue I probably would have given it 5 stars. Battery wise all cameras last about 2 weeks, some a little less before I have to charge them. If I could do it over I'd buy different arlo cameras where there are better reviews on the microphone capability.
5/1 update. I'm still in the 3 month trial period till 5/10. All cameras last about 5 data before needing to be recharged which when they are installed high up kinda sucks but into cheap to buy the arlo supported solar panel. I've heard there us an iff brand solar panel that works with it. If I found out which one I will update this post.
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Lamar Johnson
3.0 out of 5 stars A low-cost but high-maintenance security solution
Reviewed in the United States on September 14, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
After several neighborhood thefts and vandalisms I decided to try these cameras especially since we were getting ready to embark on a multi-week vacation.
I thought the price was reasonable and the optional monthly service charge that enabled me to view and use the cameras anywhere was perfect.
Set up was easy as well as installation of the cameras and solar chargers.
We left on vacation and everything seemed to work flawlessly for a few weeks.
Then, for no apparent reason, I got a notice that one of the 3 cameras had gone “off-line”. Tech support was useless since all their solutions involved me physically handling the camera (hard to do when you’re 1500 miles away).
However, a few days later, without explanation the camera came back online. Why? Who knows!!
Since that episode, I have had the cameras mysteriously stop charging and after numerous attempts of re-starting the cameras, they started charging again.
The cameras are doing the job. I have been able to monitor my pool activity snd even talked to my pool guy through the camera when it appeared he was having issues with the pool equipment.
It just seems that the cameras go haywire once in awhile.
Again: they work but they can be frustrating.
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AMR
3.0 out of 5 stars Battery definitely doesn’t last 6 months lol!
Reviewed in the United States on November 9, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
We bought 3 of these to watch our cats while on vacation. Prior to leaving, I turned off the spotlight for color night vision and customized areas of where and what to trigger notifications and or recording. After doing everything I could think of to preserve battery, they were still either almost dead or close to needing a charge by the time we got home the week later. I just moved one outside where for most of the day/night it’s not picking up a lot of movement, the weather had been very mild and the battery was dead within a week. Thankfully it’s easily accessible. Bottom line is - camera is good, app works well, did what we needed but the battery life is NOT anywhere near 6 months!
As an aside, I bought cool bendy things that you can attach the camera to just about everything. Works well. They come with the stands that you can secure to a space but I wanted it to be a bit more portable.
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Bryzon
3.0 out of 5 stars You get what you pay for... READ FIRST!
Reviewed in the United States on July 1, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
We went with this product because it was cheaper than the pro and ultra versions. The motion detection is very slow. Even a person riding a bike will not be captured on video until they are halfway or toward the end of the screen (out of view). Night vision is ok except during dusk when the camera is not sure how to process the light. There is a bit of lag even when viewing live. It is not real time. These are all things sort of expected when buying the cheaper versions, I get that, but the main thing that pissed me off is the huge lie in the advertising online and within the product documentation saying that it had a whopping 6 month battery life. I knew this was too good to be true but kept my fingers crossed and my expectations high. Huge let down! One camera has a view of our street with a tree in it's line of sight and the battery LASTED 2 DAYS! Even the other 2 cameras that don't have trees in the field of view has bad battery life. They have been up for a week and are at around 50% battery life. No where near close to half a year. False advertising. Do not buy into the fake reviews saying this is a good product. The pain of having to get the step stool out and unscrew each camera and bring it in to recharge with a slow micro USB cable (not USB C) is almost not worth the hundreds of dollars spent on this product. Very poor battery life. If you are looking for a camera get one that is wired or doesn't lie about how long the batteries last. I would return the product for false advertising, maybe when the batteries run out again in a week.
3.0 out of 5 stars Beware of Arlo New Support Policy
Reviewed in the United States on January 13, 2021
Color: BlackSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I was excited to purchase these spotlight Cameras because of the feedback from the reviews. Also, a base was not necessary to connect them. I had a few issues connecting the cameras with my WIFI. When I called Arlo support, the representative stated that the Arlo company has a specific group that supports the Arlo technical equipment support as of December 2020. With all the issues that were happening with troubleshooting the Arlo cameras, the representative gave me a choice to purchase a technical support package; one 0ne year tech support for $149.99 or lifetime support for $299.99. I purchase the lifetime support package since these cameras will be at my parent's house. That was a shocker because I owned Arlo cameras before and I didn't have to pay anything.
The second issue is the batteries don't last six months as stated. two of the cameras were discharged within 2 days. I thought Arlo advertised the camera's battery life to be six months. I don't get it. But I do like the camera because I am able to talk to my parents and check with them on a daily basis. I just need to find a way to extend the battery life and I will be good. I like the video feed as well because the clarity is awesome.
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Noneya Bisnes
3.0 out of 5 stars Mostly good except for the battery
Reviewed in the United States on February 2, 2022
Color: WhiteSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
Charging, setup, stuff like that is easy and functional. The battery life on 2 out of 3 cameras is not good. The good one lasts for several months. I charged it a month ago and it’s at 85%. The other 2 last for much shorter times. I charged both of them 2 days ago and one is at 95 and one is 89. The only saving grace is that they are easy to charge and easy to put back up or I would be more annoyed. There’s no reason for the batteries to be this much different either, two are next to each other facing different directions, one is covering a different part of the house. The video bandwidth is good on 2 cams, strong on one. The bad battery is one of the two with good bandwidth and the one with strong signal.
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tnredhead
3.0 out of 5 stars Worked well for three months then nothing.
Reviewed in the United States on November 17, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
These cameras worked extremely well for three months and then they started disconnecting from the Internet. When they disconnect you have to take the camera down, delete it from your account then reinstall it and reset it. This is a major hassle. My cameras disconnected 11 times in seven days. When I called Arlo about the problem they refused to honor the warranty or even discuss replacing the cameras. The representative for Arlo blamed my problem on my Internet. I had Blink cameras before the Arlo‘s and I never had a problem with my Internet or my cameras being disconnected. I have gone back to Blink.
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Caveat Emptor
3.0 out of 5 stars Bad mount & charging situation
Reviewed in the United States on January 16, 2022
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I’ve had many versions and generations of Arlo camera. While this one is technically good, this particular camera has no replaceable battery and a terrible mount. Assuming you’ve attached it high up, on an eave or the like, unscrewing this thing while on a ladder to take it down and recharge it is terrible. The swapable battery versions are better.
Also the screw mount makes it difficult to level the camera.
Plan on buying an add-on alternative magnetic mount or avoid this model.
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Ray G.
3.0 out of 5 stars It's a good camera but the battery does not last.
Reviewed in the United States on March 13, 2022
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I do think it's a good camera. A small, fully wireless camera that is easy to install. However the claims made about the battery are misleading, It says "up to 6 months of battery life" It's not possible to get that unless you literally have the camera get no detections or recordings of anything at all. Even then I would doubt it. So far about 3 months of normal usage the battery lasts anywhere from 20-30 days. The battery life being the biggest issue since it was misleading to claim the battery could last 6 months.
I would consider buying a solar panel or at least the version of this camera with a bigger battery if you can get a deal or it's not much more expensive. All the other features like spotlight, night-vision, 2 way audio and all the types of detections work quite well.
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Simon T Lai
3.0 out of 5 stars Mini HDMI plug is different
Reviewed in the United States on December 19, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
Not sure why Arlo continues to change the design of their charging ports, but it was quite annoying to replace an existing camera only to find out the old HDMI cord cannot fit into the new port. (the old port was too wide). Seriously Arlo, no one wants to rewire a 25 ft cord through their walls. Otherwise, it works as I needed it to through wifi, although also annoyed that it isn't able to utilize the base system HD backup when using the wifi.
Summary:
Pros
Works well through wifi
quicker to connect to the video feed than the old arlo pro it replaces
Easy setup through QR codes
The smart detection through arlo subscription app works fairly well
Cons
Had to modify the old mini HDMI cord from the arlo pro to get it to fit
Doesn't save feed to local HD if you use wifi connect
Doesn't seem like Arlo is interested in customer loyalty for those of us who have previous systems we wish to upgrade
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Jessica Spagnuolo
3.0 out of 5 stars No where near 6 months of battery life
Reviewed in the United States on August 3, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
Camera is great. Excellent picture quality and motion detection.
I received the camera July 18 and had it charging until I saw the full charge indication. I even checked the app to confirm it was at 100%. It is now August 3 and the camera died, while I’m on vacation, the worst time for this to happen. I tried calling customer service, but did not get anyone on the line.
Disappointed is an understatement when it comes to the longevity of the battery, in fact i wish I looked at other options or even bought the solar panel. But what’s even more disappointing is the fact the company advertises a 6 month battery, while it didn’t last a month.
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Izabela R.
3.0 out of 5 stars Decent- when it works
Reviewed in the United States on September 14, 2021
Color: BlackSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
The video is fairly good, motion detection is OK. battery is so-so. The problem is that at least every few weeks, I need to uninstall and reinstall the cameras, and it NEVER goes smoothly. Always need to factory reset, and today when I contacted tech support because that didn't fix it, after spending 35 minutes on the phone with them (and super long hold time), I found out that I cannot have Bluetooth, data, VPN, or basically anything else a normal human being uses enabled on my phone when reinstalling.
If this was a one time thing, OK, maybe I can deal with it. But every few weeks? Ridiculous. Just a pretty shitty product with even worse support.
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Mikeiscool
3.0 out of 5 stars Requires subscription
Reviewed in the United States on April 17, 2022
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I bought Arlos from Costco before for our house and have loved them. These however require a subscription (fee) in order to have any of the videos saved. So if you don't open the camera right when the alert goes off you won't be able to see what the motion was. Wish I had found that out before purchasing. I will be trading these out for the ones that don't have a fee after buying them.
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SummerLavender
3.0 out of 5 stars Poor Customer Service/Support
Reviewed in the United States on February 2, 2021
Color: BlackSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
The setup was easy and smooth. Camera, I don't have a good comparison but I have no complaint. Customer Support/Service was not good:
- no follow up on my case, I had to call to follow up a few times myself
- representative confirmed my callback number and said I would be called by some teams but no callback
- not all representatives were able to provide the latest status of my case
- support person was not able to go deeper on troubleshooting, ended up I figured out the solution myself..
The support part made my experience poor and not want to continue to be a customer.
2.0 out of 5 stars It is a bust, wouldn’t recommend purchasing.
Reviewed in the United States on August 4, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
Like other Arlo camera’s easy to set up. However, battery a big fail. Could only successful charge when done through computer which was recommendation of ARLO support. So
Your screwed if you’re don’t have a computer. Once fully charged only lasted 2 months with very
Little activity. Going to return it.
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andrew b tiglio
2.0 out of 5 stars Know what you buy
Reviewed in the United States on January 15, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: XLVerified Purchase
BE CAREFUL......
Camera sets up easily. However, unlike other arlo cameras that I have (4) this one requires a subscription to save any of the triggered events. I did not notice this requirement in its advertising and only after calling support was I told about the subscriptions requirement. The camera notifies me of a triggered event but did not save the clip (temporarily) as my other arlo cameras. Very disappointed in this requirement.
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M.
2.0 out of 5 stars Worthless without a subscription!
Reviewed in the United States on February 4, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: XLVerified Purchase
I never write reviews, but if this review helps one person then it was worth it. I purchased the Essential XL back in November. Up until about a week ago, I had been very pleased with the product. Then my Arlo Smart trial subscription expired. Little did I know that this camera is almost useless without a subscription or Smart Hub. You will get notification of things activating the camera, but you no longer have a way to record it.
If you want to record it locally, you can do that but won't have access from your phone. So what's the point!?! Arlo told me I could buy a Smart Hub and then activate Direct Storage access; however, it's impossible to buy one because no one has one. So I couldn't do it even If I wanted to which I don't. So basically my options are pay a monthly fee which I've never had to do with my past Arlos; hence the reason I bought this one, or do nothing and have a worthless camera. I'm so irritated and frustrated that Arlo failed to clearly show this while advertising it.
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Michelle Louise
2.0 out of 5 stars 6-month battery life? More like 6 days
Reviewed in the United States on November 12, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
The battery life of these cameras is abysmal. I've owned these for less than two weeks and I've already had to charge every single one of them - at least one twice. I do not live on a busy street. I do not have a lot of traffic. They average about 6-10 events a day - mostly the chonky racoon who likes to raid the trash that my neighbor leaves out. You'd think the batteries wouldn't die quickly, but the batteries die about once a week. If you get these, do yourself a favor and mount them where you can reach them easily. Especially if you are disabled like I am.
I'll be looking for another kind of camera to cover the rest of my house/yard and to replace these lemons.
Two stars
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C. Farber
2.0 out of 5 stars it's a decent camera, but with some frustrations
Reviewed in the United States on October 20, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I find these cameras to be increasingly frustrating, likely correlates with recent software updates. Seems they don’t test things all that well before release?
Ring has been far more solid software-wise.
Starting a couple months back, they must have been attempting to fix notification issues. Well they made it worse IMO. Now the number of events in the badge notification seems to sum up over time. ie, 10 motion events, go into app to view, clears.. next time you get 5 more events, the badge now says 15. And it keeps going. Only way to fix is to kill the app and relaunch.
Then very recently, I get false notifications. At least I think they are false. Motion detected in back yard, view it within seconds, nothing there, no video in the cloud.. nothing that explains why I received a notification. It keeps going notification every few minutes.. and I have to disable the camera. Restarting the camera doesn’t resolve. Either they are throwing false notifications (never see anything when going live) or they are failing to save the videos that I pay a monthly subscription to see..
—— original review ——-
I had trouble deciding which camera brand to buy. I tend to go right to the bad reviews to see what people are saying. Problem with that approach is every product out there, someone has something bad to say ha ha!
So what I did was purchase 1 Arlo, 1 Ring StickUp and 1 Blink Outdoor. Figured I'll decide for myself what's what.
The Blink went back pretty quickly because their audio sucks and their support wasn't great. There was a constant interference type static noise. Arlo and Ring had great audio, could easily hear the birds in the morning. The Blink also required a little 'base station' whereas the Arlo and Ring do not.
Both Ring and Arlo have decent apps and decent notifications.
Arlo has a more flexible mount system straight outta the box, for the Ring I had to purchase an extra mount to get the adjustments I needed.
Arlo has better images/video/field of view, that is one of the main things I like about my Arlo cameras. (I purchased a second Arlo when I returned the Blink)
Arlo also has some good recognition features. I have gotten several notifications of an 'animal' in my driveway.. I'm skeptical, but look at the video, sure enough.. a squirrel running by or the neighbors cat late at night.
About here is where the positive things kinda stop with the Arlo cameras.
The battery life is pretty terrible for the one in front of my garage. It probably sees a tad more motion than the one in the back yard, but the one in the back yard seems to last twice as long. Maybe the one in front of the garage has a defective battery or something? In any case, I've had these cameras since I moved into my house about 4 months ago. I've charged one of the cameras 3 times already, the other one I charged twice. Meanwhile I have yet to charge my Ring camera, and it's still sitting at 73%. That's pretty impressive for the Ring.
My next area of frustration with the Arlo is the activity zones. I have had these set up how I want them from day 1. You can only define boxes that are square to the camera's field of view, that sucks. On the Ring I can make diagonal lines and better define the area.
I could deal with the boxes if they actually worked properly. I think the camera has different moods. I have a few boxes set up so that it should only notify me of motion if detected in my driveway or the front yard. I specifically am trying to avoid notifications from vehicles driving by on the street. I can go several days without an erroneous notification. Then all the sudden on certain days, it's like the activity zones decide to stop working. I'll get notification after notification, view the video, it's a car driving by in the street. Not anywhere near my activity zone.
I reached out to Arlo support early on, and they were not really helpful. They just suggested that I set up my activity zones incorrectly. Well guess what, they are extremely easy to set up, and they work half the time. sounds like a software issue to me. I'm guessing the faulty activity zone motion detection contributes to the poor battery life on that camera.
A nice thing that Ring offers that Arlo doesn't seem too..
If the notifications are going nuts one day (when the activity zones aren't working properly and cars are driving by). you either have to disable the camera or get a buzz for every one. The app appears to have a global mute option that I could select for a certain duration. But I'd prefer to just mute the camera that's being stupid. Can't do that though, I have to disable it altogether.. Then remember to go enable it again later.
The Ring on the other hand, I get out the mower and walk by it, I get the notification on my watch, right there convenient as can be, along with the selection to dismiss the notification is an option to snooze notifications from that camera for 30 minutes. Just enough to finish mowing!
So all in all I do like the Arlo for it's better picture quality, but software-wise and battery-wise it's just not quite as solid as the Ring is.
I have had a few experiences though where the Ring failed to notify me of a package being delivered to my front steps.. so who knows. Nothing is perfect.
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J C.
2.0 out of 5 stars This product can be very expensive
Reviewed in the United States on December 9, 2020
Color: BlackSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
This company does not tell you all that you need to make these cameras work properly. The accessories that are needed are very expensive my total coast for theses three cameras a doorbell and three solar panels was approaching $900 or more and these cameras worked well but the battery died in three days even were there was no movement and they were zoned in and they are very slow always behind nothing is in real time never worked the way they were supposed to even with tech support, and I had a very had time understanding the techs because they were having a hard time understanding me. So no I would not recommend this product to expensive and for that kind of money it should work better and tech should be improved and it should be all inclusive all the accessories in one package all off them because the way you are doing it now makes it seem it all your interested in is the money and that is why I sent it back and got a refund. I purchased a new system fro WYZE every thing coast less then $200.00 and it works far better, so far no problems, but we willl see. So 2 is my rating for this product needs improvement especially for the money.
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HockeyBrad
2.0 out of 5 stars Batteries Last One Week, App and Support issues
Reviewed in the United States on December 29, 2020
Color: BlackSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
The batteries only last 8 days, with the LED lights turned off and system in "Optimized" mode. That means I have to climb a ladder and take them down and charge them 50 times per year. Not worth it. Also it would take 30 seconds to several minutes to connect to a live stream. I returned them after a month of troubleshooting, including working with their support.
I bought this system and hung them immediately with 2 out front and one in back. All three connected quickly to wifi (Netgear Nighthawk router on Gigabit ethernet connection). When mounted, two cameras had full bars and one had 2/3 bars. Turned off LEDs, set to Optimized battery usage, and pointed them to the area I wanted to see only. I had connection issues where all 3 cameras would say my connection was off when it was clearly active and working (I work from home). I worked with support, whose web site interface actually is throwing "500 Server" errors when you submit so you have to use the app. They only knew the basics "have you tried restarting everything?".
I was willing to charge the batteries monthly but having to charge them every 8 days was too much time on a ladder. I'll get a different system.
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Miro
2.0 out of 5 stars Nice cameras, good ios app, battery drain is a huge FAIL though
Reviewed in the United States on December 27, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I really like these cameras and the app is pretty good. But the battery drain is so horrible that it overshadows everything for me. The 6 month estimate is a joke. I've had these 6 weeks and already had to charge all 3 essentials once, and one camera twice. I've got them setup to only use when I leave the house via geo-fence with the app, which I will say is a great feature. I've positioned them to get almost no false events and turned off certain triggers. All in attempts to really save battery. But even with basically no alerts, they still drain so fast. I tried using the extra Arlo solar panel and I can't even say if it slowed the drain, it doesn't maintain a charge. Definitely not indefinitely, and not more than a few weeks in my usage.
The trick I've learned to charge and not take down is to use my small USB battery brick. I plug it into the camera and let it hang for a couple hours until the phone charges to full. I then remove it and rotate to other camera if needed. This isn't bad, but it's just annoying to need to do this 2 weeks after the previous time. My life cannot become about keeping these batteries charged. I can't even imagine the Arlo Essential high capacity batteries are all that much better. Maybe they'd give me an extra week?
I wouldn't buy again or recommend to a friend due to the battery issue. Not sure which cameras to use at this point.
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BreezieLady
2.0 out of 5 stars Regretting this purchase
Reviewed in the United States on September 20, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
Regretting this purchase. Camera had been charged in house prior to use. Installed it yesterday and receiving alerts that the battery is down to 11%. In addition, there was not a installation manual. We had to Google how to set it up for use on our 2.4 Ghz wifi. Trying to pair the camera via QR scanner was very frustrating for a simple process. It took several attempts to pair from phone and PC. Even after a factory reset. The description indicated the battery will last 6 months, but ours lasted less than 24 hours. I'm highly disappointed as well that the only charging option is a 3ft cord. The VMA3600 Arlo solar panels are currently out of stock. Also, I have an Arlo Pro cam that works like a charm and attaches to my base. It is easy to connect to manage and the batteries can easily be recharged. I purchased the Essential for use over my garage. Another fail because I need to buy wifi extenders or create a mesh network to extend coverage to keep a constant connection. Apparently, the camera can only be accessed if I'm within WiFi range.
I will probably return this nightmare.
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macwinpro
2.0 out of 5 stars short battery life. poor customer service
Reviewed in the United States on October 10, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
After 3 months of ownership, the battery no longer last more than a day. During the first month, the battery seemed great but toward the end of the first month it needed a recharge. So I climbed up on a latter, removed the device, and brought it back into the house to charge overnight. The next day, I climbed the latter again, reconnected the device, re-orientated the camera so it captured the right view, and hoped to get another 30 or more days. But nope, a couple of days later, the app was warning that the battery needed a recharge.
Repeated the same steps above but charged for 2 or 3 days straight. After re-connecting the device for the third time the batter lasted only about 1 day before getting the message. I don't really have time to re-hang this device everyday, so I have it hooked to an extension cord for permanent power.
When I called support claiming that my batter was bad and should be covered by the one year warranty, they flat out refused claiming they are not responsible for battery life. The associate then spent the next several minutes talking about how rechargeable batteries work. Ya! Thanks... I asked him what was the point of having an outdoor wireless camera that needed to be charged everyday? No response just more battery talk. I reminded him that the website is advertising up to 90 days of battery life, and they would not likely sell any of these cameras if they were advertising daily charging. Still claimed they are not responsible for the batteries.
As a final effort, he suggested I try to some troubleshooting steps and sent me a copy of the instruction manual to my email address. He wanted me to remove the device from my account, reset it, and set it up again as a new device. Ya again, another hour later, and of course it didn't work. The device clearly has a bad battery and no matter how many resets you perform, they battery is not going get better. I am sure they are getting tons of battery complaints which is why they are refusing to replace the camera. Luckily, my location allows me to keep constant power to the device using an extension cord.
On the positive side, the camera image and sound are both good. The camera seems to identify motion quickly and promptly sends alerts. The subscription is reasonable at $3 a month and in my opinion a necessity to get any functionality out of the camera. Two main reasons you'll need the subscription. First, no video history with out it. You can only see live views. Secondly, you can't use zones either which means you'll get a ton of alerts every time the wind blows. This will likely cause most users to turn off notifications which is why most of us bought the camera in the first place.
2.0 out of 5 stars The Cameras are good cameras UNTIL you need support by Arlo!!
Reviewed in the United States on October 16, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
My battery was draining quickly, like two weeks of life even thought Arlo advertised 3-6 months life?
However, when it got to the point that 11 months in, the battery would now take over 48 hours to charge and still NOT be at 100%. So because I was still within warranty range I Called Arlo,(customer service rep Marie 10-16-21 /2:03pm) they gave me the RUN AROUND, asking me questions that DID NOT have anything to do with my problem of (draining and slow recharge) Finally after 40 min. I told them to please get serious in helping me or I'd just contact Amazon to get a competitors RELIABLE brand!!! They kept putting me on hold saying they are "talking with this matter with their team, for the FOURTH TIME?!?! no! so I did what I said I would do and Amazon came through!
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worsthorse
2.0 out of 5 stars fail - mesh networks and the need for internet connection
Reviewed in the United States on July 10, 2021
Color: BlackSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
While I understand why 2.4GHz is better for cameras, it makes it very hard to set up the camera if you have anything but a vanilla 2.4GHz network. Mesh networks, most of which list both 2.4GHz and 5GHz networks under one SSID (to let devices negotiate the best connection) are unusable. Even when both the camera and the laptop, tablet, or phone running the app are both on the 2.4GHz channel in the mesh, the app can't find the camera.
But it is worse than that. I set up a 2.4GHz router, connected my laptop and table to this private wifi network and ran discover again. The camera appears on the network but the app - both the browser and tablet/phone version - still can't find the camera. I am guessing that's because it requires both a 2.4GHz network connection *and* an internet connection to complete the setup. So there's not even a good work around. Worst of all, there are no error messages or clues as to what is going on, just "try again?"
So I tried and tried again but after six hours of trying workarounds, searching websites for clues, and setting up special purpose networks, I filled out the Amazon return info; back it goes. The worst part? This is netgear. You know, the company that sells mesh routers and wifi equipment. It should not be that hard to fix this so this stuff will work on any modern network, especially for a company that specializes in routers and wifi.
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Tava
2.0 out of 5 stars Got a defective camera
Reviewed in the United States on June 15, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: XLVerified Purchase
I have this system in three locations. Mostly it’s good, but bought four more in April, didn’t get them installed for another 30 days, have ONE bad camera, have jumped through the hoops with tech support and am “awaiting approval” to return. I know how to hook them up, this camera is defective, but because I’m past 30days, Amazon isn’t taking it back, or responding. Hey Amazon HELP!
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Barb Lucas
2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointed
Reviewed in the United States on November 4, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I purchased the Arlo Spotlight Camera and won't do it again.
They give you a free trial on the device which allows you to store video clips in the Library when the camera is activated. Additionally, this free trial also activates the spotlight when the camera detects motion at night. Unfortunately what they don't tell you is that both of these features go away after the free trial period ends. I did not want a camera that shared imagery to the cloud of activities around my hot tub. I wanted more privacy than that and thought that the Arlo camera would meet my needs. It would connect to my home internet and I could link my phone and get real time notifications of activity when the camera motion detector (and at night the spotlight), was triggered. Nope. Customer service was strictly via email and was semi-responsive, although the rep did not know the device and the issues re: functionality after the trial period expired well enough. I still have it up, but mostly leave it off, because the battery drains pretty fast despite my solar panel charging, which I purchased w/ the device. If you don't add the solar panel you have to physically take the device down, take it into the house and charge it, then put it back up. The solar panel needs DIRECT sunlight not indirect, something else they did not tell me- (perhaps I missed it?). Anyway because my direct sunlight wanes in the fall, the battery doesn't hold so I keep the device off mostly.
It is a visible deterrent if nothing else and I do turn it on, (via my phone app) when I want to take a peak or if we are gone for a length of time. But the night spotlight and the Library are useless unless I do a monthly subscription to the cloud.
I wouldn't buy this device. Maybe not deceptive, but they are not forthright on the functionality, and even the reps are not fully informed!
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Stephen Stipe
2.0 out of 5 stars Not happy with the camera
Reviewed in the United States on February 14, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I was able to connect the camera with no issues.
My. first complaint is about battery life. Even with turning the settings way down low, the best I was able to get from the battery was 3 days. I guess you have to turn it off to get the 6 months advertised.
After several times recharging the camera inside the house (no battery removal from camera), I purchased the solar panel charger. This worked fine, until it just stopped charging the battery. I get a power reading on the monitoring page, but no increase in battery life. Down comes the camera again, so I can charge it indoors (sure glad i spent the $70 or so for the solar panel!).
I will say that the image from the camera is very good, day & night.
Frankly, if all this had been obvious when I first received the camera, I would have returned it. Of course it's outside the return window now, so I'm stuck with it. I'm really disappointed that it isn't better, as I have followed the Arlo systems reviews and expected much better.
Edit: I've discovered the reason that it wasn't charging. We were in a cold snap, with temps around 5 below. The camera does not like cold. As long as there was a charge left on the battery, I was able to get images/videos. As soon as it got to those low temps, the camera was a no-show. Now that it's warmed up a bit, it's charging okay.
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thebrietstuff
2.0 out of 5 stars Stopped working shortly after warranty period
Reviewed in the United States on February 28, 2022
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
This camera requires a monthly subscription, whereas the older models did not - they would feed into a base for free. It also has an integrated battery that cannot be replaced, whereas the older models had batteries that are replaceable.
The integrated battery device stopped working about 16 months after purchase & the warranty is for 12 months.
Previously it had a battery life of about 2 months on a full charge depending on how often the motion sensor was activated, but now after a full charge the battery is at 0% within 6 hours even without motion detection. I cannot replace the integrated battery & must replace the entire device. Also, it will no longer charge on a solar panel accessory that I purchased.
I’ve otherwise been happy with Arlo but this product is a dud. Please bring back devices with replaceable batteries! My older model devices have outlived this new one.
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DWPT
2.0 out of 5 stars Performance and Support is mediocre
Reviewed in the United States on July 12, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
The cameras themselves are adequate. Night time makes them nearly useless. With rain it is a crapshoot. Unless the wind is blowing from behind the cameras water on the lenses make them absolutely useless. We have seven of these that we use to watch over our rural property. We have dedicated one camera, mounted at bumper height, immediately adjacent to the driveway specifically to record license plates. This was simply beyond the camera’s ability so that camera was relocated to watch a section of the yard where the grandkids frequently play. The cameras claim to be “off Line” about a third of the time and are often unusable because they claim to be “updating their firmware”. We paid more for this system due to the high ratings they garnered but we also use 3 other systems, all of which do their jobs better than the Arlo system. Would I buy this brand again? No. There are better cameras and systems out there for less money with, at least as subpar support if not better.
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Kellie CollinsTop Contributor: Cooking
2.0 out of 5 stars ARLO Camer
Reviewed in the United States on December 17, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
This product give false misrepresentation to battery life. I bought this camera specifically because it said the battery life last 6 months. NOT TRUE. You will get two weeks max at all low settings. So I decided to order the solar panels only to be told they had not be released for purchase yet. Why would you sell cameras where the battery doesn't last and they make it look like solar panels are available when they had not even been released yet. Customer service could not answer this question and did not care. I waited for the release and eventually received them. The good news is that has fixed the battery life but I live in Ohio and worry about the low temperatures with no sun for days. Epic fail on this camera buy ARLO on battery life. Lag time is anywhere between 20-60 seconds. Not good! After all these months I am still messing with activity zones. It either picks up everything or nothing. Very frustrating. The plus is the camera has magnificent video quality even at night. I don't like that you have to pay for a subscription. Arlo needs to make this free and fix the battery life. Disappointed but I have too much money wrapped up in the company and trying to make it work!
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PDX Craig
2.0 out of 5 stars great product for me so far but battery life not as advertised
Reviewed in the United States on December 15, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: XLVerified Purchase
Love the auto detection, easy set up. This just worked out of the box.
Wish I could customize the alert sound by device as I have 2 devices and I don't know the difference until I open my app.
Revising my rating down after a year of use. There appears NO difference in the extended life and regular arlo. After 3.5 mo of use my XL camera is down to 45% battery. Power management is set to optimized and spotlight is turned off. They don't publish the battery capacity that I can find.
They ALSO don't allow more than one person to see the camera results at the same time. Only a single login allowed. That means my wife and me both can't get alerts! And there is NO customer support. Zero. Zilch. They just send you to customer forums like this or send you in endless circles on the web.
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Dr. Anonymous
2.0 out of 5 stars Preliminary review
Reviewed in the United States on November 27, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
Just received it. Was using dlink dcs2800 that i purchased from uk for my backyard cam. It stopped communicating with the base just as the prior arlo cameras had done before. Its probably a lot of interference or metal in the area I am hanging it in. This camera was purchased because I did not want to hang a wired camera in this area. I have not hung it yet because it requires a screw in base instead of the magnetic one the previous cameras used. I just have it inside now. I do not have it plugged in, but it continues to read that it is plugged in. The camera does not charge to over 99% . I think this will have the same battery issues of all arlo cameras. These are usually the camera starts recording every minute until the battery drains and then when plugged in the camera would state the charger is not supported and not charge. This would be awful because the battery cannot be replaced in this camera. Since the price was under 100.00 and it is winter, I am going to work with this. With the known history of Arlo, poor customer support and mediocre products, I may just return this and install an outdoor outlet to hang a dlink outdoor camera.
1.0 out of 5 stars Tech support issues
Reviewed in the United States on September 9, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
After reading some reviews I decided to purchase this wireless camera system. The initial set up was frustrating to say the least. The first camera would sync but I had issues with the other 2. (3 camera kit) I consider myself to be some what tech savvy but after considerable time I could not get these to work on any of my devices.
The online support was not helpful. After about a month I returned the system. The worst part of this experience was the tech support. It was a complete fail on all fronts. There seems to be 3 ways to contact Arlo support. (Chat, Help ticket and by phone)
I'll start first with the chat. I don't know if they were all on lunch break but no one answered me. Second was help ticket. After some time they got back to me through email and recommended that I move closer to the base station when syncing....this system doesn't have one. I wrote back explaining that I had the essential without the base station only to get yet another email stating I should move closer to the base station when syncing. So I decided to call the tech support line. I gave up after 2 hours on hold.
I still receive emails about my case and other products. I've tried to unsubscribe to them but when I do it tells me my email is not on file......I'm serious.
So, even if you have purchased or are considering purchasing this product I would think twice.
I ended up buying an Eufy based on another customers recommendation who had issues with the Arlo system as well. So far it's worked out very well and system was priced less.
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Amy Schutt
1.0 out of 5 stars DON'T BUY ARLO
Reviewed in the United States on November 6, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
Don't buy any of the ARLO products. Don't buy the solar panels that don't stay attached to the camera. Don't waste your money. They don't tell you about the $250 one-time fee for the firmware and all of the wonderful things that the non-English speaking tech support guy tells you about. They don't tell you about the monthly fees for only a 7-day record. BUY THE NEST. I learned my lesson the hard way with the Arlo 2, the Arlo 3, the floodlight with the camera. I can give you 7 pieces of reason NOT TO BUY Arlo anything.
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Grover Cleveland
1.0 out of 5 stars Updated review: avoid at all costs
Reviewed in the United States on September 30, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
Third update:
This company is horrible, and the product is worse. They advertise 6 month battery life, but within 60 days, the battery only last 5-6 days. I have this on minimal notification settings. When you contact support, they give you the runaround in an attempt to exhaust you. They say things like “restart the camera” over and over again until you are out of warranty. This company is a huge scam, their support is horrible, and I’ve kicked off a website to gather plaintiffs for a class action lawsuit. Stay far, far away from this company.
Second update: support is still horrible, but the camera are above average, the app is above average and it serves the purpose. If you can figure out your support issues on your own, you are golden.
—
Initially I wrote a 5 star review. I really did enjoy the app and the camera. When iOS14 was pushed, the app stopped working. In other words, the camera is not functional because you cannot view the camera, set the alarms, etc. When the app is down, everything is down. When attempting to get support, they outsource their support to who knows where.
This is directly from their support staff, "The support for Arlo are outsourced to different countries around the world. The number I provided is for customers that is based in the US. The call will be routed to the next available agent."
They say things like "I understand your problem is the app crashing. Is that correct?" They will continue to repeat the same questions over and over, and provide no support until you are exhausted. Very similar to dealing with Comcast or Verizon. In this day and age, companies that outsource their support this early in their trajectory (e.g., gaining customers, popularity, etc.), when they haven't proven themselves yet, is a huge disappointment. Arlo will fail for this reason, just like Canary before them and many others. Quite a shame they decided to go cheap in the most critical part of customer retention. At the end of the day though, they aren't even able to support iOS14 and if you have an iPhone, your app will stop working. Arlo is a very amateur company, and I would reconsider purchasing from them unless it's a "one and done" purchase. Anything more sophisticated, you'll want to go with a brand that has more technical and support infrastructure. This is a one-and-done type of purchase - don't buy more than a camera from Arlo.
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Sharon M. Gordon
1.0 out of 5 stars Can't set it up w Netgear Orbi
Reviewed in the United States on July 14, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I have a full Pro 2 system at primary home and wanted to set the Essential up as a stand alone as beach house. I couldn't get it to recognize the code to set it up after trying all the troubleshooting tips Netgear listed and I think its because the Orbi is a 5/2.4 bands with the same name so the code keeps generating to the 5 ghz band so the unit won't recognize the code or connect to the wifi. I had high hopes but sadly disappointed that I could not set it up.
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Kevin P.
1.0 out of 5 stars Buyer Beware! You don’t get what you pay for
Reviewed in the United States on January 25, 2021
Color: BlackSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I absolutely loved these cameras...for three months. Then my “free trial” expired and now they are basically useless unless I shell out $10 a month (minimum) for a stupid subscription service. Without that, all these cameras do is notify you that someone used to be within the camera range. By the time you are notified and check the person animal etc Is gone and you can only hope they are not inside your home. During the free trial you’d get a notification and a recording of the activity around the camera.
I could see if the subscription was for cloud storage, but for the basic feature of recording and saving the video to your phone ousting an extra $10 a month feels like a scam to me
Save your $350+ and buy a less expensive camera system that will actually keep you and your family safe .
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SDN
1.0 out of 5 stars Returned this piece of garbage
Reviewed in the United States on October 27, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
Charged the camera indoors 6+ hours, well past the “charged” light illuminating. Mounted easily under the eave and set up via the app. Despite giving it a full charge the app reported the battery at 77%. One week later the battery was down to 10% so I got up on the ladder and took it inside to charge. Again, 6+ hours and well past the charge light illumination. Mounted it again and it was still at 10%. Returned for a refund.
Wont take or hold a charge and battery is weak at best.
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Amazon Customer
1.0 out of 5 stars Worthless without a subscription
Reviewed in the United States on December 9, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I purchased this camera with the intention of adding to my existing Arlo Pro cameras/hub. It started off good, and the verbiage in the manual about a trial period of their subscription service went largely unnoticed since they've been trying to pawn off upgraded features via subscription on my old Pro cameras ever since I bought them. As it turns out though, the trial subscription is not for UPGRADED features like my existing Pro cameras, but for the most BASIC functions. There is no way to view alerts on your phone without the subscription. The essential camera is totally worthless. I reached out to Arlo support, who told me that I could simply plug a flash drive into the hub and it would work fine. I bought a nice flash drive from Amazon, but viewing alerts still didn't work. Reached out to Arlo support again and they told me that the drive only works to view alerts if you go home, pull the drive out of the hub, and view it on a computer? What good is that?!
This is a bait & switch scam, IMO. The product description page only mentions the trial period as "Arlo Smart gives you greater control over how you manage and view events that happen around your home, so you can react faster when it matters most. Included 3 months Smart Trial with your purchase of Arlo Essential Spotlight Camera." It doesn't say that the most basic function of the camera doesn't work without a monthly subscription. Especially in light of the fact that their older products worked fine without a subscription, why would anyone expect otherwise on this? It's misleading and false advertising. And of course, the trial subscription runs out after the return period so a buyer can't return the camera after they catch on to Arlo's deceptive practices. DO NOT BUY unless you want a monthly bill.
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tsat
1.0 out of 5 stars Greedy and no help from Arlo!
Reviewed in the United States on January 7, 2021
Color: BlackSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I have the original Arlo cameras. Doesnt cost a thing a month. Ordered the essential spotlight cameras and Arlo says I have to pay a monthly fee to use them? Without a monthly fee I can get live video but no recordings or use of any of the functions!! Useless!! Do not buy!!
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Timothy A. Stowe
1.0 out of 5 stars Camera not a good buy. Don't waste your money
Reviewed in the United States on October 22, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I have had the camera for less than two months and it is no longer working properly. I have 7 other arlo cameras and they are all working fine. This camera is not saving to my hub and randomly says there is motion. I have not activity zone adjustment. I have tried removing this camera from my app and resetting with no luck, in fact I do not believe it was removed as before I did the sync I was getting motions alerts and the then the camera was back on my app.
Of course trying to get a hold of customer support with arlo is near impossble. This is my second issue this week with my arlo system and I am looking into hard wire cameras. Not support and faulty equipment. Add that my chance to return for refund has past with amazon. Not very happy right now and still on hold with arlo.
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Rickster
1.0 out of 5 stars If I had known before, I wouldn’t have made this purchase
Reviewed in the United States on March 30, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
Well Arlo, you wanted me to rate your products so here goes.
We bought one Essential Spotlight camera. We didn’t realize that there was a “trial” period and after that expires, you basically lose every function that you REALLY need to get the benefits of having this camera in the first place. So, if you want to pay a “monthly” (yes monthly only)fee of either $2.99 or $9.99 depending on what you have then sure, go ahead. Me, I don’t like this “bait and switch” type tactic. It’s clearly a racket and shame on you Arlo for doing business like this. I won’t be buying another camera from your company ever again and will make sure everyone I know from here on doesn’t either. You’re basically strong-arming people into having to buy a subscription in order to use something they’ve already paid good money for.
Sadly, I had already convinced a good friend of mine to buy a Essential Spotlight three camera package before realizing what was going on here. Here is another example of Arlo’s “fine” customer service. My friend who bought these cameras(I have to have his cameras on my app because his iPhone got hacked and can’t load the app on his device)really needed them because he was having issues at his home. The person he was trying to protect himself from actually came to his place at night and started smashing the cameras trying to knock them down and did manage to get two of them down. In the process, they were able to knock the back “cap” off of one of the cameras. It still worked but couldn’t get the cap back on so we contacted Arlo. They said they wouldn’t sell us one. We were told we’d have to buy another camera instead!
This company doesn’t care about you as a customer, all they care about is raping you financially no matter what. Fortunately for me, I have been a commercial alarm, camera and access technician for almost thirty years and have our place wired like Fort Knox. I just wanted something to interact with our dogs while we’re not home.
Shame on you Arlo. Shame. On. You.
**UPDATE**
Apparently after submitting my review, Arlo reached out to me but refuses to post my review. I wonder Arlo, are you managed by Jack Dorsey, Mark Zuckerberg perhaps? Someone says something that you don’t like and you just shut them down?
You asked me for information regarding my review which I sent to you. Two weeks + later, you reach out to me again without any REAL news or concerns, just wasting my time. How about posting my review and let the truth speak for itself?
1.0 out of 5 stars Disappointed
Reviewed in the United States on December 10, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: XLVerified Purchase
Battery life: very disappointed in the battery life...promoted as 1 year usage on a battery charge when in reality the charge lasted 6 weeks...I will be returning this camera
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under duress
1.0 out of 5 stars charging and connection issues
Reviewed in the United States on November 6, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
Unboxed it and set up was easy. Liked the app, took some navigation. After about 30 mins of being out of the box the app indicated it needed charged. I got the charge cable out and set it to charge, the charge went down from 25 % then to 7% and then 1% within a few minutes. It didn't appear to be charging, tried a different charger cable and a different outlet.. no change. I turned the camera off on the app . I called the Amazon support, they offered me a partial refund for so I could purchase " new charger cable".. really ?? I had just told them it wouldn't charge with a different cable and that it was less than 3 hours out of the box.. obviously I declined their solution. I contacted Arlo via chat ( its 24/7 in case you were wondering). Arlo said it was an connection to the App issue and to restart the camera.. I did and it showed 100% charged. So i get ready to hang it up on the spot I had chosen for it and logged back into the app.. I was unable to turn the camera back on and the camera showed no wifi connection on the screen.. app and online. I tried to press the connection button on the camera.. no luck. So i removed the camera from my account so that I could re-add it.. it never would give me the blue flashing light so I could scan the bar code.. camera is dead. Needless to say for $130 and 3 hours old I am not spending any more time on tech support because apparently the app does not interface with the camera too well, nor does signing in online ( which by the way if you are signed into the app and then sign in via the website it will log you out of the app). I am not sure if I will attempt another Essential Spotlight Camera, I have done a lot of research and was very hopeful about this product. I am thinking I may just have had a Monday morning camera..
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chrisP
1.0 out of 5 stars You will find it impossible to connect this camera
Reviewed in the United States on September 29, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
This is the second one I have ordered from Amazon and the same result. Both are defective. The one I ordered from an alternate supplier worked perfectly. I think they are sending Amazon refurbished items which have connectivity issues. Good luck getting any support from Arlo. No numbers to dial, no chat available and the manual has no helpful information in addition to being badly written
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Gettys Glaze
1.0 out of 5 stars Very below average customer service
Reviewed in the United States on September 2, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
Great product out of the box. 2 of the 3 cameras worked perfectly, 3rd camera doesn't work properly. Tried to contact Arlo service/online chat for support. Crickets....BE AWARE that the customer service is quite lacking on response/ chat time. Your product is only as good as your support. Will revise if they come through with better help on getting the 3rd camera to work properly. BUY WITH CAUTION.
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Max
1.0 out of 5 stars Worst system I've owned
Reviewed in the United States on December 2, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I've setup multiple camera/security systems for friends and family throughout the years. This is absolutely the worst camera ever. The web application is a joke. I work from home and try to keep an eye on my condo parking lot on a computer on the side of me throughout the day to monitor traffic. Probably once every 15-20 seconds, the screen will time out and have to rebuffer. About every 3-4 buffers, it takes so long to reconnect that the operation freezes. This forces me to refresh the page. The web app doesn't allow simple refreshing though. Every time you refresh, you have to re-login to the dashboard after clicking through a "session timeout" error, then reconnect to your camera after waiting for it to buffer the stream again. This makes it useless. If I have something I'm trying to monitor, i can maybe only get a solid 5-10 seconds of view time before I have to refresh and re-login. Not to mention, there's a SERIOUS lag...i'm talking 15-20 seconds sometimes. So while the "chat" feature is cool where you can talk through the camera...it does ZERO good when the person i'm trying to chat with is already 20 seconds away from the camera. The web app also does not let you zoom/pan. You can zoom, but it only let's you zoom straight ahead, you can't move the image around to see anything other than what is directly in front of the lens. The mobile app allows you to do this. The battery life is not as advertised although I'm not going to make a big deal out of it because i live in a complex where there's lots of motion that triggers the camera to activate. I got 2 days battery life...a far cry from 6 months which is what the listing says. So I got a solar charger, doesn't charge fast enough, camera still dies. So I had to run a power cable to it. I also don't see a way to store data on a private server, you have to pay for their monthly storage service. I cannot stress this enough....DO NOT BUY THIS CAMERA
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Kelly Carlson
1.0 out of 5 stars Great concept but, if you have some cash you want to flush down the toilet buy these
Reviewed in the United States on August 21, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: XLVerified Purchase
I bought 3 of these after hearing great things. One would not work out of the box. Amazon of course refunded. Other 2 set up easy and things seemed great. Till few months later we lost out internet for a few hours. When it came back one of these would no longer work. No matter what I tried nothing. Followed help instructions and did a hard re-set. Now it was bricked and dead. So in the trash it went. Last one was working fine. Then we lost out net again. Same thing now with the last one. No mater what it will no longer work. This one too will be out in the trash. For what these cost they should be able to do a hell of a lot better.
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Kyuchan Kim
1.0 out of 5 stars Live stream issue, bad application on Android, bad battery life
Reviewed in the United States on March 28, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: XLVerified Purchase
Bought 2 cameras. One of them would not even connect during the initial setup process. I reset the camera 4 times, but still failed. The other one took less than 5 minutes to set up, but when trying to live stream from the app it always says connecting. You will find hundreds of complaints and support cases regarding this issue on their website and the Arlo support team almost always blame Customer's device. This is just simply a bad product. Please do not buy this.
I am adding more comments here about the battery life. Arlo website advertising that the XL battery lasts 1 year without charging. I installed the fullly charged camera on March 27th and today is April 9th and the battery is at 25%. Super bad camera.
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Keep Faith
1.0 out of 5 stars Untable Connection and Terrible tech support
Reviewed in the United States on August 17, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 3 CamerasStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
HUGE DISAPPOINTMENT!
I was very happy with the product, so after rcvd my order, I went ahead to purchase another 5 Arlo cameras. However, this is where the issues begin. I didnt write the negative review right away because I understand problem happens and I think it's only fair to work with the support team to resolve the issues. Unfortunately, after couple months trying, my story didnt end well.
I installed Arlo camera at my vacation homes, where I dont be around often and want to keep an eye when I am not on sites. In the beginning, the issue was camera not able to connect to network properly and constantly offline. Then the past couple weeks, ALL of my 11 cameras in 3 different locations are offline and require reconnect onside. The typical answer from tech support is camera too far or wifi is not strong enough etc. But all of the cameras are less than 50m from wifi router and I do have other wireless products that working just fine.
Anyway, tech support constantly close the cases after they provide you the link to remove your camera and add it back ( on site). I guess they dont have other solution so they decided to close the case at their end.
I am very disappointed with Arlo camera and do not recommend it.
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JoAnne Jackson
1.0 out of 5 stars Does not live up to battery life representations and won't record after trial expires
Reviewed in the United States on December 14, 2020
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
I replaced my entire Arlo system with this new system strictly based on the representation that the battery life was 6 months. I have four cameras that I purchased on 10/13/20. Today marks 2 months that I have had this system and I have had to recharge each camera at least twice in this two month period. NOT PERFORMING AS ADVERTISED.
UPDATE: After 3 months the "Smart Arlo" trial expired and the system stopped recording. They state in their web description that it will still record after the trial expires, but you won't have the additional smart features. Not so. Returned the entire package today and will never purchase another Arlo product.
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Kelvin
1.0 out of 5 stars DONT BUY
Reviewed in the United States on January 15, 2021
Color: WhiteSize: 1 CameraStyle: StandardVerified Purchase
Don’t buy unless you want to be misled by false advertising. No where does it say after 90 day trial it will no longer record unless you subscribe to a paid subscription. I was happy with my 4 other Arlo Pro cameras until this experience. Also glitchy and freezes when plugged in. Was told it’s a k own problem when the camera is plugged in constantly. I don’t normally write reviews, but had to based on this purchase. And to top it off, I can still return this so they’re getting g back a used camera and lost a formerly happy customer.
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