topic Solar Panel Mounting and Wiring (VMA 4600) in Arlo Pro

Solar Panel Mounting and Wiring (VMA 4600)

mad1arlo — Thu, 20 Jul 2017 00:58:40 GMT

I've been an avid arlo user for quite awhile. I've also been waiting for these solar panels for quite some time. I was able to pick up a pair about a week ago and went to install them today. Having a second mount is problematic when trying to maintain a minimalistic look. A dual device mount would easily solve this issue, but I digress.

The problem came into play when trying to plug in the panel into a mounted arlo pro. When this didn't work, I took the camera off the mount to do some field testing, which apparently netgear failed to do. The bundled plug does not work with the existing security mounts. Even after plugging in the panel (which needed to be done first), the security mount wouldn't screw in straight and continued to put pressure on the plug and the seam at the base of the plug. This is extremely problematic and now I have 2 solar panels I don't know what to do with. It appears this was designed to go with the new (unavailable) arlo pro mounts exclusively. So disappointed in this purchase.

Re: Solar Panel Mounting and Wiring (VMA 4600)

steve_t — Thu, 20 Jul 2017 03:41:39 GMT

Is it the plastic tightening collar that gets in the way?

Re: Solar Panel Mounting and Wiring (VMA 4600)

mad1arlo — Thu, 20 Jul 2017 05:11:27 GMT

Yes, it is. Even with it all the way back, it doesn't work well with the cord.

Re: Solar Panel Mounting and Wiring (VMA 4600)

jguerdat — Thu, 20 Jul 2017 12:41:52 GMT

You can remove those nuts so they're not a problem. I believe that contacting support can result in new, smaller nuts being sent to you. I've been using one mount without a lock nut for some time without issue. I just make sure I fully seat the threads in the camera (without over-tightening - just snug it down).

Re: Solar Panel Mounting and Wiring (VMA 4600)

Jam10 — Sat, 22 Jul 2017 18:45:20 GMT

I solved it by turning camera upside down, then make sure you go to video settings and switch on the rotate image button.

Re: Solar Panel Mounting and Wiring (VMA 4600)

steve_t — Sun, 23 Jul 2017 07:46:53 GMT

That's weird but glad it worked!

Re: Solar Panel Mounting and Wiring (VMA 4600)

mad1arlo — Sun, 23 Jul 2017 13:54:23 GMT

There's no way turning the camera upside down allows the panel to be plugged in. It uses a micro USB cable which only allows it to plug into the arlo pro one way. I'll be calling CS to see if I can get smaller lock nuts.

Re: Solar Panel Mounting and Wiring (VMA 4600)

dmanosaka — Fri, 06 Oct 2017 23:16:55 GMT

It's pretty stunning this wasn't even tested before release. Netgear totally dropped the ball on this. I just found a small nut that fit the screw threads. Looks like crap but works. But for 80 bucks shouldn't have had to.

Re: Solar Panel Mounting and Wiring (VMA 4600)

steve_t — Sat, 07 Oct 2017 00:24:54 GMT

I bought a new VMA1000 mount yesterday and was quite happy to see the white nut was much smaller than the one I got years ago. When I mounted an Arlo Pro to the old one, I just took the nut off and screwed the mount firmly to the camera