Arlo Baby Dropping Connection

[cmackOTI]

Hi Arlo reps,

I bought an Arlo Baby (ABC1000) in April this year, and have been having constant problems with the device and service since then. I have persevered through the issues, and have tried to convince my partner that it'll all be fixed with the next Arlo update, the next version of IOS, the next whatever. However, after 6 months the time has come where both she and I are furious that a baby monitor, whose sole job is to allow us to monitor the most precious thing in both our worlds, is so unreliable that it fails to perform that one task often multiple times a day, including at night when we're asleep.

In my opinion, the Arlo Baby device and service are substantially unfit for purpose, and contain a number of major problems which have not been rectified by either NETGEAR or the Arlo product team in a timely manner. As such, I'm seeking a full refund of the purchase price for the Arlo Baby camera and Arlo Baby stand, per my consumer rights under Australian Consumer Law.

I've done all the basic troubleshooting, and some more advanced troubleshooting, and nothing has helped.

• Arlo Baby on the latest version at the time (currently 1.8.5.3, to fix the latest audio and streaming bugs)
• All Apple iOS devices (2 x iPhone 7 Plus, 1 x iPad Pro 1st Gen, 1 x iPad Pro 2nd Gen) on the latest version at the time (currently iOS 12.1)
• Arlo app uninstalled and reinstalled from Apple App Store
• Arlo Baby camera removed and re-added to Arlo app
• Arlo Baby camera removed and re-added to Apple HomeKit
• Arlo Baby power cycled (often multiple times per day to resolve issues - this infuriates my partner, especially when she has to walk into the room when our baby is sleeping)
• Arlo Baby reset to factory and set up from scratch

On the home network side:

• All Ubiquiti network gear (USG 3P, UniFi Switch 24, 3 x AP AC Pro) on the latest firmware at the time (with perhaps a week or so lag from release to install)
• Internet connection is Telstra NBN 50 fiber to the premises (FTTP). Speedtest.net regularly hits around 45 Mbps down, 18 Mbps up, including during the evening. Ping to local Telstra test server is 3ms. I have the Ubiquiti gear running periodic speed tests every 30 minutes, and the results are consistently similar.
• The room containing the Arlo Baby has a ceiling-mounted wireless access point, and the Arlo Baby has direct line of sight.
• The wireless AP controller shows the Arlo Baby connection with a signal strength of -44dBm, which is superb, and expected with approx. 2 metres line of sight between it and the AP.
• The 3 wireless APs are on 2.4GHz channels 1, 6, 11, and a site survey shows low channel utilisation for all 3 (~9% at idle), including interference. The 5GHz channels all show very low utilisation (~2% at idle).
• I've tried forcing the Arlo Baby to join either the 2.4GHz or 5GHz wifi bands - no difference.
• I've tried each of the 3 APs separately by taking the Arlo Baby around the house - no difference
• I've tried force associating the Arlo Baby with different APs from a fixed location - no difference

The problem is not my home network.

All the while my partner and I have experienced:

• Numerous 'The streaming service is reporting that the device is not streaming' errors (solution: keep closing the error message on the Arlo app and hope the stream starts up after the 5th/10th/20th error message is displayed)
• Numerous 'Your device is not connected' errors (solution: power cycle the Arlo Baby, and hope it starts working)
• Numerous silent failures of the audio/video stream (Arlo app sits on 'Connecting...' message continuously), until we realised the stream is broken or hear our baby crying when we are nearby (solution: calm the baby if crying, then power cycle the Arlo Baby and hope)
• Recently, live video working on both our iPhones, but not working (frozen image) on both our iPad Pros
• Stuttering audio and pixellated video when connected locally (which the latest firmware improves on)
• Consistently awful performance when outside the home over 4G (badly stuttering and laggy audio, and sub-1 frame per second video, if the video works at all), despite being able to consistently pull data at full speed (~18 Mbps) from other devices inside the home at the time (I strongly suspect Arlo's relay servers or data centre WAN links are badly under-specced)
• Missed recordings, and truncated manual recordings (e.g. 7 seconds recorded out of 60 seconds)

And the list goes on.

The sole purpose of the Arlo Baby Monitor System, and the reason I bought one, is to monitor a baby. Specifically, my baby. It has consistently failed to do this over the past 6 months in a substantially reliable manner, which is mandatory for product in this category. I would be irresponsible and negligent as a parent if I continued to accepted the product's inherent unreliability.

I've given the Arlo Baby time, effort, and patience - it's got great potential, and I've really wanted it to work. But it just doesn't.

Please let me know the next steps required to process a refund.

Sincerely,

Callum Mackintosh

[MaeDeenean]

For the past 4 months, this effing thing has given me so much trouble! It randomly disconnects from my WiFi and then the device is offline for hours! At first, we were suspecting it to be our wireless router causing us issues, so we had moved it around the house for better signal... all our other products (phones, smart tv’s, laptops, etc.) all connect and stay connected to WiFi so now we 100% know it’s the camera.. I’ve had Arlo replace the camera twice. TWICE! Some days it will work perfectly fine, but most days I’m ready to smash it on the ground!
The night vision and picture quality on this camera, when it is working, is amazing and clear. The fact that I can put it to 130° to look around the whole room is awesome.
I have a 10 month old who has a heart defect, and the fact that this camera disconnects on a regular basis DOES NOT help my anxiety when she’s sleeping.
Unfortunately I missed my return period for this product, but I can guarantee that I will not be buying from Arlo again...

[dMb79]

I completely agree, we have had our cam only 5 months and in the last few weeks it has become so unreliable, we have no issues with any other device in our home and no issues with our broadband or mobile phones, we just cannot put up with a baby cam that constantly disconnects during the day and most importantly while we are asleep, we are going to send the cam back!

[Kurlyqm]

The Arlo Baby monitor was a gift from our Amazon registry purchased in March of 2019. I haven’t replaced it yet because this is the one item my husband completed research on, for our registry and I feel terrible for our friends who spent money on it.

I echo everyone else’s experience and wish my husband had searched here before selecting Arlo as our monitor. This thing is the pits and is completely unreliable. I actually purchased an old school audio monitor for $20 as backup that provides me much more peace of mind. I can hear my daughter and likely make it up to her room on the second floor before the Arlo will even stream live video.

Buyers beware and Arlo, get your act together or stop stealing people’s money by selling this bunny eared hunk of junk.

[infinitebeard]

If anyone wants a good camera then I replaced the Arlo with a Eufy spaceview a whole ago. It’s not a smart camera, but as far as video monitors go it’s very good with a decent screen - and best of all, its reliable.

[cmfnotify]

I did the same thing. The Arlo baby monitor is too unreliable and they also sent me a replacement. The issue is with the way they handle firmware and software updates, along with having a back end hosting system that doesn't have enough resources to handle the demand of connections.  Do you notice that when you are inside your home network the Arlo came still requires you to connect to their servers to view the camera, this is a fundamental flaw.  I actually get better service viewing the monitor over my cellular connection.  So because we needed something reliable and Arlo doesn't seem to be moving fast enough to fix issues we bought a Eufy and it works flawlessly except for not having the ability to view it outside the home network but the range allows us to go out in the yard with it.

[thigas2]

I am facing a similar issue. In the past month, my Arlo baby has constantly disconnected (your device is not connected). There is no issue with my internet connect as the other Arlo continue working during that time. What could that be?

[Ojeda01]

Jumping on the thread here to say we’re having all the same issues. Doesn’t seem like it will matter to Arlo, tho! We blamed our issues on poor internet service but the problems actually got worse when we upgraded this week. Pathetic. Wondering if any has had any new success on this issue or if they’ve been able to get refunds.

[dgathje]

I have had nothing but connection issues from day one.  This “monitor” is a joke of a device.  I would highly recommend people from staying away from this.  You will be better off with a 5 dollar baby monitor that does audio only.  Shame on Arlo for putting out and continuing to sell such a worthless device for a major purpose like making sure your infant is ok and alive.

[longitude15]

I've suffered with frequent disconnections and drop outs for almost 2 years now. Performed exhaustive troubleshooting numerous times, tried multiple routers but to no avail.

The only way I've found to maintain a stable connection is to turn the device off when my child is not in bed. As mentioned already in this thread, it seems like the device is overheating.

It's not the greatest workaround but it does solve the problem and has reduced my stress levels greatly. I've now purchased a WiFi power plug to schedule the on/off of the device.

[Boukam]

Yes I tried getting in touch with support, after an hour On “hold”, was sent a message, the that message went unresponsive for over 20 minutes as I explained my connection issues. Also has been very below par for customer service. I like the video..... that is When it decides to work

[schmidtkvn]

Hello,

I'd like to set my Arlo Baby up like a normal baby monitor with a dedicated device to show the video stream continuously. So far I have tried an iPhone, an Android phone, a tab running in Chrome on a Windows laptop, and the Google Home Hub. In every case I'm able to get the stream started but after some time it freezes, closes, or is interrupted. Has anyone been able to get a setup like this working? Any recommendations? Specifically I want something that will continue to stream all night long as we sleep so we can hear if the baby starts to cry.

The iPhone seems to work the best. It streams for several hours, but eventually the phone locks and the app is no longer open. The web app & Google Home Hub are the worst, after just 15-30min or so the stream will freeze and will need to be reconnected by the user.

Thanks!

[infinitebeard]

@schmidtkvn please don’t do it to yourself, if this is the only monitor you have on your baby then I would recommend getting a dedicated radio-based monitor. I’m saving you hours of pulling your hair out.

[schmidtkvn]

So you don’t recommend using the Arlo Baby as a baby monitor? That is a pretty damning statement.

[infinitebeard]

Have you not read this forum 🤔

[shoplifter]

I love mine - as long as it works. When it doesn't work, I want to throw it out the window. 

[Narmag]

People at Arlo don't care about fixing the problems they have. Don't care about fixing the connection issues to the critical products they sell to people like the baby monitors. I am wondering what mafia runs this company? Obviously this company is a money laundering business. How can a company operate this way when nothing they sell works? Is Arlo hiring mentally disabled people? Please respond, Arlo! I don't believe Arlo is legal and the management needs jail time for money laundering.

[Hoyitalvin]

I've had the same issue with my baby Arlo setup. I've reached out to customer service twice the first time they sent over a replacement and the 2nd time they haven't even responded back to me. My wifi is strong with 1TB internet and I've connected it on 2.4 GHz and 5ghz. The camera is literally 6-10 feet away from my router and it would randomly disconnect and then reboot out of nowhere. I'll have the white noise going and then it'll just shut off, reset out of nowhere saying "camera disconnected", then reboot and all the lights flash and wake up my baby. I've reset the device multiple times and tried it on 3 Ios Devices, 2 computers (Mac and PC), and reset my gateway on my router. This camera reboots on average 3-4 times a day. I have their home security system and it works perfectly fine, but the baby monitor has been nothing but a nightmare. 

[jrenz88]

I have the same issue.  Arlo baby is really making me look stupid with going this route over a traditional baby monitor.  I figured for the money and the brand I was upgrading, not downgrading.

I have 2, and both turn to "Your device is not connected" several times a day.

What good is a monitor that can't stay connected? 

I have Orbi and gigbit internet from verizon that streams 4k on every floor no problem.  Yet my "smart" cameras can't stay connected.

PLEASE HELP

[jrenz88]

Can you post so all of us can see?  I really need help or a refund. 

[Hoyitalvin]

all they have been doing is giving me the run-around. I'm very frustrated.. I love their outdoor cams hence why i wen that route to get their baby cam.. little did i know it's been giving more a headache than anything. I will update you as soon as they update me. I've had this issue for over a month now, and at first, i thought it was just me but it's happening to a lot of people.

[ShayneS]

@Hoyitalvin

I will provide an update as soon as possible. Thank you for your patience.

[jaffro2k]

Hi NetGear - with the number of customers experiencing issues with this product can you please provide a plant to fix? Its pretty obvious the product does not function as advertised! And its such an critical function to monitor our little humans - the lack of a response or action is a disgrace.

[Hoyitalvin]

i agree. I might just pull one of my outdoor cameras outside to use inside because it works better than my baby cam

[mavericksp]

Why is this thing constantly dropping connection? I have the latest firmware and it is in the same room as the router. There are no other WiFi devices causing interference. Only option is to restart to get it to work again. This is unacceptable, specially from a baby monitor.

Tried factory reset and reinstall in the app also. Does not help. Is there a way to reinstall the firmware or something? Can someone please direct?

I see identical posts on the issue but most of them have no solution.

[StephenB]

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@jaffro2k wrote:
Hi NetGear

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FYI, Arlo split off from Netgear back in 2018.