Help on recording motion in Essential Outdoor

[New2this2]

I just purchased the Arlo Essentials Outdoor camera

i I have it set up and it gives me notifications on my phone when there is movement however not all of them are being recorded. Only a few of them. Where am I going wrong with this-it is aggravating. It almost seems I have to have the app open for it to record.. any ideas on how to correct this? 

[jguerdat]

Are you using any extra features such as activity zones?

[JamesC]

The app does not need to be open to record. It sounds like you may need to adjust the cameras motion sensitivity to suit your needs. See here: https://kb.arlo.com/41/How-do-I-change-the-motion-sensitivity-on-my-Arlo-camera%22%20rel=%22noopener...

JamesC

[CraftyBrewer]

I have exactly the same issue. Was told by tech support that it was due to a weak WiFi. App said connection was strong, and I was measuring test speeds of 10-20MB at the camera, but I went for it. So I went and bought a good (aka expensive) WiFi extender. Speeds are up to 80MB at the camera. BUT, it made no difference. The App is really bad, so I ran through the settings with Tech Support. Settings all correct. No improvement. 

Next step is to return the product. 

Check your connection strength/ speed, but don’t get drawn into buying expensive extenders - not the magic bullet. 

[jguerdat]

Cheap WiFi extenders can easily do the job - expensive isn't needed.

I asked the OP but will ask it again - are you using activity zones and/or Smart notifications? Screenshots of settings and description of your system setup may be useful. Which app are you using - iOS or Android? 

[CraftyBrewer]

 Thanks for your reply. 

I tried a cheap extender, but it didn’t extend range sufficiently over my standard router. In addition, the extenders do not provide the same speed as the router. The cheap ones I’ve tried, will provide maybe 30% at best. 

To answer your other questions:

iOS. 

No activity zones.

Smart notifs set on animals, people and vehicles only. 

One other point to make here is that it’s inconsistent. I can walk past, drive slowly past, get a notification, but no video. 

Screenshots below. 

If this is solvable, I’d be a lot happier!

 

 

 

 

 

 

[New2this2]

Thank you to all who responded on this. It seems to be working better now. One more question-I am still in the trial period-once that is up it will not record correct? Can I purchase the hub to continue recordings on these without a subscription? 
(I guess that was two questions..😂)

thanks for the help!

[StephenB]

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@New2this2 wrote:

One more question-I am still in the trial period-once that is up it will not record correct?

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Cloud recording requires a subscription.

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@New2this2 wrote:

 Can I purchase the hub to continue recordings on these without a subscription? 

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The Gen 2 cameras can't be connected to a hub yet - Arlo says that is coming.  I suggest not purchasing a hub until after that feature is available.

The VMB4540 and VMB5000 support direct access to local recordings, the other hubs do not.  There are a lot of limitations:

• recordings only available in the app (not the browser)
• recordings only available using the primary account (not shared accounts)
• no ability to make manual recordings or snapshots
• no thumbnails - recordings need to be downloaded to the phone before viewing
• remote access requires router setting changes that many find difficult (and which don't work with some internet service providers)

You'd also lose other subscription features (activity zones and smart notifications).