VMK3350 (3 3050 camera bundle) and current VMB4000 & Pro2 (VMC4030P) system integration

[ARLO_007]

it seems I made a foolish purchase with this 3 camera bundle - I have a 3 camera VMC4030P / VMB4000 system that works well and I wanted some higher rez cameras to fill in the gaps.
Searching these boards I saw a post that implied that this could work, but apparently what I saw was integrating the ‘Essential Outdoor’ instead of these Essential Outdoor 2nd gen. Currently, it seems that the 1K Essential, with solar charger, is far more expensive than the Essential 2K bundle I bought.

so, am I screwed ?   I don’t want to have to consult 2 separate systems, or lose my 7day rolling storage, or buy 6 camera subscription, but, could I possibly revert to local storage if that was an option? Or maybe integration is possible through future  software/hardware upgrade. Otherwise, I guess I just return these.

many thanks for any ideas, here !

[StephenB]

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@ARLO_007 wrote:

it seems I made a foolish purchase with this 3 camera bundle - I have a 3 camera VMC4030P / VMB4000 system that works well and I wanted some higher rez cameras to fill in the gaps.

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First of all, the recordings you see now in the app (and my.arlo.com) are all stored in the Arlo Cloud.  While the VMB4000 does support local recording, it does not support playback.  To see locally stored recordings you need to eject the USB drive and connect it to a PC.

Secondly, Arlo stopped offering free 7-day cloud recording on new camera models back in 2018, so 5 years ago.  All the currently sold cameras (including all Essential models) require a subscription to get cloud storage.  The free 7-day cloud storage was always limited to 5 unsubscribed cameras per account, so if you go over that limit you will need a subscription (either multicamera, or single-camera) to bring you down the the limit of 5.

If you want to try direct access to local storage, you would need to get either a VMB4540 or VMB5000 smarthub (which will work for the Pro 2 cameras, but you'd need to wait for Arlo to add hub support for the Essential 2nd Gen cameras).

While many do use this feature instead of a subscription, IMO it's not a great experience.  Limitations include:

• recordings only available in the app (not my.arlo.com)
• recordings are not available in "friend" accounts
• recordings will not show up in "Feed", there are some extra steps you need to take to see them.
• no ability to make manual recordings or take snapshots
• no thumbnails - videos need to be downloaded to your phone to view
• remote access requires router setting changes that some find difficult (and which don't work with some internet service providers).

[ARLO_007]

Many thanks to StephenB for a rapid, and explicit, definition of the issues.

Follow up response and query :

Yes, I am aware of the complications of ‘local storage’, and that is not a deal-breaker, as I seldom even care to view the camera images — my use-case is only as after-the-fact monitoring. 

Your reply specified “all Essential. . .” , but does that imply that if I were to add, for instance, only 1 of the older “Essential Outdoor”, my cloud storage would not include data from that camera? Also, is the Essential outdoor’s technology basically similar to the Pro2, or is it ‘somewhat’ enhanced ?

Finally, upgrading to either of the base stations you mention seems like a potentially useful ‘solution’ . In that case, do future upgrades to ‘connectivity’ by Essential 2nd gen. cameras seem equally plausible ?
once again - many thanks for your help

[StephenB · Accepted solution]

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@ARLO_007 wrote:

Your reply specified “all Essential. . .” , but does that imply that if I were to add, for instance, only 1 of the older “Essential Outdoor”, my cloud storage would not include data from that camera?

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Correct.  All the Essential branded cameras and doorbells require a subscription for cloud storage.  As do the Pro 3, Pro 3 Floodlight, Pro 4, Pro 5s, Ultra, Ultra 2, and Go 2.

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@ARLO_007 wrote:

Also, is the Essential outdoor’s technology basically similar to the Pro2, or is it ‘somewhat’ enhanced ?

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Arlo doesn't give out details on what's inside, but the Essential Gen 1 camera performs similarly to the Pro 2.  The biggest difference is that the battery is totally sealed.  One consequence is that you cannot reboot the camera by removing/reinserting the battery.  Another difference is that the cameras do not support CVR.

The Gen 2 includes a 2K lineup, matching the resolution of Pro 3, Pro 4, Pro 5s.

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@ARLO_007 wrote:

Finally, upgrading to either of the base stations you mention seems like a potentially useful ‘solution’ . In that case, do future upgrades to ‘connectivity’ by Essential 2nd gen. cameras seem equally plausible ?
once again - many thanks for your help

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In general I don't ever buy a product if a "must-have" feature I need is still in the works.  I either get something else, or wait for the feature to be released.

Arlo says they are planning to support connection of the Essential Gen 2 cameras to the hubs.  They haven't announced whether that will include the VMB4000 specifically, or just the two Smarthubs.  

I don't doubt their intentions.  But they similarly announced that homekit support for the AVD2001 doorbell was "coming soon".  The doorbell came out in 2020, and we are still waiting for that feature (currently Arlo is saying it will happen this month).   

[ARLO_007]

Great - sounds like I need to return these E 2gen. Maybe I’ll look out for a used ‘Pro’. 
And I DO UNDERSTAND the razor/blade dimension of this business model, and am somewhat sympathetic regarding their cloud pricing, and I might pay $4.95 for a 7-day rolling package, but 15 or 20 would cut into my charitable giving (; )

once again, thanks very much !