Arlo Essential Spotlight Terrible Battery Life

[MichaelAnth]

All 3 of my Essential Spotlight cameras have terrible battery life. I have had these in operation for about 4 months and have to charge each camera 3 times. I am now down to them lasting about 2 weeks. This is terrible......

[jguerdat]

Are they connected to WiFi or to a base or hub? Have you brought a camera closer to the router/hub to see if that makes a difference? How many total minutes of recording and live viewing are you doing on average per day? Are you using zones? If so, try removing them so you can see every recording to add up the minutes.

[MichaelAnth]

This is such a ridiculous response about bringing the cameras closer to the router (They are WiFi, not hub). In my case, moving them closer means completely changing from the areas in which I need monitored. The only camera I could move by more than a foot and still capture the same area from a different angle is already the closest to the WiFi  router anyway. 

I am not using zones. There are about 40 recordings a day at 20 seconds per. 

[StephenB]

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@MichaelAnth wrote:

This is such a ridiculous response about bringing the cameras closer to the router (They are WiFi, not hub). In my case, moving them closer means completely changing from the areas in which I need monitored.

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Most battery drain issues are either due to frequent wifi connection drops or high video recording activity.  Low temperatures also can sharply increase battery drain, so if it is cold in your area now, that could be part of it.

Your video activity is about 12-15 minutes per day - which is high enough that you won't get the 6 month advertised battery life, but you should be getting more than 2 weeks.  I'm thinking 6-8 weeks is likely what you should be getting.

Moving a camera closer to the router can help you sort out whether connection drops are part of the puzzle for you (or not).  Obviously not a solution, but it can be helpful in troubleshooting the problem.

[fredterra]

I'm experiencing the same problem. I have three cameras connected to the Wi-Fi and solar panel, but the Arlo Essential is the only one that is never fully charged, not matter the weather, and is constantly off due to the battery charge. I've just bought another Arlo Solar Panel to test if the first one was the problem, but getting the same results, the camera is dying due to the battery charge every week.

I have a high frequency of recording due to the location of the camera, but it should never be a problem, since this is a security camera.

Looking for help and suggestions.

[StephenB]

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@fredterra wrote:

I have a high frequency of recording due to the location of the camera ...

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How much recording (approx seconds per day w/o activity zones)?  If it's too much, the solar panel won't be enough.

[DLCMO]

Cameras have to charge more than the ones a  had with batteries! It’s a pain and looking for something different