Time and Date Display on video (Timestamp)

[J_Benson]

Preface: The property management company I work for purchased 8 Arlo cameras to set up around the apartment complex I manage. 

The current system does not provide an easy way to tell the exact time a specific time that an image within a video clip was captured, nor does it provice an easy way to navigate to a specific time within a video. The only mention of an exact time is the time listed when the camera began recording each clip. To find out when a still image within the video was captured, you must mentally add up the amount of time you are into a video and the start time of the clip. Example: I want to find the time 6:32 within a video clip. The video clip states that it starts at 6:30, so I navigate two minutes into the video.

My suggestion is to either add a time and date stamp to the video recording, in an unobtrusive area of the video, perhaps customizeable to which corner it appears in. Alternatively, rather than the time slider at the bottom of the clip playback stating the time into the video clip, it displays the real time the video was taken. Current setup for video playback begins at 00:00:00 and advances to 00:02:00, if video length is set to 120 seconds. Instead, it could start at the real time the video capture was taken and continue along at real time. Example: Video starts at 06:30:27 and the slider at the bottom of the playback advances to 06:32:27.

This would aid in finding a specific time in which an event reportedly occurred, as well as serve for better evidence when assessing a charge against a tenant for littering, as you could print out a screenshot of the video with a timestamp and attach it to a document for issuing a charge. It would also aid in police investigations or as evidence when in litigation. Police often come to my office to request video footage of a certain time and date, and this would assist them. We also have a problem with illegal dumping of mattresses and furniture, in which case we would need a timestamped image to present to police.

Thank you for reading this suggestion, and I hope that a timestamp could be implemented as an optional feature for the Arlo camera system in the future. 

J. Benson,
Ullrich Real Estate

[jguerdat]

The filename is the epoch time.

At least in the Android app, downloading the file gives you the proper date and time in addition to the epoch time.

[theberber]

well thanks for that -  'at least' 

I am Mac and apple as i stated - so now to make this work i have to convert my entire tech system to drab android as well

jeez - this communtiy is so up em selves

[WatchingYou]

Lots of people do want it but are Netgear listening...  I don't think so.

Instead of wasting time playing around with the mobile app interface, they should be spending time on something important like date and time stamping.

[hokeysmoke]

The name of the downloaded file is the same regardless of operating system if you are using the browser to do the download.  This might be true for the apps as well, but I have not tried it on iOS so I am not sure.  The time that the video was made is is available in the file name (epoch time) as well as the metadata of the .mp4 file (UTC time).

[LovelyNot]

Yes, totally ridiculous un-usable format. Who in their right mind time-stamps movies with epoch crap? Seriously, if even the most simple camera can name files with a format like 20160703_18h12m23s_6b.mov why can't netgear do this for a system that actually has the most urgent requirement for it?

[theberber]

No im afraid it is not. The epoch time on IOS is restamped as the time at which you download it - as you say you dont use ios so you cant know this. 

[theberber]

Thankyou lovelynot. At last someone who undertsands

[Jshoe]

We need to have the ability to have timestamps. They are imperative when using videos as evidence in court against crazy neighbors... I spent almost $1000 on my camera system to have the case thrown out of court becayse there was no timestamp. Please implement this. Should have been there since day 1.

[billgreenwood]

You really need the time and date embeded into the video ... Like a burnt in subtitle. Timestamps / creation times on files and filenames are easily faked and no use really.

[WatchingYou]

Guys,

Sorry, it appears that Netgear are not listening or just don't care.  DATE and TIME STAMP the bloody videos.

This has been going on for far to long now.  You have our money now do what is required to make the video submissible in court. Most of us purchased these cameras to monitor trouble spots around the external perimeter of our property, not to monitor babies. What is the use if the evidence is questioned in court.

My dashcam costing AUD$50 does a better job than your poxy WiFi cameras.

NETGEAR, wake up and listent to your customers.

You are selling a product 'NOT FIT FOR PURPOSE' and they can all be returned to the stores on these grounds alone.