Arlo Pro 2 - Quality

[Hammers]

Hello,

I bought the Arlo Pro 2 yesterday and got it all setup - the quality is awful though (attached video) - not expecting bluray quality here but whilst I can make out it is a van across the road, the plate is not legible, even the builders massive telephone number plastered on the scaffolding can't be read

The camera is set to "best" and shows a max wifi signal - I have 4 cameras all doing the same, it's in direct line of sight of the base station and around 5 metres away

Thought I would share the video to see if this is the quality level expected from this or should it be better?

[jguerdat]

A Pro 2 set to Best is 1080p resolution which is about 2 megapixels.  That's spread over a 130 degree (actually somewhat more) field of view which is equivalent to a 10mm fisheye on a full-frame DSLR. Most current DSLRs are using >20Mp sensors so >10x the resolution. And then there's the compression used. Zooming in on a video isn't going to get you details unless close up.

What you show above is normal. These are not ID cameras which would require a much longer focal length.

[Hammers]

Sensor size doesn't really come in to it - I can clearly see 50 x times the detail using my phone, which has a much smaller sensor - and more street view on screen

I would actually say it has just been so heavily compressed it has lost all its detail (I'm guessing to save bandwidth/storage) on servers, no problem there but they charge a fair whack for this service too

Considering it is a premium product, that's over 3x times the price of a competitior system such as Swann provides - I can't see the benefit for the cost increase and - tbh it looks a bit not fit for purpose - its clearly sold and advertised as a security camera - but if that is all it can do quality wise then I can't see it offering usable footage should it be required as evidence

Think this is a return it to shop job and look for a better option

Thanks for your help, saves me a lot of time

[Moehang]

I recently compared the Alro Pro 2 with the Swann 5MP 3K system and to my surprise, Alro wins in my opinion. Picture looked crisper, brighter and less grainy (night vision as well). Alro software seems alot less complicated and easier to figure out in setting up your camera settings. Alro's sound detection and audio features that are built in are a plus. Also, installing is faster and alot less labor intensive. Best Buy offers a 14 day return policy and carries both systems, so best way to compare these systems is to buy them both and try them and return the one you like the least.