Arlo base station VMB4500: Will it work with USB 3.2, on 1 TB or 2 TB SSD as local storage?????????

[RetiredTeecher]

My "Subject" here says it all: Will my Arlo VMB4500 base station work with a 1 TB or 2 TB SSD, on USB 3.2, as local storage? I have 4 Arlo Pro 2 cameras and 1 video doorbell. I'm about to hook up solar panels for 3 of the Pro 2 cams, but want to set up local storage. I'm needing to know what will work, and solid state drives with terrabyte storage are REALLY inexpensive now!

[StephenB · Accepted solution]

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@RetiredTeecher wrote:

My "Subject" here says it all: Will my Arlo VMB4500 base station work with a 1 TB or 2 TB SSD, on USB 3.2, as local storage? 

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The bases use USB 2 hardware.  That is fast enough to keep up with the cameras, but might not provide the power needed by the drive.  So get a drive that can be externally powered.  Also, the disk needs to be formatted as FAT32.

IMO a flash drive in the 128 GB - 512 GB size range is a better option.  Less prone to be accidentally disconnected, since there are no cables, and no possibility of inadequate power.  I use 128 GB myself, and have more than enough retention (months).

Although the VMB4500 supports local recording, it does not support local playback.  You will need to eject the storage and connect it to a PC in order to view it.

[RetiredTeecher]

Thanks for the reply, StephenB. I knew about the lack of local playback on external storage, and I'm ok with that. I knew about the FAT32 formatting (which limits storage to 2TB), and I actually have some flash drives laying around in my office that will likely work, based on your reply. Thankfully, we're in a small town in Missouri that has a very low crime rate, so I'm not feeling the need for lots of full-time 24-hrs/day video footage - I'm wanting to be sure I have enough storage space for a 4 to 6 weeks or so of motion-capture videos from 4 Arlo Pro 2 cams and an Arlo video doorbell, for times when my wife & I take a long road trip. I had no idea how large the Arlo vids tend to be, but I knew "too much space" was better than "not enough space." I'd read about the base station using USB 2, but didn't know if it would support anything newer ... or how much power it could provide for an SSD. You said you use 128 GB stick, and that's enough for months of videos ???? Great !