Base station or not?

[p304679]

I am looking at buying an arlo camera setup, but I have questions:

Why do some cameras require a base station and others just wifi? Which is better?

Which direction is the company going with base stations - are they being phased out or are more arlo devices going to be using them in the future?

[jguerdat]

Some of the cameras are older and always needed the base station. Newer ones vary in their need, kinda evenly split. I, personally, prefer the use of a base (SmartHub, actually) for various reasons such as local recordings on a USB drive as well as what appears to me to be better connectivity with the cameras. A lot of the issues we've seen recently seem to all come from cameras using home WiFi but not those using a base or hub. That may well be an incorrect observation but I've been around here for a long time and have seen weird things happen that us users can't easily explain.

ANyways, I don't know that there's much of a "reason" for why some can use WiFi while others can't - there seems to be a slow progression towards allowing WiFi connectivity possibly due to user feedback/marketing pressures. 

[p304679]

Do all of the arlo cameras work with a base station, even if they are defined as 'wifi'?

[StephenB]

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@p304679 wrote:

Do all of the arlo cameras work with a base station, even if they are defined as 'wifi'?

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There are a couple that don't (Arlo Q, Arlo Go, Arlo Baby for instance).

There is a list here of what cameras work with what bases: https://kb.arlo.com/000062284/Arlo-SmartHub-and-Base-Station-Compatibility

[p304679]

First, with is the difference between a VMB4540 smarthub (mentioned on: https://kb.arlo.com/000062284/Arlo-SmartHub-and-Base-Station-Compatibility) and the VMS4240P (see the kit below) ? 

I am considering an Arlo kit on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07X36VWCT/ref=ewc_pr_img_4?smid=AFTHNMHJL68Q5&psc=1

and I want to know if the base station will work with: an FB1001 floodlight cam:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B084TTKWHM/ref=ewc_pr_img_5?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

and a doorbell:

https://www.amazon.com/Arlo-AVD2001-100NAS-Essential-Doorbell-Wire-Free/dp/B08HRNG8CR/ref=sr_1_6?cri...

I've read a lot of reviews and some say the doorbell and floodlight dont play nicely with the smarthub.

I'm ok with running a low voltage power line for the doorbell to ring, but i want all components to be able to connect to the smarthub.

What do you think?

...and thank you for your help and expertise!

[StephenB]

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@p304679 wrote:

First, with is the difference between a VMB4540 smarthub (mentioned on: https://kb.arlo.com/000062284/Arlo-SmartHub-and-Base-Station-Compatibility) and the VMS4240P (see the kit below) ? 

I am considering an Arlo kit on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07X36VWCT/ref=ewc_pr_img_4?smid=AFTHNMHJL68Q5&psc=1

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The S in VMS4240P stands for "system" - unfortunately Arlo doesn't clearly identify the base they include in the various system combos they sell.  But I believe this kit includes the VMB4540 base.  One of the mods ( @JamesC and @ShayneS ) should be able to confirm that.

This smarthub is compatible with the Pro 3 floodlight and the AVD2001 doorbell.

FWIW, my own doorbells (AVD1001 s) and my Pro 3 floodlight are connected to a VMB5000 base.

[JamesC]

This kit includes a VMB4540 SmartHub.

JamesC

[p304679]

Awesome!

[p304679]

I have been shopping for an arlo system for the past week or so, asked a number of questions on this community site to find the specific devices I wanted and added a dual camers, floodlight and doorbell to my cart. When I logged in to place my order today, the total on my order was up over $130 from a few days ago.

What happened here???

I'm now starting to look at other cameras like blink and ring.