Night vision camera that can use an external Ir source and still function with the internal Ir l

[Perdido]

As the title says, I’m looking for a camera that works with an external Ir light vs the internal Ir light on the camera.  I also want to turn the internal Ir light off to conserve battery life.  My original Arlo would do this, but had poor resolution and the Arlo 3 would not…if you turned off the Ir light it also turned off the night vision.

[jguerdat]

First, no Arlo camera works with an external IR light. You may be able to use IFTTT or similar to cause this to work or just use a motion detection one that triggers at the same time or use one that's on all the time.

Turning the IR LEDs off would barely save the battery life. The camera and radio would use far more current than the IR. 

All Arlo cameras without a spotlight rely on the IR LEDs for night vision. The Night Vision setting itself turns the LEDs on or off. The camera decides for itself when to switch between color and B&W based on ambient light level. Night vision is simply whether the IR LEDs are used.

[Perdido]

My early Arlo cameras worked well with the Ir floodlight I use for the back yard (approx 100 m square coverage) and you can turn the internal Ir led off without turning off the night vision function.  The Pro 3 system I bought does not work that way, if you turn off the cameras internal Ir light, the night vision function completely shuts down.  The downside to the early cameras is that they are less than 1080 resolution.  I’m trying to find out which cameras will function in night vision with the cameras internal Ir led turned off.  Neither tech support or customer service can tell me.

[jguerdat]

I can try that to see tonight but in the meantime, @JamesC ?

[Mark-V]

Hi @Perdido , @jguerdat ,

I gave this a test with a couple of our cameras, and the answer is that for our current camera line-up, you would not be able to use an external IR source to illuminate the image with settings alone. The reason for this is has to do with the IR Cut-off Filter. When your camera's Night Vision feature is activated, the camera is in a dark location, and streams or records, the following happens:

1. Light sensor detects low light, activates Night Vision.

2. Night Vision turns on the IR LEDs

3. Night Vision turns off the IR Cut-Off Filter, which allows IR light to come through to the image sensor.

When Night Vision is disabled in settings, the IR Cut-Off Filter is left on, and the IR light does not pass through. The result is a black image.

The best workaround we can offer is pretty simple: place some black electrical tape over the IR LEDs of the camera, and activate Night Vision. This isn't a "supported" solution, per se, but it allows the cameras IR Cut-Off Filter to turn off, and hides the IR LEDs from view. I did a quick test with an Arlo Ultra as my IR source, and a Pro 3 Floodlight with the IR LEDs covered, and the image came through. It may take a fair bit of tweaking and adjusting to get the IR illumination correct.

Thank you,

Mark V

L3 Tech

[Perdido]

Mark,

Thanks for the reply and I tried this with the pro 3 system I bought.  Battery life was less than a month at best and a couple of cameras (out of 4) only a week or so.  I reported this to tech support, but no one could understand the issues or answer the Ir question and I returned the system.  I’m willing to try the tape method again, but with something other than the pro 3.  What would be a good choice to make this work?

 Thanks 

[Mark-V]

Hi @Perdido ,

If Battery Life is the concern, then the Arlo Essential Spotlight XL is a solid match. It's a 1080p camera with Night Vision, and a larger battery to allow for longer battery life. The battery life is going to vary based on usage, signal strength, etc., but the Essential XL will allow you to charge less often. For the Pro 3, Pro 4, or Ultra series, we have an XL Battery available to increase the battery life on those cameras. We also offer Solar Panels for Essential, Pro and Ultra cameras, and there is an Outdoor Power Adapter for the Pro 3, Pro 4, and Ultra series.

Thank you,

Mark V

L3 Tech

[Perdido]

Mark,

Thanks again for the information.  My attempt to increase battery life based on Ir delete has not worked and I really don’t want or need a spotlight.  I’m currently using Wyze cameras in lieu of the Arlo cameras since they were cheap and have decent battery life, but I do prefer Arlo.  The expense of the add ones such as solar or extended batteries doesn’t appeal to me and if the original Arlo cameras I had offered better resolution I would be all in.  Any other solutions?

 Thanks again