How to schedule a single camera on/off

[Cat_napper]

Some of my outside cameras get confused with moving tree branches or when their shadows are fluttering in the frame  (not smart enough 🤨). I get numerous notifications especially in the afternoon sun and wind. I would like to set up an off/on schedules for individual cameras using the new Arlo app 6.27.0 and I cannot find clear step by step instructions anywhere. The overseas customer support is truly a joke, very frustrating and a huge waste of time (my cat knows more 🐈‍⬛).

[StephenB]

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@Cat_napper wrote:

Some of my outside cameras get confused with moving tree branches or when their shadows are fluttering in the frame  (not smart enough 🤨). I get numerous notifications especially in the afternoon sun and wind. I would like to set up an off/on schedules for individual cameras using the new Arlo app 6.27.0 and I cannot find clear step by step instructions anywhere. 

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Are you needing multiple schedules, or just one schedule to disarm/re-arm the same set of cameras?

Do you use a smarthub?  Or are the cameras connected to your home wifi?

[Cat_napper]

Hi Stephen, I’m not using a smart hub and as my post indicated, I’m looking to setup on/off schedule for individual cameras on as needed basis. It’s really a simple question and I hope there’s a simple solution!

[StephenB · Accepted solution]

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@Cat_napper wrote:

I’m not using a smart hub and as my post indicated, I’m looking to setup on/off schedule for individual cameras on as needed basis. 

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That's helpful to know.  If you use the newly rolled out custom modes, then you can set up a schedule for each camera - the same features you had before you migrated to "Feed", though a bit differently presented.  Start by enabling "Custom Mode" on the dashboard screen.  There is some more info here:

• https://kb.arlo.com/000063512/How-to-set-up-an-Arlo-Custom-Mode

Also, another path (not scheduled) is to just turn off a camera when it starts flooding you with unwanted recording (going in to the device settings wheel for the camera).  Not what you asked, but still useful if the flood is only happening occasionally.

Note if you were using the a smarthub, then you'd need to schedule all the cameras jointly.  You could still have gotten what you needed, but it would have been more complicated to explain how to set it up.

[Cat_napper]

Thanks StephenB and yes I have been turning certain cameras off and back on as needed and when I remember to.

I’ll review the article link tomorrow and report back. 
Two smart way for addressing this issue:

1) teach the camera to recognize shadows fluttering and ignoring them (barely smart enough 😉). 
2) allow for an option in settings where if the breeze is at or above 12 mph, the camera will turn off and come back on when the breeze is calmer. This information can be easily linked to by the Arlo app on any weather app, including the native one that comes with every smart phone. Then it becomes a simple IF .. THEN output. 
Of course certain number of my cameras don’t need this because they don’t face any fluttering plants or shadows. 

[Cat_napper]

I set an off time block as a test but the camera actually stayed on and it was sending me notifications during the off schedule. 

 

 

 

[StephenB]

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@Cat_napper wrote:

I set an off time block as a test but the camera actually stayed on and it was sending me notifications during the off schedule. 

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Did you keep custom mode enabled on the dashboard after setting up the schedule?

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@Cat_napper wrote:

1) teach the camera to recognize shadows fluttering and ignoring them 

2) allow for an option in settings where if the breeze is at or above 12 mph,

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I'm not a fan of (2).  For one thing, the weather apps often aren't fine-grained enough.  For another, 12 mph is an arbitrary threshold, and there are certainly cases where lower wind speeds will create enough motion to trigger the camera.

I have suggested (1) in the past, and think it would be a good addition.  Though this would have to be implemented in the Arlo Cloud (as are activity zones).  So it could reduce recordings and notifications, but would not help battery life.

[Cat_napper]

Ok, now it worked! I enabled the custom mode, setup a test schedule for one camera and the notifications stopped. Strangely, the camera’s status remains enabled under the Devices tab even though the custom mode say that the same camera is disarmed. 

 

I have attached a screenshot of today’s daily wind profile in my area, and as you can see, it helps me in approximating a disarm schedule for those cameras most affected by wind events. No fun to do on daily basis though 🤨

The best scenario in this case is for the Arlo cameras to be smart enough to distinguish between people, pets, and moving shadows (the last one is currently missing), such as the case when trees and branches move or cast moving shadows within the camera’s frame. Setting up active detection zones is of no use btw). 

Thank for your help. 

[StephenB]

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@Cat_napper wrote:

Ok, now it worked! I enabled the custom mode, setup a test schedule for one camera and the notifications stopped. Strangely, the camera’s status remains enabled under the Devices tab even though the custom mode say that the same camera is disarmed. 

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Glad I was able to help.

FYI, the screen shot is showing normal status for a disarmed camera - saying that the camera is idle, but online (available to detect motion, etc).

Wind and shadows are both issues with some of my own cameras.  If they do add AI to suppress the unwanted alerts, then it'd be useful to have both (since the wind usually isn't just creating moving shadows).

[Cat_napper]

Hi StephenB, after I checked this issue resolved, I noticed that my test schedule for turning the camera off didn’t automatically turn it back on afterwards. The test camera remained idle after the schedule past and I had to delete the schedule and then turn off (unselect) the Custom Mode altogether to make the camera detect again.  If what I did was the way to go, then it isn’t practical to begin with at all. 

Arlo can instead add a per-camera scheduling line item under each camera’s settings menu (the gear icon) and be done with it.

This Custom Mode hooplas only serves to confuse the customer with unfamiliar concepts, buried under endless sub-menus and vague choices and it is truly unfriendly.