Is subscription worth it?

[Morrison58]

I bought Arlo Pro 4 to give me peace of mind as the cameras monitor my Dad's home. He has had a few falls and I wanted to be able to see if he is ok. My 3-month free trial is almost over and I have received reminders that I should buy a subscription but will I benefit from paying for one?

[StephenB · Accepted solution]

---

@Morrison58 wrote:
I bought Arlo Pro 4 to give me peace of mind as the cameras monitor my Dad's home. He has had a few falls and I wanted to be able to see if he is ok. My 3-month free trial is almost over and I have received reminders that I should buy a subscription but will I benefit from paying for one

---

Personally I'd say yes.  More info is here: https://kb.arlo.com/000062312/What-options-will-I-have-when-the-Arlo-trial-ends

(a) It's the only way to get cloud storage (so you can see recordings). 

You can use Direct Access to Local Storage as an alternative to cloud storage if you have already have a smarthub (VMB4540 or VMB5000).  But the payback period is quite long, and there are limitations to that feature.  So IMO, the subscription is a better value.

(b) If the camera is on battery power, and you use activity zones, then you will also lose the zones if you drop the subscription.

(c) Smart notifications (people, vehicles, animals, packages) will also disappear if you drop the subscription.

Note that if you purchase a subscription before the trial ends, it kicks in immediately - it's not delayed until after the trial ends.  You'd need to cancel the trial and move the camera into the purchased plan manually.