Pro 4 cameras blur and then get clear again every 2 seconds

[canyonjam]

A week or so ago a strange thing started happening with 2 of my Pro 4 cameras: every 2 seconds, video blurs then gets clear again. This happens continuously unless I enable autofocus which seems to eliminate the issue (or at least I haven't noticed cycling from blurred to clear every 2 seconds) but I don't want to leave this feature on.

I have videos from a week or so ago that appear to not have this issue. I have removed and re-added the cameras but that didn't help. All firmware is up to date. Wifi should be pretty strong with at least one of the cameras (it's attached to my house about 15' from my wifi mesh point).

I'm out of ideas here. Hardware warranty on one or both cameras ends in a few months so I'd like to determine if this is defective hardware as soon as I can. 

Thanks for anyone that's read this far! Any hints?

[JamesC]

New firmware is being released that addresses the symptoms being discussed here. This firmware is currently being released but may not be available for all users immediately. Please check to see if your cameras have an update available and test again to see if these issues are resolved.

You can reference the latest firmware versions here: https://community.arlo.com/t5/Firmware-Release-Notes/Arlo-Firmware-Release-Table/m-p/1920885#M791

JamesC

[canyonjam]

I really think my problem may be light, not signal. The two cameras I swapped are both at the corner of my house and they're mounted 1' apart. If one has a bad signal, both will (neither has a bad signal). The only difference between the two that I can see is that the side of my house is almost always kind of dark but the backyard gets light most of the day. Besides, even before I swapped cameras, both backyard cameras that blurred when sun was out appeared to stop blurring when light dimmed at the end of the day. The whole situation is just straight up weird.

[jguerdat]

For the record, 1 foot  separation may be an issue. I believe Arlo suggests at least 3 feet between cameras to prevent interference.

[Bjohnson6626]

my cameras are at least 20 ft. apart, this just started happening after the last firmware update. They worked perfectly fine up until then. 

[Jfurnari03]

I agree to this statement.  Didn't have this issue up until the last firmware update

Also, you are forced to do the updates.  They won't allow you to use the cameras unless you upgrade them.  So it's not something we can pass up/deny.

[canyonjam]

I don't think proximity is the issue for me either. I have two backyard cameras in opposite corners of my backyard and both have the blurring issue. Swapping the one on the corner of my house with the third camera from the side of my house (which was 1' away) resulted in the swapped camera having the same blurring problem, so whatever camera is pointing at my bright backyard, it's blurring. Proximity may be causing other unknown issues but the blurring thing isn't one of them.

[___V___]

Same problem. It started with the last firmware update. 

[KMCCABE84]

I have four of the pro 4's and ever since a firmware update about a week or so ago, all of mine have been doing the same thing. I think the simplest fix would be for arlo to push out the firmware that we had prior to the last push. My system worked flawlessly then! Ridiculous. 

[ssvedlund]

Pushing out the last firmware version prior to the issue seems like an easy fix.  Not sure why it is taking so long to resolve.

[canyonjam]

This entire process has been an exercise in frustration. My support incident is STILL being worked on. No resolution yet, just lots of camera gymnastics and implications that things are set up incorrectly (my cameras are set up correctly). The entire time, they seem to conveniently ignore that I've been using these cameras with no issues at all until just one week before I started my support incident. 

At this point, I'm not sure if support is trying to figure out the problem or if they're just trying to come up with more inconveniences a la "relocate cameras" or "remove wifi devices from your network" or whatever in an effort to either wear me down or keep me hanging until they find some obscure guideline buried in docs that nullify my case. Either way, this is bad. I don't like entrusting my security to a company that does this when its products start wigging out unexpectedly.

The cameras work well enough at night which is a lot of why I needed them in the first place, but as they go south, I'm going to have to seriously question whether I replace them with new Arlo products or start shifting to another company. The outcome of this support incident will decide for me, I guess.

And I agree re: backing out firmware. Seems like a no-brainer, but what do I know.

[Jfurnari03]

One of my cameras all of the sudden just decided to disappear from my Arlo dashboard today.  I had to reboot the camera, re-sync it.   The camera lost its name.  So I renamed it..  When the camera came back on.. it looked foggy .. image not clear at all..  then 10 minutes later it says it's too cold outside .  And will function when it's  normal temperatures.  Granted it's 64 degrees outside and the rest of the cameras so far are okay..

I think I now have malfunctioning camera.  I removed the battery from it.  @JamesC .. if I can't get this going again.  What are my options

[JamesC]

Jfurnari03,

I recommend reaching out to Arlo Support via the Arlo secure mobile app under Settings > Support to further investigate the camera for a hardware issue.

JamesC

[canyonjam]

Looks like Arlo has officially given up on my support incident. Last message in a nutshell: "we're sorry we disappointed you, let us know if there's anything else you need help with." No new things to try, no reversing of firmware, etc. 

I closed the incident after that. I won't waste any more time on this. If others have support incidents open for this issue, maybe you'll have better luck.

[Jfurnari03]

Arlo replaced my damaged camera.  

However @canyonjam got the typical ring around on this issue with the blurry intermittent frames on these cameras since the firmware update.  I'm still experiencing them myself.  Even on the newest camera that gets forced a firmware update as it was being onboarded onto my dock in the house

 Any updates on this at all from the engineering dept @JamesC 

[JamesC]

The development team is continuing to investigate this issue. I don't have any new information at the moment but I will provide an update as soon as I have more to share.

JamesC

[Jfurnari03]

I appreciate the update @JamesC .   Thank you for quick reply, we will be on standby

[Barc]

It's been a month since the last post but the problem still exists.  Any updates?

[Mammoth670]

another month has gone.  @JamesC 

here is App support endlessly:

i hope you are doing well i apologize for the late reply. I am a randomly generated name and i will be assisting you with your query on image quality issues.

i sincerely apologize for the difficulties that you are facing. i am going to make sure you are receive all the help needed.

they then proceed to ask me the SAME exact questions the previous  Arlo Support agent asks.

 this is the absolute worst customer service experience i have ever had to work with. 

after this year i paid for cloud service is gone.   these cameras are going away

[Mammoth670]

1.080.200_171a8c9cf was just installed on my devices

[Bjohnson6626]

No updates on my end, I've had the same problem since April 2023. I'm fed up with the lack of support on this issue. I don't understand why it's taking so long for Arlo to correct this problem. This is the last product that I will purchase from them. I guess I will go their competitor and at a much cheaper price.

[Mammoth670]

Hi everyone  observations since my firmware updates.

1.  it has missed a few recordings.    its placed in a location where i always get the same recording each morning..

2.  it is Much Much better than it has been for these 2 months

3.  another weird issue.    for most of the recordings,  during playback,  within a half second of playback its like the recording BLINKS>  it goes blank briefly then comes back

overall this is MUCH better than it has been maybe the missed recording was just a fluke.   i did bump up the detection to 85 from 81.    

[Jfurnari03]

Still, dog crap quality.

[StephenB]

It's digital zoom, so it will look bad when zoomed all the way out.

[Bjohnson6626]

Then what good is digital zoom. My picture still sucks when not zoomed in. This is a 2k camera but looks like I'm viewing in 780p. So I don't feel it's a digital zoom issue. It's  not my router either. The camera worked perfectly fine when I purchased it a year ago, after the April firmware update my cameras went to **bleep**. 

[Jfurnari03]

My monitor is only 1080p.  So even at full screen it looks compressed.   And the camera supposed to be a larger resolution than what my monitor can handle so I should see a clear picture with slight zoom.  Regardless zoom or no zoom.. both look awful.

[Billycrk]

This is exactly what I have had with my Arlo Pro 4 cameras since late spring (Thread in Arlo Community under pixelation issues).  I have been dealing with Arlo support over that time period with little success.  Just as everyone else says, they keep wanting you to check the same things, as you get a new agent every few days. It is like a refresh about every 1 1/2 seconds.  Interestingly, it disappeared for a few days in early July when someone said they put out a new firmware update, which was then rolled back when it had other issues that drained batteries.  Anyone have an idea when Arlo will admit that they have an issue and can resolve it?