Arlo Pro 5S disappointing video quality

[rhammond]

I have been disappointed at the video quality of my Arlo Pro 2 cameras.  When I need to see detail such as license plates or zooming into any picture, I get frame drops and pixelation issues.  When the Pro 5S launched, I've been hopeful that this would fix my issues.  I just received an install a (3) Pack of the new Pro 5S.  In side by side comparison, I get the nearly the exact same quality as the Pro 2.  It's a slight upgrade whereas the new units smooth out the pixelation, but I'm still getting frame loss.  The resolution is no where near 2K in my opinion.  For $550, I expect much better quality than my older units.  I have all of the settings turned as high as possible.  The signal strength is listed as "strong"; showing the best it can be.  I have 500MB download and 20MB upload speeds on an Orbi Mesh Router.  My Google cameras are so much better in clarity.  After less than 3 hours with these cameras, I feel I'm going to send them back and move over to Google.  

Anyone else experencing similar frustrations?  Photo examples are in message below. 

[rhammond]

Here are side by side comparisons.  Unreal. 

[JamesC]

rhammond,

You may need to adjust your cameras power management settings so that the camera is set to best video. Check the following guide for tips to be sure your camera is configured for best video: https://kb.arlo.com/1179147/How-do-I-get-better-picture-quality-from-my-Arlo-camera

JamesC

[rhammond]

Changing the "Best Video" option was the very first thing I tried.  I've set the camera right next to my router and it's still the same quality.  

[JamesC]

rhammond,

I will reach out to you in a private message to gather more information.

JamesC

[rdgallo]

I also had a disappointing experience with my Pro 5S cameras.  I tried them on both the smart hub and on my regular wifi network and couldn't get them to work.  I contacted Arlo support and got no help other than being told to reset the smart hub and the cameras and try them again.  I did that, and it didn't solve anything.  I have an Orbi mesh system.  So I moved the Orbi satellite and the smart hub to a location only about 30 feet from the camera.  There was only one wall between the smart hub and the camera and I still couldn't get a good picture or stay connected to the base.  It was really disappointing.... especially when I have 3 other Arlo cameras from a few years back that function fine even though their base station is in my basement and sitting right next to my router.   I tried to get support one more time with Arlo and asked the person I was chatting with if I could talk with someone on the phone about my problems.  He said he could have someone call me back within 24-48 hours.  I told him to forget it as I will be returning them for a refund.  I sent them back yesterday.   I hope you can find someone at Arlo that can help you get yours up and running.  

[rhammond]

That’s extremely unfortunate that you couldn’t get them connected. Mine connect fine, but the image quality is no better than the Pro 2 I ordered many years ago. For the price that we pay for these cameras, spending hours on tech-support to try to get them to work like they are advertised is completely unacceptable. I’ll be sending my back before the end of the month.