Arlo Pro 5 Batteries

[Bspyers]

Batteries are lasting 10-14 days versus 120-180 days when new! What is the life expectancy of these batteries?

[jguerdat · Accepted solution]

That sounds like there's a change in either the wireless environment (something new added or get moved?) or the camera is recording more. Are you using activity zones? You may need to delete them temporarily so the cloud will not discard them after being detected as out of zone - you can then see if there's a big spike in recordings. If you have local storage set up on a hub you can just check that since all recordings will be there - the discarding is done via the servers and affects only the cloud.

[StephenB]

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@Bspyers wrote:

Batteries are lasting 10-14 days versus 120-180 days when new! What is the life expectancy of these batteries?

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Time between charges depends largely on

1. the amount of video activity
2. quality of the wifi signal

It's helpful to start by estimating the video activity.  Do that by first disabling activity zones, and then totaling up the approx. number of seconds of recording over a couple of days.  If you do a lot of livestreaming, estimate how many minutes per day you are doing that.

The battery life estimates are based on a particular usage profile

• 4000 seconds of streaming/recording per month
• 10 seconds per recording
• 30% of the recordings made with the spotlight on.

FWIW, I am finding that the Pro 5 battery life is much better than my Pro 3, Pro 4, and Ultras.

[Bspyers]

Thanks, do you know the life expectancy of these batteries??

[jguerdat]

Properly handled (not letting them fully discharge, etc.) they will last years. YMMV.

[Bspyers]

I stopped the spotlight, no audio and set recordings to ten seconds only.

[jguerdat]

But how many total minutes per day of recording are being used? Add them up over several days to get a sense of activity.

[Bspyers]

Thanks, mine are 3 years old.

[Bspyers]

Thanks,

[StephenB]

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@Bspyers wrote:

Thanks, do you know the life expectancy of these batteries??

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Do you mean how long they last before they need to be replaced, or the time between charges?

I have Ultra batteries (same as in the Pro 5) that have been in service since 2018.  Not 100% sure (as I have some older cameras with different batteries), but I don't think any have failed yet.

General expectations for lithium batteries is 300-500 charge/discharge cycles.  Assuming 300 and recharging every 10 days suggests they could last 8 years or longer.