Pre-Purchase Questions

[GearNetRouter]

I am considering the Arlo Pro cams for outdoor use. I have some questions: 1) Do the cams require UPNP to be enabled? 2) Do the cams require port forwarding? 3) Can I remote view at will or is it only alert based? In other words, if there is motion I get an alert and can view? 4) Are they truly weatherproof? 5) Has theft been a factor? Anyone try to steal yours? 6) I want to mount these high in a tree (but low enough for me to recharge periodically using a ladder for access). Is it practical ie rain proof? 7) Would you buy again? Or you think the concept is pre-mature? 😎 What are the frustrations with the cam?

[steve_t]

1. Should be. Just plug the base station into your router with the ethernet cable and sync the cameras and away you go

2. No

3. Remote viewing (Live viewing) is accessible through the app or web interface

4.IP65 means they're dust and rain and spray proof. Obviously, they're not submersible 
5. A few people have had concerns about theft and some have reported it. I have mine pretty low and they could easily be removed from their magnetic mounts but people hardly notice them. There are some threads about how to secure the camera if you are worried. Nothing will be 100% theft proof but some things will make it that little bit harder to steal them or at least you should have a decent video of them attempting to steal a camera if they do decide to

6. as per 4, yes they are rain proof. I don't like them to be mounted too high as you want to capture faces if you can
7. Arlo Pro is definitely worth the extra $$ IMO. Arlo's integration with smart home systems was a big drawcard for me too.
8. There are many cons as a result of the pro of being wireless: changing batteries, lag between motion detection and recording, lag between finishing recording and resetting itself to be ready to detect motion again, lag for live viewing, wireless transmission being subject to interference, 'only' 720p resolution

[jguerdat]

1) No, UPNP is not needed.  The system uses its own WPS to complete the connection between the base and camera.  There's no access to the dedicated WiFi.

[GearNetRouter]

WPS is not a safe method. Can it be connected manualy?

[jguerdat]

Nope. We have no control over how the cameras are connected. Since we also have no access to the base or WiFi I really don't see WPS as much of an issue.