Frequently asked "How To" questions about the new User Interface

[ChristineT]

1. Where did my Modes and Rules go?

The Modes and Rules are now in Modes. Each mode now has its own set of Rules. Rules are no longer reusable in other Modes.

2. How do I change the rule's camera sensitivity?

Go to Modes > Device > Edit Mode > Edit Rule > Edit Motion Sensitivity

3. How do I change the rule's recording length?

Go to Modes > Device > Edit Mode > Edit Rule > Edit Recording Length

4. Where did the Recycle Bin go?

We have prioritized our customers' privacy concerns. Recycle Bin is no more. Files are now automatically deleted from the system  when recordings are manually deleted. They are also automatically deleted when the date of the recording is older than the account's plan limits.

5. What is the new Storage limit?

The limits are now by DAYS of storage based on the account's service level.

6. Why were the Camera icons' colors changed?

There were several Usability issues addressed in the latest release. One is visual consistency. Green is for actionable items and since the status icons are not actionable, its active colors have changed to Black. Grey still represents disabled or not available. Orange represents warnings such as low battery and low signal strength.

7.  Where did my older recordings go?

The limits are now by DAYS of storage based on the account's service level. If you have recordings older than your service level's limits, they are no longer available.

8. What are known issues? 

* Android battery level is not available. An app update will be released soon.

9. Do I need to upgrade from Basic to add another Base Station to my account?

Service Levels no longer limits the number of Base Stations. It is now possible for one account to have multiple Locations. The limits to the number of Cameras are still in pace.

10. Why is the rule-based push notification not working as expected?

The app requires the base station to be updated to firmware version 1.7 or newer.

11. How do I get the latest base station firmware?

The automatic updates happen overnight. This can be manually triggered by restarting an activated base station.

[adkirkwood]

Arlo "prioritized its customers privacy concerns" well above their home security concerns (the reason most of us customers buy your product).

Many of us get dozens to even hundreds of security videos a day. If you have kids, use contractors, receive lots of fedex and ups packages, etc. the number of videos can get overwhelming. Rather than turn the camera off (which defeats the purpose), it's better to review the videos and delete the ones that don't look important enough to keep. JUST LIKE WE ALL DO WITH OUR EMAIL. However, every once-in-a-while you discover that something happened during day that requires further review. Since every modern day app that lets you delete files or emails uses a recycle bin, it shouldn't be a problem. Right? Well, except when

someone makes the brilliant decision to remove the recycle bin from the app all together ...

If you review the customer feedback on deleted files and privacy, it looks like the bigger issue was that the deleted files were staying in the recycle bin for months (i.e. some things were staying in the cloud longer than some people might have been comfortable with ...). However, if you're limiting storage to just "days" now, that problem goes away for the most part. But for those very, very few customers that are so worried about something they've just done that they want it off the cloud immediately, wouldn't it have been a much better solution to have a button or menu item that let them "Empty" the recycle bin or "Permanently" delete the file?

Any serious video home security system nends to have a recycle bin in case a deleted video has to be recovered because of a critical event. None of us would switch to an email app or an operating system that didn't give us this capability.

As for your very small group of users that don't want video evidence to be on the cloud for more than a few nanoseconds, maybe they shouldn't be buying a cloud-based home security system in the first place ... and for those that are really that paranoid about their "privacy", how do they really know the video is gone from the cloud when they delete it ... 

Honestly Arlo, you didn't think this one through very well ...

[Eastcliffe]

I somehow change cameras to live and they are not recording. How do I change them back?

[JamesC]

Eastcliffe,

Live streaming will temporarily disable motion detection/recording until the stream has ended. If you wish to record a live stream you must manually do so by clicking the record button. After you have ended the stream the camera will revert to whatever mode you had previously set. If the camera is still not set to record make sure you have the correct mode enabled to allow the cameras to detect and record motion.

JamesC

[JustLearning]

Thank you adkirkwood for voicing my concerns too! A recycle bin with the facility to delete from it is an important safety feature on a system which markets itself as a security option.