VMB5000 vs Arlo Secure

[corneileous]

Being that I just bought two more cameras to add to my Essentials XL that are the Ultra 2, they came included with the VMB5000 Smart Hub as well.

Currently I have until early next year when my free trial subscription to Arlo Secure is up so being that I have a microSD card coming in the mail to go in the hub for local storage, what all would I lose if I let the Arlo Secure free trial expire and not renew it? 

I’m pretty sure I’ll lose the ability to set my cameras up so that they only detect motion from cars and people(which is gonna suck) and I think I’ll lose the ability to set up the activity zones(that I haven’t yet properly figured out) but if I have the port forwarding properly enabled on my router, will I still be able to get the motion notifications even if I’m not at home on my network? And, will I be able to view those videos? 

I guess pretty much the information  I’m after is figuring out what features I will no longer have if I let the free trial to Arlo Secure run out, thanks. 

[StephenB]

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@corneileous wrote:

I guess pretty much the information  I’m after is figuring out what features I will no longer have if I let the free trial to Arlo Secure run out, thanks. 

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See 

• https://kb.arlo.com/000062312/What-options-will-I-have-when-the-Arlo-trial-ends

Note you will need Arlo Secure Plus to get 4K cloud recordings on the Ultra.

In addition to losing smart notifications and activity zones, there are the following limitations:

• Recordings can only be viewed in the app (not the browser).
• Recordings can only be viewed from the primary account (not friend accounts)
• No ability to save manual recordings or snapshots
• no thumbnails (recordings need to be downloaded to the phone for viewing)
• Remote access requires changes to router settings that some find difficult (and which won't work on all networks).

[corneileous]

@StephenB 

So then what really is the purpose of the Smart Hub for other than needing it for my Ultra 2 cameras to work and for the local storage if it sounds like I still need the subscription to be able to set up the activity zones and filter out unneeded alerts from animals?

Granted, I didn’t purposely buy the Smart Hub, I only have it because it came with the cameras and because as I said, my new cameras need it to work which is unlike my Essentials XL. 

[Dannybear]

One advantage with using the hub is that you will have backup storage of your triggered recordings on the memory device excluding manual recordings.

[Dannybear]

One more advantage is that you can manage your cameras with a single mode operation.

[corneileous]

@Dannybear 

Well yeah, I guess if Arlo’s servers were to go down or something, I’d have my own copies of my videos but are you saying without the hub, I can’t configure each camera individually?

[Dannybear]

@corneileous 

If you’re arlo cloud library is only saving 14/30/60 days the base can save as many as the backup storage can hold. This gives you archived recordings that you can reference as the cloud recordings get deleted. There have been numerous customers here wanting to access cloud recordings from the past cloud for legal reasons and get disappointed.

Regards common mode operation, when all your cameras are connected via the base you have a single mode capability to manage them, if the cameras are split between wifi and base then you would need to duplicate schedules, custom modes and geofencing on the wifi cameras.