Arlo camera for outdoor car park monitoring

[markax2]

I already own a base station VMB4500 and one Arlo camera Pro Studio connected to it.

I would like to buy an additional Arlo camera to monitor my car parking outdoor (Wi-Fi is not a problem as it can reach the outdoor spot with good signal).

The problem is: I might need motion detection or continuous video recording since I plan on using this camera preventively to spot if someone bumps or hits into my car and leaves a dent without being honest and contacting me soon afterwards.

Would another Arlo Pro Studio camera do the trick? Maybe by keeping it continuously on with motion detection (I did put a capable USB drive in the base station, as far as I know when the space is over old recordings will be overwritten, does this also work for two cameras connected to the same base station?).

Thanks for your answers.

[jguerdat]

Never heard of a "Studio" camera - can you be more specific?

Use of CVR would require AC power since the battery would deplete quickly. Can you supply that power where you want the camera? If not, can you put the camera in a place where it can't be easily removed by someone? It would need to be close enough to be able to detect the motion which may be a car or a person - testing would be needed.

You say WiFi isn't a problem but the connection to the base, which is its own dedicated WiFi, may be a different issue. Some of the latest cameras can use your own WiFi but then the recordings would have to be cloud-based since the camera wouldn't be connected to your base. For connecting to the base, you'd have to test to verify a good signal that isn't being interfered with by other signals.

Lastly, the local recordings on the 4500 require that you safely eject the drive for viewing on a computer. Only the SmartHubs (4540 and 5000) support using the app for direct viewing. Is that an issue?

[StephenB]

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@markax2 wrote:

The problem is: I might need motion detection or continuous video recording 

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CVR requires a paid subscription, and the recording is only in the cloud.  It also requires the camera to be AC powered.

A newer camera (Essential, Pro 3 / Pro 4 / Ultra) will also require a paid subscription for motion recordings.  You can set up local storage on your VMB4500 base, but you will need to eject the USB drive and connect it to a PC to review the recordings.

Battery life is a consideration here - if the parking area is busy, the battey will need to be frequently recharged.

Reliable motion detection range is limited to about 23 feet for people.  Cars are a bit tricky - they are larger, and often can be detected from further away.  But the paint/finish seems to have some effect, and there have been some posts here saying that larger white or light gray vehicles aren't detected that well.   Motion detection works best when the object is moving across the field of motion.

BTW, PIR motion sensors don't work well through glass, so mounting the camera inside your car won't work well (and of course won't work at all if the windows are fogged, etc).