End Of Life Policy

[simonjf]

I have just received an email about the End Of Life policy. If this is actually what is going to happen then I need to follow up with all my friends and family, social media connections to advocate against Arlo, and search for an alternative company and service, likely starting my own online storage service for them with appropriate security cameras.

Additionally, contacts at Arlo seem to be designed to prevent actual communication - which has the stink of a company that hates its customers.

[JamesC]

New, updated information is now available regarding the EoL policy that is very relevant to much of the discussion taking place here in this community thread. These changes will allow Arlo legacy users who currently have 7-day storage service to continue receiving that service, uninterrupted.

I encourage you all to visit https://downloads.arlo.com/images/PDFs/EOL_Policy/arlo-end-of-life-policy-021023.pdf and read up on these changes.

Thank you,

JamesC

[JamesC]

Hello Arlo Community,

With the recently announced Arlo end-of-life policy, we understand many of you are seeking more clarity and a path forward after your device becomes end-of-life. In the coming days we will be reaching out to impacted users via email with special offers. Keep an eye out for those emails as they will contain more details about these offers and instructions on how to take advantage of them.

For those who may not have read this new policy or have questions about how this may impact you, I encourage you to take a look here: https://downloads.arlo.com/images/PDFs/EOL_Policy/arlo-end-of-life-policy-021023.pdf?cid=a&cid=a

If you've not received a discount offer via email, visit https://www.arlo.com/en-us/eol-offer-form.html and enter your email address, if your account is eligible you will then receive the discount offer via email.

Thank you,

JamesC

[AshTray900]

let me see, loosing 7 day access on the old cameras that got it.

maybe 30 cents a month?

Apple gives you 200gb cloud storage for 2.99 a month. And I’m betting you could store 7 days worth of legacy videos for 5 cameras for what maybe 10gb at the extreme most. I’ve pulled my drive I’ve seen those 30 second files that are in the lower megabytes…

[secaz]

@DaveWoj 

I am sorry, did not see questions from you, please re-post... kind of a busy time of year for my consulting business...

Didn't consider gaming the system with multiple accounts, to be honest.  But found that interesting.  I would have wanted all my cameras under one account anyway, I did want 60 day storage (which transmuted to 30 somewhere along the line), I did NOT want hardware that would cease to function because Arlo doesn't want me to connect to their servers any more since the money I (we) pay isn't worth it to them to maintain their code.

[DaveWoj]

@StephenB 

So if I'm reading your reply correctly, I'm wrong when I say he couldn't have 17 cameras under 4 separate accounts and get the free 7 day cloud?

[AshTray900]

I bet you could have had free 7 day storage for as many camera bases or camera sets of 5 you have and emails you want to make up and pilfer around and such. No clue about sharing access on accounts

but the majority of us just did it the obvious way, got the pack, created the account, started adding cameras.

I love how it was put “game the system” yep that’s what it would be. I’m not the kind of person who wants multiple YouTube accounts to give me fake like etc. the simple straight forward way was to create the account and start adding your cameras / base to your single account

[DaveWoj]

@AshTray900 

Again I have no idea if you are responding to me since many of you don't include the (@) in your reply.

I have 2 accounts. I simply share the 2nd account to the 1st and see all the cameras once they are set up.

But you would have to go back to those other accounts if you need to change some of the setting in modes.

[DaveWoj]

@secaz 

This question went back a few days, but originally what I asked was why not have multiple accounts and spread the cameras into those accounts  and share all of them to one account and get the free 7 day.

But I guess you kind of answered it since you wanted one account.

I have 2 accounts and share the cameras to one account.

I rarely need to go to to the 2nd account unless I change setting for geofencing or mode settings because once I have those set up, they usually don't need any changes.

[AshTray900]

@DaveWoj 

sorry don’t think about adding things stuff just spills out of my head.

yeah I mean having multiple accounts could game the system, however as you said it has drawbacks and makes things messy.

I never thought of that as an option, but I didn’t need it.

you know what’s funny, arlos used to come max at 4 packs, but 5 camera 7 days free storage. I wonder if this was intentional as the next day when I realized it I thought hey a camera here would be nice so I bought one more lol.

wonder how many 4 packs got an additional camera purchased to take advantage of the last slot

[secaz]

@DaveWoj

I purchased a 4 pack back in, oh, 2016.  They worked really well at the time, was so happy with them I was pleased to see you could buy add-on cameras.  So I just kept adding - I really liked the low profile and the fact you could swap out batteries - bought extra batteries and a couple of chargers.

Aside from the fact I have 17 Pros, another reason for subscribing was additional functionality that you would NOT get without a sub.

I hate Arlo Smart and it's wonky AI detection, but I did want activity zones. Otherwise without them I get videos for everything under the sun. My cameras, without zones, will pick up motion way the heck down the end of the road. Must be the the clarity of the air and the desert sun, don't know. They have issues picking up things right in front of them (like the UPS truck), but not the person walking their dog way down at the end of the road...

I don't know who gets what features and functions with new camera versions or new subs. None of that pertains to me so honestly I have not kept up on the wonderful world of Arlo.

My system worked exceptionally well until the Arlo split from Netgear. After that, it was down hill and a serious battle, one punctuate by brief periods when things worked well, only to have that disrupted by another round of Arlo updates.

I've had more issues with the Android app than anything else, and it's not like I have a budget smartphone. I always purchase one of Samsung's flagship phones. What's the excuse for all the issues I've had with the Arlo Android app across the years and across so many Samsung phones? No idea. Am assuming Arlo hates Samsung Galaxy phones. Or they don't give a damn about Android and focus on iOS.

[AshTray900]

@secaz 

i think these guys are left and right motion heat seekers for activity, don’t know for sure but yeah I’ve seen the car pull straight up to it and no ding before too, I’ve also noticed when it’s real cold outside it will trigger on a car way down the road moving to the right so I have to lower it a bit, it NEVER detects the mailman but always catches the FedEx guy, but only until he’s half way in the image already walking to the house.

I don’t think my zones ever worked right, I tried to cut the side street out and it didn’t help, I just liked the devices so much and the package detection I really liked, so I just paid for it, call it a win for Arlo prior to them turning into absolute **bleep** as far as customer care goes. Ever try to deal with that online chat robot? Might as well just stomp on your head because that’s exactly how it will make you feel!

[DaveWoj]

@AshTray900 

I had 2 pros and 2 Q's. 1 account when I started

I replaced with 3 Pro 2's. Still one account

Then I needed to add a couple Q's to a seasonal location.

I would have needed to pay a subscription for those.

Instead I just but them under another email account and shared them to my main email account so the were all visible under the one account. Pretty simple and rarely if ever had to go into the 2nd account once it was set up in my mode settings.

I wasn't trying to pull anything over Arlo, it was just a logical way to do it in my opinion.

[DaveWoj]

@secaz 

Thanks for the explanation.

[AshTray900]

@DaveWoj 

oh no I could care less about pulling one over Arlo lol, I just liked it simple, as in i wouldn’t want to switch accounts for management.

[DaveWoj]

@AshTray900 

Got it!

[AshTray900]

Here’s a question, do the Arlo brand solar chargers for the legacy models even work?

I bought an off brand but 50 dollar one and it was big, it might have gained 1% during the day but then ate up the juice during the night, I mean like quadruple draw, loss though feed back or something.

I was just literally thinking I HATE charging these things a week before the eol notice. But at the time I was extremely happy with Arlo over the years.

now they flushed that loyalty down the crapper, and I have 4 cameras that just catch bugs and moths and one that is really useful. I could get it on solar if it would work, just take the batteries out of the ones I was so happy go lucky to setup everywhere 7 years ago and let them be deterrents and drop down to one camera plan from the multi camera plan I had been paying for.

problem is solar just never cut it when I tried it and I gave it lots of sun but it just drew juice over night so it made them worse. Maybe electronics in the original model weren’t really designed to keep the juice from falling back down the wire

[secaz]

@AshTray900 

It's a well known fact the direct into the lens motion will often not be picked up.  It's a great defect for criminals to use to their advantage.

I have to have a cam at the door and also further back up the walk way, and that one is a direct passby.

I have a FedEx driver who apparently is aware of the foibles of Arlo, he will cut across a neighboring property in order to avoid the direct horizontal pass-by camera further back on my walkway, and he will walk directly into the lens of the camera over my door.  So, apparently he is aware - it misses him most all the time and only see him retreating away from the camera over the door.  I also know when he's here because the dogs bark when anyone gets close.  And apparently the FedEx guy isn't aware that the other cam he tried so hard NOT to cross in front of, it can actually pick him up cutting across my neighbor's property to get to my door. 

With activity zones, when they appear not to work, look for shadows or lights.  At certain times of day long shadows are cast and if the object is NOT in the zone but its shadow falls across the zone, the it results in a trigger and a video.  Same happens with headlights at night when they cast shadows.

I never contact Arlo support - did once many many years ago... the tech asked me to open Internet Explorer... I told him that I use Linux, I don't have that, and I was asked to install it.  They just read from a script and have no understanding of anything technical...

[AshTray900]

@secaz 

Ha yeah let me get right on that installing IE on Linux , you got time to wait while I setup a virtual machine!

and I’ve notice a couple of drivers in the past do what I assume is the exact same thing, nowhere to be seen until the hidden one under the door catches him. My usual drivers don’t avoid them but they do always look down a never see them in the face, but door dash and pizza drivers don’t really know it and just walk right up.

[secaz]

@AshTray900 

One of the best features, for me, with Arlo Pro was the replaceable batteries.  I bought 4 extra batteries and 2 charging stations.  Any time a camera is low, I just mozy on out with a fresh battery and pop it in.  About the time the batteries need replacing I also need to clean the lenses, so kilsl two birds with one stone that way...

[AshTray900]

@secaz I never had a charging station but when it was cold I’d charge the one inside for when I was away and then just swap. Mine usually would all hit the low mark near the same time though

[DaveWoj]

@secaz 

I had a similar situation coming up my driveway.

2 cameras, one on each corner soffit of the garage, one facing almost straight on (which sometimes wouldn't trigger) and another at about a 45 degree angle (see images)

I now have them both trigger one another so I never miss anything.

[secaz]

@AshTray900 

Yupper - not all the drivers al the time, but this one FedEx guy, religiously.

I actually had a FedEx driver long ago once who left the package at a neighboring home because he did not want to walk by the cameras.  Pretty sure FedEx uses a third party for their drivers, they don't vet them.

I've had Amazon drivers, too, who would leave the package nowhere near the door, afraid of the cameras.  that happened a lot, actually, for a while until I raised hell with Amazon...

Camera evasion is precisely why I have 17 cameras, lol...

[secaz]

@DaveWoj 

I have tried cross triggering time and again, but would result in a lot of unwanted videos which would suck battery life, and I really hate going out in the summer here in the desert to change batteries.

I too have the corner garage cams facing each other... it's a crap shoot at times, depending on time of day... so many factors, I got tired of it all lately... have drastically reduced what and where and when I want to me notified.  Arlo Smart AI is so stupid, though.  I have told It I don't want animated previews and it always gives me these no matter what.  Have indicated I don't want to see vehicles on some of the cams, but on and off gives me vehicle notifications anyway... it thinks a cactus is a person, and boulder is an animal, a vehicle is an animal... any combination you can think of...

[StephenB]

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@DaveWoj wrote:

@StephenB 

So if I'm reading your reply correctly, I'm wrong when I say he couldn't have 17 cameras under 4 separate accounts and get the free 7 day cloud?

---

No, you are reading my reply wrong.  There is a limit of 5 (some cases) 6 unsubscribed camera per account.  So 4 separate accounts of 4-5 cameras each would still provide free 7-day cloud storage.  Most features would still be available with if the cameras are shared to one account using the "friend account" feature. 

Apparently this doesn't work quite as well with the new "feed" experience, because shared cameras are assumed to be in a different location.  But given the EoL announcement, that probably doesn't matter much.

[StephenB]

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@AshTray900 wrote:

i think these guys are left and right motion heat seekers for activity

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All Pro and Ultra models use passive infrared (PIR) sensors for motion detection.  Some cameras (Arlo Q and Essential Indoor) are always powered, and use pixel detection instead.

Activity zone processing always is done by evaluating the image itself. Some Arlo cameras will do that using the camera electronics when they are powered.  When on battery (or if the camera doesn't have activity zones in hardware), the video is always streamed to the cloud when the PIR or audio is triggered.  Then the cloud determines if there is motion in the zone.  If motion is outside the zone, then the cloud supresses both the notification and the recording.  If you use local storage, then the local storage would include the recording anyway.

One consequence of the architecture is that Activity Zones don't improve battery life, since the camera operates the same way whether they are enabled or not.

[StephenB]

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@DaveWoj wrote:

I wasn't trying to pull anything over Arlo, it was just a logical way to do it in my opinion.

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And perfectly legit.  

[StephenB]

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@AshTray900 wrote:

Here’s a question, do the Arlo brand solar chargers for the legacy models even work?

There's only one for the legacy models (the VMA4600).  That is for the Pro, Pro 2, and the original Go.

They do work, but there have been quite a few complaints about the VMA4600 here.  I have no direct experience with it myself.  Also no direct experience with third party panels.

I do use one panel with an Ultra that was upgraded to XL (VMA5600).  That combination seems to be working out well. Though I have needed to replace the panel once - the cable insulation on the first one cracked after a while.

My cameras are all accessible, and for me the XL batteries generally are a better path than the panels.