End of life Life Policy - VMC4030

[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

[voodoo12]

Reolink.

https://community.arlo.com/t5/Arlo/End-Of-Life-Policy/m-p/1902823#M87086

[Thumpers]

I’m pretty sure everyone sees the writing on the wall at this point.   That being, at some time in the near future the devices that are fully functional through old firmware and old apps and software could still work fine. But they will more than likely be eliminated by a (firmware, software, security) upgrade. All in the name to sell more devices and subscription plans. That’s CLEAR. 

[StephenB]

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@CM862 wrote:

Very disappointed with Arlo/Netgear!!!  

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FYI, Netgear has nothing to do with this - they divested Arlo back in 2018, and did not retain any ownership in Arlo.

[Captiva]

This seems to be the modus operandi for iOT and many other technology providers.  I guess it's just one of the many ways technology is making life so much easier and more enjoyable for us. 🙄

Apple has been doing it to me since the iPod Shuffle . 📱

Insteon forced me to rewire the house. 💡I moved to Apple Homekit which I am certain they will "planned obsolescence" me any day now.

[CM862]

Thanks for the info I was not aware of this. The last of my dealings was with support in 2018 when a camera caused a camera to melt, and at that time Netgear was still a part of Arlo.

[CM862]

Correction -- When a power cord caused a camera to melt

[Greatscott2000]

Correct but Netgear did retain an 82% share ownership of the "Arlo"  (company). So technically they have majority ownership, despite divesting the company in 2018.

[StephenB]

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@Greatscott2000 wrote:

So technically they have majority ownership, despite divesting the company in 2018

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Not correct.  The shares they retained from the IPO were redistributed to Netgear stockholders.

• https://investor.netgear.com/releases/press-release-details/2018/NETGEAR-Completes-Spin-Off-of-Arlo/...

Major investors in US publicly traded companies are public, so just google "Arlo major shareholders" if you want to see the list.

[msazone]

Just bought Blink outdoor 2-cam kit and bundled with a mini. I have set it up and working pretty good.

My old Arlo cameras will be just for live views for some areas since it will not record to clouds after 11 months? My hub is old also and I am not going to invest anything on Arlo devices so there is no way for the local storage. These old arlo devices have no place to go. People know the eol situation so no one will buy the used ones. The better way is to keep them a bit useful until they are really dead.

[Captiva]

I feel like I am on Motley Fool or Seeking Alpha. 😃

[maryellc]

Hi - you mentioned your hub is old, so apologies if this isn't applicable for the model you have.  My base station has a USB port which allows local storage.  The downside to that is that you don't get live notifications about the movement/sound, but at least you have somewhere for the videos to be stored.  My base station is model VMB4000 and while it is not on the EOL list, the cameras it currently supports in my home are (VMC4030s).

[DOTTAT2]

That's correct but no way to view our usb stored videos from the app. 

[maryellc]

Correct, as the storage is local and in no way connected to Cloud storage (and therefore the app).  While it may be a viable option for some, it certainly doesn't help those needing the convenience and accessibility of that data through the Arlo app.  😓

[msazone]

The original EOL I received did not mention the push notifications. I checked the policy today again and read 

"Some automatic email alerts and push notifications may be reduced or eliminated."

This company is a total fraud! They are deserved to be eliminated from the market!

[StephenB]

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@DOTTAT2 wrote:

That's correct but no way to view our usb stored videos from the app. 

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That depends on what base you have.  The smarthubs (VMB4540 and VMB5000) do have the direct access to local storage feature.  What will let you access the local recordings from the app.

While some are using that feature instead of a subscription, there are a lot of limitations (frequently posted here).  

[Edinburgh_lad1]

A lot of press coverage about Arlo recently. WSJ and others. And not very favourable, I must say.

[Captiva]

If i can figure this out "direct access to local storage feature" I may be able to avoid switching to Lorex Fusion.

WTH is "port forwarding"?? I do not own a boat.

[maryellc]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port_forwarding

Computer networking-savvy people could make use of networking features to redirect Arlo base unit local storage.  Arlo is one of many SaaS companies taking advantage of the fact that the general population doesn't have this skill set (or has the skill set and doesn't want to do it as their hobby).  Most folks want the ease of paying for cloud subscription services like this.

Even though I'm a victim of the Arlo EOL policy myself, I work in IT (and for a large software company that licenses products) and understand why they might have made the business decision to cut off free 7-day cloud storage:  they have to pay for the servers that store the data (and the buildings that house the servers and the people that manage the servers, etc.).  It's likely that most of the people using this service were not also paying for their add-on support services.  No money in, but money out = negative profit.

I'm glad they heard the people that voiced complaints and extended the 'free stuff' for another year, but think it will be very difficult to find any company that provides hardware/software services like this, where there isn't at least some monthly fee involved.

[DOTTAT2]

Then as someone who works in IT you'd understand that the hardware to store that video has gotten smaller, denser and cheaper to power and run over time at the same time the group of folks with the free 7 cloud storage has only shrunk (since they aren't offering it anymore).  I have zero sympathy for a company that ran a loss-leader like this to get into the market and then attempted very shrewdly to back out of it.  Their CEO should be taking lessons from this expensive mistake for his next job.

[maryellc]

I do understand, thank you.  I'm not thrilled to be a victim of their poor business decisions, but am doing my best to react to their choices.

Thank you to all those providing feedback in this post.

[Captiva]

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@maryellc wrote:

Computer networking-savvy people could make use of networking features to redirect Arlo base unit local storage.  Arlo is one of many SaaS companies taking advantage of the fact that the general population doesn't have this skill set (or has the skill set and doesn't want to do it as their hobby).  Most folks want the ease of paying for cloud subscription services like this.

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Oh you described me up until that last sentence. I could, but I don't want to have to know how to forward a port. I am tired of getting $9.99'd a month to death. Sucks getting old.

[gmcjetpilot]

I am not getting update letters? What is the costumer service number? I can't fine it. I called them in Jan and got through.... I found the number on line but misplaced it..... Chat does not work.... YOUR PLAN DOES NOT INCLUDE SUPPORT.... NICE.... 

[StephenB]

If you have a question, ask it here.

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@gmcjetpilot wrote:

I am not getting update letters?

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Check your account settings, and see if you opted out.

Settings-> Profile -> Name,Email

Then see if "keep me up date on the latest news, ..." is checked.

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@gmcjetpilot wrote:

Chat does not work.... YOUR PLAN DOES NOT INCLUDE SUPPORT.... NICE.... 

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You do need a subscription to get phone support.  Googling for a phone number will almost certainly lead you to a scam support site.

[KenMabie]

If Arlo prevents my working and 100% functional Pro 2 cameras from working, or prevents me from accessing the videos via app I will follow with legal action. I bought the cameras, I own the cameras, functionality of the cameras is implied upon purchase of the cameras. They are mine and not the company's. And since I can file in forma pauperis the company and their lawyers won't be able to bleed me dry. I have everything documented. And I will even subpoena Louis Rossman of Rossman Repair Group as a witness to Arlo's unethical business practices. Louis Rossman has already made several videos about Arlo and what they are doing and he also has numerous decades of experience in both the electronics field and with right to repair/consumer rights. 

Arlo. You go down this path and not only will you lose a vast majority of customers, you'll lose the court case as well. 

Do the right thing and support your customers. 

Or else

[gmcjetpilot]

Two Questions:

Nothing has changed for the Pro EOL brick is July 2023, no cloud recording, no notification? 

Is a discount extended coverage (cloud & notification) for EOL being offered to victims? If Yes How much?

I will see what happens. At min I will contact my State DA, Federal Congressman and Senators. Then I will post many negative reviews and social media content, including Youtube videos and keep doing it like a hobby. If there is a class action suit I may join... However really ARLO (not Netgear) should reap the whirlwind. I am not for cancel culture but they deserve to be corrected by the market with extreme prejudice. I am pro regulated capitalism, but this is greed. Their cutting all communication and draconian unilateral policy will cost them, including not limited to ending their company.