I Give up, batteries drain too quickly

[guzpro]

I give up.  I am done with using the Arlo Wireless Cameras.  I have honestly tried to accept the oddities I have experienced since the purchase but I am done.  Once again for the 6th time since purchase the cameras chew through batteries almost daily.  My base station has been replaced, relocated it and gone through in the plural of hundreds now in batteries trying to make this work.  I worked with Netgear early on and eventually the cmaeras were stable and reliable.  but in the last 2 months after updates it has gone back to daily/weekly battery changes.  the cameras are in my office 1 7 feet, the other 12 feet from the base.  Heck for the last 2 weeks they have been on my desk sitting almost next to the base.  I have not changed the objects in my office so for months no interference issues or anything like that from other devices.  These things just go offline, no warning and by the time i realize, often within a a day, sometimes hours the batteries are chewed through.  I am a huge netgear fan but I can't take it anymore.  I have 2 dropcams and in the years since i have had them i have had zero issues.  They just run and run.  But I am done spending money on these things.  I come here and read thread after thread of people having battery issues and it seems like this si just something thats known and happens and seemingly never gets resolved.  I am sticking to wired camer'as and am now going to research new wired cameras to replace my 2 Arlo cameras.  What a waste of a great concept.

[fiodorek64]

kup ladowarke nitecore z bateriami do ladowania wielokrotnego.odlozysz na dobrego jack daniels niz dac zarobic tym zlodziejom od jednorazowek

[grantbrit]

I have a 5 camera system which has been in operation about 9 months. I live in a  quiet neighbourhood with very light traffic and camera batteries tend to last 6-10 weeks. However one camera was replaced 2 months ago when it used up new betteries within hours of replacement - I had been through a series of Netgear recomended actions to try and rectify/identify the problem but all failed ! A second camera has just failed with the same problem so I am about to go through the somewhat long winded process of having this camera replaced also.

None of my cameras are directly exposed to rain etc and I live in Louisiana were there no extremes  of temperature.

It seems to me my experience is not uncommon amongst other useers - Netgear either has a quality control problem or there is a flaw in the camera manufact

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guzpro wrote:

I give up.  I am done with using the Arlo Wireless Cameras.  I have honestly tried to accept the oddities I have experienced since the purchase but I am done.  Once again for the 6th time since purchase the cameras chew through batteries almost daily.  My base station has been replaced, relocated it and gone through in the plural of hundreds now in batteries trying to make this work.  I worked with Netgear early on and eventually the cmaeras were stable and reliable.  but in the last 2 months after updates it has gone back to daily/weekly battery changes.  the cameras are in my office 1 7 feet, the other 12 feet from the base.  Heck for the last 2 weeks they have been on my desk sitting almost next to the base.  I have not changed the objects in my office so for months no interference issues or anything like that from other devices.  These things just go offline, no warning and by the time i realize, often within a a day, sometimes hours the batteries are chewed through.  I am a huge netgear fan but I can't take it anymore.  I have 2 dropcams and in the years since i have had them i have had zero issues.  They just run and run.  But I am done spending money on these things.  I come here and read thread after thread of people having battery issues and it seems like this si just something thats known and happens and seemingly never gets resolved.  I am sticking to wired camer'as and am now going to research new wired cameras to replace my 2 Arlo cameras.  What a waste of a great concept.

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ure and/or design

[FRANK121]

I got on here today expecting to find a solution to the problem but only see it's not fixed yet? I have a five camera system with one camera replaced about a year ago due to the red picture problem. Now a few months ago I started having the batteries drain in one of my camera's over night. Reached out and went through all the reboots, removes and re-installs and more batteries and got nowhere! Ended up with a four camera system. Now two more Camera's have started the dreaded battery drain and one on the inside 15 feet away from the base can been turned off and stiil gets battery drain? So now I sit here with a two camera system out of warrenty and no fix available? These batteries are over 11 bucks for a pair and the amount I have gone through over the last year I could have bought a competitors system! Very disappointed! 

[manfredz]

I'm in Canada too

bought my Tenergy rechargeable RCR123A's plus charger from Amazon.ca and they shipped from within Canada (Woodbridge, just outside Toronto)

Amazon.ca also carries the same Panasonics that came with the cams for about Cdn.2.50 but unclear if they ship from within Canada or USA.

[JamesC]

FRANK121,

Do the cameras have poor signal strength? This could be causing the battery drain you describe. To further isolate the issue, consider swapping locations with a camera that is behaving as expected to see if the issue follows the camera or location.

JamesC

[Joeype]

Battery junction.com $1.63 per battery. Quit wasting all that money on batteries folks!!!

[FRANK121]

James C, I have almost full signal strength on the two camera's that are acting up? I have tried shutting them down and even brought them inside, put new batteries in them, disabled them in the dashboard and they will still drain the batteries? Slowly each camera is starting to experience this problem, soon I will have no functioning cameras!

[DanFelix]

My system is 5 cameras ranging in 20 to 50 feet in distance from hub, multiple walls.  Some in direct sun/heat, others in shade.  By coincidence I have only used Energizer or Duracell.  Have had the system for over a year.  Hub is connected to a Netgear 7000 wifi/router.  Cable signal is Charter and underground cable system in our area.  No temp extremes.  Record times set to 45 sec with 80% sensitivity.  The system is self-standing, meaning it is not conntected to any IFTTT or other house monitoring system.  Batteries consistently last 4 to 5 months but have a short-warning on a low battery.

Very happy with the setup.

[DrEric]

I initially wrote a comment server months ago that the battery levels were draining too quickly. After several rounds of software updates, I am no longer experiencing that problem. Battery life seems to be excellent. The functionality of the camera's remains excellent. Overall, I would very much recommend these products. I have also felt that the online community is a very useful resource. I think this Netgear website is also one of the best if not the best mobile friendly websites I have ever used. Well done.

[FRANK121]

OK ... James or anyone else that can help? .... I logged in to my system and got my info.

My about information: Firmware 2.3.1.853_15990 Date 2/21/17

Base Unit Firmware: 1.8.1.1_10234  HW Version  VMB3010r2

Camera 1 Firmware: 1.2.10342  HW Version  H7

Camera 2 Firmware: 1.2.10342  HW Version  H7

Camera 3 Firmware: 1.2.10342  HW Version  H7  Starting the Battery Drain every 48 hours.

Camera 4 Firmware: 1.2.9901    HW Version  H7  Currently Disabled Will not hold a charge drains in a day or two.

Camera 5 Firmware: 1.2.7730    HW Version  H7  Currently Disabled Will not hold a charge drains overnight.

Help!

[Oguerra]

If you are from Netgear I would appreciate assistance also with battery drain issues. Thanks

[JamesC]

FRANK121,

Two of the cameras appear to be on outdated firmware, which could be the source of the problem. Given you are also starting to see this issue with a camera on the latest firmware, I recommend you contact the Arlo Support Team to further investigate this issue. You will find several options for contacting support in the provided link.

JamesC

[FRANK121]

James,

I thought about the Versions also and tried to put NEW batteries in one of the disabled Cameras to update.

I activated the camera, it said I needed new batteries so I replaced the Batteries. Nothing changed it still showed dead batteries?

I rebooted the system and still show dead batteries and could not access the camera. So then I removed the Camera from the

System, took the batteries out, Rebooted the System and clicked on add device. Clicked on My Camera added my new batteries back in closed it, went to sync and get no lights nothing? Now the Camera won't even sync to the System? So I am down to a 4 Camera System of which only 3 work? I was going to try to update the firmware on the other non working camera but I will probably loose it also if I try?

[Jokar]

I have the same problem. Im thinking it's because of the magnetic holder

[manfredz]

first of all i don't see how the magnetic base could be responsible; secondly. then shouldn't everybody being experiencing this.

[JamesC]

Jokar,

What is the signal strength like for the camera? How much activity do your cameras record? How long is the battery lasting?

JamesC

[fiodorek64]

otworz aparat wyjmij baterie otworz mikro port podlasz do komputera powinno sie zresetowac w kilka minut i z powrotem zaluz baterie i zalogoj. mnie pomoglo.

[Jokar]

James.  The signal strength is very good on all cameras. Out of 4 units, only 1 holds the battery charge and it is the one that is attached to the adjustable mount.  These cameras are outside and record activity all day long.  Isn't that the objective of having cameras.  It's not like I can set them for specific times of the day.  As for the battery duration, they last between 24 to 48 hours only.  Not exactly the 5 to 6 months that they are supposed to last. 

[jguerdat]

Battery life, assuming good equipment, is related mostly to 1) total number of minutes of recording and live view per day (5 minutes or less for spec life) and 2) the WiFi connection between the camera and base, which can be impacted by distance, house construction, wiring, ductwork, interference from other 2.4GHz devices, etc.  You could try swapping cameras around with that one good one to see if the issue remains with the camera or position as well as swapping batteries between the good and bad cameras.

As for setting the cameras for use for specific times of the day, I'm not sure if you're saying that you don't want to turn them on or off or if you're unaware of the schedule. If the latter, check the Mode tab, click on your base and check out the schedule there.

[cher45]

My two camera system is about 1 year old. One camera had a  faster drain time, but still lasting couple of months. I followed the advice here to open/close door to reset. Switch the camera  with the other to see if location was a factor. No changes. Both cameras have good wi-fi signal.

About 4-5 months ago I decided to run a new test. Installed new batteries in both and used for a couple weeks and noticed the one again draining  faster than other. With 91 and 96 % on them - I turned off detection/recording completely.They are connected to base and I can check on them but that is all. All of a sudden last week I got an email warning that one of my cameras was at 7% battery life.Yes indeed-the fast drainer is now at 7% (!?!) while the other is at 87% (acceptable). With absolutely no recordings in that time period.

Btw, my Firmware is 1.2.10342.

[jguerdat]

Since the camera seems to be within 1 year old, you have a warranty. I don't understand why folks would wait so long, battling with issues, when opening a case could result in a resolution. You're far from the only one, just saying that others that have had months of problems were relieved when they finally opened a case and got faulty hardware replaced.

[cher45]

You are absolutely right and normally this is the route I would take. Unfortunately I had the cameras a few months before I started realizing there was possibly a battery issue.I started looking into it and found this forum- with all of the others having the same problem. By then my daughter had "helpfully" thrown away the box and receipt from Best Buy.

[jguerdat]

The warranty is with Netgear,not BB.  Open a case using the Contact Support link at the bottom here.

[crusader]

Battery Junction.com, they sell Cr123 for $1.00 a battery

[crusader]

Batteries showing time to replace? They are at 2.8V, Why would they show dead.