Very short battery life with wirless camera

[XJR1200Kiwi]

I have an ARLO Camera System with 5 cameras.  The cameras are the standard VMC3030 720p ones (not Pro or Pro 2).Two of the cameras continue to drain batteries within 7 days. 

All 5 cameras are "live" with an active camera status but I have had the system in continuous "Disarmed" mode for the last 3 months so nothing is being recorded. (Yes, I have not armed the system for three months). One of these 2 cameras is 4m from the ARLO Base Station and the other 15m. My other 3 cameras are at distances in between these 2 that drain batteries, and when tested these other 3 are working fine and have a full battery status. 

All the cameras are inside and in a temperature not varying outside of 15-20 deg C.

I have replaced the batteries in these 2 defective disarmed cameras three times in the last three weeks. I have used authentic Panasonic CR123A Lithium Batteries each time purchased from different stores and all with expiry dates in the year 2026 printed on their packaging.

I have had the ARLO cameras for 11 months. The firmware automatically updated to version 2.4.4-17405 released on 06/29/17.

Why are two of my cameras draining batteries and what can I do to prevent it. OR do the cameras need to be replaced?

[brennan77]

I was here searching for answers to the same problem. I haven't armed my cameras for months because they are completely useless as of now. I have 4 cameras, one of which has stopped syncing altogether. Another loses sync and drops off regularly. The other 2 that do seem to stay connected report low batteries in under a week, in disarmed mode. I most recently changed my batteries on the 12th, with all the cameras sitting directly in front of the base, less than a foot away. I resynced, or tried to resync, all of them. One never synced. One has since dropped off. One shows 6% battery. The other shows 43% battery. I'm hoping to find a solution. As of now, this is $500 wasted. 

[Streak2]

How many recording per days on the high drain cameras?

How much time live viewing?

When you insert the batteries don't push them in by hand, let the battery door close onto them and set them properly.

[XJR1200Kiwi]

The high drain Cameras have zero recording minutes as I have not armed the system. The batteries are draining without the system being in armed mode.

 I put new batteries into these two cameras and then watched the battery health indicates for these cameras on the ARLO app reduce to zero over about a week. I tested the batteries with a tester after the ARLO app told me the batteries need replacing and I can confirm that they have been drained without having ever recorded any video. I wonder if the 2 cameras are not recognizing that the system is in disarmed mode and are recording without the video being sent to the cloud because of the system's disarmed status. If this is so then the cameras will need to be replaced.

[brennan77]

I hope the original poster doesn't mind my tagging along. But yes, the issues is the same on my end. I am recording zero minutes as the cameras are in disarmed mode. The live viewing time is maybe 10 seconds on each camera just to confirm that they are working and connected. The batteries are showing used in 2-7 days. 

[Streak2]

If you are using the disarm feature or turning individual cameras off in settings then the batteries should not drain.

It's only if the base is turned off then the batteries will drain as they will continue searching for the base.

Latest firmware is reported as being 1.2.11810.

[brennan77]

Thanks. After several attempts today, along with fresh batteries, I have all 4 of my cameras at or near 100% battery, recognized as connected to the base. They are also all on the latest firmware. The 4th one that wouldn't connect finally did and updated itself. I will place them directly next to the base, in disarmed mode and see what the battery situation looks like in the near future. 

I hope this helps and I hope the original poster finds some solution as well. 

[glenv60]

Camera Batteries drain super fast! Base Station is always powered, always connected to internet, batteries don't last a week. 4 cameras in total, 2 work fine, 2 drain quick. I took one of them and connected to a external power source, It loses connection about every 2 days and its only 6 feet from the base station. These things are junk. I purchased a Blink system that uses inexpensive AA batteries. Better video quality, better app. Been online now for 3 months, batteries are all at 95%! Anyone want to buy a poor Arlo cheap? What a waste of money... Time to go online and start slamming...  

[JamesC]

glenv60,

It sounds like something may be interfering with the cameras connection with the base station. Consider swapping locations with the 2 cameras that are behaving as expected and see if the issue follows the cameras location or the camera.

JamesC

[brennan77]

To update on my end, the cameras remain a complete waste of money. I've tried at least 5 different brands of battery and have tried over and over again with the cameras directly next to the base. It's a complete failure. Netgear ought to issue a recall and make this right but I doubt that will ever happen. I'm going to buy something else and warn as many people as possible to avoid this product. It's a shame. $500 down the drain.

[JamesC]

brennan77,

Please contact the Arlo Support Team to further investigate this issue. You will find several options for contacting support in the provided link.

JamesC