Email Alerts/Video Recordings - Not Getting, or Getting Very Late

[iSage]

  I really wish Netgear would address this problem that has been getting worse over the past 2 weeks...

  As I have reported several times, including just a few days ago along with several others, I am getting the Push Notifications/Alerts on my cell phone when motion is detected on any of my 3 Arlo wireless cams, but the email alerts as well as the video that is supposed to then show up in the Library is quite delayed (been taking anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour to get email alert or video to show in Library, or not showing up at all!!). I'm still missing email alerts and videos from yesterday that never showed up at all!

  What good are my Arlo cameras if I'm not home, but get a push notification alert(s) about motion being detected, but cannot "see" exactly what is going on at that moment??

   No email message means no image to click on, and no video in Library means the same. This is absurd! I've checked and re-checked each and every setting, even deleted all previous days' videos, but there is no rhyme or reason as to why some motions show up, some show up quite late, while others don't show up at all.

  I am very disappointed and not a happy camper or customer of late at all.  In the past 2 weeks, this problem has gotten worse instead of better. My husband wants to rip the 3 cameras down at this point and literally dump them and take the $450 loss for what we paid, because he's tired of seeing me stress out and be upset over this.

  Please Netgear - PLEASE address this problem on these boards to myself as well as all your other Arlo customers with the same problem. And as I suggested in my last post from 1/29/16, it would be great if you created a 24-hr Status page to let your customers know if there are server problems, software problems, hardware problems, etc.
  Thank you in advance,
~Susan

[Nifer]

Hi all, Mark Merrill did receive your emails and has asked me to take action. I'm sorry for the issues you've been experiencing. I just got off a plane so I don't have any details tonight but will be back in the office tomorrow and will talk to our engineering team. If any of you have existing support cases that you'd like me to review, please send me a private message with your eight digit case number. If you are willing to work with our support and development engineers to provide more details that can help us resolve this issue for everyone, please also PM me.

Again, I apologize for the problem. I appreciate the feedback from this community and your willingness to help us improve our product.

Thank you.

[pnickel]

@ NiFER

I just ran a test again and received Notifications, email and a library update very quickly just as it had been before..what ever the issue was it appears to be back to normal.  The concern is that the system does not operate like this consistently.  It appears to me to be a Network issue on Netgears end.  I'm hoping you are aware of the issue and that you're not finding out from us for the first time.  I'm guessing there is a loading or traffic issue or some type of bandwidth limitation.  Whatever the problem is, it's clearly not an individual system issue since it is affecting so many other users with the same failure mode.  When the issue occurs it renders our systems virtually useless.  This is a huge concern for a product stated to be a security alarm system.  Reliability has to be there and it appears that the system issue that's occurring is impacting reliability.  So rather than having us all put in work orders and talking on the phone with some junior repair person with little knowledge behind a computer screen asking us if we have the base plugged in..I suggest you fess up to the problem, run a full diagnostic on your systems and send out emails to your customers making them aware of the issues and providing a status on what is being done to resolve it and when it will be repaired.  Your customers have lots of hard earned money invested in your product and you have lots of competition in this market.  Therefore I also suggest that what ever the problem is, that you resolve it quickly and communicate better.

[pnickel]

@ Nifer

Here my case number if this helps get the process started 26488316 please feel free to contact me as needed to resolve the issue.

[Z28CPA]

So far today: 3 events, 3 timely notices, 3 timely videos. 

[hackemate]

There are a few issues but I think everyone here agrees that the biggest issue by far is the delay in email notifications and availability of recordings in the library. In many cases a video will not be available for 1-2hours.

So far today, both recording and notifications have been prompt. However, the problem usually happens around 5-7pm EST. So, we shall see if the servers get overloaded again today.

I can deal with the other issues (battery, non detections, lack of support) but if I can get access to video recordings minutes after an occurence, I will be a "satisfied" customer and I can hope for a firmware/software update that will eventually make this the best system in the world.

[iSage]

   MOST definitely, the delay in emails after motion is detected (or not getting at all), and the delay in videos showing up in the library (or not showing up at all, even days and days later), is the biggest problem, which ultimately renders these cameras totally useless because they are not working as intended/by design.

  But I've noticed yet two other NEW problems since late last night ... I got a push notification last night at 10:01pm (east coast time), when my husband exited our front door, and I got the email notification which included the image/video. BUT - I still have NOT gotten the actual video from that camera in my Library and it's now over 12 hours later since that motion was detected!  This is the first time I've gotten the email but no video in the library, so that is yet another new problem. Up to now, if I didn't get the email, there was also no video. Now, I get the email but no video. This is making my head spin!! <sigh>

  Second new problem:  When I log into the camera app (on my iPhone, or iPad or via any web browser), the numbers next to each camera are ALL showing "0" (zero) videos, when I indeed have videos in my library from yesterday as well as 2 from today!  I logged off and back in thinking it might need to be refreshed, but all are still showing "0".  I even deliberately set off one of my cameras to see if it then updates, to no avail. 

  So it appears things are still getting worse instead of better, no matter how many reports we submit here or on the phone.

[pnickel]

I think it's pretty clear there is a data traffic issue on Netgears end that they need to own and correct..it would be really nice if they would fess up to it because unless they are flying completely blind and are incompetent (I doubt this is the case) they likely know about it.  It would also be nice if they would communicate information about the issue so we don't all have to wait until our houses are broken into to find out there's a problem...I think we all bought this system thinking we were buying a RELIABLE monitor system that would keep us apprised of the status of our dwellings 24 7..  At least that is what I was led to believe by all the fancy web site info at Netgear...so far I've been very dissapointed in my $1000 plus investment in this supposedly advanced technology.  As far as your zeros...I find I have to close and re open the apps on my devices regularly.  Especially IF you are using multiple devices...in many cases I have to restart the devices..try this first.  Also try going into your settings and devices and see what name is entered there.  I had one camera (I have 7 now). (By the way I know I'm the poster child for insanity investing this much $$ for this system. 🙂  that was acting abnormally..I had to pull it down..remove the batteries, remove it from the base and re sync it..oddly enough it cured the problem..  also try powering off and on your base..best of luck..I think if we all keep applying pressure we can get Netgear to understand we are here and we are not going away until the issue goes away..  As far as I'm concerned...IF I go away..I will not be back..there are many good competitors out there with lower priced reliable products to choose from.. Best of luck!

[pnickel]

12:09 pm ET..just checked my system again..received imeadiate notifications, email and library updates.  NO CHANGES made on my end.  Received info on the android phone and my IOS tablet just like it was when I got the system..still no word from Netgear on what changed or what was done.  Will be checking again tonight during potential high traffic times. I'll post results.

[singlet]

System working fine again this morning - Hopefully recent issues have at least been identified and fixed permanently, I hope we find out what was causing the problem. I want this to be a good system.

[Nifer]

Hi all, I have a meeting with engineering in a few minutes to understand the issue, and hope to be able to post an update by 1:00 pm Pacific Time. Thanks for the feedback in the past few hours about what you're seeing. Again, I apologize for the situation and appreciate your patience and valuable contributions to improving our Arlo product.

[ant]

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Nifer wrote:

Hi all, I have a meeting with engineering in a few minutes to understand the issue, and hope to be able to post an update by 1:00 pm Pacific Time. Thanks for the feedback in the past few hours about what you're seeing. Again, I apologize for the situation and appreciate your patience and valuable contributions to improving our Arlo product.

---

Thanks. I hope you can give us answers before the weekend. 😉

[mpho]

Since late last night, system has been "working". I've been getting notifications and videos appearing immediately. I don't know if this is significant as problems usually start later in the day (higher traffic?).

[JamesC · Accepted solution]

As you may have noticed, we are experiencing issues with our cloud servers which may be slowing down reception of alerts and video recordings. Our engineers are working on the situation with urgency and things should be back to normal shortly. In the meantime, we apologize for any downtime you’re experiencing and want to let you know that we are working non-stop to address the issue.

Update:

A fix for this issue has been released and has significantly improved Arlo performance. However, a side effect you may currently experience is the alert counter on the camera screen disabled and set to 0. Resolving this counter issue and further optimizing Arlo performance is our number one priority at this time and Arlo engineers are working non-stop to resolve this. 

Thank you,

JamesC

[pnickel]

Hello James C..I'm happy to hear that you and Nifer are working the issue..however I'm sorry to see that it's taken this level level of visibility to get the effort going..folks have been reporting these issues since early December..why did it take an Army of us complaining to get a response? Especially since it's very obvious this is a known issue and has been for a while...  The first instance of this occurring should have resulted in some type of notification letting your clients know that their investments are at risk so that we could take alternative action.  Your superiors need to understand that this type of negative visibility is going to cause a long term ripple and lack of confidence in your products.  People talk....AND if they don't react appropriately and quickly when there is an issue the word is going to get out and folks are going to look elsewhere for there secutity products.

Thank you again for your effort..let's use this event to learn how to treat customers and communicate issues so that we can all feel better about our investments in your products and develop a trusting, collaborative working relationship..

[Nifer]

As promised, here is a quick update. Thank you all for the feedback. As JamesC notes, we met with the head of our software engineering team this morning. The good news is that we think we have resolved the network traffic issues that led to delayed alerts and recordings. However, to resolve these critical functions quickly, we disabled the counter as iSage correctly noted. Our software development team is now reviewing our network traffic to find systemic, sustainable solutions that won't impact the counter. JamesC is correct that this is literally their highest priority.

Pnickel, your concerns are valid. We've recently put in place some changes that we hope will stave off these issues:

1) we have a new automated tool that helps us identify which issues are new and trending on the community, which should help us focus on support and engineering resources

2) we've increased our support staffing in the past couple of weeks, which should help us understand and resolve issues more quickly 

3) we've added a new cross-functional biweekly meeting to identify and resolve issues 

The support engineering team will meet later today to review the existing feedback and ensure that the solution put in place last night has resolved the slow alerts and recordings. 

We appreciate all the feedback you have provided in this community. Thank you for your patience with us as we improve our responsiveness, and please continue to let us know if we are addressing your concerns.

[ant]

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Nifer wrote:

As promised, here is a quick update. Thank you all for the feedback. As JamesC notes, we met with the head of our software engineering team this morning. The good news is that we think we have resolved the network traffic issues that led to delayed alerts and recordings. However, to resolve these critical functions quickly, we disabled the counter as iSage correctly noted. Our software development team is now reviewing our network traffic to find systemic, sustainable solutions that won't impact the counter. JamesC is correct that this is literally their highest priority.

Pnickel, your concerns are valid. We've recently put in place some changes that we hope will stave off these issues:

1) we have a new automated tool that helps us identify which issues are new and trending on the community, which should help us focus on support and engineering resources

2) we've increased our support staffing in the past couple of weeks, which should help us understand and resolve issues more quickly 

3) we've added a new cross-functional biweekly meeting to identify and resolve issues 

The support engineering team will meet later today to review the existing feedback and ensure that the solution put in place last night has resolved the slow alerts and recordings. 

We appreciate all the feedback you have provided in this community. Thank you for your patience with us as we improve our responsiveness, and please continue to let us know if we are addressing your concerns.

---

Thank you for following up. Now, let's see more good results. 🙂

[pnickel]

ok Netgear Arlo team I'm Impressed!  Nice response... sounds like you're  well underway in addressing the issues, improving the communication and developing a long term solution that will improve the system and customer experience.. I look forward to hearing more about your progress and getting clear communication going forward when there are issues..  Thank you for hearing us and reacting accordingly..!

[Jimfr]

My Q is working fine again, or should I say, the servers are working fine again.  I sure hope it lasts - it's a bit hard to trust this system at this point.  I have only 10 days to return my Q.  BTW, I've used Netgear routers and switches for decades(!) and have always found them to be excellent and reliable.

[hackemate]

Jimfr Netgears reliable routers and switches were a deciding factor when I went with Arlo. I was disappointed in the performance last week but I surely hope they are investing their resources in the Arlo department. It truly is a magnificent concept if they can work out the kinks and continue to improve this product. At the moment I can not recommend this product but once a reliable track record has been established I plan on posting positive reviews everywhere I can.

[pnickel]

I completely agree..it's very difficult to make a comeback from lost confidence, especially when so many folks  provided input that seemed to fall on deaf ears for so long..what makes this experience more concerning is that fact that we're not just taking about a failing router, but a security system that we must be able to count on.  We have invested more than money..we have invested our property, our dwellings and our trust in this system.  Hopefully this issue is being flowed up the mgt chain at Netgear and that the folks there FULLY understand why we are concerned and they are taking this issue seriously.  ..The product concept is awesome..however one poor execution event could be enough to sink a product in this market at least as far as I'm concerned..

[Jimfr]

Update:  everything still working as designed, 2 days after the server fix.  My fingers are crossed!   It's a really nice system when all is working well 🙂

[bullhornn]

I am still having inconsistent motion detection and alert push notifications. I have two cameras and one is working fine. The other is set to 100 sensitivity and you can stand in front of it waving your arms and no recording takes place one minute, and the next it will record. Are solutions being handled only with those who have a case number? 

[Schorschi]

That doesn't sound right. Something isn't right with that camera. Try removing it from the system by going into the Settings, then Devices, then tap/click on your camera that's acting up. Click/tap the Remove button.

I'd suggest leaving the batteries out for a while too, maybe a day. Then resynch the camera with the base station again.

If that doesn't help, you should contact support, they may have to replace your camera.

[Nifer]

Bullhornn, I agree with Schorschi's recommendations - he is spot on. If those ideas don't work, please send me a private message and we can get a support engineer to work with you on this. Thanks, and best wishes for a speedy resolution!

[iSage]

  I wanted to wait several days after the fix was posted, before posting anything additional to this thread/discussion that I started 3 weeks ago...

  I've been keeping daily logs for the past few weeks since I noticed there were problems, notating the exact time of the motion detection/push alert, as well as if I also got the email and the library video.

  I'm SO, SO happy to report that since Friday (2/19/16), ALL the push alerts, as well as ALL the emails and ALL the videos have shown up within seconds of the motions being detected by any of my 3 ARLO cams!   They are all working just like they all did when I first bought these cams back in early November 2015 (until the problem started with that last update at the end of December).

  I am (cautiously) optimistic it will continue to stay this way, and I can finally stop carrying around a notebook with a pen to constantly write everything down.  🙂

~Susan