Lag time between motion detection and camera recording?

[Thumpersma]

I've read there is a lag time between motion detection and start-up of recording of video. For instance, when motion is detected, the camera starts to ramp up to record but by the time it records, the subject that caused the motion detection has had time to walk in/up to the camera, turn around, and begin to walk away so that only the back of the subject is actually recorded. I suppose this is in relation to motion detection sensitivity. Others have stated that even though they have motion sensitivity set to 100%, this issue is still happening. Anyone have any experience with this? Thanks. 

[Avacca · Accepted solution]

No matter what your sensitivity setting you WILL experience a lag time when motion is triggered. Lagg time can be from 2-15 seconds. I have had Arlo now for long enough to come to the conclusion that the product has a major defect. I want to love this produce so much but get frustrated with it daily due to this defect. It does not matter where you place these cameras regardless of what the Arlo team suggests. Hope this helps.

[Thumpersma]

@Avacca

Just curious...how long have you been using Arlo? Thanks.

[jguerdat]

Not that the question was aimed at me but I've had the 2 camera system since February and notice the ~2 second lag (sometimes a bit less).  Never had any excessive lag time, probably related to the exact positioning of my cameras.

[TomMac]

Will also answer... have have the system since the beginning and have not really experienced a lag longer than about 2 seconds ( it does change at times ). I have an excellent cable thru-put which can help too.

For me most cams start recording 4-5 steps into the viewing area. Most of mine are inside the home which does make it easier to set up re IR and/or reflection of same , also eliminates a lot of false alerts.  I also am able to make CAM A sense and record on CAM A & B due to open floor plan.

But it does take time to set up the cameras right and use the system to work at its best. It is a trial/test/trial again ... it does get better.  Is it perfect, no...but then again no system fits every situation.

[Hula_Rock]

Fo me , IT DOES NOT WORK.  There is SEVERE lag in Motion Detection to recording.  I am in the process of running Cat5 and power cable so I can install a wired system.  Once that is done, I will only use "Arlo" as a WEBCAM to peek in and watch my dogs when I go on vacation.

If you buy it,  keep the reciept.....

[JPC]

Mine, I have to say the lag is very inconsistent and it became worse after this new firmware update with lotsa' glitches included... It used to work for me the first time I got it on April..  But since the ongoing firmware updates.. it just crippled it.. Who knows what's gonna' happen on the next update.. I might be lucky and get my system's issue fix and for others may not be so lucky or vice versa.. So Goodluck to us all.. 

[Avacca]

Been using for 2 months. For what it's worth I've noticed the long recording delays on the outside cameras. The indoor cameras have a delay of usually 2 sec after motion is detected. Too long of a delay to catch a motivated burglar in my opinion. I also have Dual ban wifi with full signal on all cameras including outside, so I know that isn't the issue.

[jguerdat]

My cameras are outdoors and have the minimum lag time. My base is inches from my dual band router and doesn't interfere with communications in any way.

[Hula_Rock]

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jguerdat wrote:

My cameras are outdoors and have the minimum lag time. My base is inches from my dual band router and doesn't interfere with communications in any way.

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I have a NightHawk AC3200 TRI band with a dedicated 1GIG pipe for internet,  Lag is horrible !!!!!

[Thumpersma]

Thank you for all your responses. 

I am leaning more and more toward purchasing the Arlo system based on the responses here. Since I am not intending to use the system exclusively for security outside my home, I'm hoping the lag time as described here will be inconsequential. I will be using the cameras mostly for keeping an eye on pets at home and in the backyard. I will use it to secure my doors and first floor windows but I believe the lag time shouldn't be much of a problem. Hopefully, Netgear is working on this and a software fix should eliminate the issue. 

By by the way, I will be getting a Wi-Fi extender to ensure I can get the wireless coverage I need in the backyard. I'm hoping this will also help to eliminate many issues. 

Again, thanks for taking the time to respond. 

[jguerdat]

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Thumpersma wrote:

By by the way, I will be getting a Wi-Fi extender to ensure I can get the wireless coverage I need in the backyard. I'm hoping this will also help to eliminate many issues. 

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The WiFi extender will only help if the base station is attached to it to help centrally locate it.  Arlo itself will not use the extender in any way - only the base station can use it to connect to the Internet.

[royvan]

Yes, This is an apparent system fault that needs to be resolved by NetGear. I hope they will research and find a solution. This is a very weak system security device.

[Huevosgigantes1]

I've got two cameras, one secures a long driveway, and whether or not this camera captures a good recording is dependent on the speed of the objects passing this camera. 

The other secures the common entrance walkway into our complex, and whether or not this camera captures a good recording is dependent on the speed of the objects passing this camera. 

Both cameras are attached to the +/- $18.00 Arlo metallic adjustable indoor/outdoor mounts.

What I found, was that the camera in the driveway would begin recording moving objects some twenty five, or thirty feet away, but the camera in the walkway wouldn't begin recording until the objects were much closer.

In visiting the Arlo website, I found a helpful diagram that emphasized the most efficient manner by which a camera should be mounted in order to maximize its motion detection feature. 

By changing the angle of my cameras in such a way so that they are most perpendicular with respect to the objects passing each camera, while taking into consideration the most efficient direction that the cameras detection circuits work- (one may have to rotate 90 degrees, as well as, utilizing the 90 degree rotation feature)- activation distances may be improved, thus decreasing the "lag-time."

Anoher thing that I found, was that, although it would appear that by using the my iphone 4s "app," I was changing the sensitivity to 100%- the setting remained at the default. (80%) 

I also have trouble getting the pan and zoom to work using my iphone 4s. 

I, now, try to use the desktop site to make changes. 

The combination of these adjustments has improved the functionality of my setup.

My iphone is best used to view recordings, as well as, deleting them. 

I've also used it to "restart' the base station with some success. 

[Schorschi]

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Huevosgigantes1 wrote:

What I found, was that the camera in the driveway would begin recording moving objects some twenty five, or thirty feet away, but the camera in the walkway wouldn't begin recording until the objects were much closer.

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You may also want to consider adding one (or two) more rules to your mode(s) in which your driveway and walkway cameras are utilized.

In addition to your existing rules, create a rule to have the walkway camera begin recording when the driveway camera senses motion. Make sure to program a longer recording time, as the sensor in that case is farther away from the recording camera. That way your walkway camera will already be recording long before your "intruder" enters that area, improving on the quality of the capture.

You could also consider adding a rule for the opposite way, i.e. have the driveway camera record when the walkway camera senses motion.

I have demoed such a constellation recently in a post in the Caught in the Act Videos subforum, where footage from the motion sensing camera is basically useless, as it does not allow for identifying the triggering object, but the second camera that starts recording at the same time the motion sensing camera does, catches the "perpetrators" nicely; you can even see them entering the frame, which is unheard of with an Arlo wireless camera when set up to record on its own motion sensor only.

[Thumpersma]

Great job on your set up. You caught those slinky trespassers beautifully. 

[FedUp2]

Could you explain "The exact positioning of my cameras" Like is there a sweet spot to increase the response speed between motion sensing and begin record.

I have recently been burglarized and my alarm co. notified me at 12.28 pm a cop left a report taped to my window time stamped 12.32 pm the crook got one item, my "arlo" and I got nothing but someones backside for one maybe 2 steps. If I could line up my 4 cameras and have the first one tell the fourth camera to record that may work but leaves a lot of ground not covered. Still learning how to to enhance the way this system works using everyones tips that aply and maybe your explanation would help as well, not ready to give up just yet however when I think about it the police dept around here have got bigger concerns and when they find out your insured it dont make any difference how well your cameras work or don't.

[jguerdat]

Motion detection for the wireless cameras is best when motion is across the field of view, perhaps starting near and edge, and definitely not directly at the camera. Also, many folks go for the big picture which causes issues - concentrate on the actual area of concern.

WiFi strength between the base and cameras gets in there, too.  Go for the best signal you can get - a weak signal may add delay in triggering.

Another technique is to use one camera to detect motion and cause another to trigger, perhaps in combination with the first camera. So you mode would have rules like this:

Cam A detects motion and records

Cam A detects motion and records on Cam B

Some screenshots of your scenes could be useful for positioning suggestions.

[TomMac]

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FedUp2 wrote:

Could you explain "The exact positioning of my cameras" Like is there a sweet spot to increase the response speed between motion sensing and begin record.

I

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A good trick I found to "appear" to make the Arlo cam record faster is as follows;

Go into the camera settings for Pan/zoom feature and shrink the actual picture by about 15%

Re-position the camera to recapture your main viewed location as best as possible ( the amount of sight loss is usu small )

Reason it works is that the PIR that senses motion uses the entire field of view even if the pan/zoom view is smaller ( you can't change this ). Since the PIR senses before the subject is in the viewed area, it appears that the recording starts quicker.

For me it overcomes the small lag of recording.

Major problems I see is many try to cover to much area with each camera, as the PIR for people is effective to a max of 20 ft.  ( will pick up cars due to reflected IR at much increased distantances but you'll not get a good id at range )

[Ballz]

can someone explains why there is a lag... Cameras like Foscam don't have a lag... It should start recording once it detects motion... Probably doesn't have on board cache and needs to check that the cloud is ready... So annoying

[JamesC]

Ballz,

Due to the battery-powered design of the Arlo Wire-Free cameras and their requirement to conserve power when not in use, there may be a very slight delay while the cameras wake up from energy-saving mode. For more information on how to make sure your cameras are performing at their best take a look at this article: Optimizing motion detection performance on Arlo Wire-Free cameras

JamesC

[Hula_Rock]

@JamesC

Time to starting thinking about putting a disclaimer sticker on the packaging.  "there may be a very slight delay while the cameras wake up from energy-saving mode"

PS.  Slight delay?  Im going for slight/moderate delay.....

[poweratom]

I came back to say that the lag (and very short recording time once recording is started) was one of the big reasons I returned mine. But oh man... It was a tough chioce. I did love the cameras (kudos to Arlo industrial desgn team for the look). But for my use case, it just wasn't practical. I still care enough about the system to check back once in a while to see if they made any advances on this drawback so that I can become a proud owner again!

"I want to believe."

[Mrm181]

Does anyone know if a wifi extender will help the Arlo Q Plus?

[jguerdat]

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Mrm181 wrote:

Does anyone know if a wifi extender will help the Arlo Q Plus?

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In what way?  If it's to give a stronger WiFi signal, sure.