New App Has Major Flaws

[Arlogenus]

They have done it again, released an app that is FULL OF BUGS.

1) no way to delete multiple videos at the same time.  Old app had this and it is necessary to prohibit hours deleting videos you no longer want while in the app.  Bad testing Arlo....

2) camera positioning tool essential for Arlo ultra cameras is not in new app.  Have to be added back in because of how Arlo ultra cameras don't see motion at the top portion of the camera view.

3) in scenes, for MOST (but not all my ultra cameras) I cannot toggle off recording triggered by audio.  Option is greyed out.  They want me to go around and pull down most of my cameras, remove and then readd them.  To them I say, fix your d#@m software before you release it.  Testing software thoroughly is IT change manager 101.  If not that, should have a HIT team ready to fix issues same day.  Poor change management Arlo.

[JamesC]

We're continuing to collect and monitor the feedback users are posting about the new 4.x experience. I will pass all the details of the topics being posted here to the development team for consideration.

JamesC

[DannyBearAgain]

I don’t believe arlo has a change management department, the recent EOL debacle proves that.

 If I had to guess the arlo project team has full reign over release of their software changes when the project is completed and tested in house for the changes they make.

Once released it would be up to the support department to manage the fallout which then requires support to create a project so that the project team can rectify the bugs they introduced. After the specific bugs have been corrected and those specific bugs are tested in house then fixes released, the new software gets released, then as new bugs have been introduced, the beat goes on.

[Arlogenus]

Still no fixes for any of these 3 issues.  What is going on?

[JamesC]

Arlogenus,

I've passed this feedback along to the development team for further investigation/consideration. I will provide an update once I have more information to share with the community.

JamesC

[Arlogenus]

So to fix item 3 I had to go out with a ladder, pull down my cameras two e and then add them back into the program.

The fat that you can't delete more than one video at a time AND the camera positioning tool is gone in the new app still shows how backwards this program and moreover the developers are.....I think I am going to put in a wired system and ditch Arlo all together.  This way, I can run the system and it can simply do what a cameras system is supposed to, without the over drawn complications all the time. 

[DannyBearAgain]

The irony is that the app was almost working at it’s best before the home security system  turned up.

[Arlogenus]

Yeah Arlo support is about the worst I have experienced and the development team is asleep.

[Arlogenus]

And the proof of both is the fact that NOTHING is fixed with the new app.   These fun ruins are child's play to restorw since they were present in the former app.  I hope that arlos servers get jammed packed full of videos because no one is deleting them anymore. I know I sure won't be doing it one at a time.

[JamesC]

We're continuing to collect and monitor the feedback users are posting about the new 4.x experience. I will pass all the details of the topics being posted here to the development team for consideration.

JamesC

[Arlogenus]

So neither the development team nor the company at large has not made a decision about removing a tool for ultra cameras that allowed a user to properly position ultra cameras for known motion detection limitations of Ultra cameras?  Nor have they given credence to the fact that users now like me have to manually select tens of videos a day individually rather than in groups for deletion and to support a more efficient use of Arlo cloud storage space.  Ultimately in both cases restoring legitimate and useful functions that existed for good reason in the previous app?   There simply is no good reason for these changes other than to call them negligence in oversight in the change management from one app to the other.  I say this because Arlo ultra cameras are still fully supported devices AND user functionality is still as relevant in the new app as it was in the old app.  Disagree?

[StephenB]

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@Arlogenus wrote:

So neither the development team nor the company at large has not made a decision 

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FWIW, your English here doesn't make any sense.  

Bulk deletion is something that has been asked for by a lot of folks, so I'd be surprised if Arlo doesn't add it.

Based on forum posts here, the gray stripe on the image in the motion detection test created more confusion than help.   The camera will detect motion in that area, just not as well.  Personally I didn't find it useful with my own Ultras.

While I have no inside information, I suspect Arlo has been scrambling to sort out the larger plan on what they need to change with "Feed".  The list of complaints and bugs is far longer than the two items you list (and personally I wouldn't put either at the top of my fix list).  Of course they've also had to address the EoL feedback.

Although it feels like forever, they only rolled it out about 3 months ago.  Analyzing the feedback, defining and prioritizing the changes, and implementing and testing them will take time.  

[Arlogenus]

The two items are important to me and the greyed out area doesn't support motion detection of any value.  I don't think EITHER of these issues are topped by another and also Arlo is classic for putting out botched program changes.  No excuses....

[StephenB]

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@Arlogenus wrote:

Opinion noted but stick to facts buddy. The fact is the two items I point out ARE issues and should NOT have been allowed to slip by.  

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It should be obvious that they screwed up by releasing Feed before it was ready.  IMO part of the screw-up was that they didn't provide a path for current customers (w/o the home security system) to revert back to Library. 

I agree that multiple deletions shouldn't have been allowed to slip by.  We'll have to agree to disagree on the value of gray area on the old camera positioning screen.  You found it useful, I didn't.

But the list is a lot longer than just your two issues. 

• timezones aren't correct for some people, and can't be changed,
• friend accounts aren't working as intended,
• scheduling isn't working right
• people can't get their new phones trusted
• people don't understand the automation features and generally can't get them to work.
• three modes are clearly not enough for many people, particularly customers who have invested in a lot of cameras.

And that's just for starters.  While people will disagree on prioritization, I think loss of multiple deletions and the gray bar have relatively little impact on affected customers compared to the other issues I am seeing posted here.

Three months is a long time for customers to wait, and I agree that the current situation isn't acceptable.  Arlo is likely losing some customers because of it.   

But it's not that long for a relatively small engineering and test team to deal with all the issues we're seeing posted here.  IMO rushing out fixes before they are fully tested/ready will just make a bad situation worse.  After all, that's how they got into this mess in the first place.  That might anger you, but it is what it is.  

[Arlogenus]

Voting aside as to who thinks what is important, still no ability for group deletions and on two occasions and on two different camera I have missed recordings because I had the cameras mispositioned such that the top 1/3 of the dead space for an ultra camera was not properly positioned.  Arlo, is this getting through?

[Arlogenus]

Still no fixes after months. Terrible, terrible, terrible.....