Netgear Arlo CCTV anyone?

[gilford]

Since I've moved to the beach I have been doing some research in to CCTV systems as my new place is right next to a public footpath on the cliff, I did a few searches and have seen some love for the Netgear Arlo system.

Is anyone using this setup and can comment on it?

I've ordered the basic kit to be delivered tomorrow and will have a fiddle over the weekend, just seeing if there are any long term users here?

I only really want one camera to show the front of the property, as we have only just moved in my garage is full of crap and my car will not go inside, I'd like to be able to keep my beady eye on it ;-)

Cheers

[stuie-t]

I don't have the Netgear Arlo system but do have CCTV, and it has been useful a couple of times lately. Firstly Amazon Logistics have a habit of leaving my deliveries in the dustbin or other 'safe' place, yet recording on the tracking that a neighbour has it, so its useful for finding out what they have done with it. Secondly, I caught our cleaner stealing from us (nothing high value - just food, alcohol, household stuff). She was not the sharpest tool in the box - the cameras are not in any way hidden, and we even have an ipad mounted in the hallway giving a live feed from the cameras, yet she placed the bag of loot on the floor of the porch whilst closing the door, in full view of the camera!

[gilford]

I don't have the Netgear Arlo system but do have CCTV, and it has been useful a couple of times lately. Firstly Amazon Logistics have a habit of leaving my deliveries in the dustbin or other 'safe' place, yet recording on the tracking that a neighbour has it, so its useful for finding out what they have done with it. Secondly, I caught our cleaner stealing from us (nothing high value - just food, alcohol, household stuff). She was not the sharpest tool in the box - the cameras are not in any way hidden, and we even have an ipad mounted in the hallway giving a live feed from the cameras, yet she placed the bag of loot on the floor of the porch whilst closing the door, in full view of the camera!

What system do you have Stuie?

[stuie-t]

Mine is a Qvis. It is wired (using Ethernet cables) rather than wireless though. It was a bit of a faff to get it up and running fully with email alerts, remote viewing etc but now it is it works quite well. Picture quality is excellent, I have 2*2mp cameras covering the front and back of the house and a 3mp with sound covering the porch. Any activity in the porch and it emails me with a snapshot of who is there.

snapshot of the cleaner and her loot:

[bogie]

Yes, Netgear Arlo here, and many of my friends and family. Its excellent, so easy to setup, wirefree cameras, view from your phone on holiday, receive alerts then forward camera feed to Police in real time (if you wish) etc Future firmware is going to include geofencing so you can register your phone with it and have it auto arm/disarm when you are in the house (saves doing it manually from the app)

disclaimer: im a Netgear employee :)

[Guz]

Mine is a Qvis. It is wired (using Ethernet cables) rather than wireless though. It was a bit of a faff to get it up and running fully with email alerts, remote viewing etc but now it is it works quite well. Picture quality is excellent, I have 2*2mp cameras covering the front and back of the house and a 3mp with sound covering the porch. Any activity in the porch and it emails me with a snapshot of who is there.

snapshot of the cleaner and her loot:

Mate, not condoning her actions but I find it really sad that people steal food.

Did she 'need' the food or do you think it was is stealing because she could ?

Did you confront her ? I'm sure that would have been a strange conversation !

[stuie-t]

She didn't need the food, she was working regular hours. It was just opportunistic, and a slightly random selection like a bag of pasta, a £40 bottle of vodka, rose wine, cashew nuts, toilet rolls, chicken breasts etc.
Yeah it was an interesting conversation! We told her that we have cctv footage of her leaving with the bag, so if she returns it with everything she took then we won't call the police. She tried to just leave it on the doorstep and run off but my wife saw her on the camera and wasn't having that!

[Guz]

Mine is a Qvis. It is wired (using Ethernet cables) rather than wireless though. It was a bit of a faff to get it up and running fully with email alerts, remote viewing etc but now it is it works quite well. Picture quality is excellent, I have 2*2mp cameras covering the front and back of the house and a 3mp with sound covering the porch. Any activity in the porch and it emails me with a snapshot of who is there.

snapshot of the cleaner and her loot:

That is madness !

Possible conviction and tarnished reputation, I do wonder what goes on in people's heads at time..

Quality of picture is super !

[Mr.D]

Its mad isn't it.

I've never understood why people do this sort of thing. I'm constantly having rolls of tape stolen of me at work. I've take to writing my name inside the spool. The amount of times I've confronted someone who denies its my roll until I show them my name inside. Then they get all "simple mistake" about it. Toerags.

[pcworks]

Mate, not condoning her actions but I find it really sad that people steal food.

Did she 'need' the food or do you think it was is stealing because she could ?

Did you confront her ? I'm sure that would have been a strange conversation !

1st world problems - the downstairs staff pilfering the food.

[TheTigerUK]

disclaimer: im a Netgear employee :)

Any good discounts going for TZ members ? well it is Christmas :)

[gilford]

Yes, Netgear Arlo here, and many of my friends and family. Its excellent, so easy to setup, wirefree cameras, view from your phone on holiday, receive alerts then forward camera feed to Police in real time (if you wish) etc Future firmware is going to include geofencing so you can register your phone with it and have it auto arm/disarm when you are in the house (saves doing it manually from the app)

disclaimer: im a Netgear employee :)

expect some PM's tomorrow then mate!!!!

[bogie]

Any good discounts going for TZ members ? well it is Christmas :)

LOL I could maybe arrange some discount for multiples of 1000 units per month run rate....

sorry guys, employees only get to buy 2 Netgear products at 1/2 retail price every year. I've already had my 2 products for this year getting Arlo kits for myself and the in-laws

The Arlo system has been a huge sales success, and already the market leader in USA for these kind of cloud based camera systems. The key selling point of course is the lack of wires. The cameras run on batteries. Uses low power Wi-Fi. So far my batteries have lasted >6 months. It obviously depends on how much recording the cameras are doing each day. They only record upon detecting movement or when if you remote control from the app/internet.

More importantly real criminals have been nicked by Arlo. Made the state news last year as a lady was out shopping, got the txt notification on her phone that someone was at her front door. Logged in on phone and saw dodgy guys breaking in. Forwarded video feed link immediately to local Police station and burglars arrested later that day. It would be nice to think that our Police could be so efficient too ;)

[bogie]

1st world problems - the downstairs staff pilfering the food.

thats one of the biggest use cases in many 1st world countries i.e. watching the nanny and other servants :)

[JasonM]

Just read the Arlo reviews, looks great and easy to set up, my only niggle is the cameras themselves look vulnerable, with the magnetic mount they could be easily taken, I know its for convenience for battery replacement though.

[rolexer16610]

We have y-cam homemonitor system, cheap and easy to set up cloud based wifi system. Totally useless when we lost phone/internet for 10 days following the recent floods though.

[Andyg156]

Please delete

[simon-c]

Hi from SELOC bogie!

yes it's a good system, we have 4 cams, 2 of which are outside

one glitch that needs sorting out is the motion activation to record delay, hopefully this is on the way, may be due to where the servers are?

geofencing a good idea, we are thinking of setting up an extra camera in a nesting box in the spring

Simon

Yes, Netgear Arlo here, and many of my friends and family. Its excellent, so easy to setup, wirefree cameras, view from your phone on holiday, receive alerts then forward camera feed to Police in real time (if you wish) etc Future firmware is going to include geofencing so you can register your phone with it and have it auto arm/disarm when you are in the house (saves doing it manually from the app)

disclaimer: im a Netgear employee :)

[spud767]

She didn't need the food, she was working regular hours. It was just opportunistic, and a slightly random selection like a bag of pasta, a £40 bottle of vodka, rose wine, cashew nuts, toilet rolls, chicken breasts etc.
Yeah it was an interesting conversation! We told her that we have cctv footage of her leaving with the bag, so if she returns it with everything she took then we won't call the police. She tried to just leave it on the doorstep and run off but my wife saw her on the camera and wasn't having that!

If I was a cleaner and saw cashew nuts I'd be leaving with them as well. You do know how moreish they are don't you?

[gilford]

Arrived about an hour ago and all set up, cracking little system!

Setup was a breeze and quality is very good, off out for my christmas do now so will fiddle a bit more tomorrow.

A little more than some systems buts fit my need perfectly, I hate wires, and the ability to move around is great!

All in all I'm over the moon, just need more cameras now ;-)

[bogie]

Just read the Arlo reviews, looks great and easy to set up, my only niggle is the cameras themselves look vulnerable, with the magnetic mount they could be easily taken, I know its for convenience for battery replacement though.

the cameras have thread for std camera mount. My outdoor ones are on screw on brackets from ebay, 2 for a fiver i think they were. I also have my outdoor cameras high up you need step ladders to get to them

[bitfield]

I quite fancy one of these systems, just for the fun of it really. But it's worth mentioning that wireless security cameras can be fairly easily defeated: http://julianoliver.com/output/log_2015-12-18_14-39

Wired systems are not vulnerable in the same way, so if security is a major concern, it might be wise to stick with the wires for now.

[bogie]

It is fair to say any wireless communications of any kind are not as secure as cabled.

There are optional wired cameras for the Arlo kit, that can record 24 hrs a day if you want, with audio, night vision etc http://arlo.com/en-us/

With these solutions you have all the benefits of cloud storage, access from phone app or website anywhere in the world etc. But then the most important cable coming into the house becomes the phone cable......so just clipping your phone cable outside on the wall will take down your camera system (unless you have 4g backup link)

Then you could have option for storing the data local on a NAS but the burglars take the NAS ? there are pros and cons of both model

It really is hard to have every base covered without turning your home into Fort knox, and designing the security in from the start. To be fair these kinds of cameras are really lifestyle monitoring systems rather than full home security solutions. They are a nice convenient add on to an already secure home....

[Pitch3110]

the cameras have thread for std camera mount. My outdoor ones are on screw on brackets from ebay, 2 for a fiver i think they were. I also have my outdoor cameras high up you need step ladders to get to them

Do you have the bay link for these buddy?? I would want to mount 3 cameras outside on the walls of the house and think I would need these.

Ta

Paul

[bogie]

Do you have the bay link for these buddy?? I would want to mount 3 cameras outside on the walls of the house and think I would need these.

Ta

Paul

these are what im using, but any standard 1/4" screw camera mount will do ...its the common size used for tripods etc

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1-4-Inch-S...EAAOSwLVZV40Bl

you can get black camera skins too now, useful outdoors. I just sprayed my outdoor cams satin black when i got them

https://www.arlo.com/en-us/products/.../VMA1200B.aspx

[PhilipK]

Are there any equivalent systems which do not depend on the "cloud"?

I'm not too thrilled with the notion of footage of the interior of my house being stored on a third party's servers (and I'm too mean to want to pay a regular subscription), so what I'd ideally like is a camera that sits on my home wi-fi, and that I can create a (preferably authenticated and encrypted) link to from any external internet-connected device (phone, work PC, etc) to view the output.

[bogie]

Are there any equivalent systems which do not depend on the "cloud"?

I'm not too thrilled with the notion of footage of the interior of my house being stored on a third party's servers (and I'm too mean to want to pay a regular subscription), so what I'd ideally like is a camera that sits on my home wi-fi, and that I can create a (preferably authenticated and encrypted) link to from any external internet-connected device (phone, work PC, etc) to view the output.

Yeah there are a few NAS based CCTV systems out there that allow remote access, none are truly wireless though.

NAS based solution here from Synology, you need to buy cameras too, and a lot more than £300 worth of kit.....
https://www.synology.com/en-us/surveillance/7.1

Swann have a big range of camera packs with local storage, remote access etc, more like £300 price range, but you have to run wires .....

http://www.swannstore.com/

there are loads more out there - the NAS based IP camera market is huge....

[Pitch3110]

Cheers bogie and OP for starting this one off.

I built my house and moved in 12 years ago last week and having cabled all up for CCTV I have never got round to sorting it out. Cable options have moved on and this just seems such a simple option and does all that I want.

I know I have said it before but this place is just so useful.

Ta again

Paul

[bogie]

I quite fancy one of these systems, just for the fun of it really. But it's worth mentioning that wireless security cameras can be fairly easily defeated: http://julianoliver.com/output/log_2015-12-18_14-39

Wired systems are not vulnerable in the same way, so if security is a major concern, it might be wise to stick with the wires for now.

I had a read of that post and appears that 2 models of camera are vulnerable to this attack (so far)

For it to work though, the hacker has to already be on your wireless network. They have already hacked you. So Keep strong wi-fi passwords, run WPA2-AES encryption, change regularly, all the usual security precautions apply to protecting your Wi-Fi network. Its kind of like saying that if someone has already broken into your home, they can snip the wires to your wired cameras ....same for wireless as for wired on that front, leave the key in the front door (easy passwords) and people can disconnect your cameras ...

As far as Netgear Arlo goes, is not vulnerable in the same way because the base station is wired to the router

Saying that, any wireless devices are susceptible to jamming if your burglar has access to the right kit ...and clever burglars can just switch off power to your home....then you need battery backup on any home security alarm system thats installed.....

How far you go with this stuff obviously depends where you live and exactly what you are trying to protect at home.......

[ach5]

Does the arlo base unit replace your wireless router, or sit along side it?

[bitfield]

I had a read of that post and appears that 2 models of camera are vulnerable to this attack (so far)

For it to work though, the hacker has to already be on your wireless network. They have already hacked you.

Unfortunately, that isn't the case, nor is the attack limited to specific models of camera (those are just the examples given in the script).

This is nothing to do with the Netgear Arlo or any other wifi CCTV system. It applies to all 802.11 wifi devices. A special kind of data packet called a 'deauth' packet can be sent by a malicious user, purporting to come from the device in question and telling the wifi router to disconnect it. The device will then try to reconnect, but if the attacker keeps broadcasting deauth packets, the device will be continuously disconnecting and reconnecting and unable to send data.

Deauth packets are not encrypted, so the attacker doesn't need to be authenticated to the network in order to send them. There is an advanced wifi standard called 802.11w which uses encrypted management frames, largely eliminating this kind of attack, but it's not yet widely used.

Basically, if you're within signal range of a wifi network, you can kick any devices off it you like, and it's untraceable. All wireless CCTV systems are vulnerable, even if the base station is wired to the router, so long as the cameras are wireless.

Reality check, though: opportunist burglars and light-fingered cleaners are unlikely to be carrying phones or laptops set up for wifi jamming. If the cameras are well-hidden, nobody knows they're there to be jammed. So I wouldn't worry too much; just be aware.

[catch21]

Does the arlo base unit replace your wireless router, or sit along side it?

It sits alongside it.

[bogie]

Unfortunately, that isn't the case, nor is the attack limited to specific models of camera (those are just the examples given in the script).

This is nothing to do with the Netgear Arlo or any other wifi CCTV system. It applies to all 802.11 wifi devices. A special kind of data packet called a 'deauth' packet can be sent by a malicious user, purporting to come from the device in question and telling the wifi router to disconnect it. The device will then try to reconnect, but if the attacker keeps broadcasting deauth packets, the device will be continuously disconnecting and reconnecting and unable to send data.

Deauth packets are not encrypted, so the attacker doesn't need to be authenticated to the network in order to send them. There is an advanced wifi standard called 802.11w which uses encrypted management frames, largely eliminating this kind of attack, but it's not yet widely used.

Basically, if you're within signal range of a wifi network, you can kick any devices off it you like, and it's untraceable. All wireless CCTV systems are vulnerable, even if the base station is wired to the router, so long as the cameras are wireless.

Reality check, though: opportunist burglars and light-fingered cleaners are unlikely to be carrying phones or laptops set up for wifi jamming. If the cameras are well-hidden, nobody knows they're there to be jammed. So I wouldn't worry too much; just be aware.

Part of the newer 802.11ac standard is the requirement for protected management frames (per 802.11w), so any later device thats Wi-Fi certified 802.11ac should be fine. As long as you run with WPA2 encryption, the de-auth attack issue is taken care of. I guess the issue is still there for older Wi-Fi standard devices running 2009 era 802.11n

...still its a lot easier for the burglar just to buy a £300 handheld wireless jammer if he really wants to, no need to get the right kit and be clued up to attack your wireless network in any more sophisticated ways :(

[darrenw]

I've been after something like this for a while, so on the strength of this thread have just bought a single camera package to try it out. Next day delivery via Amazon Prime, so I'll be playing with it over the festive period.

[gilford]

It's a cracking piece of kit, I haven't got it set up outside yet but it's running in the hall facing the front door, very handy for checking activity in the house!

Im still yet to get to grips with the scheduling etc but I'm sure it will come over the next week.

[farmkid]

On the subject of staff stealing-
I know a very wealthy English couple who live in New York- the wife had her 23 grand yellow gold Rolex Submariner disappear........
a few weeks later the husband had his Panerai disappear.......they have several staff come and go in the house- they got a private investigator
to question the house keeper and nannies etc and a few days later the Panerai suddenly appeared again- but the Rolex is still missing.....
maybe who took them just didn't actually like the Panerai after wearing it for a bit.
I understand the house keeper ( a middle aged woman from the Philippines) was sacked because they ascertained it was her.
CCTV is definitely a useful tool but in this situation you'd need every room covered and it's not always suitable.

[stooo]

What could possibly go wrong with CCTV in a bedroom and a nanny?

[Pitch3110]

Three camera system all fitted and up and running within a couple of hours.

Very, very impressed

[darrenw]

Anyone else having problem's with their system today ?

Ours has been working a treat, but this afternoon we've been getting the Arlo app alert that motion has been detected (us going out of the door), but no emails have been sent and no there's recordings showing in the app.

I did get some sort of database error earlier when starting up the app and now it seems stuck as is simply reporting 'getting information'. It reports the same on all devices we log in with.

So not good.

Now if it's just a temporary glitch and everything is back to normal say in the morning, then I can live with that. But if it's lost or didn't actually capture the video taken from the motion detected, then that's not acceptable and I'd argue not really fit for purpose.

It's a great idea to squirt everything into the cloud, but you need to have confidence that it will actually get there.

[Pitch3110]

Mine did similar over night three days ago, reset base and all is well.

New App update this morning is nice with some friendlier tweeks.

[stefaulkner]

I'll be buying one of these systems when I back to Blighty in the New Year. Is anybody else experiencing bugs with the app?

[darrenw]

Looks like there was a big (unannounced) update rolled out yesterday (web & apps), so there were lots of people reporting problems.

All seems to be working again now though.

They've also announced another camera for indoor use only that will record both motion and audio and allow talk back, plus it's also mains powered.

[rusty]

Can anyone confirm if this system can be set up with geofencing, such that monitoring and recording would be disabled when either myself or my wife were at home? If so can you set it up such that 1 or more remain active?

[Pitch3110]

A month in and I am very happy with the system.

Yes it has odd glitches and could have a few more features but for us it is superb. Let's us know the youngest son has got home from school safely, when deliveries are made and where parcels have been left. Both our doors are not good for seeing when folk are at them and it is nice to have an alert also.

Highly recommended and great VFM.

[bogie]

Can anyone confirm if this system can be set up with geofencing, such that monitoring and recording would be disabled when either myself or my wife were at home? If so can you set it up such that 1 or more remain active?

At this time its a manual intervention i.e. you press a button on the phone app to say you are home. Or/and you have a schedule that switches on different cameras at different times

I do believe there is an automated geo-fencing update in progress, that will allow you to register phones with it, and make the enable/disable of the system automated/linked to the presence of your phone

[rusty]

At this time its a manual intervention i.e. you press a button on the phone app to say you are home. Or/and you have a schedule that switches on different cameras at different times

I do believe there is an automated geo-fencing update in progress, that will allow you to register phones with it, and make the enable/disable of the system automated/linked to the presence of your phone

Seems like a glaring omission to me, especially for battery operated cameras that rely on motion activation only in order to save power. On the other hand, i suppose if you forget to turn them off once you arrive home, the email/text recording alert might remind you.

After searching the net for an answer, there seems to be no response from Netgear on this issue which is a little concerning tbh - all i find is anecdotal evidence from 3rd parties that geofencing should be coming soon - an official statement from Netgear would be far more reassuring.

With that in mind, there's nothing similar on the market to match the capabilities with outdoor use so i think i will bite the bullet and order a 3 camera system today and hopefully work around the shortcomings for the time being and hope that geofencing is added soon.

[bogie]

Yes, if you come home and forget to switch the cameras off, you start getting a lot of notifications on your phone and links to videos of yourself wandering around the house :)

You wont see a US public company giving out future software roadmap information these days....since the days of the Enron scandal, the accounting rules tightened up a lot with the SOX act of 2002

A company will run into revenue recognition issues if it makes future statements i.e saying you are going to add significant features to a product in 6 months or 12 months time would mean the product is incomplete. So that could mean holding back tens of millions of dollars of revenue until the features are added and the product is considered "complete" .....or not. This means if you have a 3 year dev roadmap planned, you can never recognise the revenue of all the goods sold until the end of that 3 years when development finishes.....

Or on the other hand, you ship the product on time, with essential features, as "finished goods", and then update the firmware adding a few "nice to have" stretch features later....

[Rinaldo1711]

What could possibly go wrong with CCTV in a bedroom and a nanny?

Whatever do you mean?

[mickylall]

Quick bump for this.
How's everyone getting on with the Arlo system?
Been going round in circles trawling the net for a couple of days looking for wireless cctv ( should've just checked on here first ) and these seem to be getting great reviews, the only negative seems to be some reports of really short battery life on the cameras.
Any other recomendations? Been looking at Swann but these get really mixed reviews.
Being a tech thicko I just want something simple to set up, hassle free and reliable
Cheers

[Pitch3110]

Three months in and it is doing all that I want it to do.

Plus points are

- You can set it just to alert in your own set profiles. Works well when we are in as we know if someone is at the front door or pulls onto the drive, our 'when in' profile.
- Great for tracking deliveries. All four cameras are set to record for varrying lengths depending on their location, 'at work profile'.
- Only 13yo son left at home now and its good to get an alert to know he is home safe from school, mum and me are still at work.
- There some memorable clips and these can be saved straight to IOS photos.
- App works really well.
- I was trying to remember when something was delivered last week and could look back three weeks to see when and what time (I have paid for the additional storage)
- I had one of the cameras suddenly start recording with a pink hue and the online support and replacement was all done and dusted in 7 days.
- Battery life is as suggested. Three cameras are still over half power and one has had new batteries in but it was going loopy when I was getting the hang of the system over Christmas.
- Recording quality is pretty good as are stills.

All in all for the £400 odd quid layout I feel it is very good value for money. Would a hard wired DVR system offer more with respect to quality and features, probably so but I am guessing you would be talking thousands.

So, how am I finding it, great, do I regret the purchase, not one bit, would I recommend it, yes indeed.

Ta
Pitch