Arlo Essential 2K Indoor Pan/Tilt Wired Security Camera in White (2025 Release)

bankofthedank

Nov 17, 2025 8:36 AM

122 Comments

Joined May 2010

bankofthedankNov 17, 2025 8:36 AM

122 Posts

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Arlo cams are way too big. I just got a pan tilt Tapo camera and it's probably 1/3 this size

2

1

rickmasta

Nov 17, 2025 1:38 PM

150 Comments

Joined Oct 2014

rickmastaNov 17, 2025 1:38 PM

150 Posts

The amazon reviews don't seem entirely genuine... does anyone know how many of the pet tracking features are available without the subscription?

MichaelM7128

Nov 17, 2025 3:10 PM

22 Comments

Joined Nov 2013

MichaelM7128Nov 17, 2025 3:10 PM

22 Posts

Need to replace all my YI cameras since their app is now basically unusable. Is this a good cheap camera replacement that doesn't require a subscription?

1

wing380

Nov 17, 2025 3:24 PM

183 Comments

Joined Nov 2003

wing380Nov 17, 2025 3:24 PM

183 Posts

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It does not have an sd card slot which is a huge deal breaker for me.

3

mjzglr

Nov 17, 2025 3:36 PM

258 Comments

Joined Aug 2010

mjzglrNov 17, 2025 3:36 PM

258 Posts

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Cheap because the subscription is outrageous

4

crazycool

Nov 17, 2025 4:37 PM

3.9K Comments

Joined Mar 2004

crazycoolNov 17, 2025 4:37 PM

3,921 Posts

Can it save it to Arlo smart hub?

Loueloui

Nov 17, 2025 4:49 PM

314 Comments

Joined Mar 2004

LouelouiNov 17, 2025 4:49 PM

314 Posts

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I would strongly advise against purchasing any sort of Arlo equipment. Their support is atrocious, and their back end infrastructure even with their premium plan, is frankly, deficient. As a seasoned Engineer, I have rarely come across a provider that fails on so many levels. The problem is that they have cheaped out on their backend servers and they are clearly over capacity.
I have symmetrical, 8Gb fiber internet and the lag time between events and alerts is often 30 seconds or more. Their doorbell product is so horrendous, that visitors would just give up and leave before I even received an alert. When watching a 'live' view, I would have enough time to go back into the house, walk upstairs and open their app with enough time left to watch myself just walk indoors. Again, this is a supposedly 'live' view.
Their cameras failed multiple times, with no alarms or warnings, and stopped recording for days or weeks at a time. There was no clear cause, and the solution by their support team was that I should check daily to make sure that their cameras were still functioning.
Their support team just throws up roadblocks to get you off the phone. For example-
Me: 'Your app keeps crashing and is reporting clearly incorrect data. This appears to be a common problem based on the many reviews of your app.'
Them: 'OK, just perform a factory reset on your phone and reinstall the app. Then call us back.'
After being finally fed up and calling their bluff-
Me:'OK, I have performed a factory reset on my phone, reinstalled the app and checked for updates. There is no change.'
Them: 'Perform another factory reset on your phone and reinstall the app. Then call us back.'
and so on....

1

5

Sarisin48

Nov 17, 2025 5:07 PM

1.3K Comments

Joined Jun 2010

Sarisin48Nov 17, 2025 5:07 PM

1,325 Posts

Quote from MichaelM7128

:

Need to replace all my YI cameras since their app is now basically unusable. Is this a good cheap camera replacement that doesn't require a subscription?

I'd take a look at Eufy. No subscription, take SD card and easy to set up for even an old senior like me. Maybe they will have some deals for Black Friday.

3

NovaChoom

Nov 17, 2025 6:08 PM

623 Comments

Joined Oct 2013

NovaChoomNov 17, 2025 6:08 PM

623 Posts

Arlo are the og's. But they finagled me out of grandfather sub terms years ago, super direty like, cs told me to pound sand . And then this year took that $10 sub and began charging me $20 for months without telling. Canceled. Notsure if its greed or theyre struggling from chinese competition, but do not ever expect them to do anything generous at all.

2

TenderMountain879

Nov 17, 2025 7:33 PM

68 Comments

Joined Nov 2018

TenderMountain879Nov 17, 2025 7:33 PM

68 Posts

Quote from MichaelM7128

:

Need to replace all my YI cameras since their app is now basically unusable. Is this a good cheap camera replacement that doesn't require a subscription?

I'm in the same boat. What a crappy company Yi. Watch a minute if ads every time I need to open the app

1

MichaelM7128

Nov 17, 2025 7:44 PM

22 Comments

Joined Nov 2013

MichaelM7128Nov 17, 2025 7:44 PM

22 Posts

Quote from TenderMountain879

:

I'm in the same boat. What a crappy company Yi. Watch a minute if ads every time I need to open the app

Yep had YI cameras for years with no issues and then out of the blue you have to watch adds to click a button. I've never seen a company intentionally tank their reputation so quickly

1

Shnoopz

Nov 17, 2025 7:54 PM

371 Comments

Joined Aug 2006

ShnoopzNov 17, 2025 7:54 PM

371 Posts

Is anyone still seeing this deal or did it end? Im seeing $49.99 for one camera now...

HappyMarmot675

Nov 18, 2025 6:28 PM

38 Comments

Joined Jan 2025

HappyMarmot675Nov 18, 2025 6:28 PM

38 Posts

Quote from Loueloui

:

I would strongly advise against purchasing any sort of Arlo equipment. Their support is atrocious, and their back end infrastructure even with their premium plan, is frankly, deficient. As a seasoned Engineer, I have rarely come across a provider that fails on so many levels. The problem is that they have cheaped out on their backend servers and they are clearly over capacity.
I have symmetrical, 8Gb fiber internet and the lag time between events and alerts is often 30 seconds or more. Their doorbell product is so horrendous, that visitors would just give up and leave before I even received an alert. When watching a 'live' view, I would have enough time to go back into the house, walk upstairs and open their app with enough time left to watch myself just walk indoors. Again, this is a supposedly 'live' view.
Their cameras failed multiple times, with no alarms or warnings, and stopped recording for days or weeks at a time. There was no clear cause, and the solution by their support team was that I should check daily to make sure that their cameras were still functioning.
Their support team just throws up roadblocks to get you off the phone. For example-
Me: 'Your app keeps crashing and is reporting clearly incorrect data. This appears to be a common problem based on the many reviews of your app.'
Them: 'OK, just perform a factory reset on your phone and reinstall the app. Then call us back.'
After being finally fed up and calling their bluff-
Me:'OK, I have performed a factory reset on my phone, reinstalled the app and checked for updates. There is no change.'
Them: 'Perform another factory reset on your phone and reinstall the app. Then call us back.'
and so on....

What do you recommend? My boss has been asking me for recommendations for a few around the outside of his condo. He's old and not tech savvy so cloud based is the way to go. I was recommending Arlo because it seemed like the easy button, but now you've got me reconsidering.

Loueloui

Nov 18, 2025 7:45 PM

314 Comments

Joined Mar 2004

LouelouiNov 18, 2025 7:45 PM

314 Posts

Quote from HappyMarmot675

:

What do you recommend? My boss has been asking me for recommendations for a few around the outside of his condo. He's old and not tech savvy so cloud based is the way to go. I was recommending Arlo because it seemed like the easy button, but now you've got me reconsidering.

Ring is tough to beat from an ease of use standpoint. They have the backing of Amazon, so they have ample infrastructure at their disposal. However, that affiliation also brings into question their privacy policies, since Amazon has shown zero regard for the privacy of their customers. It does take a few extra steps to disable what I consider overly intrusive default options. Then again, I am a privacy zealot.If that's not a concern for you, Ring would be my first choice.

Arlo Essential 2K Indoor Pan/Tilt Wired Security Camera in White (2025 Release)

$15

$50

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