Customer Ratings & Reviews

I currently own multiple Arlo’s cameras including the XL version of this Outdoor Essential 3rd Gen. Like any other Arlo’s camera the built quality is top notch. The setup is pretty simple, just scan the included QR code, which directs you to your device’s App Store to download the Arlo app. Once installed, simply create a username (if you don't have one) and follow the on-screen instructions to begin setup. The camera includes a USB-C cable and mounting screws for a simple DIY installation. Since it isn’t fully charged out of the box, I recommend fully charging it before mounting. The app makes the Wi-Fi setup process seamless, it took me about six minutes or so to name the camera’s location and get everything connected. The 2k video quality in this camera is outstanding and even more impressive is the night vision. Battery life performance is pretty good. In a course of 4 days, the battery percentage dropped about 9% which is roughly 3% higher consumption in a shorter time compared to the XL model which consumes about 6% in a week. This camera includes the smart features like its siblings, and also comes with integrated spot light, siren, and two-way talk audio communication. Overall, this is a great indoor or outdoor security camera that is well constructed and well priced. It has excellent video quality, reliable performance, smart features, and excellent battery life make this an easy 5-star product. In the box you get the camera, USB charging cable, installation kit and quick guide.

There are two different angles on which I’m going to review this camera - as a security camera, and as a part of a smart home. First off, as a security camera it does pretty well. I haven’t had any serious problems with it. I was a bit worried about a camera with a battery, but the battery has lasted a pretty long time without charging it. I’m honestly pretty happy with that, and as such would consider this a great camera for people who can’t hardwire one (such as renters). The picture quality is good - during the day, it’s pretty clear, and with night vision on it’s pretty reasonable. I’ve not yet had any false positives with motion detection (though all the motion detected has just been me). The motion detection recordings seem like they kick in a bit late, though. One serious concern that I do have is that the box says it’s an outdoor camera, but the manual says to not get it wet under any circumstances. This really limits where it can be mounted - for instance, I can put one of these on my porch under the roof; but I couldn’t put it on the side of my house to catch the driveway without risking damaging it. I don’t feel like that was a good call to make for an outdoor camera. Second, as a piece of smart home tech, I’m not super thrilled with it. I can add it to Google Home, for instance, but I’ve never been able to get Google Home to actually show a video feed (it gets stuck on “live video unavailable”). I can access it just fine in the Arlo app, meanwhile, so I know the camera itself is working just fine. It feels like it’s supposed to be a part of my smart home, and maybe do things like change the arm mode based on if people are home, but it just kind of doesn’t work properly so I don’t know. This isn’t wonderful. What’s more, you need a subscription to use features such as vehicle/person recognition and video retention; and I supposedly had one activated as soon as I registered the camera, but the Arlo app doesn’t show it and I don’t have any of the features operational. Software really makes or breaks a smart home component, and so far it’s really breaking this one for me. I would recommend this camera, as long as you’ve got a place to put it that’s safe from rain and you’re not too worried about it integrating with your smart home. If smart home integration is important to you, or you don’t have anywhere safe from the rain to install it, you may wish to consider another model.

So far, everything related to this purchase has been good.