Customer Ratings & Reviews

I just love watching bugs with it, it’s my obsession

After using the Arlo Essential XL 3rd Gen Wireless 2K Camera for a few weeks, I can confidently say it’s one of those “set it and forget it” smart cameras — in the best possible way. It takes everything great about the regular Essential and adds serious battery endurance, which is a huge win if you don’t want to recharge every few months. Setup and Design Setup is identical to the regular Essential model — quick, painless, and all handled through the Arlo Secure App. I connected it to my Wi-Fi in under five minutes. The app gives you a live preview during mounting, which made it easy to line up the angle before locking it in place. The camera itself feels solid and slightly larger than the standard version — that’s because of the extended battery, but it’s still sleek and unobtrusive. It looks clean mounted on a white exterior wall or under an eave. Performance and Image Quality Video performance is excellent — crisp 2K resolution, smooth streaming, and accurate colors in daylight. At night, the infrared sensors do a great job of lighting the scene without washing out faces or details. I tested it across different angles, and it handled glare from porch lights better than expected. The two-way talk is also impressive — minimal lag and clear enough to have a normal conversation through the app. The motion detection is responsive, and Arlo’s smart alerts help distinguish between people, vehicles, and animals (if you’re using Arlo Secure). Battery Life This is where the XL earns its name. I went about three full weeks of testing with daily motion activity, and the battery barely dropped below 95%. Arlo claims it can last up to four times longer than the standard Essential, and based on what I’ve seen, that’s accurate. For anyone who doesn’t want to mess with frequent charging — especially if the camera’s mounted high up or outside — the XL version is absolutely worth it. Everyday Use The Arlo app makes checking in easy — whether it’s live monitoring or reviewing clips. I liked how you can quickly jump into playback and save or share footage directly from the timeline. Push notifications come fast, and the integration with Alexa and Google Home worked flawlessly in my tests. Conclusion The Arlo Essential XL 3rd Gen is hands-down one of the most convenient wireless cameras I’ve used lately. It keeps all the reliability and crisp 2K visuals of the standard Essential model but stretches out the battery life dramatically. If you’re setting up outdoor cameras and don’t want to think about recharging for months, go with the XL. It’s reliable, weather-resistant, and gives you peace of mind with minimal maintenance — exactly what a good home security camera should do.

This Arlo Essential 2K Wireless Outdoor Security Camera 3rd Generation is a rechargeable battery operated camera. In the box you get the Arlo Essential 2K Wireless Camera, USB charging cable, and mounting hardware. Setup is easy, but you must charge the camera prior to setup. Once charged, download the Arlo application from your smartphone’s App Store by scanning the QR code on the inside lid of the camera box. Follow the directions from there and your camera will be setup in a few minutes. Connectivity issues are a thing of the past with this Arlo camera. Why? Unlike most other security cameras, the 3rd generation Arlo Essential Wireless Security Camera uses dual band WiFi in either 2.4GHz or 5Ghz. This keeps your camera connected and the signal strong. AI and Smart features are here. I like it when I get an alert on my phone and I know if it’s a person, a package, a dog or just a bird that’s curious. This Arlo camera has AI smart recognition that will let you know what it detects. I think that feature is so cool. Resolution and Night Vision are really good on this camera. The resolution is 1080p HD, and the pictures are so clear and colorful. You can even see colors at night with the Enhanced Night Vision. It also has a wide view which is great. Audio and Audio Alerts on this camera are made possible with the Arlo Security App. You can have two-way conversations with someone at the camera from your phone. The Audio Alert is a siren that can be activated from your smartphone on your Arlo Security App when you see an intruder, and hopefully scare them away. Other features include an integrated spotlight activated on the application, the ability to easily remove the camera to recharge it, and the ease of positioning the camera once it’s mounted. This camera goes with other Arlo security cameras for both indoors and outdoors. They are great camera. You can also sign up for different levels of subscriptions on the app. Summary: great security camera that recognizes the difference between people, animals, and more, is rechargeable, has a spotlight, can be controlled from your application on your smartphone, night vision is in color, the resolution is 1080p HD, has two-way audio, and can be used with other Arlo cameras.

This is the 3rd generation Arlo Essential camera in 2K resolution (2560x1440) and is a fantastic way to add additional video security in your house for less. The 2K video is very clear and provides 130-degree Field of view and has an integrated spotlight and color night vision. The spotlight is fairly bright and seems to assist in the color night vision. Battery life in this camera has been pretty good so far, but if you have a hard-to-reach place to install one, I suggest either the XL model for longer life, or getting a Solar panel to charge it. Mine have been installed for about a week, I a low traffic area, and the battery is down about 5 percent. I expect to get about 4 to 5 months out of the battery at this point. These essential cameras have a sealed battery, and you can’t swap them and they also come with a very cheap mount that does not articulate and is basically just a straight mount, cost saving measures, I am sure. Another feature that these cameras have is a siren and the ability to two-way talk to someone on the other side. The volume of the speaker is very low, and the other person may have a hard time hearing you, the microphone however, sounds really good on your end via the app. Installation is great for these new devices, and it is a seamless process, and the app walks you through the process with ease. Overall, I am looking forward to using this new camera and I do subscribe to the Arlo Secure Multi-Camera plan. This covers all the cameras the cameras that I have. You do get a free 30-day trial that comes with these cameras and once I added these cameras, I automatically got a free month. This allows to have one camera set up for package detection (front door) and all of the cameras can detect Vehicle, person, or animals. I find this detection to be accurate for the most part and you are also given a 30-day cloud storage option as well. Arlo still has the free plan which includes 7 days of storage, but no smart detection.

Camera video quality is good. The software is not so good. Camera crashed once and lost footage. I'll be returning

Camera is a black and white model with blends in well with most environments. It has a covered port for charging and a single switch on the top. It has a attached mounting bracket with base which can in turn be wall mount via amount that attaches to the bracket. Set up was fairly easy, but be careful when picking the model, as Arlo has many model cameras, and it must be correct for the programming to work. I have other Arlo cameras, so this was fairly smooth. The app is fairly intuitive and allows my many Arlo products to be viewed and set up. The camera picture quality is excellent, as is night vision. The camera has color night vision mode, athought I found it only partially acceptable. Battery life was decent althought it always is when new. With an optional plan, there is video storage and advance object detection. I found this somewhat useful. My camera arrived missing the 'mounting plate' which was nowhere to be found in the box, hence I could not mount my camera on a wall. I could not find a picture of this anywhere, and my texting with Arlo proved frustrating as they didn't seem to understand what was missing as well. At first they kept referring to the battery- very frustration ! I wish companies would focus on customer service that makes sense and with people who understand what they are supposed to be representing. All in all I like the product, do not like the need for a subscription to really use all the features, and the lack of decent customer service.

By now everyone is familiar with Arlo cameras. The Arlo Essential camera is the entry point for Arlo camera, and this gen3 camera is the latest iteration of that model. I have multiple generations and models of Arlo camera, and I find that they provide the best value for the money in the Arlo lineup. Setup is a snap. If you don’t have the Arlo app or account, you need to download and create these, respectively. Once this is done, the rest is very simple. Press the “+” button on the app and select the Essential camera. It will ask if the camera you’re adding has a button on the top or the bottom (gen3 has the button on top). Press button, and the app adds it to your network. Give it a name, position the camera mount, move the camera to the desired position, and it’s ready to go. The entire process took me less than five minutes. Image quality is clear, with great low-light visibility. The camera can be monitored from the app at any time, and can be set to alert you when there is activity. Motion sensing activates a spotlight, which delivers a warning to would-be intruders, lights the path of those who belong, and allows clearer images to be captured. You can turn this light off on each individual camera in, of course, the app. The camera has a microphone and speaker for two-way communication. Even when monitoring remotely, there is little lag in the conversation. There is one issue I have with Arlo cameras; if you want to be able to go back and see previous footage, you have to subscribe to their service (and pay a fee). It didn’t used to be this way. In the past, Arlo provided images for a limited time and the subscription feature was for viewing older clips. I took a single star off for this missing feature, as it really does limit the functionality of an otherwise excellent camera.

Went offline three times in a 20 hour period. Very dissapointed.

So I just received my Arlo Essential (3rd Gen) Wireless 2K Outdoor Security Camera a few days ago and have been putting it through the paces. I have used Arlo around my home and past apartments for years, and it’s a brand that I have come to love and admire. Arlo makes amazing products with solid build quality, that’s sometimes lacking in other products in the home security industry. Unboxing: * Arlo Essential (3rd Gen) 2K Outdoor Security Camera * Rechargeable Battery * Indoor Charging Cable * Wall Mount & Screw Kit * Quick Start Guide To get started you will need to download the Arlo Secure app from the App Store for iPhone of Google Play Store for Android devices. Next simply setup an account with Arlo if you don’t have one already. Next once you’re inside the app, hit the plus sign at the top right corner to add your device and the app will guide you along the rest of the setup process (including connecting to WiFi, and updating the firmware). Once you’re connected you’re ready for installation. Using the mounting hardware, simply mount the security camera in your predetermined location. Now even though this camera is marketed for outdoor usage, I’m sure you can find some use cases for it to be installed inside your home, office, or etc. One of our favorite things about this camera is the resolution 2K is amazing. We’ve used other Arlo cameras as well as cameras by other brands that usually top out at 720p or 1080p. But this video quality on this camera is simply amazing. This camera also features a wide field of view of 130º. The battery can be charged using the included USB-A to USB-C charging cable. The charging port is located on the bottom. Although this camera is not removable, it is rechargeable. And if you thought the video was amazing, the night vision is just as good in color instead of just black and white. The 2-way audio is also just amazing with it being crystal clear. That’s great for either yelling at the creep you notice sneaking onto your property (you can use the integrated siren to scare those creeps off) or for talking with a family member or friend outside in the yard. Arlo will quickly alert you to any movement near the camera with quick pop-up notification on your device. We have this camera located near our backdoor/garage area to ensure safety and security around the perimeter of our condo. Overall we love this camera and know you will too, even if it’s just for how simple and easy it is to use.

been using this new Arlo Essential XL (3rd Gen, 2025) for a few weeks, and overall, it’s a strong performer with a few caveats to keep in mind. Pros: • Excellent 2K video quality — The footage is crisp and detailed both day and night. The color night vision works surprisingly well, offering good visibility even in low light. • Impressive battery life — The extended battery really lives up to the “XL” name. With moderate activity, it can last several months between charges. • Easy setup & app integration — Installation took just a few minutes, and the Arlo app is intuitive. It connects directly via Wi-Fi (no base station needed) and works seamlessly with Alexa and Google Assistant. • Smart features — Built-in spotlight, siren, and motion alerts are reliable. With the Secure Plan, you also get person and package detection, animated previews, and more detailed notifications. Cons: • Subscription is almost required — Without the Arlo Secure plan, you only get live view and basic notifications. Cloud storage, activity zones, and smart alerts all require a paid plan. • Slight delay in notifications — There’s sometimes a 20–30 second lag between motion detection and seeing the live feed. Not a dealbreaker, but noticeable. • Non-removable battery — To recharge, you have to take the whole camera down, which can be inconvenient if it’s mounted high. • Wi-Fi limitations — It only supports 2.4GHz, so if your router defaults to 5GHz, you may need to adjust your settings. Bottom line: This is a great outdoor security camera with excellent image quality, long battery life, and a clean setup process. Just be aware that the best features come with the paid subscription. If you’re okay with that, it’s one of the best battery-powered options available in 2025.

I have several cameras around my home but only use Google and Arlo. I already use a wired Arlo camera for my first floor so since I already have the Arlo app, setting up this camera was very simple. What I like about Arlo cameras is that you can choose the mode, meaning you can choose to arm the camera and make it behave as you wish. For example, my Google cameras are always on and record whenever they see motion. With Arlo, unless you choose to “arm” them it doesn’t waste battery capturing everything. The arming function lets you customize the behavior so you can choose notifications, etc. Due to the customization, even in cold weather my rechargeable camera doesn’t waste battery. I’ve been using this camera for 3 weeks now and the battery is still almost full. My Google cams are no where near that and have to charge way more often especially in the cold. If I could rate outdoor security cameras, I would rate this number 1. They have been around for a long time and thought of everything the others haven’t I also like this has a powerful spotlight on it. Again, you can set up how it reacts when armed I feel this is way more of a theft deterrent than just the camera. When it sees motion, the light will scare people off. Great camera, 2k, great battery, easy to install, easy to set up, great app, and weatherproof. Overall, the best cameras on the market.

I was an early adopter when Arlo first came on the scene. I was then and am now very happy with the form factor. It is very compact and unobtrusive. So, why not 5 stars? First, to get the full features you need a subscription. In this case the subscription is reasonable at (I believe) $7.99 a month for one camera. The other reason for 4 stars is that the battery is not removable so you need to take the device in to charge and be without coverage for a few hours. For me, this is not a huge issue as the area in which I live is not high crime and I could charge it while I am home. However, if you plan on using it in a hard to reach area, there is a good option but one with an additional cost. The Arlo - Mountable Solar Panel Charger, 2025 Release - White; is compatible and according to tech support, will provide battery charging essentially forever. This is the route I will take as the panel is reasonably priced in my opinion, and should make the unit completely self contained. So, for the 4 stars it did get. I gave them because setup was easy and there is no hub required. Image quality is very good. I can certainly identify the person or animal coming to the door! The two way audio also works very well and is easy for both parties to hear each other. The 30-day trial of an Arlo Secure Plan is included for premium features like 60-Day Video History, Person & Vehicle Recognition, Package & Animal Detection, Custom Detection, and Fire Detection. A very complete and easy to use package that integrates with Google Home and Alexa. At the time of this review I notice Best Buy has a good sale going. This is a good value for a decent piece of tech!!

My neighbors on both sides had their catalytic converters stolen off their motorhomes so I figured I better get a real cam since my fake ones didn’t deter. I got this cute little camera- every thing seemed easy to use so I figured it would be perfect for a non-tech-savvy person. Eventually got it out of the box- packed very tight- and charged it up as the instructions say. Turned it on once charged I think because there is no light to say it’s fully charged. Anyway, easily turned on and any movement close up turned on a blinding light. I couldn’t figure out how to turn it off! Eventually I found in the app to turn off the spotlight. So, it has a great view- color looks accurate, has a couple of seconds delay but that’s fine. It had night vision which is a very important feature. Sound works good as well. I plan to place it in a window looking on the driveway so sound function won’t be used, and I have it set to turn on at 8:30pm- oh wait-I don’t. I had it set and saved but it’s not. The more I dug into this the more it became non- user friendly for me. Too many options, I thought I was saving settings and they did not. So, frustrating and useless for me. I tried and invested a few hours on the app and just not for me. I’ll keep it set in the window and hope…ug

While floodlight cameras are great for driveways and back yards, sometimes a nice compact camera is exactly what is needed for areas where appearance matters. The trick is finding a smaller device that still performs well. This Arlo - Essential 1-Camera Wireless 2K Security Camera is the best of both worlds. It’s very unobtrusive and it works perfectly for the side of my house. I didn’t need a floodlight that would annoy the neighbors, yet I wanted high resolution camera. The battery life seems to last an impressive amount of time and it doesn’t take an unreasonable amount of time to charge to full capacity. It has been up and running for a week now and still shows 70% capacity. That’s impressive for a small battery. The mount is simple with a plastic plate. The plate comes with several screw options, but it does require screws to mount it. The camera easily slides onto the mounting plate and clicks in place to secure the camera. Finally, the mobile application works very well for setting it up. The alerting sensitivity can be adjusted easily and the resolution can be changed on the fly. I was able to easily attach the camera to vinyl siding by attaching a square plate to the siding.

I’ve had a chance to try different security systems, and they all come with their pros and cons. Overall, I am happy with this 3rd Gen Arlo security camera. The resolution is more than you need (2k), I’ve had a 4k camera and it doesn’t ever really look like 4k resolution, so this is enough. The field of view is nice and wide to capture everything you want to capture. I have this outside in Colorado weather, and although it has not been through a winter season, I am not worried about any battery issues. There are two things that do worry me about the camera. First, the color is pure white and having this outside in the sun for a long-time will get sun burn and the white will get yellowish. I wish there was some type of protection so this doesn’t happen, but I guess time will tell. Another thing is these subscriptions to get the best features for a camera! Why does one need to pay a monthly fee to fully benefit from the features in the camera. I dislike that everyone now offers a subscription literally for everything, so I wish Arlo would just provide all the features without additional fees.

Arlo - Essential 1-Camera Wireless 2K Security Camera (3rd Gen) Battery Powered is a solid security camera. It has many great features; however, the one caveat to having anything that is battery powered is that either, you buy a solar charger or you have a plan for changing out the battery. Due to me already having several Arlo cameras, adding this one to my collection was rather easy. However, even if this is the first time owning an Arlo camera, the setup is still simple. Create the account, add the camera allow it to connect to the correct network and let the camera update the firmware. Now, why four stars instead of five? Well, the mounting kind of stinks with it being a wireless camera. So again, buy the solar charger and it will not be a problem. The mounting plate (Bracket) is very easy to install, but and all, but you have to pull your camera off every time for it to charge. The application on the phone is very easy to use. Setup is a breeze, the video quality is great, and I can determine whether or not I want specific notifications.

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.

Having used Arlo security cameras for a while now, several of my originals are giving out and/or obsolete. The Essential line of Arlo cameras are advertised as the "do it all" of the Arlo family. I was concerned that this was going to be the basic of cameras, but boy was I wrong. Now don't get me wrong, Arlo has high end, 4K cameras for a nice price. But the Essential line is more about being all together with simplicity. It can be used stand alone, but I just added it to my existing base. Having other cameras to compare it to, this Essential Arlo is pretty large as opposed to other Arlos. It also has a fixed battery so keep this in mind where you place it as you will have to take it down to charge or supply power to it full time. All mounting parts are included and is very easy to complete. Even the Arlo app guides you in mounting and set-up. The Arlo app found the camera quickly and updated it right away. The Essential camera has 2K resolution and seems on par with my Arlo Pro 4K. Not too much of a difference. It also has a VERY bright security light and built in siren which is not too loud but easily heard throughout the yard where I mounted it. It also has 2-way communication which worked well but does have a few second lag (depending on your internet speed, I'm sure). I have been impressed with its operation so far. A lot of competitor cameras have issues being mounted outdoors, but the Arlo Essential has had no issues. So as a good overall security camera this Arlo Essential is worth the money and will not disappoint. Hope it works well for you also!

Before attempting to install the camera fully charge it. After fully charging the battery should last up to 8 months. After downloading the Arlo Secure application, you can begin to install it following the on-screen directions. The application supports up to 15 total cameras, or you can do 5 at the Arlo web site. (my.arlo.com) The camera supports digital zoom up to 12X. The quality of the video is spot on. Even in the dark it’s like looking at a black and white photo. While you don’t realize it there is a lag between the camera and the application. This lag is noticeable when using the talk feature. I was completely surprised by the range of Wi-Fi. The camera is located about 125 feet inside a shed. I set up the camera inside the house and installed it in the shed; The house is covered with red brick still got a great signal. The camera does not have local file storage, if you want to store the video you have to purchase the upgrade. The upgrade is either monthly or yearly. The camera comes with a 30-day free trial offer. I like mostly everything about the camera except the lag.

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.