Arlo has announced that it is going to add the ability to remotely access video that is captured from the new Ultra 4K Security Camera, and it’s going to be free.
Initially, Arlo had announced that it was going to be part of a subscription that it would be charging. Which would be a departure from what it had been offering with its other cameras. Though, with this being a 4K HDR camera, it did make sense. Seeing as those clips are going to use up a lot more space. However, Arlo heard its customers, and decided to make the option free. Arlo was pretty quick to backtrack, showing that they really do listen to their customers.
What this means is that you can still store your clips captured with the Arlo Ultra 4K HDR security camera in the cloud, and won’t have to worry about storage space. That is definitely a good thing here, as it’s going to allow customers to be able to view these clips remotely, instead of only when they are at home.
Arlo is actually alone in the security camera industry in offering free access to its cloud storage. Many other companies, like Ring and Nest, offer cloud storage as a monthly subscription. This is how these companies are able to keep driving in revenue, after you’ve made your purchase. Since most aren’t changing out their security cameras every few years. But Arlo has decided to change that, and offer it for free.
Now Arlo does offer subscriptions, which include some other features. These subscription services will hold clips for 30 days (it’s a rolling period), versus the seven rolling days that it offers for free. It also includes the person detection features that it debuted about a year ago. These subscriptions are pretty cheap, but it’s good to know that they aren’t absolutely necessary.
Arlo isn’t expecting to have the ability to remotely view clips taken from the Ultra 4K security camera for about six to nine months. That might sound like a long time, and it is. But Arlo is taking its time to get it right, since it is already offering all owners of the Ultra 4K a year “free trial” of its Premium Video Add-On, which was keeping all recordings in the cloud in the first place. So it’s not that big of a deal, and it does also allow Arlo to take their time and get it done right instead of pushing it out before it’s ready.
The Arlo Ultra 4K HDR Security Camera is available for pre-order now, and it will be shipping next week (January 31). It isn’t a cheap camera, and that is because it is a 4K camera. It has a price of $299. The advantage to having a 4K security camera is the fact that you are able to zoom in on the content in the frame, without the content getting blurry, it’ll still be nice and sharp. Nest actually did it first with the Cam IQ a few years ago. However, the difference here is that Arlo’s version is wire-free and can be used outside, while Nest’s is wired and indoor-only.