Netgear Arlo Pro 2 review

Since the launch of its Arlo line, Netgear has had great success in the field of smart security. The company improved its system with the Pro variant and improved it again this year by launching its second iteration: the Netgear Arlo Pro 2 (Check on Amazon.com).

We have tried out this smart surveillance camera and are ready to let you know what we learned. Arlo Pro 2 is purchased in kits starting with the one that includes two cameras and the base station. This base station is essential and must be connected to the router via Ethernet cable. It comes with a power button and two USB ports, which is convenient if you decide to save the recorded video clips locally. On the back there is a high-powered siren and right above a button to switch off its deafening sound. The only problem is that in case of electrical failure you will not be notified of the disconnection.

The camera is equipped with a battery that recharges via microUSB and has an autonomy of 5 to 6 months. Our test has confirmed this claim. On the back we find a screw hook and a magnetic part that connects to the semi-spherical support thus helping place it wherever you want. You can also install it outside since Arlo 2 is IP65 certified.

The Camera set up is very simple following the app instructions and pushing two physical keys one on the camera and one onto the base station. From that moment on, you will be able to watch live the video stream, in full HD. The stream has very low latency and this results in very punctual motion notifications. From the application you can choose to turn the camera on or off, program its activation or let it use geolocation to decide. This last option is certainly the most handy and reliable most of the times, although in a handful of occasions it did not detect our return home (restarting the app did the trick to fix it).

Connecting the Arlo Pro 2 to the main gives you two advantages: you can decide to make only one area of the frame “active” (possibly excluding the floor where your pet wanders around) and it can also save in the video a couple of second before the initial motion detection, which in some cases is very convenient to let you see a complete picture of what happened. As these are features that have a high-consumption of power, they cannot be used on battery.

Using the app you can save live footage, take photos, or listen and talk to whoever It’s on the other side. Video clips saved through motion and sound detection are available for 7 days. If you need more there is a paid service. Netgear Arlo Pro 2 is also compatible with IFTTT, a pretty good addition considering the possibilities offered by the service.

Price is high. Arlo Pro 2 starts at (Check on Amazon.com).