How do I optimize motion detection for my Arlo camera?

If your camera battery is at 25% capacity or less, recording delays might occur when your camera detects motion. The battery icon in the Devices tab turns yellow when your camera battery drops to 25% capacity.

For more information about battery life and battery icons, visit the following knowledge base articles:

• How can I extend my Arlo camera's battery life?
• What do my Arlo camera's battery level icons and notifications mean?

Mount your Arlo camera at least 7 feet (2.1 meters) above the floor or ground, angle it slightly downward, and place it within 10-15 feet (3.0-4.6 meters) of where motion is expected.

Make sure that side-to-side traffic crosses the camera's field of view. The camera's motion sensor is more sensitive to side-to-side movement across its field of view than to movement directly toward or away from the camera. The best area for motion detection is 5 to 20 feet (1.5 to 6 meters) from the camera position.

For more information about camera positioning, visit the following knowledge base articles:

• How do I position my Arlo wire-free camera?
• How do I position my Arlo Go camera?

If an Arlo wire-free camera's signal to the base station is weak, recording delays might occur when motion is detected.

To test whether the camera signal is strong enough, check the camera LED on the base station; if it's blinking amber, the base station detects a low data rate, which means that a camera is too far from the base station.

Follow these tips to increase signal strength:

• Mount your cameras away from devices such as cordless phone bases, baby monitors, and microwave ovens. 
• Do not place your Arlo system near multiple WiFi routers. Other WiFi-enabled devices can interfere with Arlo's wireless signal.
• Position your base station so that it is central to all of your cameras. 
• Position your camera a maximum of 300 feet (90 meters) from the base station.
  Note: The maximum line-of-sight range of 300 feet is reduced by each wall, ceiling, or other large obstruction between the camera and base station. The following materials reduce signal strength the most:
  • Unusually thick walls and ceilings
  • Brick
  • Concrete
  • Stone
  • Ceramic
  • Glass, especially mirrors
  • Metal
  • Large quantities of water, such as the water in a fish tank or water heater

If an Arlo Go camera's connection to the mobile network is weak, recording delays might occur when motion is detected. If your Arlo Go camera regularly has fewer than three bars of mobile signal strength, move your camera to a location with better signal strength.

For more information about LTE connectivity, visit the following knowledge base articles:

• How many bars of mobile signal strength does Arlo Go need and how do I check it?
• How can I optimize mobile connectivity for my Arlo Go camera?

If you still experience motion detection delays after following these tips, consider cross-recording. With cross-recording, you can create a rule that triggers a recording on one camera when a different camera detects motion. For example, you can configure the camera at your front door to record a 60-second video when the camera in your garage detects motion.

For more information about using motion detection, watch our YouTube video: Arlo Wire-Free: Using Motion Detection.

For more information about cross-recording, visit How do I create a mode with different rules for each Arlo Wire-Free or Arlo Pro Wire-Free camera?.