Arlo Motion Detection Not Working? Troubleshooting Guide

Your Guide to Perfecting Arlo Motion Detection

Arlo cameras are designed to alert you to important activity, but if your motion detection isn't working correctly, you're either missing events or being bombarded with false alarms. Whether your camera is failing to record a delivery driver or notifying you every time a car drives by, these issues can usually be fixed by adjusting the settings and optimising your camera's position.

This guide will walk you through the essential steps to troubleshoot and fine-tune your Arlo camera's motion detection for accurate and reliable alerts.

### 1. Understanding Arlo's Motion Detection

Most battery-powered Arlo cameras use a Passive Infrared (PIR) sensor. This sensor detects changes in heat, like the body heat of a person or animal, as it moves across the camera's field of view. This is different from some cameras that detect pixel changes. For this reason, positioning is critical.

• Optimal Placement: Mount your camera so that subjects will move across its field of view, not directly towards it. The PIR sensor is much better at detecting this side-to-side motion.
• Height and Angle: The ideal mounting height is between 7 and 10 feet from the ground, angled slightly down.

### 2. Adjusting Motion Sensitivity

If your camera is missing events, the sensitivity may be too low. If you're getting too many alerts, it may be too high.

• Use the Motion Detection Test: The Arlo app has a built-in test to help you find the perfect level.
  1. In the app, go to your camera's Device Settings > Motion Detection.
  2. Activate the 'Motion Detection Test'.
  3. Walk in front of your camera in the area you want to monitor.
  4. The camera's LED light will flash amber when it detects motion.
  5. Adjust the sensitivity slider up or down until the light flashes reliably for the motion you want to capture, but not for minor movements.

### 3. Use Activity Zones and Smart Notifications

These features, available with an Arlo Secure subscription, are the most powerful tools for reducing unwanted alerts.

• Create Activity Zones:

  • In the camera's settings, go to 'Activity Zones'.
  • You can draw custom shapes on the screen to highlight the specific areas you want to monitor, like your driveway or front path.
  • The camera will now ignore any motion that occurs outside of these designated zones. This is the best way to stop alerts from public pavements, busy roads, or swaying trees.

• Enable Smart Notifications:

  • Navigate to the 'Smart Notifications' settings.
  • Here, you can tell Arlo what you care about. Choose to be alerted for People, Vehicles, Animals, and/or Packages.
  • For example, you can choose to only receive a notification when a person is detected, and the camera will ignore all other types of motion. This is incredibly effective at eliminating false alarms.

### 4. Check Your System's Mode

Your Arlo system's mode determines how your cameras behave.

• Armed vs. Disarmed: Ensure your system is in an 'Armed' mode. In 'Disarmed' mode, motion detection is turned off completely.
• Custom Modes and Schedules: Check your schedules to ensure you don't have motion detection accidentally turned off at the time an event was missed. Review the rules for your active mode to confirm that 'motion is detected' is set to trigger a recording.

By correctly positioning your camera and using the powerful sensitivity, zone, and AI filtering tools within the Arlo app, you can ensure you are alerted to exactly what you want to see, and nothing else.