Video surveillance anywhere – Arlo’s nifty Go 2

Keeping an eye on your things, be it your home, a bach, or even a boat, just got easier, thanks to the Arlo Go 2 camera. It might not be the most affordable wireless security camera available. Still, its combo of both Wi-Fi and 4G cellular makes it one of the most versatile options available.

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From a design perspective, Arlo clearly stuck to the if it isn’t broken, don’t fix it philosophy. The Arlo Go 2 sports the same design as its earlier siblings. This sees it finished in a curvy glossy white enclosure that is IP65 rated, so it’ll handle dust and rain with no problems.

The Go 2 has a screw-mount on its rear, and its underside has a magnetic mount. In theory, the enclosed Li-ion battery pack should supply up to eight months of charge (over Wi-Fi) and just over two months (via 4G cellular). Extending battery life is possible thanks to an optional Solar Panel.

In addition to its camera, the Go 2 also has a spotlight, mic and speaker (which is handy for audio conversations with visitors). There is also a light sensor, infrared (PIR) sensor and a status LED. should you want to deter unwelcome guests, the Go 2 also has a piercing siren.

The Go 2 uses the 2.4GHz Wi-Fi band to ensure the best Wi-Fi coverage possible. In addition to its 4G capabilities, there is also GPS which could handily provide a location fix if your boat/car is stolen.

Being a cellular device, you’ll need to set up a mobile plan and buy a SIM. Because of this, you’ll also need to take 4G coverage into account. The Go 2 can consume up to 2GB or more mobile data on a typical month (your mileage will vary depending on the number of motion events the Go 2 detects). Choosing the right mobile data allowance is a good idea.

The camera captures 1080p video when it detects motion. A 12X digital zoom lets you get a closer look at the video footage. A 130-degree field of view means it can cover a decent area. Infrared LEDs supply black-and-white night vision, while the spotlight allows it to capture colour footage in low light conditions.

Being an Arlo device, it has plenty of third-party support. Alexa and Google Assistant are supported, as is the super convenient IFTTT service. However, the one fly in the third-party support ointment is the Go 2’s inability to play nice with Apple HomeKit.

Where Arlo used to supply free cloud storage, their cameras now need a subscription for cloud video recordings. Additionally, you can save recordings to a microSD card (which, although cheaper, also means that if a burglar takes the camera, you lose its recordings, defeating the point of video surveillance).

The Arlo mobile app (Android/iOS) is excellent. It is super intuitive, and using it is largely a manual-free process. It also supplies an overview of the Go 2 camera’s battery and its connectivity status.

Getting the Go 2 camera set up was dead easy. After charging its battery, I downloaded and installed the Arlo app, inserting a SIM card into the camera. From there, I paired the camera with my phone by scanning a QR code on the Go 2 and then mounted it onto my house. This was dead easy and involved screwing a mounting bracket to my house and attaching the Go 2 camera. The total set-up time was just shy of 10 minutes.

Performance-wise, the Go 2 delivers. Its video footage was sufficiently crisp that I could easily make out visitors’ faces. Similarly, monochrome night video also offered decent contrast levels. As with my existing Arlo camera, Motion alerts were delivered quickly, and I could check out the Go 2’s live video feed on the Amazon Echo Show 15 in my kitchen.

The Arlo Go 2 Camera is a pretty impressive piece of gear. That said, at $489 per camera, plus the ongoing cost of a subscription for cloud video recording, it can’t be considered an affordable option. For monitoring locations with no Wi-Fi or mains power, the Go 2 is hard to beat. Add in a super easy install and intuitive app, and there’s plenty to like.

www.arlo.com