The Arlo Magnetic Mount is a useful mount type. The reason for this is because it’s easily detachable by hand but at the same time it’s a solid type of mount that won’t let the camera accidentally fall. Such is the nature of the magnetic ball.
However, with this ease comes concern. A magnetic ball mount or magnetic mount isn’t exactly the best mount to leave outside. It could just as easily be snatched away by the very package thieves and burglars you wish to deter or catch red-handed doing their nefarious deeds.
Can Arlo Magnetic Mount Be Used Outside?
The magnetic ball mount should work fine from the outside of your home instead of indoors. Almost anything can be stolen in your property anyway.
However, you should be aware that, unlike other mounts that bolt or stick your camera right into branches or the walls of your very house, anyone can easily take the camera away from the magnetic ball mount.
The magnetic mount was made specifically to allow you to easily take the camera out of the mount for recharging indoors. It also makes it amazingly easy to place the camera back into the mount in light of how magnets work. You can just stick it unto the contact and the camera should stick in place. In order to keep it from being stolen, you have the option to put it at a place that requires a ladder to access like the roof of your home or the gutter.
You can also hide it somewhere safe in order to make it record footage as a hidden camera of sorts, like inside a birdhouse. Make sure it’s placed out of reach then use a short tether to make sure it stays in place because even with magnets, one wrong impact or bump can have the camera sailing down to the bushes or, worse, to the hard concrete.
Can Screw Mounts Serve as Alternatives to Magnetic Ball Mounts?
To play it safe or to err on the side of caution, it’s better to get bolt-in or screw-in mounts offered by Arlo as well or many other third-party companies making accessories for Arlo products. The Arlo Pro, Q, and Ultra series (most of the wireless ones anyway) make use of the standard ¼”-20 threadpitch bolt-on or screw-on mount for reasons relating to outdoor surveillance security.
A more solid, standard mount that requires you to drill into a tree or your home makes it harder for package thieves, burglars, and ne’er-do-wells to snatch the camera away from its perch before it could catch them in the act of thievery, burglary, or robbery. You’ll still be required to use these mounts for areas that are more difficult to access too, but more for extra security and for the sake of having a nice bird’s eye view of everything.
In any case, if you have an Arlo camera placed where someone, like your neighbors or outsiders can easily reach up to it in order to snatch it away then run before you can do anything, it’s better to use the more solid theft-proof screw mount. Certain criminals can still unscrew the mount in order to remove the camera but at least it will take them time and it’s likelier to get them caught.
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What Accessory Can You Use with the Magnetic Mount to Make It Safer?
The user-friendly magnetic mounts included with Arlo Pro and Pro 2 cameras are mostly useful for indoor use, where they’re out of the reach of outsiders, snatchers, thieves, burglars, and the harsh elements. Inclement weather or any accidental bumps could dislodge them out of place of the magnetic mount, leading to damage or loss.
With that said, you can still use Anti-Theft Security Chain like a bike lock in order to keep your precious Arlo camera from falling into the wrong hands. This way, you can to enjoy the best of both worlds. You can get to keep the highly versatile and useful magnetic mount while at the same time secure the camera from potential thieves out there. Keep the camera out of their reach and lock them with the chain that attaches both to the camera and the Arlo mount.
What Sort of Mount Should You Use to Ensure Theft Prevention?
You can also use these other mounts that are safer than the default magnetic mount to safeguard your Arlo camera as well. You can never be too sure when it comes to safeguarding your Arlo investment.
- Arlo Screw Mount: It’s a standard screw-on type of mount that requires a bit of drilling in order to rigidly keep your camera in place at areas such as your patio, garage, yard, walls, or roof. A bolted camera is simply the safest and simplest outdoor mounting solution.
- Arlo Quad Pod Mount: The Quad Pod Mount allows you to avoid damaging your wall or gutter with drilling because it’s a silicone-armed flexible mounting solution that can stick anywhere with its state-of-the-art perforated bottom.
- Arlo Gutter Mount: You can also try the Gutter Mount. Ostensibly, it’s a mount that attached to your gutter. It’s a flexible mount that clips unto most gutters that you can adjust with a 180° tilt and 360° swivel for your bird’s eye viewing convenience.
- Arlo Gooseneck Mount: If you though the Gutter Mount or Quad Pod was flexible, you ain’t seen nothing yet. Arlo also has a silicone-cover gooseneck mount that attaches to more irregularly shaped places like fences, doorknobs, branches, railings, and so forth that aren’t normally accessible via drilling and screwing.
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The Final Conclusion
A magnetic mount is more of an indoor mount that expedites the removal and reattachment of the camera to the mount whenever it’s in need of battery recharging, resetting, or placement on the SmartHub.
When it comes to using this special mount outdoors, you should know how to either hide the magnetic mount camera with the right hiding place or mount them so that they’re out of reach of burglars who intend to disable them. People are particularly concerned about the magnetic ball mounting system that the Pro series of Arlo has. Should it be used outside or instead installed with a non-magnetic mount to keep it from being stolen.
References:
- “Mounting outside“, Arlo.com, December 12, 2016
- “Arlo Pro Mounts: The Best Mounting Options for Your Needs“, Wasserstein-Home.com Blogs, June 11, 2019
