6 Messages
Outdoor Camera Video Not Working
I have a brand new Outdoor Camera that I have been trying to get the live view (or any video) to work for a few weeks now. I have reset the camera numerous times and gone through setup, each time it works as expected, except when I try to view the live feed.
The camera is connected to the wifi, the light is flashing blue, I can change the settings on the camera (like turn off the LED), I receive motion notifications from it, and it even reports good upload speed and signal strength when I run the connection check. But there is no video.
I have contacted support through chat and phone call to no avail, each time they arrive at the same conclusion, "we need to replace your camera." I have tried 4 different cameras.... they all do exactly the same thing. They assured me they will not send me anymore cameras so I will try a support call one more time but I am not confident. Is there a way this issue can be escalated?
Does anyone have any idea's what would be causing this? I'm a software engineer and am comfortable getting into the technical solutions with router and wifi settings. It is almost as if there is something blocking the video feed only, or an issue on the server side receiving my video stream. Would love to chat with a SimpliSafe engineer instead of customer service.
I also want to note some strangeness in the cameras firmware versions. Most cameras I received are running a v1.7 version. I understand there is a v1.9 that went out a while ago, why do the cameras report they are up to date?
One was running v1.4 and why does it not update to at least v1.7...?
Accepted Solution
gavgund
6 Messages
1 year ago
Maybe this can help someone else.
Turns out the issue was my ASUS RT-N66U router. Somehow it was blocking the camera feeds only from the cameras. I did find some similar issues reported online with Asus routers and cameras/webcams.
Don't recommend ASUS with SimpliSafe!
Replaced with a TP Link AX55 with mesh network extenders, cameras work great now!
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davey_d
Community Admin
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5.7K Messages
2 years ago
Hi @gavgund ,
Sorry for the trouble you've been having. The next version of the firmware is still rolling out - and as many have noted, it's a slower rollout than usual. Thanks for your patience.
If I have this straight though - the cam that you're having trouble with is currently on 1.7, and the one that's on 1.4 is otherwise currently running fine? If the one on 1.4 is a newer unit, it might have just not been updated at all yet, caught between when we stopped sending out 1.7, but before 1.9.
But regarding that one that somehow isn't able to put out video - how far is it from the Base Station? While the actual video needs to go through your WiFi, all the units do depend on the Base Station to know when to start recording and streaming. I would suggest trying that camera at a much closer range to the Base Station, just to test it out.
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gavgund
6 Messages
2 years ago
Let me be clear, all 4 of they cameras that I have tried DONT WORK for streaming video, all other functionalities of the camera work. I have yet to see a camera with a working video feed.
I have tried it numerous times sitting right next to the base station, that does not create a different result.
I was simply noting the oddness with the versions (again none of them work for streaming video). Why would one be running 1.4 if 1.7 is available, not to mention 1.9 "rolling out." During the setup process the camera looks for firmware updates and reports "Up to Date" but it running an out of date version...
Is there and issue on SimpliSafe's server side? Is there issues with the 1.9 firmware roll out?
More transparency might save me some time troubleshooting.
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stephanniealbrecht
1 Message
1 year ago
I've had this same problem with my front porch camera for over a month. Fully charged, it still isn't working but it is indicating that it's picking up on motion. Now the back porch camera is doing the same thing after I charged it all night. Arghhhhh.
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trollbait007
2 Messages
6 months ago
Having a similar issue. Outdoor camera is flashing blue, but is stuck on “Launching Live View”. It just spins and will not load. No issues with connection, this is the first time it’s happened.
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blakenimmo14
1 Message
4 months ago
Guess I’m jumping on this topic too. My front door camera is doing the same thing. I have done all of the above recommended suggestions and it still isn’t showing me video recordings or live feed. I have the cameras on a 2.4Ghz WiFi and I have set it next to the base station. The current location ( front porch) is where it has been the whole time and it has worked before. I have had the system for two years now and it’s started doing this the last three months. Nothing I do remedies the issue. Does anyone have suggestions that aren’t mentioned above?
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