Camera flips from night vision to day every few seconds when ambient light is dim

[cwjoy1]

My Google Camera just started flipping from night vision to day vision every few seconds when ambient light is dim.  It does this for about 10 minutes at dusk and dawn.  If it's cloudy outside, it can also do it additional times of the day.  It makes a loud click when it switches, so it's REALLY annoying, as it clicks every few seconds (and in the morning, people are trying to sleep in that room).  I have unplugged the camera multiple times to try to reset it, but it still has the issue.  Camera is only about one year old.

[Anonymous]

Heaps of people complaining about it. Supposedly switching to greyscale stops it from switching although ive not attempted it and cant tell you how

[EmersonB]

Hello everyone,

@cwjoy1, thanks for reaching out here in the Community. We would recommend you to move your Nest Camera to an area with more appropriate lighting, or to change the lighting in the area if your Nest Camera can’t be moved. If the view of your Nest Camera has a bright night light may oscillate between Day and Night Vision because there's too much ambient light in the area. You may move the night light, reposition your Nest Camera so that the night light isn't directly in your Nest Camera’s field of view, or add light to the scene. Hit this link for more information. 

I appreciate your answer, Fraa.

Regards,

Emerson

[Jenelyn_O]

Hi there,

I appreciate your input, @Anonymous and Emerson.

@cwjoy1, I wanted to follow up if you still need help. Please let me know if you’re still having any concerns or questions from here, as I would be happy to take a closer look and assist you further.

Best,

Jenelyn

[Jenelyn_O]

Hi cwjoy1,

I'm just checking in to make sure that you've seen our response. Please let us know if you have any other questions or concerns, as I'll be locking this thread in 24 hours.

Thanks,

Jenelyn

[cwjoy1]

Hi Jenelyn - I still have the issue.  I have not seen any response yet that makes sense for my issue.  ("Changing the ambient light" is silly, since this happens at dusk and dawn, as the sun itself is changing the light from night (which should be Google night vision) to day (regular camera vision).  I CANNOT ask the sun to change it's method of lighting the sky.  Well, I could ASK, but I'm fairly certain that request would be in vain.)

Note that I DON'T think my camera used to do this flipping back and forth.  It seems a new behavior that only started about a year after I started using the camera.

Thanks for any assistance here (or a replacement camera?  my other Google cameras don't seem to do this, at least not yet).

[Jenelyn_O]

Hey cwjoy1,

Thanks for the update. I'm sorry for the delay. I know it's been a week already. Google Nest cameras’ night vision uses high-power infrared (IR) LEDs to illuminate the scene when it's dark. When night vision is set to Auto, Nest cameras will wait to switch between normal and night modes only when the light gradually changes. For instance, at dusk or dawn, when the lighting is marginal. Some cameras will flip back and forth between normal and night modes, making the video too light or too dark.

To isolate the issue, please try to set the Night Vision from Auto to Off or Always On. 

You can follow these guides:

Google Home app

1. Open the Google Home app
2. Tap Favorites or Devices
3. Tap and hold your device's tile More Settings .
4. Tap Video. Under Night Vision, select from Always on or Off.

Nest app

1. Select the camera you want on the home screen.
2. Tap Settings
3. Select Night Vision .
4. Toggle the switch to Off or Always On

If the issue persists, please proceed on performing a factory reset and set your Night Vision back to Auto. 

Kind regards,

Jenelyn

[Lance_L]

Hey everyone,

I'm jumping in to ensure everything is good here. @cwjoy1, have you seen Jenelyn’s last response? Let me know if that helps.

I appreciate the help, Emerson and Jenelyn.

Best,

Lance

[cwjoy1]

Thanks Jenelyn and Lance ... I did see the post.  I just think that it's ODD that what appears to be a defect in the camera's light detection has a recommended "fix" of just TURNING OFF the main function of the camera, which is to record good video during daylight hours.  If I switch to just night vision all the time, I do see how that would circumvent (but not fix) the bug in the camera.  It seems like Google should have the capacity to debug this problem in their cameras rather than just having us turn off a main feature.  IMHO.  But thank you for your responses; I DO appreciate that very much.

[Lance_L]

Hi cwjoy1,

I genuinely understand the inconvenience you have faced. I am on this right away! 

Please fill out this form with all the needed information, then let me know once you're done.

Regards,

Lance

[Lance_L]

Hello cwjoy1,

We haven't received your form. Have you had a chance to fill it out? Just in case, here's the link.

Regards,

Lance

[Lance_L]

Hey cwjoy1,

Buzzing in — do you still need our help? If you haven’t filled out the form yet, here's the link.

Best regards,

Lance

[Lance_L]

Hi cwjoy1,

Just one quick final check in here since activity has slowed down. I'll be locking the thread in the next 24 hours, but if you still need help, I would be happy to keep it open. If there's more we can do, just let me know.

Best,

Lance

[cwjoy1]

Hi Lance!  I have just submitted the form.  Apologies for the delay; I was out of town.

[Lance_L]

Hi cwjoy1,

We got your form — thanks for filling it out. Our team will reach out to you via email to further assist you. Also, please be advised that this thread will be locked after 24 hours.

Cheers,

Lance