Missing Motion

[EmilyL440]

I have the nest battery camera which is now plugged into the solar panel outside. It misses half of the cars that pull into the driveway. I've read on other forums this is because it's in idle mode. It's hooked up to the solar panel though so is it possible for it to be live at all times so that it doesn't miss motion? 

[jkwilcox]

I have the Nest Battery Doorbell and Nest Awareness subscription and it doesn't detect 99% of cars, people and pets that pass in front of the doorbell. I have read on other forums that this is because it is in idle mode. Since April, it is always in idle mode and the battery life says that it will last 9 months. What is the point of that if it doesn't detect any movement (1%, even with the "Video wake-up sensitivity set to "HIGH" )????

[Brad]

Hey there,

I am terribly sorry to hear that you're having this issue with your Nest camera! I'm sure it's frustrating but I'm happy to look into this and see how we can help out. The first troubleshooting step that I'd recommend would be to Restart your device. By doing this, it should keep all your settings, and reconnect it to the same Wi-Fi network. This is helpful if it ever freezes, has connection problems, or isn't working normally.

Best regards,
Brad

[EmilyL440]

Brad, I have done that. It seems to be a flaw with the product. Is there anyway for it to recognize the solar panel as being hardwired and be in "live" mode consistently so it doesn't miss motion?

[Brad]

@EmilyL440

If it is not wire installed it's going to be in idle mode, so unless you install it as a wired device, it will remain in that mode. Your motion detection could be tied to it only being powered and charged via the solar panel. I would try unplugging it and charging it inside for a while, restart it and try plugging it back in. See how it does being fully charged and then let us know if you are still having the same issue.

Best regards,

Brad

[EmilyL440]

I have fully charged it and put it out wired to the solar panel. It's at 90 percent battery and still misses motion. Is there a setting for it to run as being wired since the solar panel is powering it?

[Brad]

@EmilyL440

Not that I am aware of. Motion detection may be affected if it is running off of battery in general. The settings are adjustable when it comes to sensitivity, but that is with a non-solar powered unit. Not sure if this is just a setting that needs to be adjusted, or if you have a faulty device. I assume you have a Nest Aware subscription?

Best regards,

Brad

[EmilyL440]

I have it set to high for motion sensitivity. It is set to alert me for cars, people and animals. Also I do have a nest aware subscription.

[Brad]

@EmilyL440

Your settings make sense. This technology isn't perfect, so I am sure this is just some bug or something as I can't imagine what could be the issue. I would suggest that you reach out to Support and see if they can escalate this issue for you.

Best regards,

Brad

[aatienza]

Hey EmilyL440,

How's it going? Still need our help? Feel free to let us know if you do.
 

I appreciate the help, Brad.

Thanks,

Archie

[EmilyL440]

Yes I still need help

[aatienza]

Hey EmilyL440,

Gotcha. Are there other family members who can access the camera? Do they receive any notifications? Has the camera been moved recently? Also, are there any Activity Zones set up for the camera? Keep us posted.

Thanks,

Archie

[EmilyL440]

Yes my husband has access to the camera and he doesn't always get the motion alerts either. The camera has not been moved and I do have zones set up.

[janthadeus]

Hi folks,

Thanks for your help here, Archie and Brad.

We're sorry to hear about your experience as well as for the delayed response. I also understand how you feel so I want to check this further. Let's dig deeper into this — a few questions:

1. Do you have an Android or iPhone? 
2. How far is your camera from the router?
3. How many devices are connected to your WiFi?

Going over the steps here might help:

Check the app permission on your mobile device.

For Android, go to System settings > Sounds and notification > App notifications > Nest or Google Home and follow the configuration below:

• Block all is disabled.
• Allow peeking is enabled.

If you have a device that runs in Android 7, go to Settings > Notifications > Advanced > Nest or Google Home and enable Allow notifications.

For iOS, go to Settings > Notifications > Nest or Google Home and follow the configuration below:

• Allow notifications are enabled.
• Any or all notification options may be disabled.

Let me know how it goes.

Thanks,

JT

[EmilyL440]

The wifi signal is plenty strong enough for the camera. I get some motion notifications but not all. It misses half of the cars. I have an Android phone and all the settings and permissions are enabled that you described. 

[janthadeus]

Hi EmilyL440,

Gotcha. I appreciate your efforts. Great troubleshooting so far, you can also give these steps a try: 

• Unselect all notifications.
• Sign out of your Google Home app on all devices.
• Open the Google Home app.
• Sign back into your Nest Account.
• Select all desired notifications.
• Go within your camera's line of sight to test the notification.
• If notifications still didn't arrive, uninstall and reinstall the Nest app on your mobile device, re-configure notifications, and test again.

Let me know if that helps.

Best,

JT

[aatienza]

Hey EmilyL440,

I just wanted to follow up to see if you still need our help. Please let us know as we would be happy to answer any questions you may have. 
 

I appreciate the help, JT.

Thanks,

Archie

[aatienza]

Hey there,

Just checking in to make sure that you've seen our responses. Please let me know if you have other questions or concerns as I will be locking this in 24 hours if I won't hear back from you again. Feel free to start a new thread and we'll be happy to help.
 

Thanks,

Archie