Nest Cam 1.69 Update ruined night vision even more

[SuperAdam]

So Google updated their nest cams AGAIN and further ruined Night vision, day time HDR got a bit better but nowhere near as good as it was with 1.65 software, I about had it with Google, look at these picture and tell me if I'm imagining things, the picture on top is the new 1.69 software and the one on the bottom is the 1.67 software just a few minutes before the update, look how fuzzy and grainy everything is with the update, it's like everything is out of focus, STOP MESSING WITH THE CAMERAS GOOGLE, we paid money for this, it's literally unusable at night now. 

 

[Adj]

Here’s my backyard wired floodlight camera with the same 1.69 software 388143.  Daytime is so clear, night is so degraded it doesn’t catch all the wildlife that comes through my yard like deer, raccoons, possums….it used to with the 1.65 version   

[RavenManiac]

Google should be ashamed of themselves. Clearly, this is a widespread problem, yet we rarely get any response from the company. If I had to do it over, I would have gone with Amazon Ring or another brand. Ridiculous. 

[fwdlink]

Adding an additional few data points, my night vision since the latest update Software version: nq-user 1.69 OPENMASTER 388143 is now the best it has ever been on my Nest Cam Battery Outdoor units.  I have 2 Nest Cam Battery's both hard-wired for 24/7, 1 Nest Cam Battery Floodlight, Nest Cam Indoor and Nest Hello Doorbell (Original Nest)

Putting aside the doorbell being it's old and not an issue, the only Cam that is still not great is the Nest Cam Indoor, which is on the same software release, it can't make up it's mind whether to use night vision or not, so it stays on night vision mostly when it shouldn't and the video is poor, but this has been since ownership and seems to match others comments, inferior camera module etc. It's in the same room as the WiFi AP so connectivity is not the issue.

The outside cams now have excellent clarity and are picking up movement in the far distance, particularly people that it hadn't except in the day, it also shows car license plates clear as day, before they were a reflective messy blur on all previous FW at night since inception.

So on my side I'm very happy and hope there are no further changes as it's probably as good as it's going to get. 

One thing to note that may be impacting others, I found on one of the cameras I had to make some slight adjustments to it's viewing angle due to some IR reflection that was causing the light sensor or HDR processing to go dark to light and then it would flip IR mode back and forth like a yo-yo.  Glass and white coloured surfaces now really have an impact, once I sorted this it has been good since.  Earlier on I had to paint a surface matt black on the underside of an gloss white overhang because of IR reflection on another installation, again solved everything.  Your mileage may vary but thought I'd share...

So for me, only the Indoor Cam remains a dud but that seems more than FW, hoping Google doesn't revert backwards as now have better than equilibrium.

[EviLEwoK666]

I've definitely noticed a reduction in the quality of my Nest Doorbell's camera. Daytime looks fine, given it is only 2Mb sensor, but nightime has certainly reduced.

[Just_Geo]

I have no doubt that Google's Nest server farm is overwhelmed.  Rather than solve the problem with increased bandwidth into the server farm by expanding the traffic load bandwidth and more servers, they chose to reduce the resolution of the images, and hence reduce the traffic load because lower resolution is less data. The level of service Google has provided as an improving level of service continues to raise the bar of an implied de facto service level agreement that customers are paying for.  When they corrupt the agreement by lowering service quality, they are violating their de facto agreement.  Google basically took the easy way out of their self-imposed expansion problems.  Bad planning slows sales, and I'm looking for an in-house system that I can reach more reliably from anywhere.  I can be my own cloud... like we've all been before a cloud appeared.

[miketex90]

The thing I dislike most currently is it takes forever to pull up any videos for me. Also, for some reason, in the live feed in the home app of all of my cameras my Nest Doorbell does not display a live feed it is very spotty only showing a snippet. This didn't use to be like this. I could pull up my live feed of all cameras and see everything in real time. If I wasn't so invested in the google crap I would move on to something like eufy that I have at my shop.

[Ebaker10]

Can these camera be used in any other platform?

[RavenManiac]

Out of curiosity, is everyone who subscribed to this thread still having image problems, even with firmware v1.69 OPENMASTER 388143? If not, what did you do to resolve the problem?

[JohnD2]

I haven’t seen any change.  The night vision quality is as bad as ever with no improvement whatsoever.

[Stingray]

**. It's not the software. It's not an outdated camera. Don't let Xfinity con you into updated cameras for hundreds. Hundreds that you don't have. At night, take a strong beam flashlight and aim it directly into the camera. Until you here the camera click. There will be one bottom blue camera light on. Then the camera will click again. Now you have two red lights, one on each side of lens. The camera is in night vision. Repeat this process 6 or 7 times. Click click click. It's fixed. Don't believe Xfinity

[chaybee]

Yes, the issue has still not been addressed.  2 weeks ago I got the Tapo MagCam (C425) and so far I really like it.  

[Adj]

Yes. Still having same issues with all cameras at night. 

[Stingray]

**. It's not the software. It is not an outdated camera. Don't let Xfinity con you into updated cameras for hundreds of dollars. Hundreds of dollars that you don't have. At night, take a strong beam flashlight and aim it directly into the camera. Until you here the camera click. There will be one bottom blue camera light on. Then the camera will click again. Now you have two red lights, one on each side of lens. The camera is in night vision. Repeat this process 6 or 7 times. Click click click. It's fixed. Don't believe Xfinity

[AnonymousRed]

I have the Nest Indoor Wired Cam. This has been an ongoing issue for like six plus months now. I am currently on the same firmware as you and it is no better at all for me.

End of day it seems easy to see that Google is trying to save on bandwidth. Now if I adjust video quality between High and Max there’s literally zero difference at each setting selected. 

I’m in the boat of firmware won’t ever fix this. This is Google dumbing down bandwidth to save money. Zero reason for this to be ongoing almost a year later. So many reports of issues it’s not even funny.

Here is a link to one of the original threads.

https://www.googlenestcommunity.com/t5/Cameras-and-Doorbells/Night-Vision-Too-Dark/m-p/456529#M80265

[RavenManiac]

I noticed last night that my Nest Indoor Wired Cam also has the same nighttime video quality problem as my Nest Battery and Floodlight Cams, so this problem is definitely more widespread than we were originally told. What's worse is that Google Nest technical support seems clueless about this issue.

In fact, upon closer review, the daytime video isn't that good either. This sucks!

[larrymcj]

They're not clueless about it...they just choose to appear that way to avoid dealing the issue.

[chaybee]

I'm migrating slowly.  I've gotten to the point where I don't care if my camera's can be automated or viewed in the Google Home App.  There are many reasons for my decision.  The fact we paid good money for what are supposed to be "Google quality" products and are anything but that.  The complete lack of transparency, communication with THEIR community of consumers, lack of acknowledgement to any issue, standard script replies to issues which most users already know to try for troubleshooting and overall disregard on even the most fundamental level for any customer who reports an issue. (I'm not a huge fan of most Wyze products, however, in their groups and forums they have employees who consistently interact, answer questions and respond to people on a regular basis - that is something I can completely appreciate). 

This isn't recent and isn't just for this issue.  Slowly through the years it is almost like Google was forced to compete with Amazon in the smart home ecosystem space and it feels like Google doesn't even want to be in the space; they just have to.  Their latest product, the Pixel Tablet Hub thing, is an absolute joke and the fact that other companies are light years ahead of them in terms of picture quality for cameras, yet, much less expensive and their outdoor battery VERSION 2 cam is still only 720p is laughable.  I've replaced two Google Indoors so far with the Tapo indoor/outdoor C120, $35 bucks, color night vision, SD storage for continuous recording, no subscription required for anything except cloud storage if you want it.  I replaced my Google Nest battery outdoor with the Tapo MagCam.  $80 bucks.  Color night vision, SD storage for clip recording, optional solar panel for battery, etc....The Tapo app is much cleaner than it was years ago.  I have had no wifi connection issues at all, and no hiccups so far.  Eufy is another good option for no subscription, local storage.  Google needs to wake up, interact with people, resolve known issues in a timely manner or just get out of this space 

[dnest]

yes.  Still bad

[EviLEwoK666]

I can understand if they need or want to cut back on bandwidth. I imagine the costs are huge. THe issue I have is that they are still extracting a fee for subscription, the cost of the units has not degreased and still boasts the same specs and they have been less than forthcoming.

[larrymcj]

Which means from a business perspective, they're increasing profits by decreasing associated costs. I still think Google cameras are some of the best available, so it's a tradeoff.

[chaybee]

While I planned on slowly migrating away from these cameras, I expediated it this weekend.  I switched 5 indoor nest cams, 1 nest outdoor battery cam and the Google Nest Battery Doorbell out for Tapo C120's (indoor), Tapo C225 Pan/Tilt, Tapo MagCam (outdoor wireless) and the ugly AF Tapo D230S1 Battery Doorbell (they have a new one coming this year which looks much nicer).  The Tapo app (redesigned) is great, the features for these cameras at NO COST are miles and miles ahead of Google (local storage, numerous motion detection events, color night vision, etc...) at a fraction of the cost.  I can still bring them up on Google Max hub if need be and surprisingly with not much delay.  No automation options in Google Home app (shocker!) but you can do everything you need in the app or via alexa.   With 7 devices up and running now I have no hiccups since my first cam 2 weeks ago and no issues with the new ones for the past 2 days.  I spent the last 5 months or so researching exhaustively for an alternative that fits my needs since the Google night vision debacle, and  It was liberating to take these Google Cams down and get them out of my life.  One thing I always wanted was Google to support a physical button to turn off or on the cameras when leaving or coming home.  Welp, now I can do it.  I tried Wyze for a while but there CamPlus subscription model is getting just as bad as Nest Aware.  Tried a couple Eufy devices and they were great but decided to go with Tapo.  I do not represent that company at all, I'm just happy I finally found an alternative I'm happy with.  Just wanted to give you all this info so you are aware there are much better and cost efficient alternatives, just have to dig in, research and find which alternative works best for you. 

[JohnD2]

Thanks for the post!  The only issue I see is what Tapo charges via Tapocare Premium for the features Google offers for free.  What I find interesting is the cameras are so much less expensive and the specs seem better than the Google Nest cameras.  The quality of daytime and night vision video seems to be so much better.

[chaybee]

If the features that Tapo Care offers are important to you, consider that 1. It's cheaper than Nest Aware and 2. It's optional.  Basically without paying for Nest Aware Google cameras are extremely limited whereas Tapo has local storage so you don't have to pay for more than 3 hours of clips.  

[RavenManiac]

Does anyone have any updates on our mutual resolution problems? If you’ve been in touch with Google or are aware of a pending firmware update, please keep us posted. Thanks!

[RavenManiac]

536 posts, as of 2.27.24, and no response from Google Nest staff and no firmware update. Google’s lack of concern about its products AND customers is extremely revealing.

Several days ago, one of my wife’s coworkers needed a security camera solution with at least 4 cameras. I used to recommend Google Nest religiously, but I simply can’t anymore. Very sad.

[Super_paulie]

sorry to hear about the problems, and im here to help. Have you tried moving your router/cleaning the lens/restarting the device/submitting feedback/we have no news at this time/will take it on board moving forward.

Not even that crap now, just silence.

[RavenManiac]

This is probably part of the problem. Read the first paragraph of this article, which references hardware engineering. 
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/google-lays-off-thousands-more-210822278.html

[chaybee]

The problem is though that it most likely only takes one engineer to roll the firmware back till they figure it out.  Google will never do that.  Also, if AI is replacing them, then the fix will come easy, haha 

My TP-Link Tapo cams are great, btw.  Zero issues.  Don't miss Nest whatsoever.

[RavenManiac]

I just checked out the Tapo cameras and they look pretty good, especially the resolution. Plus, they even have a similar magnetic mount. 

[chaybee]

Yessir!  I have 2 of those MagCams and no issues at all. Put a micro SD in there and no subscription needed.  App is intuitive and you can now use TP-Link Kasa devices in the Tapo app as well.  As I've mentioned before, I replaced all of Nest cams with various TP-Link Tapo outdoor or indoor/outdoor cams and have been extremely happy.  

[Ebaker10]

Has anyone actually figured out why this image quality is so bad? I saw a few people thinking it’s google trying to reduce file space but then I have 6 cameras total and 2 cameras seem to still have a nice “decent” image at night and the only difference I see is that there is something within 10’-15’ from the camera for it to focus on maybe? My front door bell and rear deck camera night vision look acceptable to me but the other 4 that overlook the yard and driveway are absolutely horrible, dark, and blurry. There is very little ambient light for all the cameras so I don’t believe it to be a light issue. I wish google would possibly  let us adjust settings ourselves if the image is not up to par. Is it possible to use these cameras separately from Google’s platform altogether and maybe save videos locally?

[RavenManiac]

You may be on to something. I, too, have several Nest exterior Battery Cams that seem to be okay at night because they have something closer to focus on. 

It's a shame that Google technical support staff doesn't monitor the most active forum threads so they can properly diagnose what's happening and offer some kind of assistance. I'm sure everyone here has something better to do than complain about the quality of their Nest cameras. 🙂

[Stingray]

xfinity will not tell you how to get night vision working properly. It's all bull**bleep**. Don't call Xfinity and pay hundreds for a camera update. Ok. Here's the trick. At night in the dark, take a powerful high beam flash light and aim directly into camera. Until you here a click.  Then the camera shows blue bottom light. Then the camera will click again. Now there are two red dots beside the lens. It's in night vision now. Repeat this process six or seven times. Click click click.  Fixed. Don't believe the bull**bleep** from Xfinity. Believe me. 

[Stingray]

It's all bull**bleep**. It's not the software. It's not an outdated camera.  Don't let Xfinity con you into updated cameras for hundreds. Hundreds that you don't have.  At night, take a strong beam flashlight and aim it directly into the camera. Until you here the camera click.  There will be one bottom blue camera light on. Then the camera will click again. Now you have two red lights, one on each side of lens. The camera is in night vision. Repeat this process 6 or 7 times.  Click click click.  It's fixed.  Don't believe Xfinity bull**bleep**.  Believe me. 

[PbPretzels2]

What does Xfinity have to do with Nest Cams? I'm missing the connection here..

[RavenManiac]

Yes, I, too, fail to see the connection. I don't think anyone ever suggested it was an ISP issue. 

[Super_paulie]

i do "believe you". However no one here as a Xfinity camera so that information isnt helpful to anyone. 

[Ebaker10]

I don’t believe anyone is having an issue with the cameras night vision turning on.  While in night vision the camera can’t focus though and we see a blurry image. Going back and forth with google they are now claiming that they do not know there is still an issue and they issued a “fix”. Unless we can get everyone in this thread to email them again we won’t get anywhere. 

[RavenManiac]

It looks like Google just updated its Nest Battery Cam firmware to 1.71 OPENMASTER 393812. Has anyone noticed any improvement in your nighttime video performance?

[larrymcj]

I'm using the latest Outdoor Battery Cam (but with the Google AC adapter) with the 1.71 firmware. I don't know when the update occurred, but for the past several days, the night vision image has been crystal clear. Before, it was fuzzy, like everyone else's.