Nest Cam (2nd Gen) - Live Video Unavailable

[Zjel]

Hi!

I have a Nest Cam 2nd Gen, wired, that is causing some issues.

I use it as a baby monitoring tool and up until a week ago this thing worked just fine.

Starting last week, I'm getting these 'Live video unavailable' messages when I want to live view.

Ocassionally I get the message that the camera is offline.

When I look at the camera when this happens, there is nothing out of the ordinary. The green light is one, the infrared switches on and off when required. Also, when I look back at the history, it's perfectly capable in showing that, even from moments when the live stream was not available.

To top things off, I have the exact same camera for baby number 2. And that one is working fine. Even when I place them next to each other, nr 1 is failing, nr 2 is working fine. Initially, both cameras work on WIFI 5 on a combined 2.4ghz/5ghz mixed network.

I've tried:

• removing it from google home
• removing it and factory resetting it
• setting it up on a 2.4ghz only network
• setting it up on a 5ghz only network

I'm using Ubiquiti/Unify access points for this.

This all worked fine for about 3 months.

Does anyone have some suggestions that might fix this issue?

[Chazzy]

I have very similar issues and the so called  interactive ttuble shooting section of help gets stuck when loading it and won't launch. Unhappy with the 2 cameras I have. 

[DCRhino]

Same issue here. While searching for an answer, I ran across this post, which is helpful from the standpoint that it tells us Nest and Google essentially lie to get us to buy their stuff. I bought cords because I didn't know this before - they literally say on the site that it will do this if you plug it in - so now I'm out the cost of the cameras and their ridiculously expensive and proprietary plugs w/ 10' cables. The worst part is that it relies on its sensors to track movement, and it's so often too late and only picks up the tail end of the interaction. Such a waste. I have older hardwired cameras with the dumbest of plugs that are hardwired, but they worked flawlessly and consistently. Sad to have "upgraded." 

https://www.googlenestcommunity.com/t5/Cameras-and-Doorbells/Wired-Nest-Cam-Battery-Does-Not-Provide...

[MplsCustomer]

@DCRhino 

We've had a Google Nest Camera (Battery) plugged in with the optional 10-meter power cable for 17 months, and we get the same 24/7 video history we get with our older Google Nest cameras and doorbells on our Nest Aware Plus subscription. However, we have to use the inferior Google Home app to access that history.

[janthadeus]

Hi folks,
 

I’m sorry to hear about your experience viewing your camera live feed. Let’s see what’s going on — a few questions: how far is the camera from the router? Does your phone have a pending software update? Were there any changes to your Wi-Fi network? Also, are there devices or appliances (such as baby monitors, microwaves, cordless phones, etc.) near the camera?

Here are some troubleshooting steps you can try:
 

1. Close all the apps running in the background of your phone, reopen the Google Home app. Then, check your camera live feed again. 
2. At the highest video quality setting, your camera can use a large chunk of the internet connection to stream video. Slower internet service might not be able to keep up. Check your internet speed here: https://goo.gle/2JaUmYI. The page would show your download speed then click “Show more info” to check your upload speed. Have a look at this article for your guide: Internet bandwidth and speed requirements for Nest cameras.
3. Open the Home app .
4. Touch and hold your device's tile.
5. At the top right, tap Settings .
6. Choose Video.
7. Under “Video quality,” choose Max or High.
   • High settings uses less bandwidth.
   • Max settings uses more bandwidth.
8. Restart your phone, turn it off for 60 seconds then turn it on.
9. If you have a dual band Wi-Fi frequency switch your connection to 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi to improve your connection.
10. If possible, connect your camera directly to the main Wi-Fi access point.

Let me know how it goes.

I appreciate the help, MplsCustomer.

Thanks,

JT

[Zjel · Accepted solution]

Hi JT,

Thanks for your answer.

I've tried all of those steps before, with no difference.

The issue is not always present. Sometimes the camera works fine for 2hours, and then just randomly loses it's connection.

As stated in my original post, I have 2 camera's and only one is acting weird. The working one, which is - for testing purposes - standing right next to it, is working just fine.

This excludes:

• issues with network reception/router
• issues with interference from other devices
• issues with my Google Home app (I have 4 devices running this app, and they all fail to show the camera stream)

Yesterday, I've had a chat with Google support, explaining the situation.

Without hesitation they declared the product as defect and offered to replace the device under warranty.

Not what I was expecting, but okay enough for me.

Cheers,

Zjel

[Brad]

@Zjel 

Thank you for letting us know that you are processing a replacement request with support. We'll mark this thread as complete, and leave it open for another 24 hours for any follow-up questions or concerns. 

Thank you for your help here, @janthadeus 

Best regards,

Brad