‎Night Vision Troubleshooting for Cameras | SimpliSafe Support Home
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Night Vision Troubleshooting for Cameras

Updated 

2 months ago

Night Vision is a feature that allows your camera to use infrared technology to see in low-light conditions. The setting for this feature can be found in the SimpliSafe® Mobile App by navigating to camera settings:

  1. Choose the Cameras tab at the bottom of the app

  2. Select the gear icon for Camera Settings in the upper right corner

  3. Tap on the desired camera 

  4. Select Night Vision

When On, the camera will always revert to using night vision regardless of the amount of light in the room. When set to Auto, the camera will intelligently switch between Night Vision and not depending on the amount of light in the room. In Off mode, the camera will only use available light to capture video and may result in dark video.  

The Outdoor Camera does not have an Auto setting, but it does have Spotlight. When turned on, this allows the camera to record in color at night. 

If the video quality is poor at night, we recommend trying the following steps:

  • Verify the camera's Night Vision setting in the SimpliSafe® Mobile App and set it to On or Auto

    • If you have an Outdoor Camera, verify that its Night Vision setting is set to Standard or Spotlight

  • Ensure the camera is not pointed near a wall, ceiling, or a flat surface underneath. Large surfaces like this will reflect the IR light and wash out the remaining video. We recommend repositioning the camera in these scenarios. (see image below)
    Night vision view of SimpliSafe® camera with darken image, caused by infrared LED bouncing off the wall and interfering with the balance of the image.

  • If the camera is on a shelf, place it near the edge to avoid any obstructions

  • Make sure that the camera is not directly facing a wall or looking out a window

  • [Outdoor Camera Only] Turn on the Spotlight to help illuminate areas around the camera

If the above steps do not resolve the issue, we recommend testing the camera in a second location. If the issue disappears, try taking the above steps again in the camera’s desired location.

Still Need Help?

If the issue persists, try resetting the camera by following the directions below. Note: resetting the camera will erase any videos that you have captured as well as all camera settings.

Instructions on how to download any camera recordings first before resetting. 

Once the camera has been reset, begin the setup process over again using your camera’s installation guide.

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