Some people take safety more seriously than others and buy security cameras such as the Ring Camera as an added layer of protection.
So, it definitely comes as a bummer when your security recordings skip or miss what could have been important footage.
The following are possible causes for skipped Ring Camera recordings:
- Short video recording length
- Ring hardware problems
- Low sensitivity setting for motion detector
- Incorrect motion detection zone settings
- Unstable wifi
- Wifi Jamming
- Ring Service Interruptions
In the following sections, I will break down these reasons into tiny bits to understand each of the issues and how they impact the continuity of footage recordings.
1. Short Video Recording Length
Ring camera devices only record for a set amount of time.
The default setting is set to 60 seconds which means that the recording would stop 60 seconds after a motion event is detected.
However, you can change the recording duration depending on your needs.
The user can select 50, 60, 90, and 120-second recording durations for hardwired and mounted Ring devices.
Meanwhile, battery-powered devices allow users to select lower recording times up to 15 seconds to conserve battery.
As such, if you’re experiencing camera recordings skipping, you may want to adjust first the recording duration to the maximum length in your Ring app before trying anything else.
Just remember that lengthening the recording would result in lower battery life for battery-powered devices and having to review long recordings of mundane activities.
2. Ring Hardware Problems
Identifying Ring hardware problems is sort of a giveaway.
When you start noticing skipped recordings, the fastest you can rule out or confirm is if there is something wrong with your camera itself.
Simply try moving within the sensor zone and see if it triggers the Ring alarm or if it functions as if there had been no movement within the detection range.
If the latter is true, then you might have to send your Ring camera to the nearest service center to get it fixed.
3. Low Sensitivity Setting for Motion Detector
Ring devices also include an option to modify the motion detector’s sensitivity.
This feature is essential to filter out unimportant movements such as leaves or trash blown by the wind and pets roaming around on the lawn.
However, setting the sensitivity too low may cause your Ring device to miss out on people or cars approaching your house.
Setting the correct sensitivity requires some trial and error, and you may want someone to help you with acting out scenarios that you want to be captured by your Ring device.
4. Incorrect Motion Detection Zone Settings
In using the features of your Ring camera, choosing the correct detection zone is critical.
Otherwise, you’ll end up having missed or skipped recordings and nothing much information to work with.
Once your camera detects motion, it will start to record the video until it reaches your set video length (beginning after motion ceases).
When you fail to position the sensor range strategically, however, the camera may detect motion at first and then assume that movement has stopped once it is out of the sensor zone.
The camera will then stop recording beyond the maximum video length when this happens.
You can tweak the motion detection zone to optimize the utility of the safety feature.
Decide on which parts of the house or your yard, for instance, need surveillance.
You also would not want to receive unnecessary alerts by setting the sensor to a range where you expect people or pets to frequently pass by, as that would be a waste of time and energy. Planning is key.
5. Unstable WiFi
Unstable wifi connection is among the most common reasons for skipped Ring camera recordings.
The Ring camera requires a wifi connection to reach the Ring app, which in turn allows you to view the recordings for any movement detected by the application.
When you have a poor internet connection, data transmission between the Ring camera and the Ring app is also affected.
Hence, to make the most out of your Ring subscription, make sure you also have stable internet.
Otherwise, you may be up for some serious worry over missed recordings in addition to the fact that you’ve wasted cash on something you weren’t really able to utilize.
6. WiFi Jamming
I’ve previously talked about how unstable wifi connections can render your Ring camera purchase virtually useless (pun intended).
However, something much more beyond your control is when burglars intentionally jam your wifi, so the Ring camera fails to submit any footage at all to the app or sends only incomplete footage.
After the motion is detected, the app may immediately set off an alarm.
However, if burglars successfully jam your wifi, then it may stop sending media information up until the wifi works normally again.
In this case, you may find that your recording skipped, missing the most crucial part when intruders are in your area.
Although such a situation is rare, it is still worth considering.
To err on the side of caution, the best thing to do would be to report to authorities when such an activity is suspected.
7. Ring Service Interruptions
The last reason for your Ring camera recordings skipping may have something to do with glitches from Ring servers themselves.
If this is the case, there is nothing else you can do but report the incident to Ring Customer Care and wait out the service interruption.
To check if your recordings may have been affected by technical glitches from Ring servers, you can go to status.ring.com.
Final Thoughts
Security is critical for everyone, albeit to varying degrees.
For individuals availing of a Ring camera and the Ring Subscription Plan for added protection, finding out that some of your camera recordings are missing is a huge bummer and even a potential cause for anxiety.
The good news is that most of the potential reasons for skipped footage are easy to troubleshoot.
It could just be a hardware or connectivity issue, a subscription plan limitation, or simply a setting you need to tweak.
In any case, addressing the problem is an urgent concern but is also likely a quick fix.
Are You Still Struggling With Your device?
If you’re still struggling trying to get going your smart device, contact me at nelson.barbosa@myautomatedpalace.com and we can discuss how can we fix it!