diff --git a/setup.py b/setup.py
index 1bb0f97..59510c3 100644
--- a/setup.py
+++ b/setup.py
@@ -11,7 +11,6 @@ FILE = Path(__file__).resolve()
 PARENT = FILE.parent  # root directory
 README = (PARENT / 'README.md').read_text(encoding='utf-8')
 REQUIREMENTS = [f'{x.name}{x.specifier}' for x in pkg.parse_requirements((PARENT / 'requirements.txt').read_text())]
-PKG_REQUIREMENTS = ['sentry_sdk']  # pip-only requirements
 
 
 def get_version():
@@ -37,7 +36,7 @@ setup(
     author_email='hello@ultralytics.com',
     packages=find_packages(),  # required
     include_package_data=True,
-    install_requires=REQUIREMENTS + PKG_REQUIREMENTS,
+    install_requires=REQUIREMENTS,
     extras_require={
         'dev': [
             'check-manifest',
diff --git a/ultralytics/yolo/utils/__init__.py b/ultralytics/yolo/utils/__init__.py
index e2e32b6..77f7e20 100644
--- a/ultralytics/yolo/utils/__init__.py
+++ b/ultralytics/yolo/utils/__init__.py
@@ -164,7 +164,7 @@ class IterableSimpleNamespace(SimpleNamespace):
         return getattr(self, key, default)
 
 
-def plt_settings(rcparams={'font.size': 11}, backend='Agg'):
+def plt_settings(rcparams=None, backend='Agg'):
     """
     Decorator to temporarily set rc parameters and the backend for a plotting function.
 
@@ -180,6 +180,9 @@ def plt_settings(rcparams={'font.size': 11}, backend='Agg'):
         callable: Decorated function with temporarily set rc parameters and backend.
     """
 
+    if rcparams is None:
+        rcparams = {'font.size': 11}
+
     def decorator(func):
         """Decorator to apply temporary rc parameters and backend to a function."""
 
@@ -242,7 +245,7 @@ if WINDOWS:  # emoji-safe logging
     LOGGER.addFilter(EmojiFilter())
 
 
-def yaml_save(file='data.yaml', data={}):
+def yaml_save(file='data.yaml', data=None):
     """
     Save YAML data to a file.
 
@@ -253,6 +256,8 @@ def yaml_save(file='data.yaml', data={}):
     Returns:
         None: Data is saved to the specified file.
     """
+    if data is None:
+        data = {}
     file = Path(file)
     if not file.parent.exists():
         # Create parent directories if they don't exist
@@ -603,10 +608,11 @@ def threaded(func):
 
 def set_sentry():
     """
-    Initialize the Sentry SDK for error tracking and reporting. Enabled when sync=True in settings and
-    disabled when sync=False. Run 'yolo settings' to see and update settings YAML file.
+    Initialize the Sentry SDK for error tracking and reporting. Only used if sentry_sdk package is installed and
+    sync=True in settings. Run 'yolo settings' to see and update settings YAML file.
 
-    Conditions required to send errors:
+    Conditions required to send errors (ALL conditions must be met or no errors will be reported):
+        - sentry_sdk package is installed
         - sync=True in YOLO settings
         - pytest is not running
         - running in a pip package installation
@@ -653,7 +659,12 @@ def set_sentry():
             is_pip_package() and \
             not is_git_dir():
 
-        import sentry_sdk  # noqa
+        # If sentry_sdk package is not installed then return and do not use Sentry
+        try:
+            import sentry_sdk  # noqa
+        except ImportError:
+            return
+
         sentry_sdk.init(
             dsn='https://5ff1556b71594bfea135ff0203a0d290@o4504521589325824.ingest.sentry.io/4504521592406016',
             debug=False,
diff --git a/ultralytics/yolo/utils/checks.py b/ultralytics/yolo/utils/checks.py
index 78cb52c..2767560 100644
--- a/ultralytics/yolo/utils/checks.py
+++ b/ultralytics/yolo/utils/checks.py
@@ -232,16 +232,22 @@ def check_requirements(requirements=ROOT.parent / 'requirements.txt', exclude=()
                 s += f'"{r}" '
                 n += 1
 
-    if s and install and AUTOINSTALL:  # check environment variable
-        LOGGER.info(f"{prefix} Ultralytics requirement{'s' * (n > 1)} {s}not found, attempting AutoUpdate...")
-        try:
-            assert is_online(), 'AutoUpdate skipped (offline)'
-            LOGGER.info(subprocess.check_output(f'pip install --no-cache {s} {cmds}', shell=True).decode())
-            s = f"{prefix} {n} package{'s' * (n > 1)} updated per {file or requirements}\n" \
-                f"{prefix} ⚠️ {colorstr('bold', 'Restart runtime or rerun command for updates to take effect')}\n"
-            LOGGER.info(s)
-        except Exception as e:
-            LOGGER.warning(f'{prefix} ❌ {e}')
+    if s:
+        if install and AUTOINSTALL:  # check environment variable
+            LOGGER.info(f"{prefix} Ultralytics requirement{'s' * (n > 1)} {s}not found, attempting AutoUpdate...")
+            try:
+                assert is_online(), 'AutoUpdate skipped (offline)'
+                LOGGER.info(subprocess.check_output(f'pip install --no-cache {s} {cmds}', shell=True).decode())
+                s = f"{prefix} {n} package{'s' * (n > 1)} updated per {file or requirements}\n" \
+                    f"{prefix} ⚠️ {colorstr('bold', 'Restart runtime or rerun command for updates to take effect')}\n"
+                LOGGER.info(s)
+            except Exception as e:
+                LOGGER.warning(f'{prefix} ❌ {e}')
+                return False
+        else:
+            return False
+
+    return True
 
 
 def check_suffix(file='yolov8n.pt', suffix='.pt', msg=''):