See what's happening inside and outside your home, and get alerts when things happen with these smart security cameras.
Security cameras are a great addition to any smart home, whether you want to keep an eye on what's happening outdoors or inside. You can use them as a baby monitor, or to keep tabs on pets while you're out, thanks to apps which run on your phone.
Outdoor cameras are great for helping to secure your property: not only are they a visual deterrent but some have sirens or built-in speakers so you can warn potential burglars that you're watching them. Yet others have built-in floodlights which are helpful to capture better-quality video at night as well to to light your path when it's dark.
Choosing a security camera is easier said than done, though. There are so many, both mains and battery powered, with different features, resolutions and more.
Many require you to pay a subscription to record video (most often stored in the cloud), as well as to get advanced features such as face recognition, but if you're averse to that, it's possible to buy cameras that record to a microSD card, so there are no ongoing costs once you've bought the camera.
Bear in mind that these aren't CCTV cameras which record 24/7. Instead most models record short video clips only when they detection motion - and that's always true for battery-powered models. You can buy internet-connected wireless CCTV systems if you'd prefer that sort of system, though. Examples include Swann's thermal-sensing kit and Yeskamo's 4-channel wireless kit.
Also, remember that although the cameras here rely on Wi-Fi to connect to the internet. If you're thinking of buying one to put in an elderly relative's home to keep tabs on them, remember to factor in the cost of broadband (or mobile broadband) as a Wi-Fi security camera simply won't work without an internet connection.
Only battery-powered models are truly wireless. These are great if you plan to move the camera around your home regularly, but they make the most sense outdoors where there's no mains power nearby. The downside is that you'll have to recharge them, but there's usually the option to connect a solar panel which can keep the battery topped up. Again, remember to check if there's a strong Wi-Fi signal where you plan to mount the camera.
If it's poor, you may be able to improve it by buying a mesh Wi-Fi system.
What to look for
Expect to get the same basic functions from any security camera: detect an event, send a notification, record the event. But, of course, determining what's an important event and what's not varies considerably, as does the quality of the apps that go with the cameras.
As with so many gadgets, it's unwise to choose on the basis of specifications alone. Our reviews will tell you how well they work in practice and whether their day and night video quality is any good.
Below you'll find recommendations for indoor and outdoor cameras, but scroll down to read a buying guide.
1. Ring Indoor Cam
- Very affordable
- Good-quality video
Cons
- Short power cable
- Recording requires subscription
$59.99
The Ring Indoor Cam is great value. It delivers impressive 1080p video, good night vision (even in 'colour'), a built-in 110db siren, two-way talk and other features that you usually find only on premium smart security cameras costing a lot more.
The Ring app is really good and offers privacy-focused features such as disabling audio recording, which is useful for an indoor camera, along with access to previous recordings and other customisable settings.
It’s not perfect; the cable is too short to mount the camera far away from a socket and you can't use geo-location to enable and disable recording and alerts, which is a little annoying.
But that doesn’t detract from the fact that, at this price, the Ring Indoor Cam is one of the best-value security cameras around.
Read our full Ring Indoor Cam review
2. Neos SmartCam
- Very cheap
- Free cloud storage
Cons
- Motion detection is very basic
- Indoor use only
£29.99
You'd be forgiven for thinking that the SmartCam won't be any good because of its low price. But it does almost everything most people will need it to. If you don't need the best image quality or all the frills and features, it's a top option.
For free, the camera will record 12-second clips to the cloud and you can have up to one hour of recording per day for 14 days. If that's not good enough for you, you can insert a microSD card into the camera and record longer clips, or subscribe to Neos Boost that increases clip length to 1 minute.
As a bonus, the SmartCam can become battery powered if you attach its USB cable to a power bank, so it can be completely wireless for a good few hours.
It even supports geo-location so you can set the camera to 'arm' when you leave home with your phone.
The downside is that motion detection isn't very smart. It will alert you of any motion, even if it's not relevant.
Read our full Neos SmartCam review
3. Arlo Essential Indoor Camera
- Compact
- Good quality video
Cons
- Relatively expensive
- Requires subscription
$99.99
Though budget by Arlo standards, the Essential is still much more expensive than some models here.
But it has a nifty feature: a shutter that covers the lens when you don't want it recording. This also disabled the mic.
Video quality is great, and when you're viewing the live feed you can talk to people near the camera thanks to a built-in speaker.
We like Arlo's easy-to-use app, but it's shame that you have to subscribe if you want any events to be recorded. And like some others here, some features are only available if you subscribe.
Read our full Arlo Essential Indoor Camera review
4. Hive View Outdoor
- IP66 water-resistance
- Free cloud storage
Cons
- Can't be battery powered
$199.99
- Outdoor use
- Buffered recording
- Waterproof (IP66)
- Mains powered
The Hive View Outdoor offers an good combination of style, design and features. It's also relatively easy to install as long as you have a convenient mains socket or can route the cable through a nearby window - the cable isn't particularly long.
It offers a good range of features including two-way talk and is easy to use via the Hive app, and it's even more convenient if you already have other Hive devices.
Clips are recorded when motion is detected, and they're stored for free on a rolling 24-hour period so you don't need to pay the monthly subscription unless you need more than 24 hours of footage.
Read our full Hive View Outdoor review
5. Netatmo Smart Outdoor Camera with Siren
- Built-in floodlight and Siren
- No subscription required
- HomeKit support
Cons
- Expensive
- No two-way talk
- No face or package recognition
$299.99
We're big fans of the Netatmo Outdoor Camera for a number of reasons. It doesn’t look like a security camera and the built-in floodlight is great.
Motion detection is pretty reliable, video quality is very good and you don't have to pay any subscription fees, which saves a lot in the long run.
Just note that it doesn't offer continuous video recording - only clips - and there's no face recognition or talk-back speaker.
Read our full Netatmo Smart Outdoor Camera with Siren review
6. TP-Link Tapo C200
- Pan and tilt
- No subscription required
- Inexpensive
Cons
- No cloud storage option
$26.99
- Indoor use
- Pan & tilt
- No subscription
- Mains powered
There’s a lot to like about the TP-Link Tapo C200. It's inexpensive and yet, unlike most rivals, has real pan-and-tilt support so the lens physically moves.
This provides 360° horizontal and 114° vertical coverage in any indoor space.
Video quality is good and the accompanying app is too, lacking only one or two handy features offered by others.
The deal-breaker for some will be the lack of a cloud storage option. However, it means you won’t be forking out a monthly fee to save your footage and you don't have to pay a subscription to unlock key features as you do with the likes of the Ring and Nest.
Just note that your footage will be lost if the camera or microSD card are stolen.
Read our full TP-Link Tapo C200 review
7. Ezviz C8C
- Pan and tilt
- Colour night vision
- Optional local storage
Cons
- Fussy design
- Cloud storage isn't cheap
$99
It's not a sleek as Ring and Nest cameras, but the C8C offers proper pan and tilt so you can remotely adjust the view instead of being limited to whatever a fixed lens can see.
If offers sharp 1080p video and the motion detection is smart enough to recognise people so you can ignore other events.
You can subscribe to the cloud storage service, but there's also a microSD card for local recording.
Read our full EZVIZ C8C review
8. Arlo Pro 2
- Indoor or outdoor use
- Free 7-day cloud recording
Cons
- Expensive
From $250
- Indoor/outdoor use
We have no quibbles with the quality of the Arlo Pro 2, so this is certainly one of the best 1080p cameras you can buy.
The kit is easy to setup and use, with a great image and lots of features - especially if you use it wired. You don't even need to pay for any subscriptions if 7-day cloud storage is enough.
That's a good thing because this kit is fairly expensive so that's the main issue here. You'll want to carefully consider how many cameras to buy from the start. Adding more later is not good value.
Read our full Arlo Pro 2 review
Smart home security camera buying guide
Alerts
You should get notifications on your phone when the camera detects an event. Without watching the live feed constantly, this is the only way to know when something is happening that you need to pay attention to.
The best models will tell you in the notification whether it's a person, vehicle, even a package.
Cloud recording
Most cameras these days record video to the cloud and store it for anything from 24 hours to a month. Rarely offered free, these cloud plans usually cost a few pounds or dollars per month, but may be worth the for their convenience and the fact a thief can't steal it.
Often, there's a fixed cost for multiple cameras, so you shouldn't have to pay the fee per camera.
Facial recognition
Some models from Google and Netatmo offer facial recognition so you can get alerts when certain family members arrive home - or only if an unfamiliar face is spotted. It does work, but it's not foolproof.
Local storage
Some cameras have memory card slots to store video. We like this option as it can eliminate the cost of monthly storage fees - but if a thief steals your camera they take the evidence with them.
Apps
All cameras can be set up and managed via a smartphone app. In fact, there's usually no other option. The same apps provide a way to view the camera’s live feed, let you adjust settings and turn on and off recording, motion detection and more.
Some are better than others, especially if you have multiple cameras.
Motion detection
Motion detection is achieved using built-in sensors or software algorithms pick up movement within the camera’s field of view and trigger video recording. Because you're not interested in just anything that moves, it’s important to be able to choose which notifications you receive, and to be able to ignore motion in certain areas of the frame.
Some models can identify people, packages, cars and pets, while others aren't as smart and will notify you even when it's just a tree swaying in the wind.
Night vision
Most burglaries happen after dark, so this feature is nearly as important as motion detection. Every camera here will switch to night vision automatically in low-light conditions, and most allow you to customise when and how it should be activated. This won't work through windows, where you'll see a reflection of the LEDs - that's why you need an outdoor camera to monitor your garden or driveway.
Unfortunately, even on the most expensive cameras, night vision offers much worse quality than during the day. There's less detail and where it's claimed to be in colour, that's either false colour (where colour is added to a black and white image) or it's achieved using spotlights to light the scene, which improve quality considerably.
Pan, Tilt & Swivel
Most security cameras can be manually tilted and swivelled to focus on a certain viewing area. A true pan/tilt camera is equipped with a motor so that you can move its lens using its app or browser-based app, but most home security cameras opt for wide-angle or fisheye lenses instead of physical movement.
Resolution
No amount of security video will help you if it’s blurry, jittery or otherwise distorted. Look for a camera that offers the highest possible resolution. However, bear in mind that video is often reduced in quality in order to upload it to the cloud, so it's not the advantage you might think.
Look for HDR, which can bring out more detail.
Scheduling
Scheduling features allow you to tell the camera to turn on and off, detect motion, and/or send alerts at specified times. This is useful when you want to be notified only when your children get home from school, or when you’re away. It can reduces the number of false alerts.
Two-way audio
While the idea of a security camera implies eyes-on monitoring, the ability to also hear what’s going on gives you a more complete picture of what’s happening at home. This feature can also allow you to speak through the camera.
0 comments:
Post a Comment