This might seem like a quiet neighborhood but there’s always something happening.
Like who knocked over these trash cans or even...this port-a-potty?!
Security cameras are really helpful, but figuring out which one to get can be difficult.
Especially if you’re choosing between wireless and wired cameras.
Once I show you how easy, or NOT easy, it is to use these cameras, and how much it all
costs.
It should be very clear what is right for you.
And don’t worry, I’ll show what happened to the trash cans and port-a-potty later.
When looking at wireless and wired cameras, the differences are becoming less obvious.
Especially since wireless cameras have improved quite a bit in the last few years.
One example of this is 24/7 recording, which used to be mainly offered by wired cameras.
But the Wyze Cam v3 connects to your WiFi and can record 24/7 to an SD card.
Outdoor Nest Cams also use WiFi and record 24/7 to the cloud.
These are great options, but of course there are some trade offs.
SD cards can fail over time, and there are monthly fees for cloud storage.
Wired cameras avoid these issues by recording to a hard drive in your house.
Like this NVR from Reolink.
It has 2 TB of storage built in so you can record multiple cameras 24/7.
There’s no fees and it’s very reliable since it will record even if the internet
is down.
These Reolink cameras also record 4K footage.
Which is higher quality than the 2k or 1080p resolution you typically find in wireless
cameras.
Look you can zoom in and see exactly what I’m carrying.
Oh wow that’s 4 packs of soda… yeah zoom back out!
Wired cameras have their own tradeoffs as well.
Starting with setting them up.
With wireless cameras it’s pretty simple.
Charge up the battery or plug it in for power, connect it to the app, and you’re good to
go.
That’s why wireless cameras are becoming so popular.
They make it SO easy.
Wired cameras require more work, but it’s not as bad as you might think.
Let’s take a look at this Reolink kit as an example.
The NVR that comes with the kit has 8 ethernet ports on the back.
These provide data and power to the cameras.
Also known as PoE.
It’s great because you only need one cable and you don’t need to worry about finding
an outlet for the camera.
Plus once it’s installed, the wire is covered up so you don’t see and it looks good.
The kit also comes with 4 ethernet cables that are 18 meters or about 59 feet.
I didn’t need this because I had my house pre-wired during construction.
The builders ran Cat6 ethernet from a central spot, through the attic, to the 4 corners
of the house.
If your house is already built you can add this yourself, or just pay somebody to do
it.
Look for “low voltage electricians” in your area.
Now that the wiring is all set up it was time to install the cameras.
But I hit a roadblock.
The ethernet cable on the side of the house is in this rectangle electrical box and the
cameras have a little circle mount.
So...how is that supposed to work?
There’s a few ways you can go about it.
I ended up mounting the camera to a wall plate and attached the wall plate to the box.
I used a nylon wall plate since they don’t break.
Stainless steel screws to hold the camera mount to the plate and a step drill bit to
make a hole for the ethernet cable to go through.
After that it was smooth sailing.
I plugged in the Reolink NVR to the router and the Reolink app found it right away.
I gave the camera a name and...that was it.
So once the ethernet cable and mount were figured out, it surprisingly wasn’t any
more difficult than the wireless cameras for setting up.
Now when it comes to actually USING a wireless or wired camera, you will see more differences.
Wireless cameras are typically designed to be controlled from your phone.
You can easily scroll through video clips, and even non techies can use these apps.
On the other hand wired cameras are usually designed for desktop first, and mobile second.
Take Reolink for an example.
On the desktop app it’s easy to scrub through the 24/7 recorded footage.
Now let’s look at the Reolink mobile app.
To view the 24/7 recording you have to select an hour clip and scrub through it.
Not very intuitive.
If you want to see clips when people or vehicles were detected, you have to click on “show
alarm videos only”.
In other words, you can’t see both events and 24/7 recordings at the same time.
You have to jump back and forth if you want to see more footage around the event clip.
Not a huge deal, but a slight annoyance for everyday use.
Now this isn’t true for ALL wired cameras.
Unifi has a really great mobile interface that I can navigate quickly.
As I scrub through the timeline it shows event pictures to quickly jump to them.
It also shows a timelapse up top which looks cool and is super helpful in reviewing footage.
I use it all the time to quickly see who is coming and going from the front and back.
It’s similar to Nest if you have ever used their 24/7 recording.
This is very easy to use and a much different app experience compared to Reolink.
Of course, usability might NOT be on the top of your priority list if all you care about
is recording video, but QUALITY may be a top priority.
Wired cameras can typically stream a higher quality picture.
These Reolink 4K cameras capture a lot of detail and look clear.
As you can see by the footage.
You can also have a live view of multiple cameras in the app or a computer monitor to
always see what’s going on.
Typically you can not have multiple live streams of wireless cameras for an extended period
of time.
Another thing I noticed was that Reolink and Unifi both load the live streams quickly since
everything is local.
WiFi cameras often use the cloud to connect, which can add a few seconds.
That might not seem like a long time but when you’re waiting for it to load, it feels
like it.
But if you are looking for a lot of smart home compatibility, PoE cameras are usually
not so great.
For example I can’t view these Reolink cameras on an Echo Show.
Wireless cameras like Eufy, Ring, Arlo and Nest will all be much easier to integrate
into your smart home.
That’s not to say wired cameras can’t integrate.
I have my Unifi cameras working well with Home Assistant, but it’s a much more advanced
setup.
Alright now let’s talk cost.
Reolink sent me these to try out here on the channel, but this 4 camera kit is around 5
or 6 hundred dollars.
For the ethernet pre-wiring, I spent about 400 dollars, so it’s around $1,000 combined,
with no other fees after that.
That might sound like a lot, but let’s compare it to other options.
If you went with Nest outdoor cameras they are $200 a piece.
That’s $800 dollars for the equipment and $120 a year for 24/7 cloud recording.
After 5 years that’s about $1,400.
Unifi is even more expensive.
One 4K camera is a whopping $450, although you can get less expensive lower resolution
cameras.
After the cameras you still need a dream machine pro, PoE switch and hard drive.
You’re looking at $1,500 to $2,000, so triple the cost of Reolink.
Or go to the other extreme and get the cheapest option.
You can buy a Wyze Cam v3 and a micro SD card for about $50 bucks each.
So about $200 for a similar set up.
Not quite the same but hey if you’re on a budget.
So what SHOULD you buy?
Well, if you casually want to see who is coming and going in a few areas outside your house,
then a wireless camera will work fine.
I would use something like a Wyze cam if you have an outlet up high, or Eufy cameras if
you need something battery powered.
Eufy did have a security mishap recently, but overall they work well.
They record locally to a base station and have person detection.
If you want something more reliable that’s not too crazy expensive, then Reolink isn’t
a bad option.
Sure the user interface could use some help but it records really good footage if that’s
what you care about.
This is a solid option for a high quality wired camera system that doesn’t break the
bank.
If you’re already using Unifi for your networking equipment like I am, I would definitely consider
their cameras.
Yes that 4K camera is expensive, but it has an extremely wide viewing angle and is crystal
clear.
Unifi is overpriced, but the app is so easy to use it might make up for it.
So what will I be using?
Well, outside I’ll continue using Unifi since I’m checking the app and time lapse
feature daily.
It’s just very user friendly.
Oh and what really happened to the trash cans and port-a-potty?
I think I hear those teenager kids again causing trouble.
I’m going to go teach them a lesson!
Ummm I don’t think that’s a good idea, you know it was the wind that knocked over
the trash cans?
Don’t worry I have a good hiding spot, I’m going to scare the crap out of them.
Reed stop!
Oh shoot it’s stuck!
Oh no!