Video surveillance is a great security solution you can rely on to find out who came around, or what happened in your home when you were away. Can a cheap security camera which is priced at $20 protect your home?
We are going to analyze the features of the Wyze Cam and see if you can trust this device over your valuables. We believe at the end of this article, you will be able to know if selecting Wyze Cam for your home security is a wise decision.
Without further ado, let’s get started.
Review of: Wyze Cam V2 Smart Home Camera
Last update: 21.07.2019
Wyze Labs is one of the new entrants on the market, and the Wyze Cam has brought them recognition amongst the other major players, as well as the users.
It is a U.S based company, and they have the best team of software engineers who will never relent to make the Wyze Cam better.
The company was founded in 2017 by Dave Crosby, Dongsheng Song, Elana Fishman, Yun Zhang who were all former employees of Amazon, I guess they got their inspiration from there. Their headquarters is located in Seattle, Washington, United States.
Wyze Labs is funded by Norwest Venture Partners and iSeed Ventures, who are also their most recent investors.
It is no doubt that Wyze Cam has started gaining traction ever since the first version was released. We also love the fact that Wyze Cam steadily improves, and the brand is trusted by users.
A smart home camera that competes with top brands.
A camera with an unbeatable and amazing price point.
Usability
Setup is extremely easy and straightforward.
Support
Technical support is available through live chat and email. You can also get help from other users in the community or forum.
Wyze Cam is reliable
It support smart home integration such as Alexa, Google Assistant and IFTTT
It has advance features that are mostly found on expensive smart home cameras
14-day free cloud storage
It misses web browser
It must be connected with power adapter
Indoor use only
It does not use battery
It does not operate on 5GHz
Summary: A cute aesthetic smart home camera built with quality hardware and latest technology to simple home security. It is designed to be used as an indoor device.
Main Features of Wyze Cam V2 Smart Home Camera
- 1080p Full HD
- 110° Viewing Angle
- 8X Digital Zoom
- Daisy Chain Connection
- AI Person Detection
- Motion Tagging
- Smart Home Integration
- Motion and Sound Detection
- Night Vision Technology
- 2-Way Audio
- 14-day Rolling Cloud Storage
- CO2 and Smoke Alarm Detection
You don’t understand what’s the purpose of each component? You don’t know which features you should prioritize for your setup?
Breakdown of the features / Overview of the product
One of the important features a good security camera should have is a good resolution, Wyze Cam has a 1080p full HD resolution that lets you enjoy the crisp image. Even if you use the 8x digital zoom, your image will never get blurry.
Motion tagging allows you to clearly identify where motion is being triggered on the camera frame, and you can easily follow the motion sequence.
The camera has a field of view of 110° which is very impressive especially on a $20 security camera. The field of view alongside a 2.8mm wide-angle lens will enable you to capture a detailed picture, without missing out important frames.
Wyze Cam lets you use daisy chain topology to connect up to 2 additional cameras to the main camera. You simply connect a Type-A to Micro-USB cable from the back of the main camera to the secondary camera.
Daisy chain topology shares the power input from the main camera with the additional cameras without running an independent power adapter.
However, daisy chain topology is only useful when the cameras are closer, it is recommended to use a 15-foot Type-A to micro USB cable, to prevent intermittent disconnection on the secondary camera.
AI person detection is a new feature that has just been released through a firmware update. Person detection is an artificial intelligence which only detects a person from every other object. In order to enjoy this free feature, you must ensure you have the latest firmware on the device.
With person detection enabled on your camera, you will receive notifications only when a person is detected in the motion event.
Similarly to Amazon Cloud Cam, Wyze Cam also support smart home integration such as Echo Show, Echo Spot, Fire TV, Fire Tablets, Google Assistant, and IFTTT. Smart home integration allows you to conveniently monitor your camera.
For instance, you can use your Alexa devices to view a live stream from the camera or use IFTTT to create triggers to turn on or off the camera when you leave or arrive home respectively.
With motion and sound detection, your camera will only record when it detects sound or moving object. This way, you can set your camera to record event instead of a continuous video, which will quickly use up your microSD card
Wyze has a built-in night vision which features 4 infrared LEDs, it illuminates up to 9 meters in complete darkness. Even if you accidentally turn off your living room lighting, Wyze Cam will still record a clear black and white video clip.
2-way audio will let you record a video with embedded audio in it, you will also be able to utilize this feature to have back and forth audio communication with your loved ones. You will not only catch the glimpse of the event but have a meaningful video clip.
Cloud storage can be handy if an intruder breaks into your home and steal your Wyze Cam, the free 14-day rolling cloud storage will allow you to retrieve the previous recorded video clips.
If you have carbon monoxide or smoke alarm devices installed in close proximity to the Wyze Cam, there is a feature that listens for the sound emitted from the two alarms when they are triggered.
To enable this feature, just toggle it on under the alert settings and you will get a push notification whenever your camera detects CO2 and smoke alarm.
Design of the Product and its Installation
Wyze Cam is thoughtfully built to end the frustration faced by users who can’t afford an overpriced smart home camera, by bringing a reliable home security camera bundled with advanced features to the market at an affordable price.
The installation and setup are very easy and should not take you more than 5 minutes. You don’t even need to read the setup guide to do this, it is a do-it-yourself simple process.
- To get started, make sure you have a 2.4GHz Wi-Fi connection
- Unbox your Wyze Cam, connect the included power adapter to the camera power port which is located at the back. There is a flashing yellow LED behind the camera, it will become stable when the camera is completely initialized
- Head over to your mobile app store and download Wyze App, launch the app and follow the screen instructions until you finish creating your Wyze account, ensure you grant necessary permissions on the app.
- Login into your account and tap the “+” sign to add a new device, tap the Wyze Cam.
While your mobile device is waiting to add Wyze Cam, simply look for a setup button under the camera, push and hold it down until you hear “ready to connect” sound
- Tap “I heard ready to connect ” on your mobile device
- Put in your correct Wi-Fi information and tap next
- You will be presented with a QR code, let Wyze Cam scan the QR code by holding your mobile device firmly about 5 inches away from the camera, you will hear “QR code scanned, please wait” if it’s successful.
- Tap “I heard QR Code Scanned, Please Wait” and the setup process will be automatically completed
- Give your camera a suitable name and tap the “Start” button
- You will be presented with Wyze Cam icon, tap the icon and you are ready to start the live stream
- Choose your suitable location and place the camera
User Experience and Performance
The camera and the app performed pretty awesomely, many verified users confirmed that the setup process was so easy and straight forward.
To some users, it sounds too good to be true until they were able to order and install one.
Wyze Cam is trusted by millions.
Conversely, some disgruntled users also expressed their concerns on how Wyze Cam was not able to offer them motion tagging and person detection. It was at that point we knew they were using version 1 which does not support motion tagging, and AI person detection.
What’s in the Box?
Wyze Labs included the necessary accessories to successfully install the camera.
- 1 unit of Wyze Cam v2 security camera
- A Quick Start Guide
- 6-foot USB cable
- Power adapter
- Wall plate
- Mounting tape
The Advantages
- Free 14-day rolling cloud storage to record events.
- The magnetic base makes it easier to install on any flat surface.
- It supports daisy chain connection.
- The app is intuitive.
- There is an option to reduce the event notifications by adjusting the sensitivity on the app.
- You can schedule when to start and stop sending event notifications.
- Continuous recording is possible via microSD card.
- The camera renders crisp image during the day and a clear night vision at night.
- It uses end-to-end encryption to upload event video footage to the AWS cloud.
- Wyze app allows you to share your camera with family and friends, this is useful when you are not available to attend to the notifications.
The Disadvantages
- Does not come with microSD card, this is not a deal-breaker.
- 12 seconds motion event to the cloud is too short.
- Does not support recording to third party FTP sites or free cloud services such as Dropbox, Google Drive etc.
- Only supports 2.4GHz wireless band.
- Can’t be used outdoor.
About The Warranty
Wyze Cam has a 30-day return policy. However, the 30 day starts from the day of purchase. After the item has been received by Wyze Labs, the refund will be processed. In order to return directly to Wyze Labs, you must provide your Wyze store order number to initiate a return.
If you purchased your item from their authorized vendor, you need to comply with the vendor’s return policy.
Wyze Cam is covered with a 1-year limited warranty which started from the day of purchase. A defective product will be replaced with a new model.
There are products that are not covered by the limited warranty. The first one which caught our attention is products that are physically located outside the United States. Do not bother filing for warranty.
Check here to see the full list of products not covered by the limited warranty.
The Final Verdict
If you are truly looking for a security camera to secure your home, pets, and your family, Wyze Cam might have already answered your questions. Going with it won’t be a bad idea.
But if you feel you need a similar camera that has a rechargeable battery option, you can check our top 5 battery powered wireless indoor-outdoor security cameras.
Wyze Cam is unarguably one of the best cameras on the market, and it will continue to get better by the day. The manufacturer is working endlessly to make sure that the camera is accepted throughout the world.
We believe more features will be added in the future such as recording to a third party FTP site.
Wyze Labs keeps a stronger bond with its users, and nothing is more important than gaining customers’ trust.