# Budget Conscience Security Camera Review



## dacoyne (May 27, 2018)

Hello all, just wanted to turn some fellow TLF users on to a deal.

I know @Ware already posted a topic about IP cameras which was great https://thelawnforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=144&hilit=ip+security+camera. I work in IT and agree, hardwired POE is best but not everyone is that committed or has the resources to accomplish that. With me, my house was built in 1914, running cat6 would have been a major pain and I really only needed two cameras.

I live in a great neighborhood, everyone owns and some families have been here generations. The house across from us just sold to a real estate investment company. They put some pretty crappy tenants in there recently and I felt the need to monitor the situation as my wife and 8 old week baby are home all day while I am at work. I came across these cameras and for the price figured I would give it a shot, man am I happy I did.

Heres the run down, cameras are 19.99$ each on their website plus shipping or 25.99 on Amazon with free Prime shipping. I picked up two as I already have a Ring on my front porch. Now I have the whole perimeter of the house monitored including the crappy neighbors for 50$!

Product: Wyze Cam V2 https://www.wyzecam.com/product/wyze-cam-v2/
Key Features:

Motion Tagging: Easily track down motion with Wyze Cam v2's Motion Tagging technology that detects and highlights motion in both live stream and replay modes.
1080p Full HD: Live streaming, recording, and playback are all available in clear and sharp 1080p HD resolution. Toggle between SD and HD to fit your needs.
Live Streaming: View what's going on in real time, and record videos or take pictures directly to your phone for sharing.
Night Vision: Never miss a moment, even in the dark, with Wyze Cam's enhanced night vision.
Real-Time Alerts: Receive push notifications on your phone whenever motion or sounds are detected.
Smart Sound Recognition: Wyze Cam recognizes the unique sounds of smoke alarms and CO monitors and alerts you to these specific emergencies.
Free Rolling 14-Day Cloud Storage: You have free access to saved motion and sound-triggered alert videos for 14 days.
Secure AWS Cloud Storage: Wyze Cam uses end-to-end encryption for uploading and storing alert videos in the AWS cloud.
Continuous Recording: Continuous footage can be recorded and stored to a microSD card (not included). Older files are overwritten when the microSD card is filled.
2-Way Audio: Listen in to what is happening around your camera and respond through your Wyze Cam speaker.
Time Lapse: Set the time frame and intervals to easily create custom time lapse videos and save them locally to a microSD card (not included).
Sharing: Use the Wyze App to share your camera with other users.
Unique, Flexible Design: The innovative 3-axis design allows the camera to be raised, tilted, and swiveled to point in any direction.
Magnetic Base: Wyze Cam's magnetic mounting system with included adhesive tape and metal plate make it easy to mount your camera wherever you want it.
USB Port: Supports daisy chaining up to 3 Wyze Cam(s) to share a single instance of the provided power adapter.
You must download and use the Wyze app (available in the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store) to access the above features.

Youtube review of the camera in action: 




I set mine up the other day, one in the shed looking out on back of the house and another in the kitchen window recording the side yard. Here is a screen shot from the Wyze Android app. 


Cons: The IR works fantastic indoors. I have both of my cameras pointed through glass so the IR reflects in the image, that can be corrected by either putting the camera outside or turning the IR off and using a secondary IR light, like a IR spotlight.
The free 14 day cloud storage is a definite plus but it only counts for "events" ie: motion/sounds alerts. I just popped a 16gb mini SD card in each camera and turned on continuous loop recording, all the footage is mine. Just today, the wife called while I was at work and said "can you see what happened on the cameras 2 mins ago there was a loud bang outside". Sure enough a football was bounced off the hood of my Volvo, downloaded the footage and here it is, ouch!


Two more pros I can mention besides all of the listed features are: I run an android emulator on my work PC and installed the Wyze Cam app so I can have it up live while at work and not use my phone. Also, the wife said its a great 20$ baby monitor, it has sound and motion alerting plus you can run it in live view. We got a 160$ video baby monitor at our shower and its awful compared to the Wyze Cam

Overall, I would recommend! Cheers and I can answer any questions


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## dacoyne (May 27, 2018)

Forgot to post, Amazon link for purchase if interested
https://www.amazon.com/Wyze-Indoor-...F8&qid=1531188684&sr=8-3&keywords=wyze+cam+v2


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## Ware (Jan 28, 2017)

Awesome - thanks for sharing! Looks like a neat setup!


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## Colonel K0rn (Jul 4, 2017)

Great write up, and I adore the name of your football incident.


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## LowCountryCharleston (Jun 21, 2018)

This is a great write up and looking for something like this for my 72yo Mom aka "Snow Bird" for her FL condo. She'd like to get 3 of them for when she's not there during the summer time. With the SD cards can those still be used when she's not there during the Summer to monitor remotely?

Thanks!


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## dacoyne (May 27, 2018)

LowCountryCharleston said:


> This is a great write up and looking for something like this for my 72yo Mom aka "Snow Bird" for her FL condo. She'd like to get 3 of them for when she's not there during the summer time. With the SD cards can those still be used when she's not there during the Summer to monitor remotely?
> 
> Thanks!


Yep as long as she has the app and the cameras are connected to WiFi you can view live from anywhere


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## craigdt (Apr 21, 2018)

Thanks for the review.

I just sent one of these to try out as a baby monitor.

This was my one task that I was given by my wife in preparation for triplets :lol:


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## FlowRider (Apr 7, 2019)

craigdt said:


> Thanks for the review.
> 
> I just sent one of these to try out as a baby monitor.
> 
> This was my one task that I was given by my wife in preparation for triplets :lol:


Congratulations! :bandit:

A football joke: 
When you and your wife have your first baby, you can double team the child. 
When the second one comes, you have to switch to man to man coverage. 
When the third one comes, you have to switch over to the zone defense.
And the fourth one, or more, you are definitely stuck with playing the prevent defense for the rest of the whole ball game! :lol:


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