20 Best Mini Spy Camera With Audio (2023 Updated)

This is my 4th security camera I owned that’s made by Arlo. I also have the Arlo video/audio doorbell and 2 older model Arlo Wireless cameras. The 2 cameras were the first model I think and records in 720 and have no audio.

Still its pretty clear and a good camera in my opinion. I had one of the cameras in the garage which to me was really important b/c I’m the type that’s always worried I forgot to close the garage door when I go out.

When that happens I can always look on the phone to makes sure its closed which eases my mind. But the problem with that is since its rechargeable there have been times when the battery runs out and I’m unable to check it.

With that I decided to buy a wired camera and put it in the garage. I bought the Arlo essential camera and to me its a great camera which was easy to setup and records in 1080 with night vision. Now I don’t have to worry about running out of power and can access the camera any time I want to.

The picture is a lot clearer and have sound also. The video is great and the sound is really clear also. Arlo makes a great product and when I eventually upgrade my 2 cameras I will look for Arlo cameras also.

The salesperson at Bestbuy was really great also and provided me great info and help with purchasing the camera which was sold out at the store and had to buy through their online store only.

We’ve had an Arlo system for years that continues to grow. This will be our first Arlo indoor camera. Positive points for the Arlo system are that the video quality is excellent, hardware has been very durable and reliable, easy setup and installation, and the app is very user friendly.

Things to consider if you’re looking to purchase are that Arlo now requires a subscription service if you want your video stored to the Cloud for 30 days and outdoor cameras typically require routine battery charging; for us we probably have to charge the batteries for outside cameras every one to two months depending on settings.

We had an interest in the indoor camera for primarily when we are gone from our house. It’s not something I would want routinely recording. The automated privacy shield is nice that it has the camera put the physical shield over the camera and mic.

Note that this indoor camera connects via cable directly to your wifi and thus will be limited in terms of physical placement depending on cable length. The app allows users to customize settings for notifications, camera sensitivity and device settings.

Arlo’s AI identification works well to differentiate people, vehicles, packages and animals. The 2-way audio feature is good to have, but we have used this feature very rarely. Arlo is compatible with Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant and Samsung SmartThings.

If you’re looking for an easy-to-use security camera system with excellent 1080p video quality I think you’ll like Arlo a lot. Just keep in mind that outdoor cameras will require charging (easy task to accomplish) and there is a monthly security cost to consider if you want longer Cloud storage.

Night vision is decent, though not as good as daytime video clarity, it is still very acceptable in my opinion. I still like Arlo a lot for its nice design, great video quality, durability and ease of use; I just with the subscription plans were a bit less.

This Arlo Essential Indoor Camera is all about image quality and software. I have the camera facing the front door to the house covering the door and 4 windows where someone may be able to gain access.

The image has always been clear and every person or animal that comes in view of the camera is immediately recognizable. The best parts about the Arlo are the features. There are so many security features built into the software and with a recurring month to month payment you can have access to all of them including emergency response from fire or police department.

You can even trigger a really loud siren that emits from the camera when you get an alert of someone passing by the camera(this one is free). Motion alerts are very sensitive but you can adjust alerts to only people if your dog or other pets pass by too often such as mine does.

The physical camera also has a privacy shield that when activated covers the lens and mutes audio. Also note that audio can trigger an alert to your phone if you want it. The great thing about the Arlo app and software is the ability to highlight exactly which motion is detected by placing a green box around the person or animal that it detected passing by so you know exactly where to look.

The downside to Arlo is having to upgrade to a paid version if you want to use all the features including a timeline of the days events caught on the camera. At this time, you only get to view the alert one time and the rest is saved to the cloud which is restricted by a pay wall.

The subscription is cheap however and definitely worth it to protect your home. If you ever need to, two way audio is available as a free feature for this camera but note that there is about a 1-2 second delay and the “live” video is not actually live.

Overall, the Arlo covers basically every feature that one would need in an indoor security camera. I would highly recommend.

I purchased the Blink Mini 2 pack while testing out some other cameras and found them to be lower in overall quality and features compared to all others at this price point. Pros: -inexpensive camera that you can view via internet -Motion alerts -Two-way audio is great for monitoring purposes Cons: -You must purchase a subscription to record ANY video -Video quality is poor compared to other cameras at this price point -Night vision (infrared) was mostly useless for viewing outdoors at night (camera based inside) -The app feels dated and frequently threw errors saying “Camera in use”.

It also forced the cameras to restart multiple times. -The “Live view” is limited to 30 seconds at a time by default, which can be frustrating if you want to use it at a monitor -Paid subscriptions are necessary to take advantage of the on-board camera features or to save any recordings Recommendation: 1) Look up subscription costs ahead of time to make sure you understand which feature(s) you’ll need to pay for on a recurring basis 2) Look for review videos for Blink and other vendors to compare features and camera quality.

This will give you a reliable point of reference for how they perform and what else is available at the same price point. Overall, I was unhappy enough to want to return them, but it wasn’t worth the effort at the price I purchased them for.

Going forward, I will only use them if I need a low-quality live camera feed with motion alerts. My primary daily cameras now are from another vendor that sells higher quality cameras at the same price point without the need for ongoing subscriptions.

I added this wired mini camera to my existing Blink wireless kit. Setup was easy, with the added benefit of this camera running off a USB adaptor. The only rub was that the adaptor in the box was dead on arrival.

Since I have a drawer full of USB adaptors, I scrounged one that came from an Echo Dot. The camera works reliably, capturing an alternate view from my Blink doorbell camera of my front door. In my setup, the doorbell camera gets the side/profile view, and the mini gets the frontal view of anyone who comes to my door.

The IR view is less than stellar with most cameras. To address this, I disabled the IR function, and rely on a motion sensor light to provide sufficient lighting, and the best video quality possible.

I have no complaints, and I really appreciate the low price. This isn’t the best quality camera on the market. But then again, it does what it needs to do, keeping an eye on my home. The app is required, and if you want local storage, you will also need to buy the Sync 2 module.

When compared to the monthly fees many of the competitors charge for video storage, I prefer this option of having all my videos stored in my own home, and not the cloud, where there is a monthly fee.

This beats the old DVR setups with wires running everywhere, and the spinning hard disk making a constant racket by a huge margin. Easier setup, and a much lower cost is just the icing on the cake.

I do not like how you can not view any past video clips with purchasing the monthly subscription. I purchased when target offered the special where I got these for $5 each with purchase of the Amazon echo shows or I would have purchased other brands.

I have google cams in the rest of my home. Biggest con to these outside of the subscription is the “two-way”. When I go to talk through the camera I can not hear the other end until have let off of the talk button.

Even then I can’t hear and have to exit and come back to the camera in the app. If you do not plan on having ALL blink cameras in your home I would not purchase, if you need to communicate with the cameras I would not purchase.

My google nest cameras I can have a back and forth conversation with someone in my home while I’m away no problem and google stores video clips for 3 hours before deleting if you don’t have the subscription.

You can only see live feed with the blink. The cameras also make a clicking noise when the motion detection is on.

I’ve tried out and installed quiet a few camera systems and mini cameras and the Blink Mini is definitely one of my favorites. I’m always amazed at how much easier it is getting to setup/install newer hardware.

For this one, setup was as simple as installing the app (yes, another app) and scanning the back of the device. Once the device is recognized, you connect it to your internet and you’re good to go. Beyond the ease of setup, I was especially impressed with the clarity of the picture even when zooming.

This is NOT a wireless setup, so you do have to connect to a power outlet with the included cord. But, moving the camera is as simple as finding an outlet and plugging it in. The motion detection is very sensitive, so you’ll get nonstop alerts on your phone if you select this option.

Night video is very clear and great quality. This also works with Alexa, but I’ve yet to try that part out. Keep in mind, this is an indoor camera, so it won’t survive the elements if you try to put it outside.

The two way audio is interesting and would probably be my only knock on this device. It works like a walkie talkie in that you press, hold, speak. While doing this, the sound on the other end is muted until you’re done holding the speak button.

Sound is clear, but it would be nice to have open sound both ways. Beyond that, I really like this little camera. Simple setup, great sound, and fantastic clarity with a wide lens.

I normally don’t make poor reviews, but I am not happy with this camera, and I only paid $10 for it because it was an add-on when I bought my Echo Show 8. I guess it is worth the $10 for me to check in on my cat occasionally, but I see if is $34 now, and I wouldn’t pay that.

It says I am signed up for a free 30-day trial for the Premium recording service, but I don’t see what is “Premium” about their recording. I bought a $35 camera from Wyze, and I pay $15-20 a year for Premium service.

The Wyze recording videos are clear, the notifications are great, barely any glitches, you can easily submit a feedback if the software mis-identified an item. I know this is weird, but I would not recommend the Blink camera, but I would recommend a Wyze camera.

I have yet to try Ring cameras or any other brand.

As with all blink devices, they are very easy to install and setup. I have 4 Blink XT cameras outdoors already and this was a good quality indoor camera option. It is very easy to set up, just open your blink app and select the + icon, scan the camera and add to an existing camera system or create a new one.

Video quality is good, audio quality is not great. The base is weighted so you don’t have to wall mount it if you don’t want to. Options in the app to flip the video if mounted upside down. Lots of options to enable/disable motion detection, set active motion zones, adjust retrigger time, sensitivity, clip length and night vision adjustments.

Overall a great indoor camera option that is easy to setup within minutes. For the Blink Mini wired camera, it would be nice to have the continuous viewing option available instead of having to click continue every 30 seconds or so.

Outside of that, this camera has every thing you can ask for in an entry level and affordable indoor camera.

When the Wyze cameras first came out they were amazing. Decent hardware at a great price, and helpful developers actively listening/contributing to the community discussion. Not long after receiving a large investment from Norwest Venture Partners things seemed to change.

The long awaited RTSP feature that had been talked about from day 1 was essentially killed off with just a half hearted off chute firmware which seems to be intentionally difficult to get working. That firmware also removes most of the other features which were already functional.

Wyze has really committed to the Surveillance As a Service product model which means you now pay monthly for your $25 camera. Features like Record to SD on Motion, which were a selling point of the cameras now require a paid membership to use.

And on a number of camera models, the SD slot has been disabled by the newer firmware. (Cannot say if this is a “bug”, but I have not heard back from support) Take this with a grain of salt as it is purely an opinion, but I would no longer recommend these cameras unless this is what you are looking for.

This is refurbished pan cam at for what I consider a low cost of $20. I had been curious to try a WYZE cam. It seems to move fine. The quality of the video is also good. Good sensitivity at low light levels.

What I didn’t like is to start using the cam requires setting up an account at WYZE before you can test the cam with a cel phone. That is followed by a lot of daily emails to buy more products and have a paid subscription to better WYZE motion detection software.

When it records, I wish it had a setting to decide record length and break a large file into smaller files (example: file size of minutes and not hours). That way if the file is corrupted, the whole recording is not lost.

Plus it is easier to pick out a smaller file to save or move. I was really hoping to be able to connect it to my security DVR, but it doesn’t have Onvif protocols. There isn’t any software WYZE offers for PC’s.

RTSP firmware can be loaded on the cam and the video can be seem by VLC software on a PC, but still no software to control it from a PC. Tech support wasn’t very helpful. Decided to keep the cam, but it isn’t the cam for me and I wouldn’t recommend it.

The Wyze Pan Cam V2 verses the Wyze Pan Cam V1 is a nice upgrade in quality of picture and the siren alert. The new sensor has a high-quality picture that you can see the difference very easily. For $10 more I think the upgrade was worth every penny of it.

Wyze cameras have a better Wi-Fi signal than other cameras and stays connected farther away from the router than other wireless cameras. The playback videos are easy to use with a 32 GB card installed.

One of the best cameras that does pan and tilt for the money. They are not waterproof, but you can get creative and put them under carports where it is always dry and they work great. The talk back feature works easily and is clear.

The power cable is only 6 feet long so you have to buy a longer cable if you install it away from a receptacle.

Ring cameras are great cameras and the Ring Indoor 1080P is no exception. I used it in a Nursing Home that allows caretakers to place cameras in their loved ones rooms. Not only did it provide peace of mind for my loved one but for me.

Also a plus is that I could speak to her anytime I wanted and to staff if they had questions or if I had concerns. I love that everything is stored in the cloud for a small monthly fee. Having live real time video and motion detection is the main reason for me purchasing this particular camera.

Picture and sound quality during a call is much better than most all the camera I could have purchased. I brought my loved one home and now I can use it in her room. Also have Ring doorbell and an additional indoor to monitor things around the house when we’re away.

I purchased this in-door security camera to protect my privacy of my bedroom as I live in shared accommodation and wanted to make sure nobody was sneaking around in my bedroom. The camera works great and the motion detection and video quality is incredible for the price.

However the sound quality is inherently and noticeably worse; the microphone on the camera itself is pretty God awful unless it is placed in the same room as the broadband box, and the same goes for the talk-back feature; the speaker on the microphone emits barely any viable sound.

One thing I did not realise was when signing up with Ring, the video and motion capture storage is actually not included with the camera, and it costs £2 per month as a somewhat hidden subscription fee.

All in all i’m not entirely disappointed with the camera because of the price tag – but it could definitely be better.

Both the software and physical quality of this product is garbage. I get blown up with notifications when the wind blows even if i change the settings. I get notifications of my cat walking around my house.

You have to log on to the app and select “home” or “away” modes instead of it using bluetooth, wifi, or location. So everytime you leave your house or come home you have to change it. It is the biggest waste of money.

I was very kind when I called customer service and they were rude, dismissive, and would not work with me as a customer. I would do anything to get my money back, unfortunately it was over the 30 day period for target and Ring would not compensate for even a dime.

They have a lot to figure out with this product. Spend the extra money on a nest camera.

I have now bought 2 of these and some trial and error was required in setting them up. I have them indoors pointing out to our cars and rear garden room door and use them in conjunction the led security lights so that they can give us a good image in the dark.

Firstly, when setting make sure you are close to your router, secondly use a micro SD card that is capable of recording HD quality video. And don’t use anything over 32GB as no matter what it says on the box it will just not work.

I have infra red and status lights switched off. I get reflections from the glass when lights are on but when the house is in darkness the image quality is very good. There is virtually no delay in viewing live images on the app and I can view both cameras at the same time.

It’s also possible to zoom in on the screen by stretching the image. They also have good build quality feel and come with magnetic mounts so the options of mounting locations are numerous. Pretty happy with these given the low cost.

The camera is controlled by their servers, so effectively, if their servers go down so does the control of the camera. The app you use controls the servers, not the camera directly. I raised this as a privacy issue as it means they have access to your personal data and can control the use of your camera, but it seems the oriental values on this are not what we would consider appropriate.

The video files on the SD cards are only readable through their app and it is only for PCs not Macs. I actually found a work-around with an App called Handbrake. Shhhh, but it is a pain to then transfer the files into a more readable format.

The whole system is designed to suck you in for a subscription to use their cloud storage. that said, they are well priced for decent picture and audio capture and have some good functions.

The Ezviz has a lot going for it. Firstly, it is very easy to install (magnetic plate screwed or bonded to any wall) and secondly it is very easy to set up – the camera actually tells you what to do! It has a wide view lens and covers a good distance – with the camera set in the far corner of our lounge, we can clearly see the buttons on the microwave oven in the kitchen, 7+metres away.

Night vision image is excellent too. Note, you do not have to subscribe to the Ezviz cloud/website, you can have the camera store video on a Micro SD card (slotted into the camera) and observe the recording on your Smartphone via the free Ezviz App, with a WiFi or Data connection, in real time.

If required, you can download the recording to your Smartphone as an mp4 file. I did of course try to find an even better price on this but Toolstation had the best price by far.

Not like the older version of wansviews camera’s u can’t get into setting to change dns, enter a user and password for each camera or adjust. brightness etc. The pc app only can view 1 camera at a time.

Plus keeps disconnecting. Must keep closing app and then have to keep signing in again. so in short the video is very good and that is about it. They need to put in setting like the old mobile and pc app.

The new apps are no good. If you are only want to set them up and use the cloud or view them without changing setting then they are easy to set up. Me I will put the four of them away and only use them if they can fix the apps.

I thought they was the old non cloud when I bought. them. As far as I am concerned the went from the top of the mountain to the bottom of the sewer. If camera’s IP address can be seen on my router then they are hackable.

This is why I WILL NOT USE THEM. WANSVIEW FIX THE APPS PUT BACK SETTING and don’t tell me you can’t with cloud camera’s. Because I have 6 camera’s from another brand that have setting and cloud service.

I’M WAITING.

Color can be washed out in bright sunlight. Detail with zoom is poor. Overall good camera for general use, very good indoor videos. Price and ease of use makes this a good overall camera to keep track of home while you are away.

Older app much easier to use then the new one.

Great product for the price. This is not a spy satellite camera with extremely detailed definition, but a sound camera with sufficient definition for home use. If you happen to have other cameras of the same brand, the application provides one-place convenience for montoring all of them.

Setup is a snap (no pun intended).

great camera has all features, great quality. I had to send mine back reluctantly, most of YouTube’s videos showed the stand was already attached to the camera. I could not get the stand on the camera so I sent it back.

Walmart I have found I always have to take electronics back, patio screen I couldn’t get installed because of covid, and when an installer came this year it fell apart, and Walmart would not take it back, the manufacturer they used they weren’t using anymore.

why poor quality something is always wrong. The only thing I’m going to buy from Walmart is produce, paper towel.

Great quality and cheap price for two. It’s simple and easy to install and it is very clear to see through the phone, you just need to download the app. I install one in my baby’s room and another one in the living room, so far I am satisfied with that.

It is good product for indoor use. Worth the money.

I use these to keep an eye on my kitties while I’m out. Been working great and the cloud subscription is inexpensive. You can put an SD card instead, but subscription is so cheap, it’s worth having.

First impression: My first impression of the Eufy Floodlight Cam 2 Pro is that it is a solid, well-built, indoor security camera. The packaging is good, and it comes with the camera, mount, Quick Start Guide, USB power cable with power adapter, positioning card, and all physical and electrical mounting hardware.

Installation: The IndoorCam Mini can be mounted on the wall, ceiling, or sitting on a shelf. For the test, I sat mine on the Media center facing us. You have a 360° pan, so you need to take this into consideration when placing the camera.

The camera uses a USB cable and power adapter to power the camera. I also have small battery-powered cameras around the house. They provide flexibility in being able to move them around but charging times for their batteries range from 3 hours per camera to 8 hours.

With the USB power setup, the camera is never down waiting for a battery to charge. Camera setup with the Eufy app is extremely easy. You make sure the camera is on the same network as the app, open the app, click on the Add Device button, and follow the directions.

You need a QR Reader app, because the app will create a QR code and scanning the code with the camera sets up the entire thing. It is one of the easiest camera setups I have done. App: The app is very clean, very responsive, and contains large buttons for control making it easy to control the camera and not make mistakes.

The camera is very quick to respond. I already have a Eufy Floodlight Cam Pro on the app, and the app handles both cameras beautifully. On the main page, both cameras are listed and selecting a camera makes it live.

The app provides access to the camera for a live feed, a menu for recorded events, and all the settings to control all aspects of this camera. You can completely control and use this camera with or without a monitoring plan, and all options are available in the app.

Performance: The video quality is very good in both good light and low light. If the light gets too low, the night vision automatically kicks in as long as it is configured to do so. The night vision is very clean and clear.

The audio is also very good as long as the app isn’t in the same vicinity as the camera. Using the app, you can set up motion detection, activity zones for motion detection, motion tracking, what you want to detect, night vision, sound detection, notifications, and the ability to save recorded video to the local MicroSD card, cloud storage, or a NAS drive.

I set up storage to my local NAS drive and it was very easy and works wonderfully. There is a slight delay when panning and tilting, but it is very small. Compared to other cameras I have used; it was quicker than most.

Pan and tilt are controlled by a round button on the app. Zooming is done using your fingers on the video screen and is instantaneous. Conclusion: I really like the Eufy IndoorCam Mini. It is a small, easy to operate camera with great performance and outstanding video and audio quality.

The app is clean, easy to use, and provides complete control and configuration of the camera. Setup is the easiest I have encountered for wireless cameras, and the ability to save recorded video and audio to a NAS drive is a very nice feature.

I highly recommend this camera.

I bought this camera as a friend has one exactly like it. I have recently taken up go karting and wanted to take some footage of my drives with my 10 year old son who is also driving using the helmet camera mount.

The compact design and clear HD video is the selling point. I have used it a few times now and although I had no trouble with the camera or operation on the day of videoing it has done some strange things recently.

The first camera I bought was not vibrating as it should to indicate you have turned it on and off, this was a fault with the camera and it was replaced immediately without any fuss. The second camera worked but I could not do the firmware update on it although I carried out the process to the letter.

I have left it with the old firmware. It still works. It also has needed a hard reset as it would not turn on one day even though the battery was fully charged. I have read some reviews and the support forums on the ReplayXD website and I am not the only one with issues.

In general I like the camera, when it is working it works really well, but it has a few small issues that might be a firmware problem. The low light video is not the best, but daytime sunny video is great.

You can modify the advanced video settings by trial and error but only if you can review the video on a laptop or display to check the settings. This is not easy and can be time consuming. The attaching pads and mounts are solid and will take some punishment.

I can not compare this product to other similar video cameras as I have not used any others, but this one does take nice footage. In 720HD @ 60fps it is smooth and easy to edit in my video studio software.

Love the ability to slow mo the footage and still get sharp images. The time lapse camera images are good, not great and I had some lense ghosting by the light hitting the clear protection lense and leaving a ghost on the images.

I like the solid feel to the whole unit and the quality of the case, mounts and accessories is worth the asking price. The only reason I would not give this 5 stars is due to the turning on issue and the firmware update problem.

Though this camera does not have a built-in screen — or because it doesn’t — it is perfect for unobtrusive mounts. I have one mounted under the mud visor of my motorcycle helmet, protected from just about everything and out of the airstream, where it doesn’t pull on my head or get overwhelmed by wind noise.

I used another, strapped to a slot car (Slot Racing Indy/Anderson in FB), to run demonstration laps. A larger camera would have upset the dynamics of the slot car or not cleared under the bridges. The lack of a screen is no problem in most cases, ‘;cuz it’s wide-angle enough; and no screen means no battery drain, so it records for longer than I need it to.

Then I just pop the micro-USB into my laptop and copy the files. Speaking of lightweight — it’s not even noticeable when worn. And I dropped it once, with no apparent damage. Just FYI.

Camera great, instructions terrible! Book says it’s ready to go. Just not true! You must first down load the. bin file from their web site and load the software onto the mini disk that comes with the camera.

That information is not in the booklet, it’s on their web site, and you have to hunt for it. AND, don’t press any buttons while the software is loading. You could damage the camera, which I made the mistake of.

I now own two of them, the first purchase may never work, the second purchase works beautifully. To many emails and to much time spent on the first one, with no resolution.

I have had my MAC for over a year now. The video quality is great, and the sound seems to be good, as well. Mine is on the handlebars of a Bacchetta recumbent racing bicycle, so the mic picks up the sounds of the chainrings and chain quite clearly, which distracts from the other sounds of the road.

I had some trouble figuring out how to set it up to be powered by the external 2600 mAH battery, but the online support helped. You might find the instructions more intuitive than I did; I tend to be impatient.

With the internal battery, I could record for about 2 hrs. 40 minutes. With the external battery option I recorded my longest ride, about 5 hrs 15 minutes of moving time on a 72 mile ride. A Sandisk Ultra 64 GB micro SD card works fine and gives me sufficient recording time for my usual rides.

The settings are done via software, which is pretty basic and not the most intuitive, but the support network makes up for that. If you have questions, you can get answers. I especially appreciate the low profile and lack of wind resistance.

It is not so obvious that I feel compelled to remove it at rest stops, as I might with a GoPro. The bike mount is highly adjustable and pretty stable. I have had it move a little going across big dips at 20+ MPH, but it’s easy to adjust it back.

I could also lock it down a bit tighter, but like being able to pan the camera a bit when I ride. I was concerned about the lack of an LCD screen, but I find that with the wide angle lens and the flat design of the case, I can aim the camera pretty easily, just by making sure it is level and pointing straight ahead.

Not bad for eighty bucks!.

I’ve started taking the Mobius out on the road (I bike) and so far it seems to be working fine. One hitch I had which took a while to get resolved was saving changes to the camera’s settings. I downloaded the manual which someone was nice enough to put together and checked online forums, but one important step which they neglected to mention is that after you hold down the “M” and power buttons to generate the SYSCFG.

TXT file, and after you load that file into the (also downloaded) software manager, and after you make your changes, and after you save your changes, there is STILL ONE IMPORTANT STEP LEFT. You have to hold the “M” and power button down together again so that the saved file will “take” into the camera.

Otherwise, your changes won’t happen. I did finally find this out from the following thread: https://dashcamtalk. com/forum/threads/how-to-create-the-syscfg-txt. 5564/.

The ActionCam is useless as a drive recorder because, when set to “Loop Recording”, it will only loop AFTER it first fills the MicroSD card. This then leaves the card full and the next time you turn it on it will not record at all.

This is done by design (documented in the setup program) and is not a bug. I have been in contact with the company directly and they show little interest in addressing the issue. The device is also super sensitive to connecting and disconnecting from a PC.

It often gets into a state where it simply does not write to the MicroSD card, though the indicator lights seem to show normal operation. The only solution to this is a full format, which takes quite a while.

I have had to do this four times already in just one week!.

I really love this product. It works exactly as expected, actually better than expected because Wyze is always making updates and improving their software. The price point for this camera is unbelievably affordable given the quality.

Wyze has quality products and TOP NOTCH customer service! They aren’t as well known as some other companies (yet) but they are an ethical company and have very quickly become a reliable company for all of my home security needs.

I have purchased multiple products from them. I have owned this camera for almost two years and have not once experienced an issue. Thanks to Wyze I have peace of mind.

I really like these cameras. The quality is wonderful. They are small in size and can. be placed anywhere. They have a magnetic base for metal use and sticky option for non metal. I use them to check on my puppy during the day.

The ability to subscribe to the software and save videos is wonderful.

Pros: Easy mounting with magnetic base. Includes metal plate to attach to wood or other material, then magnet on base of camera attaches to that. – Very sensitive to movement. -Has an adjustment for sensitivity – Sound and voice control Cons: Doesn’t recognize memory card that came with it.

Originally was left this camera (& other SimpliSafe equipment) by the previous home owners who failed to disconnect this camera from their SimpliSafe account. Cannot get in touch with previous owners to disconnect it & SimpliSafe can’t disconnect it due to a theft policy.

All understandable. So instead, I ordered a “new” one from Best Buy; which was actually apparently a return. I set it up & same issue – says the camera is already connect to another account. Says to contact previous owners to remove it from their account before being able to use it.

This was a returned product, no clue who the previous owners were. Called SimpliSafe’s customer care who cannot assist. Suggested returning to Best Buy. I am now having to drive an hour to return this returned one & try to repurchase another one because I really need it to monitor a new pet in the next 2 days.

Really wish we weren’t already in the SimpliSafe ecosystem of cameras & security. Can say for sure that if the previous owners didn’t already have a lot of these sensors already set up & we were starting fresh with a security system, we definitely would have chose with a different brand.

This little security camera is perfect for monitoring a room or small space. The packaging is appealing, and the setup is quick with easy to follow instructions. The connecting cable is difficult to plug into the camera as the plug is deep in a crevice.

You just have to feel around until it snaps into place, but other than that, the rest of the setup is just a matter of plugging the camera into an outlet and following the brief how to in the accompanying app.

This camera has tons of features! The picture is in color and super clear, and you get both audio and video of whatever you’re monitoring. There is a few second lag between what is happening in real time and when it shows up on the app.

One of the features is the ability to hold a button on the app and record a message that comes through the speaker on the camera. This might come in useful if you’re away from your pet or monitoring a child from another room.

I am using it to monitor my dog in my camper when I have to leave her in there to run an errand. There is an option (fairly cheap) for a subscription that allows you to record what’s being monitored so that you can save it to share with police (if needed) or someone else.

There is also a cheat sheet in the box to remind you of what the different colors on the camera mean (connected, can’t connect, etc). This camera also seems highly secure. There is an option to close the camera shutter for privacy when you don’t want it to monitor.

The steaming is also encrypted both ways and meets a level of security standards. The camera detects the heat signature of humans so that it doesn’t go off every time a pet moves, and it can also detects and adapts to rooms with low light levels.

You do have to have it connected to WiFi for it to work, and since there’s no power button, you just have to unplug it to turn it off. Overall, it’s a great camera, is small and portable, and is high quality.

I really like the compact factor, the convenient and easy mounting options. The quality and stabilization of the recording is also top notch for something at this price. I would say this is comparable to a GoPro in terms of video quality and stabilization.

However, the biggest problem that ruined the Insta360 GO 2 for is that it overheats. It’s suppose to be able to get about 30 minutes of video recoding with its onboard 32GB if recording at 2k 60 fps.

However, I mounted this on my bike and it was only able to record 5 to 8 minutes at a time, then the yellow light would start to blink, indicating that the camera is overheating. I was willing to overlook the lack of 4k recording due to its size and the quality of the video.

30 minutes of recording isn’t even that long, especially because there is no removable battery either, so you would have to stop, put the camera back in its charging case, wait for it to charge in order to record again.

I was still willing to overlook this. However, overheating while I’m riding on my bike is unusable. A lot of action cameras will overheat, but they tend to work just fine when I actually use them for action, moving around, biking, etc.

Yet, the Insta360 GO 2 still could not record longer than 8 minutes for me. How unfortunate.

WARNING – don’t buy this camera if you want to capture the video image as described by dropcam in terms of picture quality. I say this because I’ve just discovered after using my camera for a few months and paying for the 30 day cloud recording that every video you download will be stamped with a large “dropcam a nest company” in the bottom right hand corner.

I have this on all my children’s birthday videos. So I researched on the nest support forum where others have the same issue and were told if you contact nest they will remove the logo. However, when I contacted nest to do this I was told; 1) It can’t be removed anymore 2) Even if it could be removed, it is only for future recordings and all my children’s celebrations are permanently stamped with the “dropcam a nest company”.

3) Despite this very important point being missed from the outside of the box etc, they won’t refund me because quote “you should have watched the live demos and you would have seen they all have the watermark on them” < no nest, seeing a commercial with your logo / company name on doesn't make me think my personal home videos will be stamped with it and no, I didn't watch these "live demos", I like other people just read the outside of the box, which does not state anything of the sort.

4) There are so many customers complaining and asking to speak to a manager that quote “none are available and I’m only allowed to stay on the phone with you for 3-5mins” 5) And if you ask for them to stay on the phone to discuss another issue you will get “you can’t have another issue, you can’t just have two issues in one call, I’m hanging up” So while my issue is specific to the lack of warning about the watermark, the refusal to remove it, the clear reduction in image quality caused by the watermark, the lack of a refund, it’s also clear that some of the dropcam/nest customer service agents don’t care about the obvious issue this causes customers and will hang up on you.

I will happily return my nest thermostat, 9 nest protects and my dropcams and never, ever deal with nest again. Cool tech and previously cool company completely ruined by one really dumb watermark decision and zero accountability or help from their customer service.

Very easy to set up and use. Excellent picture quality, motion detection, and alerts. Nice wide range of vision. The two-way audio is cool —- though my dog was surprised at a disembodied voice telling him to get off the bed! Easy to download the mobile app and provides great access to the cam when I am away.

My only complaint is that the monthly charge for cloud storage is a bit high and is charged for each cam separately (albeit at a reduced rate for additional cameras) — the charge is not enough to make me hate the product but is enough to discourage me from buying 4 or 5 of them (though I may buy a second).

I have used various in home cams for the last 5 years — the dropcam is my third brand of camera in that period. Like other tech items, each new generation gets better and better but the old ones seem to become obsolete after about 2 years which also discourages a major investment.

I am a novice computer user with a 4 yr old computer. This took 10 minutes to set up. The set up instructions are 3rd grade simple. If you set the eye to the correct spot in house , you would catch any intruder in the act.

It works on sound or motion or both. It only needs to plug into wall socket after it is programmed (3rd grade simple) It texts my cell phone when there is action happening. Like the cat coming to his dish , the ambulance driving by, the front door opening, my husband heading to refrigerator, if a window was broken.

It launches at that time, into a video feed that shows what caused the action. I can then go to “live” feed. I set it to turn on when I leave house and off when I come in. It knows this, because I allow it to.

My smartphone tells it where I am. I don’t always like to be on the grid , so I shut down location and use the on/off button on the smartphone application from time to time. Remember to program your local police precinct number into your cell phone so you can reach them ASAP if there is a problem.

Dialing 9 1 1 is going to waste time if you are out of town. You want a quick local response. Also- you can talk to your cat or pet or family through the speaker. I scared my child doing this (not recommended by me) Pretty freaky when your walls start talking !!Not a holiday gift guys ! Get her a diamond.

Over all there are a number of good points about the camera and a few bad points that are unfortunately likely to be significant for a few. The pros: Great build quality Great sensor Very light weight plenty of IO connection possibilities Simple to get filming (once set up) Very adaptable platform, from primary camera (with accessories) to B-Roll and Drone Camera.

Uses LP-E6 batteries, very easy to find at a good price. The Cons: The menu is well laid out but the buttons on the front are a nightmare to use. Without dedicated external hardware (yet to find one for sale) there is no way to change the aperture of an automatic lens.

No way to know what your filming exactly without an external monitor. Internal mic is not great, really needs an external mic. Over all I would say that with some accessories this can be a great camera, but on its own it is very limited.

However it is worth noting that this is what the camera was created for, the ability to strap it to a drone and be able to connect it up is fairly straight forward, where as if you want to use it as a video camera for say a wedding you would need an external mic & HDMI monitor at the least.

The biggest downfall of this camera are the buttons on the front of the camera. Navigating menus is awkward and I constantly press the wrong button, this can be fixed with a number of up and coming accessories, but at the time of writing this review the only ones I can find are on sites like kickstarter and have still to raise more funds.

Once the camera is set up however switching it on and setting it to film is very straight forward, do bear in mind that to change the aperture on autofocus lenses requires you to remove the lens (at present) and connect it to a different camera to set an aperture.

hopefully some accessories will come out and fix this issue.

Truly impressed with this little camera. Bought this as a B cam to accompany my Ursa Mini. The quality of the video it produces is so great for something so small. The prores it records is fantastic.

I did notice a bit of fixed pattern noise when shooting in raw under good lighting conditions, but it’s not too bad. My only issue with the camera is the giant bundle of cables that is needed to connect to the camera in order to power it via AC or charge in the attached/supplied LP-E6 battery.

I bought a genuine canon charger and it will NOT charge the generic battery that came with the bmmcc. You have to use the bundle of cables connected via the db15 expansion port to charge it. There is also no charging indicator or the camera to let you know when charging is complete.

If you wish to use batteries, your best bet is to get a genuine Canon LC-E6 charger and a few genuine canon batteries. Avoid generics and be wary of knock offs. Although I hear good things about wasabi brand equivalents.

You can also power the unit with an LP-E6 dummy battery pack and external source of the correct voltage. Currently using this with FD primes, a Lumix 14mm as well as a sony CLM-V55 external monitor.

GoPro has established itself as the one to beat in the realm of action/lifestyle cameras. They make outstanding versatile cameras. And while you can find thrilling and flashy captures of snowboarding and whatnot on their site, I think the best advertising they have for their products can be found on their YouTube channel: see GoPro: Pelican Learns to Fish (filmed on a GoPro HERO4) and GoPro: Lions – The New Endangered Species? (filmed on a GoPro HERO3).

The video captures from much older cameras hold up beautifully and GoPro technology and video quality has escalated SIGNIFICANTLY since then. Recent cameras have truly mind boggling capabilities. And the new HERO11 is stellar in almost every way.

This new offering boasts a few new features that differentiate it from the HERO10: a larger sensor, 10-bit color, improved video stabilization, better battery life, and a new 8:7 aspect ratio capture that allows you to select video/photo cropping that best suits your audience (think: Instagram vs.

YouTube – Vertical vs. Horizontal). The options for this camera are a little bit overwhelming for people like me who are unfamiliar with GoPro cameras. There is NO product manual included with the camera (or with this suite of tools) – the full manual is nearly 160 pages in the English-only version so I can understand the difficulty in providing this in multiple languages.

However, there are plenty of resources online to hold your hand and get you started quickly with the navigation and features on this magnificent camera. The base camera without any accessories is waterproof to 30+ feet.

And while this is a very desirable feature, it also leads to one of my strongest dislikes about the design of the camera itself. To charge the camera, you must either remove a side panel to charge below the inserted battery (which is not locked-in) or use a separate side panel that does not appear (?) to make the camera’s charging port waterproof.

This full panel keeps the charging port protected from water, but there are plenty of options that could have protected this port on the exterior of the camera. It is such a crazy inconvenience that I cannot understand how it is part of a release from a company with over 10 years of experience with these cameras.

Included with this extended creator edition is a media mod – an enclosure for the camera which provides stellar ,clear audio capture, and ports for charging and for an external microphone input – the enclosure closes around the camera with the side panel off (the same panel that must be removed to charge the battery directly).

But since the media mod ports are waterproof, I don’t understand why some simpler port protection could have been in place for the base camera. Why not simply have a base camera that charges directly and can also be enclosed in a case that provides additional options? The camera mounts on stabilizing units by way of pull down flaps.

The creator edition includes a multipurpose grip/tripod which can be charged separately to provide extended battery life to the HERO11. The tripod, when connected directly via USB-C to the camera, is supposed to allow you to control the camera by way of buttons on the grip – I was never able to get any of these controls to work through an established USB connection.

However, the grip can also be used to control the camera via Bluetooth (which works completely once the camera is turned on and connected). The grip/tripod is very well constructed and is easily the best selling point of this suite of items in this creator edition.

But I’m disappointed that it can’t control the camera directly when connected. The camera sports some truly impressive features for low-light and night photography and time-lapse video, but these options really need use of a tripod.

Night captures can be amazing but tend to require longer shutter speeds that aren’t useful for human subjects. A curious and welcome addition to this kit is a rechargeable led light with an attachable diffuser to provide fill-in light for close subjects in low-light conditions.

Because this camera has front-facing and rear-facing screens, even this new extended-life battery seems a little bit weak – especially for people who are much more active than I am. I’m getting usable base camera time of under an hour – with the charged grip attached, I can get closer to three hours.

I really think a complete creator edition might be better served by an extra battery. Usable times I’m getting are considerably short of advertised operating estimates. Overall, this is an outstanding five-star camera with some external problems that make it something less than five-star recommendable (at least to me).

But as for the photo/video capabilities of the GoPro HERO11, this is absolutely the one to beat (and, for sure, the one that any other contender is going to be compared to). My own objections to technical details aside.

there are countless GoPro videos online that capture lifestyles way more exciting than my own and I have never seen a single one that I would argue is an inauthentic representation of what this brand is capable of.

Over the years I’ve had different types and brands of “action cameras”. All of them had their own styles, functions and benefits. I always went for the ones with smaller stealthier look so you didn’t look like you were carrying a lunchbox or a camcorder of the 80’s haha and we all know how big those were.

Advancements in technology have gotten these cameras downsized so small and yet they still manage to pack more features and better internals and externals than the much larger ones years ago. Instead of “viewfinders” now they have fully integrated dual full color digital LCD screens.

One smaller one on the front and a wider touchscreen version on the back with all of the details right there on the screen with bright clear color icons as well. The features on this thing are crazy! 3 Viewing fields, 16:9, 4:3, and now 8:7.

You’ve got the option of 4k or 5. 3k, 60, 30, or 24 frames per second. The newer 8:7 ratio at 5. 3k now gives us 24. 7 million!! pixels, compared to the older 5. 3k at 16:9 ratio which was a mere 15.

8 million pixels. You’ve got ProTune options that allow you to adjust Bit rate, shutter speed, white balance, your iso ratio, and your exposure value. And now a 10 bit capability versus the 8 bit they used to have which was roughly 16 million and now 10 giving you roughly 1 billioooon megapixels (Dr.

Evil in Austin Powers voice) haha which gives you a real clarity upgrade and richness in color. The lens options they give you are Linear + Horizon Lock (full 360 degree rotation) which in my opinion was the coolest because you could basically twist the camera all the way around upside down but the video stayed straight forward the entire time upside down or right side up, Linear 19-39mm, Wide 16-34mm, Superview 16mm, and Hyperview 12mm.

Another really cool option is night mode! You can really get some trick shots that you normally see only done with DSLR’s. One mode is Star Trails which if you set your camera outside aimed up for a while its a time lapsed shot that captures the stars moving but gives the effect that you see when you’re watching Star Wars and about to jump into hyperspace where they all become lines instead of stars.

The next one is Vehicle Lights, again time lapsed shots of cars or traffic passing by giving you a constant stream of light which makes for some awesome shots. Then there is Light Painting where you set the camera out and you can take any light source in your hand and make designs in the air or even air write your name or make shapes and the camera time lapse gives you that full shape or design.

I’ve done this with DSLR’s which you have a lot more settings to deal with to get this right so being able to do these at the touch of a button here makes me love this little camera even more. Everything included is the HERO11 Black camera itself , a nice hard shelled carrying case that’s big enough for all of the included accessories and camera itself, Enduro Rechargeable Battery, curved adhesive mounts, mounting buckle + thumb screw, USB type C cable and free SD card.

I would definitely recommend this to others!.