Wyze Labs expands its budget-priced smart home security lineup this week with two new wireless outdoor cameras: the Battery Video Doorbell and the Solar Cam Pan pan/tilt camera.
Wyze Battery Video Doorbell
The Wyze Battery Video Doorbell is built for easy installation and full front-door coverage. Its 1:1 aspect ratio, 150- × 150-degree field-of-view lens captures any activity on your porch with resolution of 1536 x 1536 pixels. The doorbell can operate wire-free for three to six months on a charge, or you can connect it to your existing low-voltage wiring for continuous power. Opting for the latter enables a pre-roll feature that captures an additional 3- to 6 seconds of video before a motion event triggered the camera to record.
With an optional Cam Plus subscription ($3 per month/$20 per year for each Wyze camera you own), you’ll get AI-powered person and package detection, 14 days of storage in the cloud, and other benefits. A Cam Unlimited subscription, priced at $10 per month/$100 per year, unlocks additional features, including facial recognition, and covers all the Wyze cameras you might own.
The Wyze Battery Video Doorbell can run wire-free for up to six months. Connect it to your existing low-voltage wiring for continuous power and pre-roll video capture.
Wyze
Other features include two-way talk, quick auto-responses, and a motion-activated voice deterrent that alerts visitors they’re being recorded. The unit carries an IP65 weather-resistance rating and can record locally to a user-provided microSD card (capacities up to 256GB are supported). The doorbell can record video to the card 24/7 when it’s hardwired to power.
Smart home aficionados can integrate the Wyze Battery Doorbell with Alexa, Google Assistant, IFTTT, and Wyze Automations. It’s available now for $65.98.
Wyze Solar Cam Pan
The Wyze Solar Cam Pan is the company’s first solar-powered, wire-free, pan-and-tilt camera. It provides 360 degrees of horizontal and 70 degrees of vertical movement, and it records in 2K resolution with color night vision and what Wyze describes as “Wide Dynamic Range.” The camera’s ETFE (ethylene tetrafluoroethylene) solar panel is designed to deliver continuous power with exposure to about an hour of sunlight per day, supplemented by a built-in 6,400 mAh battery that Wyze says can last up to six months on a full charge of its own. Other features include AI-powered person tracking, a 105dB siren, a motion-activated spotlight, and motion-activated warnings to deter intruders.
The Solar Cam Pan provides 360 degrees of horizontal and 70 degrees of vertical movement and records in 2K resolution.
Wyze
The Solar Cam Pan is rated IP65 for protection from the elements, meaning it’s impervious to particulate-matter (e.g., dust) ingress, and that it’s protected against water projected in jets from any direction (short of a pressure washer, that is). The camera supports up to Wi-Fi 6 networking (initial setup connection is via Bluetooth), and it can accommodate up to a 512GB microSD card for local recording.
The provided mounting kits enable you to mount the camera can be mounted on a vertical wall or under an eave, with the solar panel installed on top or at a nearby location thanks to its 10-foot cable. The Wyze Solar Cam Pan is available now for $79.98.
We’ll have reviews of both devices soon.
