An outdoor security camera can keep tabs on welcome (and unwelcome) visitors, package deliveries, and furry creatures helping themselves to a midnight snack in your garden. They can also be a powerful deterrent to prospective mischief-makers.
However, after reviewing dozens of cameras over the past seven years, we’ve yet to find a perfect model. Some are hard to place, some need to be charged frequently, and others require a subscription fee to be most effective.
If you want a completely cord-free option, we recommend the Arlo Pro 4 Spotlight Camera.
If you want something a little cheaper (and have an outdoor outlet nearby), we recommend the Ring Stick Up Cam Plug-In.
Being able to store recordings in the camera is common, however we recommend saving video to the cloud so it can be accessed if power goes down.
Wi-Fi cameras can catch action close to your house, but faces and license plates may be unclear—even great cameras may be fuzzy around 20 feet away.
Most companies will share your recordings if they receive a court order or determine it’s an emergency. Check your privacy policy and/or opt for devices with end-to-end encryption.
All smart cameras can detect motion, but some can also tell the difference between a person, pet, car, or package, and record or send notifications on which of those matter to you.