Tapo 2K 4MP QHD Solar Security Camera Kit with Rechargeable

In the early part of this year I decided to try a camera which I wanted to use to look at our drive while we were away. Being a bit “budget” inclined I got an internal one and pointed it out of the window. It did work (& still does) but at night its lights reflect off the double glazing and it’s hard to see anything much. I didn’t want to get holes drilled for power to the outside so thought that these rechargeable cameras would be a solution to the problem

They have been in use for a little over a month now so I do feel able to offer some sensible thoughts on these in actual use. Generally (but see the later note on “service”) they were easy enough to setup. Charging was easy and the batteries appear to last well. Both cameras have dropped by around 20% in the month but that has included testing and changing settings etc so 3/4 months looks realistic. However it does take some work and understanding to get these to do what I wanted.

For each camera you have “detection” settings as well as “storage and recording” and “video & display”. My internal powered one takes clips that are generally around 1:20 in length and record from before an event to the end of it. These tend to take 18 second ones that start after something happens – still haven’t found a way to tweak that!

Detection is the real issue that you need to focus on. Within that there is “wake up sensitivity” – when you access it it equates to range (why don’t they say that??). There are also settings for motion, person, pet and vehicle detection. The pet one is a bit iffy and not something we need. Range/wake up sensitivity is not that good. The internal camera will happily trigger at an event down the road maybe 20/30 metres away. These have a job reaching much beyond 8 metres for us even at max sensitivity. That said it still covers the entrance to our drive.

Motion detection allows you to setup zones (& so exclude places too) as well as having a sensitivity setting. Person and vehicle (& pet) simply have sensitivity settings. In the setup instruction via the app (pretty effective and easy to use) it suggests that you place cameras so that movement goes across them. Fair enough – however the one mounted over our garage usually fails to see my car leaving it but usually spots it returning…!!! There are odd times when one or the other of these cameras miss something frankly obvious but I’ve not noticed anything worthwhile that has been missed by both.

Personally I think these are fairly worthwhile (particularly when on offer) if you go into this without great expectations and are prepared to tweak things.

I will add a bit on customer service. When I got these one camera played back (locally recorded) clips just fine. The other one didn’t. With some dread I started a web chat and got some help that was ok but the next day the problem was back so I went on the chat again really looking for/expecting to return one camera. Fairly quickly my case was transferred to system engineering support and email with an answer due within 72 hours. In practice I got an email notifying me that there was a firmware update for my hub which sorted the issue out. I was impressed by that.

This TP Link- Tapo wire-free security camera system was exactly what I was looking for. I didn’t want a cloud based storage system or anything that was hard-wired for power or storage. This 2-camera kit offered both cloud based or local storage as well as battery operated wi-fi outdoor cameras. As it is a bundled kit, you get pretty much everything you need to be up and running in a couple of hours or less. If you are intending to use local storage for video you’ll need a good Micro SD card (I chose a SanDisk 256GB Extreme PRO microSDXC card which is suitable for this type of recording – but other makes are available). Charging the batteries was the task that took the longest but so far the batteries are holding charge well despite a fair bit of use. The spec suggests they should be good for a few months before needing a recharge. The app shows the state of charge of each camera battery so you’ll know when to top them up. Set-up instructions were easy to follow so that aspect was a doddle. Using the cameras is quite intuitive, and fine tuning the various settings through the app helped reduce false activations. Permanent Installation on a wall is easily accomplished by someone with average DIY skills. Tools required are a drill, preferably a hammer drill, a 3 mm drill bit to make pilot holes, a 6mm drill bit for the wall plugs (Masonry bits for brickwork), and small Phillips screwdriver. The bundle even includes templates to stick on the brickwork as a drilling guide. The cameras record good pictures and video and faces/people can be easily identified. Activations appear on my phone app almost instantly. Other great features include the ability to speak through the camera, remotely activate an alarm at the camera and record sound. Great value of peace of mind and a basic home security enhancement.

Installation was easy since I bought the wireless, solar powered version. Coverage and sensitivity seems good – I have it observing the space outside our house which is completely unlit at night, but it still captures decent quality images. It does like a strong WiFi signal in order to be able to stream at maximum resolution. When I first installed it, the signal was not strong enough and it suggested reducing the resolution. I relocated one of our mesh wifi disks and it is now supporting maximum resolution without trouble. I’m an impatient beggar and only charged it to about 80% before installing – hopefully, a few days of strong sun will be enough to bring it close to 100%