You don’t need a security camera or any other security system for your home as long as you are living in a community where you don’t see burglaries or thefts or any other illegal activities happening around your neighborhood or in your city. But, we are long away from that good old world.
Use this Crime maps from ADT to check how safe your neighborhood and your city. If you look at it, you will notice issues in your town.
Truth is no community, or home is safe as long as everyone is vigilant and following safety instructions from the local law enforcement departments.
Having a security camera around your home helps you to find everything happening around your home while you are inside the home or away. Also, it helps you to present your evidence to the law enforcement with video proof if any unforeseen event happened at your home.
Not every security camera built to solve all the problems. Each one has its advantages and disadvantages. In my previous article, I provided three best wireless security systems for your home. In this article, I am going to list the three reliable, low-cost security systems that work with solar panels.
Reolink Argus 2 and Solar Panel:
This easy to set up a solar-powered security camera comes with full features.
Pros:
- 100% Solar or Battery powered
- Starlight CMOS Night Vision (It is better than Infrared)
- 1080P Full HD Video Camera
- IP 65 Weatherproof camera ( Protected from Dust and Low-pressure water Jets)
- Motion sensor and Intelligent Alerts
- Two-Way audio
- Wide viewing angles
Cons:
- No free cloud storage
- Two-way audio is poor
- Poor motion detection
Ring Stick up Camera with Solar Panel:
This camera is simple to set up and comes with many great features from the Ring ecosystem. It is straightforward to install any Ring devices, and it is the same for the surveillance camera. Only stick the camera onto a flat surface, connect it to the solar panel and connect it to WiFi.
Installation takes about 5-10 minutes. You can view your home with a live view of the Ring app. By hooking up multiple surveillance cameras and linking them all into the app, you can watch over your entire house. It also has a two-way, noise reduction talk feature.
Pros:
- 1080P HD Video quality
- Two-way talk
- Customizable motion zones
- Micro-USB Slot
- IPX5 Water protection
Cons:
- Live streaming takes time (Maybe issue with my WiFi)
- Dust protection is weak
Arlo Go and Arlo Pro (With Arlo Solar Panel)
The Arlo solar panel doesn’t include the camera, but it can be purchased separately. The Arlo solar panel just simply needs to be connected to your Arlo security camera. With the solar panel, you will never have to charge your Arlo camera again.
With only a few hours of sun exposure, the solar panel takes in power from the sun, and it charges your Arlo Go or Arlo Pro 3. The set up is effortless. All you have to do to set it up is to attach the solar panel to the stand and adjust the solar panel on the mount, and then connect the panel to your camera.
The solar panel is designed to be weather resistant, and the operating temperature is 32 degrees to 113 degrees F (0 to 45 degrees C). The solar panel comes with a 6ft power cable, mounting screw kit, an Arlo logo decal, mount, and quick start guide.
Why You Need a Solar-Powered Security Camera?
There are many benefits to owning a solar-powered security camera over battery operated or wired security camera systems. Solar-powered security cameras are charged by the sun’s rays, allowing the security camera to be free from electric cables and saves few bucks out of your energy bill.
You can install these anywhere around your home as these are Wireless and don’t need an electrical outlet to connect or need frequent battery changes. They are also almost maintenance-free and have a long service life.
The only disadvantage of solar panels is You can install them only in areas you get enough sunlight.
Things to consider before buying Solar-Powered Security Camera?
1. Mobile App and Alerts
Nowadays, you’ll find a lot of security cameras that can be operated using simple mobile apps. This feature is quite handy as it will notify you if something’s going on around your premises. It allows you to monitor your property remotely and even control your camera angles and communicate with the person regardless of where you are.
2. Cloud Monitoring vs. Self-Monitoring
Cloud monitoring is ideal if you’re regularly away from your property and need a professional monitoring service. It also allows you to access your security system anytime you want. Apart from that, a cloud backup of your security data can be handy in the event of emergencies.
The amount of free online storage and cloud monitoring plans cost the providers and how long they keep the video on the cloud.
For example, Ring plan starts at $3 for a month or $30 a year with motion notifications, Live video, Two-way talk, and video history for 60 days. Nest 30-day video history plan costs $30 a month.
3. Night Vision
Most security cameras are designed to work regardless if it’s day or night. However, some models might not be suitable for very dark situations due to technical limitations. Therefore, if you want to install a security camera in a poorly lit section of your house, going for one with a night vision feature is ideal.
Choose infrared security cameras that can capture video in low light or no light.
4. Working with Alexa or Google
Most security cameras these days are integrated with various smart features, one of which is voice control. If you want to take advance of voice commands, a security camera that works with either Alexa, Google, and even Siri will be a good option.
5. Wireless Range
Most wireless security cameras will rely on your home’s WiFi network to operate. Therefore, you have to install them within the range of your router to deliver its job correctly. Technically, the longer the wireless range a camera has, the farther you can install it away from your WiFi network without any worries of signal interruption.
6. Viewing Angle
A wider viewing angle allows you to monitor larger areas using only a single camera. As a result, you’ll end up needing only a few cameras for total surveillance of your space. However, you also have to keep in mind that a camera’s image quality should remain impressive despite having a wider viewing angle.
8. Weatherproof
Lastly, you want to make sure that your preferred security camera is weatherproof. This way, you can place it outdoors without having to worry about weather damage and poor performance.
Choose a security camera with an IP rating IP 65 or Above. An IP rating consists of two numbers one first number measures the protection from the dust, and the second number measures protection from the liquids.
Link to IP Rating Chart: http://www.dsmt.com/resources/ip-rating-chart/
Common questions:
Are Solar-Powered Security Cameras any Better than Others?
No, I don’t feel solar powered security cameras any better than regular cameras you still get 2K video, Two-way talk, remote monitoring, and mobile alerts, etc. The advantages you can install them in the areas where you don’t have a power outlet, or It is challenging to change the batteries at regular intervals, believe me, you need these many times in a year.
It also says a few dollars and works when you have a power outage in your area.
How Do Solar-Powered Security Cameras Work?
Solar-powered security cameras no different than the regular wireless cameras only difference is instead of getting power input from me electric wire or a battery, it takes a from solar panel installed along with the camera.
Do we need a WiFi Connection to Set Up a Security Camera?
Almost all security cameras require a WiFi connection or wired connection to send the feed to the store or to live telecast.
However, few security cameras use the 4G LTE network to provide you the live streams or cloud-stored recordings. My favorite one is Arlo Go.
Will I Save Money by Using a Solar-Powered Security Camera?
No, not really. The purpose of solar-powered security cameras is not worth saving the money but to provide easy installation without electric outlets or Wired cable connection. You may save a few dollars by not using electricity, but that is a very negligible amount.
What happens when WiFi is down and lost electric power:
Good question, WiFi issues are quite familiar with any wireless devices, not just security cameras only solution for it is a wired system or buy a camera with SD slot. Most of the security cameras come with a backup battery choose the one with the backup battery option.