Ecobee SmartCamera evaluation: Must you would tolerate a subscription, this security cam has more functions than most

Ecobee builds our absolute favourite tidy thermostat, and its original SmartCamera with assert-regulate security camera is magnificent as progressive. But right here’s a huge-competitive blueprint, and Ecobee doesn’t raise quite ample to the desk to define this camera’s $179 mark (and now not-so-optional subscription).

This camera can also also act as the hub of a broader residence security plan, on the opposite hand, so we’ll put up a separate evaluation of that entire ecosystem soon. This account specializes within the SmartCamera’s skills as a dwelling security camera and an Alexa tidy speaker.

This evaluation is segment of TechHive’s coverage of the most productive residence security cameras, the prevent’ll procure experiences of competing merchandise, plus a purchaser’s handbook to the functions you ought to withhold in mind when shopping.

The Ecobee SmartCamera isn’t the most useful security camera to combine Alexa. The Honeywell Dwelling Properly-organized Security Digicam from Resideo does the same trick, and that tool has been on the market since slack 2018 (we reviewed it as segment of Resideo’s residence security bundle). Ecobee’s camera is a long way better than Resideo’s, but it completely also prices nearly $100 more than Resideo’s camera by itself.

Michael Brown / IDG

Another beneficial exercise is to evaluation Ecobee’s camera to the Arlo Pro 3. While that indoor/open air camera ought to be purchased as a two-camera starter pack with a outrageous enviornment for $399, further cameras hotfoot for $199 every—magnificent $20 more than Ecobee’s.

And the save Ecobee’s strictly indoor, AC-powered tool is particular to 1080p video, Arlo’s battery-powered camera boasts 2K resolution. On the a range of hand, none of Arlo’s merchandise incorporate a digital assistant, and they’ll’t be incorporated into a broader residence security plan.

The Ecobee SmartCamera has a dual-band 802.11ac Wi-Fi adapter onboard, plus a Bluetooth 5.0 radio for making the preliminary connection to your cell tool (there are apps for Android and iOS). The camera modified into once very easy to enviornment up. There’s an 8-core CPU onboard working at 2GHz, 1GB of LDDR4 RAM, and 4GB of flash memory (none of which is aged for onboard video storage. Extra on that in a little bit of.) The camera can also also be tilted forward or encourage on its weighted, one-scamper-high conical stand for placement on a flat surface, or you would mount the stand and camera to the wall.

Recording video prices further

Must you don’t pay for Ecobee’s Haven tidy residence carrier, which prices $5 monthly ($10 monthly in case you want it for more than one camera), the Ecobee SmartCamera is precisely a are residing-gape tool. It gained’t account video at all, it has no native storage, and you gained’t receive motion-detection indicators with out a subscription.

In that sense, as is the case with Ring’s video doorbells and security cameras, a Haven subscription isn’t in reality all that optional. Ring’s $10-per-month carrier opinion, on the a range of hand, involves twice as powerful storage (30 days versus 14 from Ecobee), and you procure professional monitoring in case you furthermore may take its Ring Fear product. I’ll evaluation Ecobee’s corpulent residence security offering, and disagreement it with Ring’s, in a separate evaluation.

With out the Haven carrier, you would gape a are residing movement from the camera, but you would’t account that video or think a snapshot of it (except you make utilize of a range of utility to think a screengrab of the app), and there may be not this kind of thing as a historical previous of occasions that you just would stare encourage to. With out reference to all that, the camera is now not with out its charms, particularly when viewed from a privateness angle.

Michael Brown / IDG

Privateness functions

Two-part identification is main from the procure-hotfoot, to illustrate, and whenever you instructed the camera’s Autopilot characteristic, Ecobee’s app will utilize your cell phone’s bodily enviornment to automatically turn the camera on whenever you hotfoot away your space and off whenever you approach. This geofencing characteristic works most productive when each person within the household has a smartphone with the Ecobee app set in: Autopilot gained’t instructed except each person leaves. That methodology, you by no method must grief about doing something embarrassing in front of the camera. You per chance can also also instructed the camera manually, whether you’re residence or now not, and this would maybe discontinue on except you turn it off or Autopilot detects that you just’ve left the dwelling and approach encourage all over again.

Ecobee says its camera is HomeKit successfully matched, but that doesn’t currently prolong to Apple’s HomeKit Stable Video, which processes camera video on native network devices (e.g., an AppleTV, iPad, or HomePod) and stores encrypted video recordings to your iCloud epic. Ecobee says HomeKit Stable Video enhance is coming soon.

Efficiency

Michael Brown / IDG

The Ecobee SmartCamera’s 1080p video is terribly crisp, and it has a slick monitoring characteristic that automatically zooms in on any one who enters its extensive enviornment of gape: 180 levels diagonal, 170 levels horizontal, and 115 levels vertical. The camera will then song that particular person as they switch across the room. There may be not any pan/tilt motor onboard, so right here is carried out digitally and internal the camera (now not within the cloud). You per chance can equally pan, tilt, and zoom the camera’s focal point while viewing a are residing movement by tapping a directional pad within the app.

Night imaginative and prescient is enabled by a trio of 850nm infrared LEDs. These can also also be disabled within the app so that they don’t deem off a window whenever you occur to to make a resolution to space the camera there to video show an open air blueprint (it is miles never weatherized and can’t be set in open air). The camera’s evening imaginative and prescient photos are crisp and certain.

Audio is streamed alongside with video, and two-methodology audio is supported so that you just would have a conversation with the particular person in front of the camera (or enlighten at them if it’s an intruder). Speaking of intruders, the camera has an onboard siren, but it completely can handiest be activated manually by urgent a button within the app, and it’s under no instances loud—magnificent 76dB.

Michael Brown / IDG

The siren would be method more precious as a deterrent if it’d be enviornment to head off whenever you’re out of the dwelling and the camera’s motion sensor is precipitated. This shortcoming turns into method more glaring whenever you withhold in mind the broader residence-security possibilities on hand internal the Ecobee ecosystem.

As a tidy speaker, the Ecobee SmartCamera is kind of as efficient as an Echo Dot: It dutifully responds to its wake observe (there are also contact-shapely buttons on high for summoning the digital assistant and muting the camera’s mics), and it could per chance enact with regards to the entire talents of any a range of Alexa tool. I modified into once ready to place it to use to regulate all facets of my Vivint Properly-organized Dwelling plan (turning lights on and off, opening and closing motorized shades, arming its security characteristic, etc).

Announcing “Alexa, I’m hot” resulted within the Ecobee tidy thermostat reducing its goal temperature by two levels, so the air conditioner fired up. You per chance can also also procure news and weather updates, have the camera play song from linked products and services (from Amazon Tune, now not lower than; the camera gained’t play song on Spotify), and more. It’s moderately primitive as an song speaker—bass response is with regards to nonexistent—but no one buys a security camera for its sonic charms.

Bottom line

It bears repeating: Ecobee makes a homely-ethical tidy thermostat—one that doesn’t require an “optional” subscription to procure the most relieve. The Ecobee SmartCamera has some in reality huge functions, too, but a security camera that can maybe’t protect forensic evidence of against the law—except you’re prepared to pay a monthly price—magnificent isn’t a ethical residence security tag. A security camera with a constructed-in siren is a huge realizing, too, but it completely gained’t be very efficient at deterring an intruder if it handiest operates whenever you push a button on your smartphone.

Ecobee does procure a thumbs-up for its privateness concerns: The Autopilot characteristic that turns the camera off whenever you’re residence, and on whenever you hotfoot away, is a very fair correct characteristic. Integrating an Alexa-powered tidy speaker modified into once a ethical resolution, too. But there are so powerful of security cameras that are better than this one, although they aren’t also tidy audio system.

• The Ecobee SmartCamera isn’t a high-shelf security camera, but it completely does have some huge attributes—including Alexa integration. But you’ll want a subscription to free up the most precious functions related to its core feature.

  Consultants

  • Can discern other folks from animals and bright objects
  • Can focal point on and song a particular person bright across its extensive enviornment of gape
  • Constructed-in Amazon Alexa tidy speaker
  • Can assemble as a hub for a corpulent residence security plan

  Cons

  • Considerable functions, including video recording, require an Ecobee Haven subscription
  • Onboard siren is simply too silent and ought to be manually activated
  • Helps HomeKit, but now not HomeKit Stable Video (that characteristic is “coming soon”)

Michael covers the tidy-residence, residence-entertainment, and residential-networking beats, working within the tidy residence he in-constructed 2007.