Sometimes the area where you want to place a camera is nowhere near an outlet or maybe there's no way to hide the wires. Cable management is a big thing for aesthetics and seeing your power, network, and AV cables everywhere can make your home look messy. Luckily, there are plenty of wireless devices — even when it comes to home security cameras.
Here are our picks for the best wireless outdoor home security cameras on the market today. These models will blend into your home's design or keep them hidden from view. Of course, being wireless comes with its own pros and cons, which we will cover with each camera. Let's jump into the list.
Arlo Pro 4 Spotlight Camera
Best overall
- Sharp-looking footage
- Additional details with color night vision
- Doesn't require a hub to set up
- Smart security with Arlo Smart service
- Specs are similar to predecessor
- Spotlight required for color night vision
One of our most frequent list contenders comes from the Arlo brand. The latest model from the company is the Arlo Pro 4, a relatively minimal, pebble-shaped camera. It is feature-packed with many smart home features not found in other units.
It captures video in 2K resolution along with its super-wide 160-degree field of view. That video is also colorized at night, which helps set this camera apart from the pack. The spotlight version of the camera comes with a high-beaming light and is equipped with a loud siren, although neither is best in class. The Arlo Pro 4 also connects with all major smart home ecosystems, including Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa, and Apple's HomeKit.
As stated, there are a few drawbacks to any camera, primarily because there's no local storage option. Only having cloud storage options means you have to pay extra to see more footage than what's available on a live stream. It also means there's no backup system if the Wi-Fi drops.
Even with its downfalls, the Arlo Pro 4 still comes out on top as the best wireless outdoor camera you can buy today.
Ring Stick Up Cam Battery
Easy to Install
- Indoor or outdoor usage
- Battery operated - no unsightly wires
- Mounting hardware included
- Extremely versatile
- Battery must be charged occasionally
- Monthly fees for premium features
The Ring Cam is completely wireless, so you can place the Stick Up Cam in or outside your home. It also captures in 1080p resolution and has a 115-degree field of view, which is not quite the lowest on this list. It can also connect with Amazon Alexa and has a removable battery. If you have other Ring products in your home, the Stick Up Cam integrates with them seamlessly.
As far as negatives go, that removable battery has been reported to be tedious to remove, which you may have to do often considering its inconsistent battery life. No local storage also means you pretty much need a subscription, which adds to the low initial price point of this camera.
The Ring Stick Up Cam Battery is still a good option for Ring households that need an extra outdoor camera for security.
Blink Outdoor
Budget option
- Loud internal speaker
- Battery life rated for two years
- Narrow field of view
- Soft video footage
- Muted color reproduction
- Lacks specs boost over predecessor
An underdog addition to our list is the Blink Outdoor, priced at only $100. While it's not the most feature-rich model, it is extremely budget-friendly, which is why it's on our list. That price tag alone can make it an appealing choice, especially if you want to test the viability of having a security camera for your home or if you don't want to invest too much for extra security.
The Blink Outdoor is no slouch either. It will record video at 1080p resolution with a 110-degree field of view. While that's not exactly remarkable, the Blink has near best-in-class battery life — we can probably thank the lack of features for that. Basically, it connects with Amazon Alexa and has space for local storage.
You can check the Blink apps to see a list of features that the Blink cameras don't include — for example, person or animal detection. There's also a subscription attached to the Blink Outdoor, which will bring the first-year cost over $100.
Reolink Argus 3 Pro
Honorable mention
- Crisp-looking 2K video footage
- Excellent night vision performance
- Solar panel add-on doesn't cost a lot
- Easily converts into an indoor camera
- Weak dynamic range
- Antiquated-looking app
The Reolink Argus 3 Pro is this list's honorable mention, and for a good reason. It is similar to the Arlo cameras, with a few features switched. Even the design of the Argus 3 Pro somewhat resembles the Arlo cameras.
The Argus 3 Pro captures footage at 2K resolution as well, but with a 120-degree field of view instead. It also has a general smart home connection by integrating with Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa. You can also use a microSD card for local storage if you don't want to deal with cloud storage or want another failsafe.
Unfortunately, this camera doesn't have a removable battery, so you have to remove the entire camera to recharge it. It also misses some hardware and software features found in other models. For example, there's no spotlight add-on, nor is there a motion zones customization feature for notifications.
Nonetheless, for a high-resolution camera that is somewhat basic, the Reolink Argus 3 Pro is an excellent pickup.
Frequently Asked Questions
This list shows that an excellent wireless outdoor security camera can pull from a diverse list of benefits. Having great resolution and many features can make a camera good, even disregarding the price. The Arlo and Argus cameras in this list are good options.
The Reolink Argus 3 Pro and Blink Outdoor are barebones cameras available at a budget price point.
Security cameras' battery life largely depends on the battery the camera takes. The Blink Outdoor uses AA batteries, which the company states will last two years. The Arlo lasts several months with its rechargeable Li-ion battery.
Some wireless security cameras can work without the internet, namely those that feature local storage recording options. Without Wi-Fi, you won't be able to connect to many of them remotely, but they'll still record activity based on their settings.
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