The distinctive Nest Cam from 2014 wasn’t the first Nest product, however it truly turned one in every of many agency’s hottest releases. Since then, we’ve seen various riffs and variations on that system, which helped to ship accessible good security cameras to the heaps.
Over time, though, Nest has stopped being the go-to mannequin for good cameras. Extreme prices and the scarcity of wi-fi choices — for every indoor and outdoor cameras — pushed the company to the sidelines. Now, companies like Blink, Arlo, Ring, Eufy, and others dominate the market. Google is hoping to point out that tide with its new offering, the Google Nest Cam — headlined by the Google Nest Cam (battery) model. Lastly, the company has a completely wi-fi indoor/outdoor security camera on its roster.
Was it undoubtedly well worth the wait? Let’s dive into our Google Nest Cam review and uncover out.
About this Google Nest Cam review: I examined the Google Nest Cam (battery) over a interval of seven days. It was mounted open air wirelessly for all the things of the review interval. The unit was provided by Google for this review.
What it’s advisable to know in regards to the Google Nest Cam
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- Google Nest Cam (battery): $179 / £179 / €199
- Google Nest Cam (wired): $99 / £89 / €99
- Google Nest Cam with Floodlight: $279 / £269 / €299
The 2021 iteration of the Google Nest Cam might be very completely completely different from any of its predecessors. First, and most importantly, it could be utilized in every a wired and totally wi-fi state. This makes it, unbelievably, the very first wi-fi security camera bearing the Nest establish. Second, it could be used every indoors and open air, as a result of it has an IP54 rating.
Visually, the system appears heaps identical to the now-discontinued Nest Cam Outdoor. However, it is significantly greater than that older model to accommodate the non-removable battery pack inside. The complete system is in regards to the dimension of a espresso mug — it even appears a bit like one when stood upright.
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Exterior of its wi-fi capabilities, it delivers the entire choices you’d anticipate from a Nest security camera. It alerts you when it spots one factor, data footage robotically, saves that footage throughout the cloud, and integrates merely with Google Assistant (nonetheless is not appropriate with Alexa or HomeKit). However, not like earlier fashions, it has on-device machine learning capabilities, which allows quite a few its AI smarts to happen quickly and securely without having to ping Google’s servers.
See moreover: The right Google Nest merchandise you’ll get correct now
There’s moreover a small nonetheless extremely efficient speaker constructed into the camera, allowing you to every hear what’s occurring along with problem your voice to the camera’s surroundings. That’s just like the beforehand talked about Nest Outdoor Cam.
Across the globe, the Google Nest Cam is out there in a single shade known as Snow. Whereas the Google Retailer solely sells the Nest Cam individually, for individuals who want various cameras you should purchase a twin pack ($329) at a discount from retailers like Most interesting Buy.
Do discover that apart from the battery-powered mannequin we examined, there is a completely completely different model of this new Nest Cam ($99) that’s obtainable in various colors, formally known as the Google Nest Cam (wired). However, that product cannot be used wirelessly, is indoor-only, and has no launch date as of however. For the sake of simplicity, we’ll seek the advice of with the wi-fi mannequin of the camera as a result of the Google Nest Cam. Google may also be releasing a Nest Cam with Floodlight ($279) ultimately.
What can the Google Nest Cam do?
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As talked about sooner than, you should use the model new Nest Cam indoors and open air, wired or wi-fi. The retail discipline contains a mounting bracket, screws, and screw anchors, which ought to help you to mount the camera nearly anyplace.
As quickly as mounted (see subsequent half) and linked to Wi-Fi, you’ll view the camera’s feed anytime you need throughout the Google Dwelling app for Android or iOS. The camera may even ship you notifications to your phone if it spots a person, animal, vehicle, or just fundamental motion. If in case you have got a Google Assistant-powered good present, you’ll ask it to point you the camera’s feed.
Video
The Nest Cam has a 2MP 1/2.8-inch camera. It broadcasts in a 16:9 aspect ratio with a 130-degree space of view (FoV) at a choice of 1,920 x 1,080. It helps HDR for crisper shadows/highlights and likewise has a night imaginative and prescient perform.
As far as security cameras go, the video top quality of the Google Nest Cam is okay. It’s not setting any gold necessities for the commerce, however it would get the job carried out. Clearly, there are various cameras available on the market that help 4K — along with older Nest cameras — nonetheless 1080p is good adequate for what most people will need. Along with, a 1080p determination helps preserve battery life in check.
The camera is ready to 6x digital zoom. As one would anticipate, the additional you zoom in, the additional the picture top quality degrades. I would steer clear of inserting the camera in a spot the place you’d should rely upon zoom to grab footage, nonetheless in case you need the perform it is there.
The HDR help undoubtedly helps the evening time imaginative and prescient perform. Usually, evening time imaginative and prescient on cameras can wash each factor out, making it troublesome to see particulars, nonetheless that’s not an infinite downside proper right here. It’s unfortunate that Google didn’t provide a shade evening time imaginative and prescient mode proper right here, notably when you concentrate on rivals provide it on this worth bracket. It’s moreover uncommon when you think about how successfully Evening time Sight works on Google’s Pixel telephones and the way in which successfully it could want labored for this camera.
For individuals who need even higher visibility at evening time, though, Google goes to advertise a floodlight mannequin of this Nest Cam ultimately.
Audio
The tiny speaker on the underside of the camera actually will get surprisingly loud. You could make it as loud or quiet as you need throughout the camera’s settings. It moreover has a microphone to grab sound from the camera’s surroundings. In tandem, these choices can assist you utilize the camera as a communications system. It might be awkward, nonetheless you need to use it to speak with a passing neighbor, shoo any individual off your backyard, or instruct a provide explicit individual the place to depart a package deal deal.
It’s ineffective straightforward to utilize the talk about perform. Everytime you’re viewing the reside feed, an infinite blue microphone button appears. Tapping that broadcasts your voice. One different faucet stops the printed. You’ll be able to do that out of your phone nonetheless, for some motive, you possibly can’t do it out of your Google Assistant-powered good present.
AI-based alerts
Older Nest cameras have good alerts whereby the camera can acknowledge certain points and ship you a notification in response. However, these alerts are all processed over the online on Google’s servers, making them gradual and customarily inaccurate. The Google Nest Cam (and the model new Nest Doorbell) makes use of an on-device chip to conduct this carry out. Which means good alerts won’t be solely sooner and additional appropriate however moreover additional private and protected given that processing doesn’t ping Google’s servers the least bit.
Related: How on-device machine learning has modified one of the simplest ways we use our telephones
The camera can acknowledge people, animals, autos, and fundamental motion. If you pay for Nest Acutely aware, it would presumably even acknowledge explicit people (“Tom is throughout the driveway,” as an illustration). It may presumably moreover acknowledge audio-based events, resembling a smoke alarm going off. You’ll customise your notifications for all of these events throughout the Google Dwelling app.
Sadly, this camera gained’t acknowledge packages, which is one factor the Nest Doorbell does. I’m undecided why Google left this perform out.
All through my time with the camera, it was pretty flawless at notifying me when one factor occurred and exactly determining what occurred. It’s an infinite enchancment over my older Nest Cam Outdoor which constantly misidentifies points. If you’re a Nest camera individual already, perception me as soon as I say that it’s a big step up from what you’re used to.
IP rating and net/vitality outages
The Google Nest Cam has an IP54 rating. This means it would presumably cope with liquid splashes (i.e. rain) and gained’t get destroyed in a single factor like a mud storm. It may well’t cope with full immersion in water, though.
The camera has an trustworthy IP rating and might work even when the online goes out.
I had the camera open air for all the things of the tropical storm Henri, which hit my location recently. The camera operated merely advantageous all by all of the storm and held fast to its base.
If the online goes out, the Nest Cam will doc as a lot as an hour of footage to its on-device storage. As quickly as connectivity comes once more, it’s going to add that footage to the cloud and proceed operations as common. If the system is wired and the power goes out, it’s going to fall once more to the battery until vitality is restored.
Can you place within the Google Nest Cam your self?
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It was extraordinarily simple to place within the Google Nest Cam onto my deck. Contained within the discipline is a plastic bracket with two screw holes. You merely screw that bracket to your most popular location after which mount and lock the included camera base. It took decrease than 10 minutes for me to get each factor prepare. Check out Google’s arrange video to get an idea of how simple it is.
The underside of the camera itself consists of an especially sturdy magnet that snaps correct to the underside. As quickly as linked, you’ll modify the angle of the camera merely simply by rotating it throughout the bottom.
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The included charging cable snaps proper right into a proprietary groove on the once more of the camera. However, the 1m-long cable that comes throughout the discipline is not weatherproof. Sadly, you’ll wish to buy a separate weatherproof cable from Google in each a 5m measurement ($34.99) or 10m ($39.99). In several phrases, out-of-the-box, that’s solely a wi-fi camera for outdoor use.
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The in-box cable works advantageous for indoor use, though. The magnetic base works successfully adequate for merely propping the camera on a flat service, nonetheless you’ll mount it indoors the similar strategy you may open air. You may even buy an indoor-only Nest Cam Stand ($29.99) that makes points a bit less complicated for tabletops and completely different surfaces in case you don’t want to mount it to the wall.
As a final discover, in case you’re placing on this wirelessly open air, you may wish to put it out of attain of anyone who may want to steal it. As a result of it’s solely linked to the underside magnetically, a thief may merely seize it and stroll off with it. Google does provide a theft security plan, nonetheless it may reject your declare in case you place in it someplace simple to entry. Conversely, you possibly can even buy a theft-resistant outdoor mount from Google.
How is the Nest Cam’s battery life?
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I put within the fully-charged Nest Cam throughout the afternoon on a Thursday. The subsequent Thursday afternoon, its battery stage dropped to 97%. Judging from that, the Google Dwelling app estimates I’d go about eight months sooner than I’d want to price the Nest Cam. That’s not harmful the least bit.
Bear in mind, though, that your battery life will considerably depend on how vigorous the realm is whereby you place within the camera. Whether or not it’s constantly seeing events, pushing notifications, and streaming footage to the cloud, battery life will drop strategy ahead of 3% each week. It just so happens that my driveway isn’t super vigorous, so the camera didn’t should do loads work. Within the meantime, the Nest Doorbell (which has the similar battery functionality as this camera) I moreover examined was pointed correct at a busy metropolis street, and its battery life was loads, loads shorter. See our full review for additional on that.
If you uncover that the camera isn’t lasting as long as you’d like, there are some settings you’ll tweak to help. You’ll reduce the usual of the video feed, reduce notifications, and reduce the event sensitivity to make the camera a lot much less vigorous, as an illustration.
Regardless of how prolonged it lasts you on a value, the 6,000mAh battery inside takes about 5 hours to prime up. It has a max charging velocity of seven.5W, so you may wish to use the in-box charger that meets that velocity so you’ll price as quickly as attainable. Since you’ll’t price the camera open air with the in-box cable, you’ll should ship it inside to price it, so that you simply don’t want that to be any slower than it should be.
Is it worth getting Nest Acutely aware with the Google Nest Cam?
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Google offers three free hours of cloud storage with the Nest Cam. There’s been some confusion over what this suggests, nonetheless Google confirmed with us that it means three real-time hours. In several phrases, one thing it recorded higher than three hours previously will get auto-deleted, so you’ll solely ever return three hours.
Whereas that’s greater than some cameras that don’t provide any free recording in any manner, for a 24/7 outdoor security camera, that’s primarily a ineffective provide. Take this occasion: an intruder enters your yard at 3AM. You acquire a phone notification, nonetheless you’re asleep. When you stand up at 7AM, your notification stays to be there, nonetheless as a result of it’s been higher than three hours, the exact footage is gone. In that state of affairs, you may have no technique to retrieve the footage in your data.
You get various hours of cloud storage freed from cost, however it is likely most patrons will need Nest Acutely aware.
Paying for one in every of many two ranges of Nest Acutely aware solves this downside. The important Nest Acutely aware package deal deal ($6 each month or $60 yearly) will get you as a lot as 30 days of video storage. The Nest Acutely aware Plus subscription ($12 each month or $120 yearly) doubles that to 60 days and likewise offers a 24/7 10-day historic previous.
Each Nest Acutely aware package deal deal moreover consists of Acquainted Face Detection. FFD makes use of your Google Pictures and Google Contacts knowledge to help resolve who the camera is seeing. This enables the camera to not solely inform you that a person is in your yard nonetheless actually inform you who that exact individual is. That’s truly cool nonetheless hardly vital.
Primarily, in case your intention is to utilize this as an outdoor security camera, you’re going to want Nest Acutely aware. In every other case, you’ll should check your notifications every three hours to make sure you save any important footage sooner than it’s gone with out finish. Ensure you take this into consideration when budgeting out for this camera.
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- No Nest app: Google is shifting away from the Nest app. All choices of the Google Nest Cam, along with setup, are solely accessible by the use of the Google Dwelling app.
- Wi-Fi solely: Although you’ll ship wired vitality to the Nest Cam, you possibly can’t ship wired net. As such, you’ll need an trustworthy Wi-Fi signal (2.4GHz or 5GHz) wherever you mount it for it to work accurately.
- Video feeds won’t be fastened: If you arrange this wirelessly, it’s important to note that it will not have a relentless video feed. In several phrases, in case you’re hoping to have your camera streaming to a smart present 24/7, this gained’t be simply best for you. If there aren’t any events going down and in addition you haven’t manually activated the camera, the feed may be off. Even when you first open the Google Dwelling app, you’ll see a clear show for the camera until you manually flip it on or an event occurs. If you arrange this wired, though, it’s going to provide a 24/7 fastened feed.
- Should be mounted: If you take away the camera from its magnetic base, it’s going to shut off. We’re undecided why you may, nonetheless you possibly can’t preserve the camera in your hand and switch spherical the house whereas recording footage.
- Privateness and video historic previous: It is extraordinarily simple to remove any video historic previous the camera data. Inside the Google Dwelling app, there’s an easy-to-find pink button that claims “Delete video historic previous.” A faucet of that after which a affirmation faucet deletes each factor you’ve got saved. Keep in mind, too, that the AI detection smarts happen on-device, making this a relatively protected and private security camera.
Google Nest Cam (Battery)
Most likely essentially the most versatile Nest Cam however.
The Google Nest Cam (Battery) is the first wi-fi camera from the mannequin. It actually works inside or open air and has deep integration with Google Assistant plus AI smarts for determining points the camera spots.
There’s loads to love in regards to the Google Nest Cam. However, at $179 it gained’t be for everyone. The reality that almost all patrons will need a Nest Acutely aware subscription, too, doesn’t do it any favors. There are a selection of producers that present cheaper fashions that do quite a few the similar points the Nest Cam does.
The wi-fi Blink Outdoor ($99) can ceaselessly be found for lots decrease than its frequent $99 price tag. It has a lower determination, runs on AA batteries, and it’s advisable to pay for all cloud storage. However, it’s low-cost, straightforward to rearrange, works with Amazon Alexa, and provides two-way audio. You’ll even get a pack with two of these cameras for the same worth as you’d pay for one Google Nest Cam.
Check out: The right wi-fi security cameras to protect your own home
The Eufy SoloCam E20 ($99) is one different wi-fi camera that has a 1080p determination, would not require any subscription prices, is simple to place in, and has an IP65 rating. Sadly, it would not provide any sort of cloud uploads with all recordings saved on-device. This might be greater for some consumers, though.
If worth isn’t a barrier for you, there are some cameras that present some superior choices when as compared with the Google Nest Cam. The Arlo Skilled 4 ($179) offers a 2K determination, shade evening time imaginative and prescient, and the similar wi-fi/outdoor capabilities as a result of the Nest Cam. However, you’ll should pay a subscription worth for any cloud storage along with all good alerts, which Google offers free.
As soon as you start to get as completely featured as a result of the Nest Cam, you actually uncover it undercuts various the opponents, too. The Ring Spotlight Cam ($199) is wi-fi, simple to place in, offers a 1080p determination, and has nifty removable rechargeable batteries. Sadly, all cloud uploads are locked behind a subscription paywall and it doesn’t have the AI-based good alerts of the Nest Cam. Moreover it’s dearer.
The underside line proper right here is that the Nest Cam is costly and you will merely get cheaper wi-fi cameras from completely different producers. However, you’ll merely be sacrificing quite a few choices by doing so. The Nest Cam is costly, certain, nonetheless priced appropriately considering the opponents.
Google Nest Cam review: The choice
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All through this Google Nest Cam review, I solely noticed a handful of {{hardware}} and design flaws. It’s simple to steal with out the acquisition of an additional mount, solely works wirelessly open air out-of-the-box, and prices slowly. Exterior of those factors, though, there’s heaps to love about this security camera.
Its AI-based alert system is protected, appropriate, and doesn’t require a month-to-month subscription. Three hours of free cloud storage isn’t good, nonetheless most rivals make you pay for any cloud storage within the occasion that they even provide it the least bit. Battery life is principally good, arrange is as simple as pie, and it’ll presumably cope with a tropical storm with out breaking a sweat. It’s just about good.
When you possibly can afford it, that’s definitely one in every of our favorite wi-fi security cameras.
The reality that you should use it wired or wirelessly, indoors and out, makes this an exceptionally versatile camera, too. The chances are very extreme that it would not matter what you need from a security camera, the Google Nest Cam can current it.
The one big barrier is the worth. $179 is a few big money to spend on one camera, notably when you take into account that almost all people want various cameras spherical their homes and in addition will need a Nest Acutely aware subscription. It’s a state of affairs whereby you get what you pay for, though, and what you’ll get you’re likely going to love.
