Nest Cam (indoor, wired) review
Our Verdict
The Nest Cam (indoor, wired) stands out for its video quality and non-subscription features, and while information technology doesn't necessarily bank check every box, it justifies its value well.
For
- 3-hour video outcome history
- v GHz Wi-Fi radio
- Advanced movement processing without a subscription
- On-device facial recognition
- Colorful choices
- Intuitive app experience
Confronting
- No local storage
- No battery backup
- No extra privacy features
- Only compatible with Google Domicile
- Certain on-device features cost extra
Tom'south Guide Verdict
The Nest Cam (indoor, wired) stands out for its video quality and not-subscription features, and while information technology doesn't necessarily check every box, it justifies its value well.
Pros
- +
3-hour video outcome history
- +
5 GHz Wi-Fi radio
- +
Advanced movement processing without a subscription
- +
On-device facial recognition
- +
Colorful choices
- +
Intuitive app experience
Cons
- -
No local storage
- -
No battery backup
- -
No extra privacy features
- -
Simply compatible with Google Habitation
- -
Certain on-device features cost extra
Nest Cam (wired, indoor): Specs
Camera Size: 3.88 in H 10 2.52 in W ten two.24 in D
Video: 1080p/xxx fps, HDR
Aspect ratio: 16:9
Field of view: 135° diagonal
Sensor: 2 MP
Night vision: Up to 15 ft, ii 850 nm infrared LEDs
Wireless: 802.11b/g/n/air-conditioning (2.4/5 GHz), Bluetooth Low Energy
Conditions Resistance: None, indoor only
Audio: Full-Duplex ii-way audio w/noise cancellation
Lighting: None
Ability: Wired only, 10 ft attached cablevision w/USB-A connector and vii.5W USB-A adapter
Google has updated its Nest line of cameras, dropping the IQ branding and sticking with just "Nest Cam" followed past identifying features—in this instance, Nest Cam (indoor, wired). This camera shares a lot in common with its larger siblings, including a cup-like appearance and 1080p resolution, but its diminutive footprint makes it easier to identify in your habitation. It's the only camera in the line that lacks an internal battery, backup or otherwise, and then placement is limited to nearby outlets.
Information technology's as well the cheapest option of the three at $99—making it more than expensive even so than similar offerings from Band and Wyze. This puts it in direct competition with the $100 Arlo Essential Indoor Photographic camera or the Ring Stick Up Cam. I came away impressed with the video and audio quality of the camera, merely also wished information technology had some more indoor-specific features, and a congenital-in battery backup would be a nice bonus.
Read on to go details on Google'south footling indoor camera and figure out if this is the best habitation security photographic camera for y'all.
Nest Cam (Indoor, Wired) review: Design
This Nest indoor photographic camera adds some bulk to the base of operations versus the IQ camera that preceded it, but retains like design language. Google is now, in the U.Due south., offering it in four color variants: Snow, Linen, Sand with maple woods base, and Fog. We looked at the Snow version, which of course is white; having not seen the others in person, it probably stands out the most in any dwelling house that doesn't wait similar a show house for a planned community. That's not necessarily a bad matter, simply the photographic camera nevertheless looks similar a camera, which tin make people a little nervous when deployed indoors.
The camera head sits on a short stem connected to a heavy, pod-like base, slightly evoking the advent of the flat panel iMac G4 from the early on aughts (although without about equally much of that reckoner'southward brilliant joint). It's wall-mountable and yous tin can flip the video if you lot want to stick it on a ceiling, so orienting the camera however you want should be an like shooting fish in a barrel affair.
It comes with a x-foot USB cable that is, like its predecessor, non-removable, terminating in a USB-A connector that plugs into an included seven.5-watt ability adapter. This is somewhat unfortunate as it means that if the cable goes bad, you'll need to replace the camera, and so information technology'southward something to consider if you have a pet that's addicted of power cables.
Nest Cam (Indoor, Wired) review: Setup
Setting up this camera was easy. Once you've initiated the process from the Google Home app, you'll be directed to scan the included QR code. After that, if you have another Nest device, the camera will connect to that device to become connected to your network. Yous'll need Wi-Fi, of course. During setup, if this is the beginning of the new Nest cameras that you've set upwardly, y'all'll be given an opportunity to start a 30-day trial of Nest Enlightened (although the app doesn't make that immediately apparent—the app simply asks if you lot'd like to extend your video history and activate their "familiar face detection" feature).
Nest Cam (Indoor, Wired) review: Video and audio quality
Compared to the now-discontinued $299 Nest IQ camera, the Nest Cam (indoor, wired) represents a meaning price cutting that comes with an on-paper degraded 1080p, 2-megapixel sensor, which is manifestly lower-spec than the former'due south 8-megapixel 4K sensor (which was also limited to recording at 1080p resolution). However, this new camera retains HDR and the new Nest Cam continues to accept visual clarity that punches a bit above its price. Similar the Nest cameras in the current lineup, it retains more than item throughout, and videos tend to have more realistic colors, and an image that'south overall less washed-out than competitors' cameras.
I set up the Nest Cam on the same shelf every bit a Ring Stick Up Cam and found that although footage looked very similar, background details revealed the Ring to have more pinch artifacts, where the Nest held steady. There is also significant blurriness around the periphery of the 130-degree field of view of the Ring Stick Up Cam, where the Nest Cam maintains even sharpness across the entire viewable expanse. The Nest Cam has a slightly broader field of view at 135° horizontal that actually trumps the others' of the current Nest Cam lineup. It's not so big you'd immediately notice a deviation, but broader FOV is more than ideal indoors, where spaces are more cramped.
My basement bar may non be the most ideal place for a camera for security reasons, but I chose it for testing because information technology enables the widest range of lighting, from vivid windows to its many dimmable track lights and in-ceiling bulbs that allow me check both near-darkness and extreme brightness. In all of these situations, the Nest Cam performed well. However, information technology struggled with broader contrast more than than the bigger Nest cameras, blowing out details when they're too directly awash in calorie-free. To be fair, this is a common struggle with indoor cameras, equally they tend to prefer lightening shadows at the expense of highlights to take hold of the most relevant footage possible. Conversely, the IR lights practice an first-class job taking upwardly the slack when things get too dim and, similar the Nest Cam with Floodlight, video under low-or-no-low-cal situations was well-baked and gratuitous of motion blur.
Even without the IR lights, the photographic camera performed adequately well in low light; I tested it with the lights in the line of sight of the camera dimmed to their lowest level, and you wouldn't know information technology from the video if it wasn't for the telltale sign of motility blur trailing behind me as I walked beyond the frame. It wasn't until I turned off the lights along the back wall and left the lights on the other cease of the basement at their lowest visible level that the video proved essentially useless. Of grade, indoors, you're going to usually want those IR lights on, but there are scenarios where you might non, such as when the camera is pointing out a window, where infrared beams tend to obscure what'south on the other side.
Finally, while the speaker isn't every bit skilful as the outdoor version of the Nest Cam, the microphone remains very sensitive, and speech communication is very articulate and easy to understand, even when the person speaking is well out of frame, or whispering. I was every bit impressed with this aspect of the photographic camera as I was with the Nest Cam with Floodlight.
Nest Cam (Indoor, Wired) review: App
Once set up, you'll manage the camera through the Google Home app. Without Nest Aware (which starts at $6/month), you can still add activity zones, and even accommodate the blazon of motion recorded per zone, and whether you lot'd like to be notified virtually it; while there are other cameras that back up multiple zones, they tend to only exist used for more fully cutting out areas yous don't want monitored for recording or notification, not give you private settings per zone. Each of these zones has eight points of articulation, making them very easy to mold to the shape you'd similar.
Without a subscription, yous as well nonetheless get specific movement detection—no vehicle or package detection here, which makes sense given that it's intended to be an indoor camera — simply information technology'll also reduce the usefulness of the camera, should you ignore Google'southward intent and utilize information technology outdoors anyway. Finally, consequence-based video history is viewable up to three hours after the effect if you lot accept no subscription, making this one of the more useful costless tiers on any non-local-storage camera. What's more, the camera volition still record even if your internet connection goes down. It's not quite the local storage you'll find with the Wyze Cam v3, but it's ameliorate than aught.
Managing the speaker with the Google Home app was easy enough. From the home screen, you lot can either tap the camera widget at the tiptop of the screen, curl down to observe the photographic camera in whatever room yous've assigned information technology to, or tap the events history push at the lesser of the screen, next to the microphone push for Google Assistant.
Navigating to the cameras from the Cameras widget volition take you lot to a screen with tiles for each photographic camera, and buttons for toggling the cameras on and off (or all of them, via the 3-dots menu). Going into a specific camera here or from the habitation screen, yous'll find the settings gear icon, where you can adjust your preferences for things like motion type you want recorded, action zone setup, video quality, night vision, and audio volume (or fifty-fifty whether you want it to record sound).
Once the camera was configured, I only ever tapped that events history button, as it takes yous directly to the most recent events recorded by all of your domicile devices. Y'all can further tap to go to a unproblematic listing of event history, with each event accompanied by a brusque animated preview of the triggering event and a label for each indicating whether it was a person, animal, or vehicle, and, with subscription, whether it saw a familiar face up or not.
Finally, like the Nest IQ Indoor camera, the new Nest Cam has five GHz Wi-Fi support and uses the 802.11ac—or Wi-Fi 5—protocol, which means it is going to be capable of moving more than data around at once; this manifests in a very high-quality live stream relative to other cameras, and it also means recorded events testify upwardly nearly immediately in the app'due south timeline, if the camera is sufficiently close to a decent Wi-Fi 5 router. The camera supports upwardly to WPA3 encryption.
Nest Cam (Indoor, Wired) review: Subscription plans
If you practice choose to pay for a Nest Aware subscription, the cheapest program ($6/month or $lx/year) nets yous 30 days of deject-based video history and gives y'all access to Familiar faces, as well as Fume/CO alarm detection and glass breaking detection, both of which can be listened for not but on your camera, but too the best Google Home speakers similar the Nest Mini. You'll also be able to employ any of those Google Assistant devices to call 911 with your vocalisation, as Google participates in e911—a certification program that allows devices that follow certain protocols (mostly to do with sharing of location data) call local emergency services.
Upgrading to Nest Aware Plus for $12/calendar month or $120/year will net you threescore days of video history, and open 24/7 continuous video for ten days back. Both plans cover as many cameras as you tin can muster, and so although the basic program may be a trifle expensive—both Ring and Arlo offer $3/month plans for unmarried cameras—one time you add 2 or 3 cameras to the mix, it becomes a significantly better deal. (For a more detailed breakdown, please refer to our security photographic camera storage plans comparison.)
Speaking of familiar face detection, this is done entirely on device, which is fantastic for privacy, and absolutely preferable to sending that information to a server somewhere, just beingness a Google One storage subscriber, I would've liked to exist able to download confront data from my Google Photos account, rather than build it from scratch. Nevertheless, for nigh homes, you merely need to manage data for a handful of people at most, so edifice a library isn't especially burdensome. Equally far as how well it works, it generally did a decent job, though when I looked at the images it uses for its data, there was an image of a friend of mine's daughter that was identified every bit me, and in another example, someone on a Idiot box screen was identified as my married woman; the app besides asked me to identify Steve Martin at one bespeak.
Other than that, it was accurate the vast majority of the time, just I would definitely not recommend pointing the camera at a Telly. I find information technology disappointing that this feature, similar the on-device Smoke/CO warning and glass breakage detection, is deactivated without a subscription—it may be sensible where features require cloud computing admission, but this is alike to needing to pay extra to open a door in your house.
Nest Cam (Indoor, Wired) review: Smart home compatibility
Similar the other Nest cameras, Google's camera has no compatibility outside of the search giant'due south Google Abode app; even IFTTT, which was in one case supported, no longer offers more than than legacy integration for longtime Nest users who never migrated their Nest accounts over to Google Home. This is 1 of the big drawbacks of the Nest organisation, if you have committed to one of the other smart domicile platforms like Apple HomeKit, Samsung SmartThings, or Amazon Alexa, and is an boosted expanse where this Nest camera loses out to Arlo'due south similarly priced, far more platform-agnostic Essential Indoor Camera. Band'due south $lx Indoor Cam also offers more, thank you to its compatibility with Amazon Alexa and IFTTT, and for piffling more than one-half the price.
If yous're in Google's garden, however, the Nest Cam'southward integration with the Google Home app is dainty. The camera feed loads quickly in the app, every bit I said, but it likewise (rather obscurely) supports geofencing—somehow during the course of setup, I missed the camera offer me the option to utilise my telephone'south location for geofencing, and only discovered it near the stop of my testing period. This is because Google rolls geofencing into a feature called "presence sensing" which allows you to utilize your phone'southward location to automate whether the camera is active or not, but also uses other Nest devices––Nest Thermostats, Protects, Detects, and Guards to determine whether someone is home that isn't function of your home. Now, personally, I like to proceed my outside cameras active at all times, but for interior cameras, I would prefer they non exist active while I'm habitation.
Nest Cam (Indoor, Wired) review: Contest
As price goes, the Nest Cam is in the same realm as the Arlo Essential Indoor Camera, which we have nonetheless to review, but which shares much in mutual with the Arlo Essential Spotlight) Arlo's camera has a nice feature in its privacy shield, but lacks HDR and any smart features or storage, unless of course y'all take Arlo's SmartHub or Base Station devices. Otherwise, the two offering very similar specs: 1080p HD video, IR dark vision, and full duplex 2-fashion audio, to name a few.
The Nest'due south leg-upwards is once more its free tier — without paying Arlo money or buying one of their hubs, your photographic camera is substantially just an expensive motion detector, where Google'due south camera still offers person, animal, and vehicle detection and limited video history.
Bargain hunters unmoved by the sharper video or not-subscription features offered by the Nest will likely find a more than appealing bundle in the Wyze Cam V3, which at $35 remains ane of the all-time values on the marketplace, thanks to its 1080p resolution, gratis local storage — including continuous video recording — and then long as yous buy a compatible SD Carte, and ultra-cheap $2/calendar month subscription plan. It even promises to add together facial recognition before the yr is out. And, it's IFTTT-compatible and plays squeamish with Alexa and Google Banana. However, before you start shoving your coin down the cyberspace tubes to fill Wyze's coffers, you'll want to note that its camera merely records at twenty fps max, and while it offers a 1080p camera, video quality is going to go out something to exist desired when compared to the Nest Cam. Sound is significantly worse than the Nest Cam's, as well.
In the heart, Ring offers an indoor camera for $threescore, which volition accept like quality video to the Stick Up Cam, but to go the full benefit of the camera, you lot will need at least a single-camera, $3/month subscription — otherwise, you'll go no storage or special image processing.
Nest Cam (Indoor, Wired) review: Verdict
The Nest Cam (indoor, wired) offers, for better or for worse, nearly the exact same experience as its larger and pricier siblings, which means it has great video quality and a better-than-average free tier that actually includes some of the features, like person, brute, and vehicle detection, that almost other camera makers lock away behind subscriptions.
It would be nice if the photographic camera offered more options for indoor apply, such as a privacy shutter, and greater smart home compatibility would go a long fashion here. Yet, while information technology's not a total slam dunk versus the many other excellent options for indoor cameras, the Nest Cam (wired, indoor) is a stable, reliable camera with a premium experience that does non feel oversold at $99 — and of class, let's not forget those colorful options.
Source: https://www.tomsguide.com/reviews/nest-cam-indoor-wired
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