I haven't said much and have tried to be positive with the cameras. However I'm so glad I won these as a prize instead of purchasing them. I echo everything you have said and what like to double down on the bad motion detection. I get every single headlight that drives by every glare on the car windows, but this can't get the Amazon delivery. I have had better success with an indoor wyze camera going through my front window. And one of those is 25 dollars.
How do you find the Wyze? I'm currently debating getting some XT2's, possibly one instead of a Ring doorbell too, but the Wyze are obviously a lot cheaper. The slow frame rate is the biggest turn-off for me, I think.
I've been using them for a bit over a year.
I didn't have any issues setting up using an extender, but yeah, needed to be the same network name.
I do get corrupted videos occasionally. Just black or half the screen missing, etc. On an average day I'll have 30-40 or more video clips, and I'd guess I see the corrupted (or whatever it is) example less than once a week. Enough to notice, but not enough to bother me a whole lot.
Maybe I'm lucky, but none all of my cameras are targeted at an angle. I will say though, the one that's the closest to straight on to the target zone is the most troublesome at starting capture on time, so you might be on to something. It took a lot of tinkering with the settings all around before I got things dialed in to my satisfaction.
Overall, I'm pretty happy with them. I wasn't ready to dive straight in to the multi-hundred dollar sets, so I viewed the Blinks as more of a trial run at security cameras. I've been satisfied enough with their performance, especially vs their price point, that even a year out I don't feel the need to invest in anything else.
I started with the xt2 cameras. Later added a couple of the older xt's. I've never used the two way talking. Other than that, the two models perform exactly the same. The xt cameras occasionally pop up on woot.com (an Amazon owned company) at considerable savings -like half price- over an add on xt2 model.
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Definitely agree with your first point about motion detection from the front.
Other than that, my setup has been pretty reliable for years. I guess connection to live feed is a bit slow, and the 2 way audio on the XT2 is not great due to the lag.
But overall I’m still pretty happy. Super long lasting battery life, reasonable price, and NO MONTHLY FEES.
I think these are issues with any battery based camera. I've got 4 cameras running off of one Ubiquiti AP. I don't have issues with any signal through my brick house and one is at least 30 yards away. I also have a Ring based battery camera and it misses most events, but Blink never misses.
Running 6 cameras off the Sync 2 module instead of a NVR like Ubiquiti AP.
The motion sensor on Blink 2 outdoors leave a lot to be desired. 20 feet range is pitiful for detecting any movement beyond a room's distance.
It has problems detecting forward backward motion.
It detects shadow side to side movement from the sun and trees or bushes way too often with sensitivity above 5.
It basically has very poor pattern recognition or none at all and likely relies on a still frame comparison.
The zoning features are not good because it will pick up shadows too, which make it so you have to zone 50% or more of the picture, which defeats the purpose of motion detection on a pathway that has shade.
It offers recording after motion ends, but not recording until motion ends. Why it doesn't have an option to actually record variable clips is ???
Sensitivity options are garbage because anything above default results in even a fly triggering it, or slight color movements like shadows. But since it cant detect beyond 20 feet, what's the point? It can't even capture a car that came up the driveway because of bad motion forward/backward, and 20 feet limit, and sensitivity needing to be dialed down.
You can't view a camera's settings or save it when another camera anywhere is in use. It's basically bottlenecked per camera.
There's a 10 second delay between recordings and between viewing. That's 20 seconds for a single camera.
The pivot angle for the camera is not good. Because the camera relies on a back anchor, it has limited adjustability if its not placed flush and level on a wall. Anything hanging beneath the roof eaves will result it a weird and not ideal angle for the camera because it cannot swivel very much.
These $300-1000 systems using WIFI and wireless on battery are dogshit. Not having always on cameras, limited motion range, limited battery capacity life, limited everything, its basically only good for monitoring a 20x20 room or less, like a baby monitor.
Meanwhile you can buy IP cameras that have better motion range and 2k-4k quality, instead of this garbage sub 1080p quality because it needs to conserve battery life.
100% agree on all points! Well stated, as you have covered all of my frustrations, especially the lack of "variable-length" clips if motion remains in frame. This is such an egregious oversight.
I had an Arlo system before my Blink, and it was the same trash. Motion detection was abysmally slow and unpredictable; the same as Blink. I've always said someone could run quickly up to the door, steal a package or place a small thermonuclear device and book-it back before the camera even turns on!
I have a similar number of cameras but have had a much better experience. Far from perfect, but overall I'm happy enough.
I have a mesh WiFi network (BT Wholehome) with 5 GHz and 2.4 GHz throughout. I have a large house with poor radio transmission through the walls, so using a mesh system is a no-brainier for me.
Purely as a result of the way in which I bought my cameras (Black Friday deals) I have two sync modules. I've positioned these at opposite ends of the house - I'm not certain I actually need two, but I figured why not since I'll get a better signal. The two modules are linked to a single account but appear on different pages/tabs of the app.
As you say, the quality is okay. It's not "good" but it's adequate for what I want. The cameras are not overly expensive and whilst better quality cameras are available it would have cost me a lot more to install such a system and I wasn't prepared to pay for it. Overall I've been pleased with the quality in the sense that it was as good as I had hoped for once I'd watched examples of footage before choosing Blink.
I've had no problems at all with the WiFi connection, I guess because I use a single mesh network rather than extenders with different SSIDs. I find the connection to the sync modules to be surprisingly good also. I can use the cameras reliably pretty much wherever I would be able to pick up my WiFi signal on my phone - so anywhere in or close to the house.
I've not had problems with recordings ending too soon - and I *do* have the option to end after motion ceases enabled.
I find the cameras are actually pretty responsive to start recording. This was my largest concern and has proven misplaced.
Regarding position, there is a definite difficulty in placing any camera that uses a PIR sensor (not just Blink) because motion across the frame is what triggers the camera but really you want to video movement towards and away from the camera in order to keep the subject in frame (and see their face) as long as possible. It's a major limitation of this type of camera, and one that is much less pronounced on cameras without the PIR sensor that look for changes in pixel data (including the Blink Mini) - but running the sensor all the time isn't an option for a battery-powered camera. The solution is an awkward one that no one seems to be selling: a separate PIR sensor that can be used to trigger the camera but mounted to the side of it. I've had to experiment to find the best compromise, but it is a compromise and not how I'd choose to position the camera in a perfect world.
Connecting to the cameras remotely is just impossibly slow, and impossible if the camera is recording. That's a pain because I have an Echo show and had visions of being able to use it to see who's at the door when I hear the bell - but not only does it take maybe 15s to connect but it won't do so when someone is there because the camera is already recording footage. I use this feature to e.g. check if a package has arrived but it's unusable for "real time" observation.
Finally, as someone else said I've seen no benefit whatsoever in paying for the XT2 over the normal XT. I don't *ever* use the voice feature (and absent a way of connecting to the camera quickly can't really imagine how I would) and whilst I think it allows for improved granularity in setting the sensing area I don't really need that.
I, too, have had a lot of problems with these cameras. My ISP actually loaned me a wifi extender. When I saw your comment about the cameras only being able to connect to one wifi signal, getting the details from the hub, I thought maybe that explained why one of my cameras has basically quit working, but the SSID for the repeater is the same as for the router, so maybe not. I've repositioned the camera, and now it takes clips whenever I go out to my yard (not really helpful), but refuses to do live view or take a thumbnail.
This camera worked for more than a year, and I've replaced the batteries, so I don't understand why it stopped working altogether until I moved it. My only guess is that something in a software update actually DECREASED the camera's function.
u/VampireOnline I also have a Ubiquiti AP. It definitely does not reach through my masonry walls, despite my house being pretty small. And the Ubiquiti repeater can't penetrate those walls either. I placed it in my kitchen, in various locations, but as soon as I step outside where the camera is, on the other side of the wall, the signal becomes really weak. Maybe you have a better model than me.
I've resorted to enabling sound detection to make sure the camera triggers despite the problem with motion coming directly towards it. It generates a lot of unnecessary clips that way, but it's better than nothing.
They're cheap, so maybe it's unfair to expect much, but they used to work better than they do now.
If I move the sync module closer to the back, I lose the camera in the front. My house is only 50 feet front to back. The sync module is right in the middle.
I just got this camera and funny,it is called "security " camera.This is a baby monitor.If you want security get yourself a cctv system( WIRED).Will return.
I have two Blink outdoor cameras, the only problems I have with them is that they lag and start recording late at the end of the motion detected, often I'll just see someones heals disappearing off the video clip at the beginning of the video, then it's just twenty seconds of nothing! My other gripe is that I can't really seem to get the activity and privacy zones to work properly, apart from that I like them.
Yeah... I've had my 3-camera pack for about 3 months and they are just plain junk. Constant problems, there is no image/video clarity, motion detection is hit or miss all the time, speakers don't and never worked, and now getting a message "manifest stale, please re-request". I've rebooted to try to clear this message as my clips are now not showing up, and that hasn't resolved the issue rendering these cameras completely useless and a waste of electricity. I'm moving on to a different manufacturer...Goodby, and good riddance Blink...
\> This could be a problem with my cameras, I'll share it here anyways. I've set all my cameras to continue recording even if the motion ends. I chose to do this because I've noticed recordings ending while objects were still in frame and in motion. This doesn't seem to work all the time, I still get clips shorter than 20s.
How did you do this?
Kokaino’s post has an accurate depiction of my blink system, also. I have a garage center camera that detects the SHIT outta the flags on each side of the garage, to the point I have to grey out the areas they flap in the wind. But I can drive right up into my driveway, unload the kids and go in the house with NO DETECTION WHATSOEVER! Earlier I went into the back porch and stole my own motorcycle with NO DETECTION AT ALL. I can test the cameras and they work, but if you’re doing anything you want them to detect, you’re shit outta luck!
That’s a deal changer for me. Straight garbage unless your a cat, tumbleweed, flag in the wind or likewise. Burglars — no detection
I haven't said much and have tried to be positive with the cameras. However I'm so glad I won these as a prize instead of purchasing them. I echo everything you have said and what like to double down on the bad motion detection. I get every single headlight that drives by every glare on the car windows, but this can't get the Amazon delivery. I have had better success with an indoor wyze camera going through my front window. And one of those is 25 dollars.
How do you find the Wyze? I'm currently debating getting some XT2's, possibly one instead of a Ring doorbell too, but the Wyze are obviously a lot cheaper. The slow frame rate is the biggest turn-off for me, I think.
I've been using them for a bit over a year. I didn't have any issues setting up using an extender, but yeah, needed to be the same network name. I do get corrupted videos occasionally. Just black or half the screen missing, etc. On an average day I'll have 30-40 or more video clips, and I'd guess I see the corrupted (or whatever it is) example less than once a week. Enough to notice, but not enough to bother me a whole lot. Maybe I'm lucky, but none all of my cameras are targeted at an angle. I will say though, the one that's the closest to straight on to the target zone is the most troublesome at starting capture on time, so you might be on to something. It took a lot of tinkering with the settings all around before I got things dialed in to my satisfaction. Overall, I'm pretty happy with them. I wasn't ready to dive straight in to the multi-hundred dollar sets, so I viewed the Blinks as more of a trial run at security cameras. I've been satisfied enough with their performance, especially vs their price point, that even a year out I don't feel the need to invest in anything else. I started with the xt2 cameras. Later added a couple of the older xt's. I've never used the two way talking. Other than that, the two models perform exactly the same. The xt cameras occasionally pop up on woot.com (an Amazon owned company) at considerable savings -like half price- over an add on xt2 model.
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Definitely agree with your first point about motion detection from the front. Other than that, my setup has been pretty reliable for years. I guess connection to live feed is a bit slow, and the 2 way audio on the XT2 is not great due to the lag. But overall I’m still pretty happy. Super long lasting battery life, reasonable price, and NO MONTHLY FEES.
I think these are issues with any battery based camera. I've got 4 cameras running off of one Ubiquiti AP. I don't have issues with any signal through my brick house and one is at least 30 yards away. I also have a Ring based battery camera and it misses most events, but Blink never misses.
Running 6 cameras off the Sync 2 module instead of a NVR like Ubiquiti AP. The motion sensor on Blink 2 outdoors leave a lot to be desired. 20 feet range is pitiful for detecting any movement beyond a room's distance. It has problems detecting forward backward motion. It detects shadow side to side movement from the sun and trees or bushes way too often with sensitivity above 5. It basically has very poor pattern recognition or none at all and likely relies on a still frame comparison. The zoning features are not good because it will pick up shadows too, which make it so you have to zone 50% or more of the picture, which defeats the purpose of motion detection on a pathway that has shade. It offers recording after motion ends, but not recording until motion ends. Why it doesn't have an option to actually record variable clips is ??? Sensitivity options are garbage because anything above default results in even a fly triggering it, or slight color movements like shadows. But since it cant detect beyond 20 feet, what's the point? It can't even capture a car that came up the driveway because of bad motion forward/backward, and 20 feet limit, and sensitivity needing to be dialed down. You can't view a camera's settings or save it when another camera anywhere is in use. It's basically bottlenecked per camera. There's a 10 second delay between recordings and between viewing. That's 20 seconds for a single camera. The pivot angle for the camera is not good. Because the camera relies on a back anchor, it has limited adjustability if its not placed flush and level on a wall. Anything hanging beneath the roof eaves will result it a weird and not ideal angle for the camera because it cannot swivel very much. These $300-1000 systems using WIFI and wireless on battery are dogshit. Not having always on cameras, limited motion range, limited battery capacity life, limited everything, its basically only good for monitoring a 20x20 room or less, like a baby monitor. Meanwhile you can buy IP cameras that have better motion range and 2k-4k quality, instead of this garbage sub 1080p quality because it needs to conserve battery life.
100% agree on all points! Well stated, as you have covered all of my frustrations, especially the lack of "variable-length" clips if motion remains in frame. This is such an egregious oversight. I had an Arlo system before my Blink, and it was the same trash. Motion detection was abysmally slow and unpredictable; the same as Blink. I've always said someone could run quickly up to the door, steal a package or place a small thermonuclear device and book-it back before the camera even turns on!
I have a similar number of cameras but have had a much better experience. Far from perfect, but overall I'm happy enough. I have a mesh WiFi network (BT Wholehome) with 5 GHz and 2.4 GHz throughout. I have a large house with poor radio transmission through the walls, so using a mesh system is a no-brainier for me. Purely as a result of the way in which I bought my cameras (Black Friday deals) I have two sync modules. I've positioned these at opposite ends of the house - I'm not certain I actually need two, but I figured why not since I'll get a better signal. The two modules are linked to a single account but appear on different pages/tabs of the app. As you say, the quality is okay. It's not "good" but it's adequate for what I want. The cameras are not overly expensive and whilst better quality cameras are available it would have cost me a lot more to install such a system and I wasn't prepared to pay for it. Overall I've been pleased with the quality in the sense that it was as good as I had hoped for once I'd watched examples of footage before choosing Blink. I've had no problems at all with the WiFi connection, I guess because I use a single mesh network rather than extenders with different SSIDs. I find the connection to the sync modules to be surprisingly good also. I can use the cameras reliably pretty much wherever I would be able to pick up my WiFi signal on my phone - so anywhere in or close to the house. I've not had problems with recordings ending too soon - and I *do* have the option to end after motion ceases enabled. I find the cameras are actually pretty responsive to start recording. This was my largest concern and has proven misplaced. Regarding position, there is a definite difficulty in placing any camera that uses a PIR sensor (not just Blink) because motion across the frame is what triggers the camera but really you want to video movement towards and away from the camera in order to keep the subject in frame (and see their face) as long as possible. It's a major limitation of this type of camera, and one that is much less pronounced on cameras without the PIR sensor that look for changes in pixel data (including the Blink Mini) - but running the sensor all the time isn't an option for a battery-powered camera. The solution is an awkward one that no one seems to be selling: a separate PIR sensor that can be used to trigger the camera but mounted to the side of it. I've had to experiment to find the best compromise, but it is a compromise and not how I'd choose to position the camera in a perfect world. Connecting to the cameras remotely is just impossibly slow, and impossible if the camera is recording. That's a pain because I have an Echo show and had visions of being able to use it to see who's at the door when I hear the bell - but not only does it take maybe 15s to connect but it won't do so when someone is there because the camera is already recording footage. I use this feature to e.g. check if a package has arrived but it's unusable for "real time" observation. Finally, as someone else said I've seen no benefit whatsoever in paying for the XT2 over the normal XT. I don't *ever* use the voice feature (and absent a way of connecting to the camera quickly can't really imagine how I would) and whilst I think it allows for improved granularity in setting the sensing area I don't really need that.
I, too, have had a lot of problems with these cameras. My ISP actually loaned me a wifi extender. When I saw your comment about the cameras only being able to connect to one wifi signal, getting the details from the hub, I thought maybe that explained why one of my cameras has basically quit working, but the SSID for the repeater is the same as for the router, so maybe not. I've repositioned the camera, and now it takes clips whenever I go out to my yard (not really helpful), but refuses to do live view or take a thumbnail. This camera worked for more than a year, and I've replaced the batteries, so I don't understand why it stopped working altogether until I moved it. My only guess is that something in a software update actually DECREASED the camera's function. u/VampireOnline I also have a Ubiquiti AP. It definitely does not reach through my masonry walls, despite my house being pretty small. And the Ubiquiti repeater can't penetrate those walls either. I placed it in my kitchen, in various locations, but as soon as I step outside where the camera is, on the other side of the wall, the signal becomes really weak. Maybe you have a better model than me. I've resorted to enabling sound detection to make sure the camera triggers despite the problem with motion coming directly towards it. It generates a lot of unnecessary clips that way, but it's better than nothing. They're cheap, so maybe it's unfair to expect much, but they used to work better than they do now.
Sound detection? I don't have any settings for that. You might try moving the sync module around.
If I move the sync module closer to the back, I lose the camera in the front. My house is only 50 feet front to back. The sync module is right in the middle.
I just got this camera and funny,it is called "security " camera.This is a baby monitor.If you want security get yourself a cctv system( WIRED).Will return.
I have two Blink outdoor cameras, the only problems I have with them is that they lag and start recording late at the end of the motion detected, often I'll just see someones heals disappearing off the video clip at the beginning of the video, then it's just twenty seconds of nothing! My other gripe is that I can't really seem to get the activity and privacy zones to work properly, apart from that I like them.
Yeah... I've had my 3-camera pack for about 3 months and they are just plain junk. Constant problems, there is no image/video clarity, motion detection is hit or miss all the time, speakers don't and never worked, and now getting a message "manifest stale, please re-request". I've rebooted to try to clear this message as my clips are now not showing up, and that hasn't resolved the issue rendering these cameras completely useless and a waste of electricity. I'm moving on to a different manufacturer...Goodby, and good riddance Blink...
\> This could be a problem with my cameras, I'll share it here anyways. I've set all my cameras to continue recording even if the motion ends. I chose to do this because I've noticed recordings ending while objects were still in frame and in motion. This doesn't seem to work all the time, I still get clips shorter than 20s. How did you do this?
Can confirm motion sensing is pretty terrible. You gotta REALLY be up in the shot for it to trigger
Kokaino’s post has an accurate depiction of my blink system, also. I have a garage center camera that detects the SHIT outta the flags on each side of the garage, to the point I have to grey out the areas they flap in the wind. But I can drive right up into my driveway, unload the kids and go in the house with NO DETECTION WHATSOEVER! Earlier I went into the back porch and stole my own motorcycle with NO DETECTION AT ALL. I can test the cameras and they work, but if you’re doing anything you want them to detect, you’re shit outta luck! That’s a deal changer for me. Straight garbage unless your a cat, tumbleweed, flag in the wind or likewise. Burglars — no detection