Recommendations – Security

Below you will find my most current recommendations for each product category. As always, these are NON-SPONSORED recommendations based on as much empirical information and testing as I can gather.

Last Updated: September 25, 2025

PROJECTORS
ROBOTIC VACUUMS & MOPS
SECURITY
LEDs & POWER
MISCELLANEOUS

Best Overall

Annke NC800

MSRP: $349.99
Common Price: $299.99
Link: https://amzn.to/4bnCRRq

As far as overall image quality, none of these cameras were able to unseat the Annke NC800 as the best color night vision camera on the market, and the 1 / 1.2” 8 megapixel sensor gives it crisp clear video both during the day and in ultra-low light situations, and it managed to outcompete the similar sensor sized Dahua Color4K camera despite the Dahua having a narrower field of view. The Annke’s only real downside is its cost, which is around $350.

Best Value

Reolink CX810

MSRP: $109.99
Common Price: $87.99
Link: https://amzn.to/4cgS8TN

No other cameras came close to the value of the Reolink CX810, which only scored 1 point lower than the Dahua Color4K, for a price of just $109. Normally I qualify my Reolink recommendations by saying that they have issues with low light motion smearing, and that they don’t work particularly well with Blue Iris, but neither of those statements seem to apply to the CX810, and in fact it was the highest scoring camera for motion, and seemed to have the best compatibility with Blue Iris, which again, is not something I ever thought I’d say.

More information on Color Night Vision Cameras: https://youtu.be/a3G_2zVu3cU

Best Indoor for use with ONVIF NVRs

Loryta IPC-EW5541 (Dahua)

MSRP: $174.99
Link: https://amzn.to/47O6Uzs

I wouldn’t recommend the Reolink FE-P for use in Blue Iris and instead the Loryta would be my top pick for an indoor only rated camera with a good mix of daytime and nighttime video quality, sound quality, ease of use, and compatibility and I was surprised how well Blue Iris person detection and facial recognition worked on these cameras, despite the warped fisheye video feed.

Best for Stand Alone Use

Reolink FE-P

MSRP: $109.99
Link: https://amzn.to/3QYZhjR

if you’re not a Blue Iris user and you want to use your 360 camera stand alone with a phone app, the Reolink is by far the best option.  Not only is the Reolink app extremely user friendly compared to other manufacturer apps, but it’s got a ton of options for dewarping both live view and recorded footage including the dual panoramic view and hemispheric view that Blue Iris offers as well as a quad view that lets you individually focus on 4 separate points of interest within the 360-degree video. As for recording and playback, Reolink’s built in person detection works very well and is a huge step up from the contrast-based motion detection you find on most cameras, and the Reolink app makes it extremely easy to find person detection clips stored on the SD card.  Reolink also makes a Wi-Fi version of the 360-degree fisheye camera called the FE-W that may be even more ideal for this kind of camera since it’s important to install them as close to the center of the room as possible and being wireless gives a little more flexibility in placement.

Best Outdoor ONVIF

Amcrest IP12M-F23-80-EW (Dahua)

MSRP: $759.99
Link: https://amzn.to/44BbUoa

The Amcrest IP12M-F23-80-EW, an outdoor rated 360-degree camera with a 1.85mm focal length and a super high resolution 12-megapixel 1/1.7” image sensor.  In my testing the Amcrest had 180 degrees of vertical and horizontal field of view and output a very clear true fisheye image. The Amcrest was extremely simple to set up with DHCP and ONVIF enabled by default, as well as Dahua’s new more user-friendly web interface.  I was able to add the Amcrest to my Blue Iris NVR using ONVIF discovery and easily change settings using that new Chrome compatible web interface.

Best Value Outdoor

Vikylin DT955

MSRP: $219.00
Link: https://amzn.to/45uGMIz

The Vikylin is a Hikvision OEM and is functionally identical to the DS-2CD-2955-FWD, which means it is a 1.05mm focal length lens paired with a 5-megapixel 1/2.5” image sensor providing 180 degrees of vertical and horizontal field of view. In my testing the Vikylin exceeded its 180-degree field of view claim and could see the white ceiling on either side of it despite being mounted roughly 2 inches below the ceiling. I had no issues getting the Vikylin connected to my network, and unlike most Hikvision cameras that I’ve tested, the Vikylin came with DHCP and ONVIF enabled by default allowing me to immediately add it to my Blue Iris NVR without any modifications.

More information on 360 Degree Fisheye Cameras: https://youtu.be/KPFPuXm2u7I

Best Camera Without a Light

AlkiVision

MSRP: $27.99
Common Price: $15.99
Link: https://amzn.to/4lLM8Xj

If you just want a camera and not a lightbulb replacement, the AlkiVision is by far the best option. It finished first in picture quality, it had the 2nd fastest notifications with included thumbnail images, and it has free person detection filtering. It uses the VicoHome app which is decently easy to use and makes finding and downloading clips relatively painless, and it’s only $15.99, though like all the cameras in this video you’ll also need to buy a microSD card separately.

Best Camera With a Light Replacement

ZKCAI

MSRP: $23.99
Common Price: $18.99
Link: https://amzn.to/40bL2Mn

If you’re looking for a camera + lightbulb, the ZKCAI is another easy recommendation. It finished 2nd in image quality, had quick rich notifications with free person detection, and the EseeCloud app is easy to use. The light output isn’t quite up to par with a 60-watt bulb, but it’s ten times better than a camera with only front facing LEDs, and the light output is evenly spread similar to a traditional bulb. Even though it’s twice as expensive as the AlkiVision $29.99 still seems like a fair price.

Highest Build Quality

Lorex 2K

MSRP: $69.99
Common Price: $54.99
Link: https://amzn.to/44DO39C

If you’re looking for something with a slightly better app and a more powerful light bulb, the Lorex was also very good with decent image quality, good light output, and a full featured app that doesn’t require a subscription but seems a bit overpriced at $70.

Best Design

Wyze Bulb Cam

MSRP: $49.98
Common Price: $49.98
Link: https://amzn.to/4lTZAZy

Speaking of overpriced, the Wyze bulb is cool, and I especially like the ultra-wide field of view and the ability to buy companion bulbs, but I can’t help but think Wyze has lost their way as a company. They used to make decent quality affordable cameras with local access and no subscription. Then they said the only way they could keep selling cheap cameras and stay in business was to charge a monthly fee, but now almost all of their cameras are at higher price points, but they still make them basically worthless if you don’t pay the $3 per month subscription. They’ve also completely abandoned the idea of local access, which I can’t get behind.

Best for Local Only Access (ONVIF)

SHANNA

MSRP: $27.99
Common Price: $23.79
Link: https://amzn.to/4kx0uK7

The camera that is most interesting to me is the extremely bright and aimable JUFLSKY garage style lightbulb camera. But it has issues that would stop me from recommending it to be used as an out of the box solution, namely that the JUFLSKY’s app, AJ Cloud, is legitimately terrible and has almost zero functionality if you don’t pay the monthly subscription. But the camera supports full local access and ONVIF, so if you already have an NVR, you can just use the app one time to set up ONVIF and the light timer and then never open them again. 

More information on Light Bulb Cameras: https://youtu.be/49H9Qye3wa0

Best Overall

Reolink Altas PT Ultra

MSRP: $209.99
Common Price: $179.99
Link: https://amzn.to/4nfDrGo

The Reolink Altas cameras are also extremely impressive and continuous recording from a battery powered camera seemed impossible just a few years ago, but Reolink has pulled it off. Other than continuous recording, some other reasons you might choose the Reolink Altas series over the eufy S3 Pro is if you wanted to have a mix of wired and battery powered Reolink cameras that can all use the same app, if you want pan and tilt on your camera, if you’re planning on using your cameras with Home Assistant, or if you specifically want to use the desktop based Reolink app, which works great with both the standalone mode and the Home Hub. 

In addition to the continuous recording of the Altas in standalone mode it had excellent notification speed and good video quality, but I’m disappointed that it wasn’t able to work without the internet without being connected to the Home Hub. Overall, the performance and reliability in terms of live view and downloading footage was also much better when using the wired hub, not to mention the awesome Home Assistant integration that’s only available for battery cameras when connecting through the hub.

Most User Friendly

eufy S3 Pro Solar Cam Kit

MSRP: $549.99
Common Price: $549.99
Link: https://amzn.to/4eh1Qrb

The eufy had the highest picture quality, and the fastest recording time other than the continuously recording Reolink Altas. It also has the option for rich notifications that are delivered relatively quickly, and the most user-friendly app that makes it simple to scrub through your footage. It supports person, vehicle, pet, and even familiar face detection without any monthly subscription and it records locally to the home base. This is the first eufy home base that I’ve ever tested that continues to work when blocked from the internet, which is a big step forward for the most privacy conscious people.

The eufy’s main weakness was daytime footage where it would stop recording after 30 seconds even on optimal surveillance mode. Eufy does have a custom recording mode where you can set the clip length up to 120 seconds with a 5 second retrigger time, but the longer you set the clip length the lower resolution the file will be, so at 60 seconds you’re limited to 1440p and at 120 seconds you can only record 1080p. But if you’re having issues with recording entire events, at least there are options. The eufy was by far the most expensive coming in at $220 per camera if you buy the two-camera kit, but in this case the performance does justify the increased price.

Best Budget Camera

TP-Link Tapo 402C

MSRP: $54.99
Common Price: $39.99
Link: https://amzn.to/4ejrtaO

The $40 TP-Link TAPO is genuinely decent. It had the 2nd fastest motion detection time, the 4th most footage recorded, the 4th fastest notifications, the 4th fastest view time, it has person detection with no monthly fee, and if you want you can even block it from the internet and view both the live view and your recorded footage completely locally. It’s also one of the smallest overall camera and solar packages and you have the option of using the solar panel on the built in mount or moving it away from the camera for more optimal placement. The TAPO’s only real weakness is its 1080p video quality which Is definitely usable but ranked at the bottom for daytime quality, still this is an excellent deal for $40, especially if you just need a single camera.

More information on Wireless Solar Powered Cameras: https://youtu.be/tMU3mINXigI

Best Overall

Eufy Dual Camera Doorbell Wired

MSRP: $199.99
Common Price: $129.99
Link: https://amzn.to/3NX9cTn

My top pick in this category is the $199 Eufy Dual Camera Doorbell which is the least expensive out of the group and like all Eufy Cameras does not require a cloud subscription.  Not only is the Eufy Dual packed with all the features I just mentioned like familiar face plus person, pet, and package detection, but it also has dual cameras to give you a clear image of the area in front of your doorbell as well as the area immediately under your doorbell, and the package camera is even aimable to make sure it covers everywhere you need.

Best Budget Option

Reolink WiFi Doorbell

MSRP: $109.99
Common Price: $87.99
Link: https://amzn.to/3nVdv9m

If you’re trying to keep your budget under $100 I don’t think you can do better than the Reolink WiFi doorbell which gets you subscription free person detection and fantastic video quality if you’re willing to take a risk on a newer and non battle tested product.  Also, one important thing I didn’t mention is that a Reolink doorbell paired with a Reolink NVR can enable 24/7 recording without a monthly fee by recording directly to the NVR’s hard drive making it an even stronger option.

Best Alexa Integrated Doorbell

Ring Pro 2 Video Doorbell

MSRP: $229.99
Link: https://amzn.to/3A3cDSK

If Amazon Echo integration is a top priority for you, then everything else in this video is moot and you should choose a doorbell from the Ring ecosystem, and the best one I’ve ever tested is the Ring Pro 2.  At a retail price of $259 and $40/year subscription the 2 year true cost of ownership for a Ring Pro 2 is $339 but it does deliver very good performance across the board that is extremely reliable and has very few shortcomings.

Best HomeKit Secure Video Doorbell

Belkin Wemo

MSRP: $54.00
Link: https://amzn.to/3UHyHdy

That said, I thought the Belkin Wemo was significantly better than the Logitech Circle for a lot of reasons.  First neither of them had great video quality, but the Wemo’s camera is a fisheye lens with almost 180 degrees of vertical field of view and close to 140 horizontal which helps to eliminate blind spots around your door. The Belkin Wemo was also slightly better at consistently starting recordings at the beginning of an event, and I found that about one in ten of my motion recordings on my Logitech Circle were a person standing at or walking away from the door. I also had disconnection issues with my Logitech Circle where the doorbell would randomly go offline and I needed to bring it back inside to reconnect it to my network, and I had no such issue with the Belkin Wemo.

Best Google Home Integrared Doorbell

Google Nest Wired Gen2

MSRP: $179.99
Link: https://amzn.to/3NYyh0b

I found that the notification speed of the Nest doorbell was just as fast as the Eufy Dual, and the Nest doorbells offer a similar feature set to the Eufy with person, vehicle, pet, package and familiar face detection.  About the only thing that the Eufy has that the Nest doesn’t is the additional downward facing package camera, but the portrait orientation of the new Nest camera gets you close to 160 degrees of vertical field of view, which should still be enough to keep an eye on packages close to your door, and the Nest of course has the huge advantage of 24/7 recording assuming you can stomach the $12/month cloud subscription.

More information on Wired Video Doorbells: https://youtu.be/Cj7Fwu_d1yc

Best Overall

Aqara Smart Lock U100

MSRP: $229.99
Common Price: $149.99
Link: https://amzn.to/3LBPVaf

If you’re a big Apple user the Aqara U100 is easily my favorite lock overall, and it uses typical Apple HomeKit magic to give remote notifications and allow for remote unlocking by using your Apple TV, HomePod or other HomeKit hub devices that are already in your house.  Compared to the Schlage which is the other competitor in the Home Key space the Aqara U100 was quieter, used less power per unlock, has a much better app experience with significantly more access options, and it adds a fingerprint sensor in case you don’t have your iPhone or Apple Watch, or maybe for a young kid who doesn’t have a phone or watch at all, and it does all that for over $100 less. Adding an Aqara hub like the M2 also increases connectivity significantly, allowing it to be added to Google Home, Amazon Echo, and Home Assistant using the brand-new Matter protocol.

Best Budget Pick

Wyze Lock Bolt

MSRP: $79.99
Common Price: $74.98
Link: https://amzn.to/3LDKnMp

If you want the best bang for your buck with codes, fingerprints, and a Bluetooth app, the Wyze Lock Bolt gives basically all the same functionality of locks that cost 2 to 3 times as much, and I personally think the minimalist all black look with lighted rubberized buttons is actually pretty slick, but your tastes may vary.

Best Remote Access Lock

eufy Security Smart Lock C220

MSRP: $149.99
Common Price: $109.99
Link: https://amzn.to/48ArTX8

If you want to spend a little more for a lock that will give you mobile notifications for when your door is unlocked, and by whom, the Eufy C220 is awesome, and notifications were accurate, reliable, and fast.  The Eufy app is full of useful settings to tweak your lock’s options and although the built in Wi-Fi is more power hungry than a Bluetooth model, doing away with the bridge leads to a more seamless experience and Eufy did double the battery capacity to account for the increased power draw.

Best "No Smart Lock" Look

Level Lock+

MSRP: $329.00
Link: https://amzn.to/3LBQwJ1

If you or your significant other is completely against having the smart lock aesthetic, the Level Lock+ accomplishes exactly what it set out to do, and looks exactly like a standard lockset, but for me the price tag seems a little steep since it only supports Home Key, has a much smaller battery capacity than the rest of the locks, and it also had some issues with slow updating and misreporting of the lock state in HomeKit.

More information on Smart Locks: https://youtu.be/H7CqQ2paslk

Best Dash Cam Under $100

Viofo A119 Mini 2

MSRP: $129.99
Common Price: $113.99
Link: https://amzn.to/41CAzLr

If your budget is under $100 and you’re okay with just a front facing dash cam, the Viofo A119 Mini 2 is miles ahead of other cameras in the price range and has excellent 1440p video quality with great HDR implementation, a wide field of view, good parking modes, and an incredibly compact and discrete form factor.

Best Dash Cam Under $200

Wolfbox X5 4K 3Ch

MSRP: $399.99
Common Price: $199.99
Link: https://amzn.to/3Ykm2Bw

If you want more cameras, the three channel Wolfbox X5 is a crazy deal for $199 and has the same sensors and most of the same options as the $299 Vantrue N4 Pro. The Wolfbox was also the only camera that survived all 16 impacts without stopping the video feed. Its only weaknesses are fewer and less functional parking modes, weaker HDR video processing, and a mount that tends to bounce on bumpy roads leading to a bit more motion blur at night.

Best Night Performing

Vantrue N4 Pro 4K 3Ch

MSRP: $379.99
Common Price: $299.99
Link: https://amzn.to/4gLufW3

Last year’s winner the Vantrue N4 Pro is still the king of nighttime image quality, and the recent PlatePix firmware update seems to have improved it even more, but you’ll need to decide if the slightly better image quality and better parking modes are worth the extra $100 over the Wolfbox, especially since the Wolfbox also comes with a 128 gigabyte SD card, while the Vantrue’s is sold separately.

Best Overall Performance

Viofo A329 4K 2Ch

MSRP: $469.99
Common Price: $399.99
Link: https://amzn.to/4gJE4UM

The Viofo A329 4K had the best daytime video quality, the 2nd best nighttime quality, and the best parking modes, but for $100 more than the Vantrue and twice the price of the Wolfbox, you get one less channel and marginally better performance. So, unless parking modes or one of the more niche features like USB-C SSD recording, or HDMI video output are important for you, then the Vantrue N4 Pro or Wolfbox X5 make more sense.

More information on Basic Dash Cams: https://youtu.be/HswpRHu_X-k

Best Overall Performance

Blackvue DR970-2CH Plus LTE

MSRP: $539.99
Common Price: $539.99
Link: https://amzn.to/3P0RQ9U

If you want the ultimate connected dash cam, the BlackVue DR970X-2CH Plus LTE was the clear winner with great parking notifications with useful 10 second pre-roll, automatic cloud upload of events, real time GPS mapping and event mapping, and even a daily driver safety report. All that comes at a hefty price though, with an almost $600 upfront cost, plus $7.99 a month for the BlackVue cloud and $23.99 a month for cellular service. Though, I will say, the BlackVue is compatible with the T-mobile network, which is only $15 a month for 3GB, so you can save yourself $9 a month by just swapping out the sim card. Still, in my opinion the BlackVue should be the clear choice for businesses with employees driving company vehicles and the BlackVue cloud even has a separate fleet plan that enables more features like geofencing and longer GPS tracking records.  

Runner-Up

Thinkware U3000

MSRP: $429.99
Common Price: $379.99
Link: https://amzn.to/430hJwq

The Thinkware U3000 is a pretty compelling option for someone who wants GPS reports for their vehicles and can deal with the lack of cellular connectivity. I personally used the built-in Wi-Fi hotspot on my Rivian, but you could also hotspot from your phone, or for a company vehicle you could even just have it connect to your business’s Wi-Fi once the work day was over and you’d still get GPS reports marked up with safety concerns like hard acceleration, braking and cornering.

More information on LTE Dash Cams: https://youtu.be/hhnsOQ3Xmnk

Best Sensor (by a long shot)

Aqara Door and Window Sensor

MSRP: $17.99
Common Price: $15.29
Link: https://amzn.to/32NHULA

Here are five reasons why the Aqara Door and Window sensor is the best. First, it is smaller than most other sensors I tested. Second, the battery life was twice as long as the next best sensor. Third, it was the most accurate at measuring over 800,000 open/close cycles. Fourth, Aqara sensors use a Zigbee protocol, which makes them compatible with numerous other systems such as Home Assistant or SmartThings. Lastly, it was one of the cheapest sensors tested. 

More information on Window & Door Sensors: https://youtu.be/c4-8Y7jUCn0