In a market which doesn't always surprise any more, the new Reolink Altas PT Ultra's battery life really stands out.
This 4K pan-and-tilt camera boasts a whopping 20,000 mAh battery capacity which, if Reolink is to be believed, can deliver up to a weeks continuous recording, or around 365 days of normal use, despite being a wireless device which won't require wires through your walls.
That, frankly, is pretty special. I use cameras which have solar panels to top up their batteries and they don't manage anything close, and certainly cant also rotate to view 360-degrees.
The new camera also boasts ColorX night vision, smart tracking which can recognise people, cars and pets, and up to 512GB of local storage (or, more accurately, it is compatible with memory cards up to that capacity).
Alongside the launch of the PT Ultra comes the Reolink Battery Doorbell. It is a 2K (4 megapixel) camera, which Reolink calls 'Super HD'. The company describes the camera as having a "head-to-toe view" from a 180-degree diagonal field of view.
We have certainly seen similar concepts before, and a boost over traditional 1080P will definitely be appreciated with such a wide angle.
Here, for some reason, the local storage – although available – is restricted to a maximum of 256GB on the memory card, but smart detection offers alerts for "people, vehicles, and packages."
The cameras will go on sale on September 25, and while it remains to be seen if the doorbell is unique, the promised battery life of the PT Ultra could significantly change the experience of using battery cameras. It is especially interesting for a brand with a strong heritage in wired security systems, lending more support to the battery concept than consumer novelty.
