With the advent of smart video doorbells and tiny tech, home security is more accesible now than it has ever been.
Once the reserve of stately mansions with dystopian CCTV and Beware Of The Dog signs, the latest models are cheaper, clearer and come complete with more varied features to protect you and your family - and best of all, they only require modest outlays and have reasonable running costs. We’re in the midst of a home security revolution and it’s time to jump on board.
You only need to look at the exterior of the Eufy S220 SoloCam to show this. Measuring around the same size as a Terry’s Chocolate Orange, it packs a wealth of features and technological capabilities that punch far above its weight.
Solar power, night vision, human detection: the list goes on. But is it worth your hard earned cash? We put it to the ES Best test.
Specs
- 135° camera field-of-view
- 2K camera and f/1.6 aperture lens
- LED night vision
- Solar powered recharging: 0.9-watt solar panel can collect up to 400 mAh of solar energy per day
- 3-month backup battery
- 8GB of internal local storage (expandable memory up to 16 TB using Homebase 3)
- Two-way audio (picks up external audio within 8 meters of the device)
- Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa compatible
- 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi connectivity
- Size: 97 x 80.5 x 57.5mm
- Weight: 320 g
Set-up
The Eufy S220 SoloCam is incredibly compact - and so is the box that is comes with. There’s not much in the way of attachments or instructions inside. There’s a USB-C charging cable (the same one used for Androids), a mount, screw pack and what the brand deems a ‘Quick Start Guide’ that shows you a diagram of the different parts and advice on location to place it.
The only things to know from this is that the charging point is hidden by a cap at the back, the light flashes blue when it’s charging and switches off when full, and the recommended mount is 2-3m above ground level for the optimal 8m camera field of view. You will need a drill to affix it, which is not included.
As is the case with all the latest smart home devices, downloading the accompanying app is essential for operating this device. There are no external buttons (except sync) - which is ideal as it means possible intruders are not able to switch it off when placed outside - so all controls are app-based. On the app, you can host different Eufy gadgets for a surround security experience, get a security report and watch live or old recorded footage. Pairing is a matter of following the step-by-step instructions with no challenges.
Features
Once paired with the app, you can customise the camera to suit your preference. If you’re looking to optimise battery life, you can cut clip size to just 20 seconds or if you’d like to see what’s going on over a longer period of time, your preference can be 60 seconds, giving you a full picture of the events.
This is a battery-powered, wire-free device, which means you can place it anywhere, not just near a plug socket. This does mean that you will need to charge it up, which takes around five hours but it unscrews off the mount at the back so this is easily done. There’s the back-up option of solar power, so you want somewhere with direct sunlight covering the entirety of the panel on the top to keep your camera constantly juiced up.
The PIR motion sensor encourages the SoloCam to notify you if someone is there and the advanced technology is good at dicphering between human and other moving objects, but you may find cars or trees can set it off so choose your spot wisely.
With home security, the devil is always in the details. We’ve all seen grainy CCTV footage but the Eufy boasts 2K resolution, which, sure is not as crisp as your TV, but we could see under eye bags and the necklaces of passersby, so it does the job and then some. The night vision is fascinating to watch back and if you’re using indoors, will prove once and for all that your partner does snore.
While you can use for your interior spaces, outdoors is where it really shines. It’s ready for any weather - even the ever-changing British temperatures with its IP67 waterproof rating and you will be able to make the most of that state-of-the-art solar charging. There are different modes for if you’re home, away or want to stop notifications as well as set it on a schedule.
But the best bit? After the initial outlay of the camera there are no additional storage fee costs or monthly subscriptions after that. Which makes this a true bargain.
Verdict
While you will be able to find cheaper cameras both in the Eufy range and from other brands, we have yet to see a crisp, clear and feature-packed security solution like the SoloCam S220 that is just £98.99 (down from £109.99) and no hidden additional costs. The set-up is a breeze and the videos produced are high quality. The added benefit of solar power makes it fuss-free in the long run. It’s a win from us.
As with the case of all detection-based cameras, choose your spot wisely or you may just find your phone notifying you every single minute if you live in a high foot traffic area.
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Eufy SoloCam S220
Buy now, Amazon
