YI home camera (Black)

This is a repeat order ,i been ordered yi home camera few times now. I am really impressed with it's performance.The video quality is sharp, even at night thanks to the clear night vision.Set up was quick and simple, the app is very user friendly. I love the motion detection, it gives me peace of mind knowing I can check in on my home anytime , anywhere.The two way audio feature is also a nice bonus for communicating with family when I am away.Overall this is a reliable, affordable security option that works exactly as advertised .

A bright screen with clear views of the traffic behind.

I have several Yi cameras that I have purchased over the last six years. The hardware itself is fine, good quality video and sound. Unfortunately over the last year since being taken over by Kami, the developers have inserted increasingly intrusive ads into their app making the cameras unusable. If you get an alert or just want to view your cameras, you have to sit through a 30 second unskippable full screen advert every time you open the app, with further intrusive ads throughout the app, even for subscribing customers. Look up the reviews of the Yi app in the Play store to see how many customers have had to stop using the cameras because the app is no longer usable.

I bought this camera to keep an eye on my home, whilst I am out. It gave me peace of mind, knowing that everything is okay. I can open up the Yi Camera App on my phone and view the live camera feed and/or view any previous alerts.I even managed to check in on my home, whilst traveling abroad to Spain. I had mobile data roaming, so it was possible to check the cameras, just as if I was in the UK. Of course, when I went into the mountain areas, where there is no mobile data reception, I could not check anything. Most UK networks include the cost of data roaming in the EU. Outside, Europe, roaming charges can be expensive, although Wi-fi may be available.Motion Detection - the best feature is the motion detection, which is very sensitive. Sometimes, I have viewed the 6 second alert footage on my phone and wondered why it has been flagged up, only to notice in distance a car or a passer by. It is very sensitive.Picture Quality - it is described as 1080p quality. The camera is okay, but I do not think if it is good enough to identify burglars. The camera has night vision, so it can record detection, but drops to black and white mode. You may consider having good lighting side by side. You will need to experiment. Also, I am not sure if it can read car number plates etc...Street lighting or car headlights can blind it.Windows PC - You can download Windows PC software to be able monitor on your PC. You can monitor multiple cameras at the same time.Wired CCTV ? - I did consider a Wired CCTV Camera system. Such as those by HikVision, who are a world leader in CCTV systems. Whilst their products are tried and tested and used by professionals, but they don't have the cloud back up (unless you use a third party company). The subscription rates of those were more expensive, then rates for wireless cameras. The Wired CCTV system records locally to a recorder on your premises. However, a burglar can steal the recorder. The wired CCTV systems are robust, but they lack the flexibility and nimbleness of wireless systems.Nest / Hive / Ring - they have been advertising a lot. However, their subscription models are expensive. With Yi Camera, I have the option of stopping the subscription and it also backs up to memory card.This product is not bullet proof. If a burglar is in your home, they can turn off the camera (just by turning off the switch). Although, you would have been sent the 6 second alert on your phone (if in time). This product has no battery back up, but many other wireless cameras dont have this feature either. So if there is a power cut, it has no power to keep recording. In addition, you need to have power back-up for your Wi-Fi router. You may be in an area, where Wi-fi stops working or is unreliable, so there is no back-up to switch to mobile data. As you can see, there are multiple lines of failure. If I had lots of money, I would fit a wired 4k Camera system from HikVision.Trial - it mentions there is a one month trial, but you have to pay a subscription, before you can get it.32GB - I ordered this card, but if you are only doing motion detection, then you can use a smaller capacity card.UPDATE: You may be better off with a 64GB, if your camera is facing the street, you will get lot of alters if the trees blow in the wind or a bird flies by.Subscription - they have a subscription of 7 day x 5 camera recording for 60 euros per year. Motion detection only. They have continuous detection, but that is more expensive. Continuous recording is far more expensive.Power- it gets power from a USB socket on the wall.EzVIZ - I also bought a wireless camera from this brand (because it is made by HikVision). An industry leader in CCTV. However, the EZViz is their range of wireless products. Having had both brands side by side. The YI Camera is far more superior. EzViz apps is n't so great. I like the fitting system of EzViz (it has a magnetic base).I read some of the negative reviews for the Yi Camera, however, I have not experienced any issues. Set up was very easy and reliable.UPDATE 2020: YiCamera, help me find that my new neighbours, had turned the property into what I suspected a pop-up brothel, everyone was coming night. I suspected criminal activity. It help me find out what was going on at night, but video quality is n't good enough to identify people, if they are walking fast, wearing hoodies. If a car headlights are pointing into the camera at night, it is going to capture a white blur. However, it did help me figure out what was going on, as I could hear cars turning up, people talking on the street at night at 1am, 2a, 3am 4am and disturbing my sleep, but the camera helped me put a picture, to what I was hearing in bed.I am paying for cloud, but I have no idea, how to save from it.Reviewing footage: That is a chore. As I had suspected criminal activity on my street. I had a memory card reader, and transfered the files to the PC for reviewing. Each file is 60seconds long. It does take time, but I found out the quickest way it to use VLC and the playlist editor and speed through it as it has a skip 10 seconds feature. SO you can review files and delete unwanted files.Complying with regulations: You need to see the ICO web site, as there are guidance on how to deal with CCTV footage. I put signage up. You also need to decide how long to keep the data. YI will delete things after 7 days (depending on subscription and memory card).Phone Data: If your camera is going to face the street, then make sure you have adequate data for your phone. If the camera is facing the phone, then you wont get much alerts.Wishlist: I have written to Yi for a feature request. One camera faces my living room, so very little activity. If there was an altert, I wanted to be notified right away as a matter of urgency!!!. However, if I have another camera facing the street and garden. I don't want to see an alert about a bird flying. So I don't want my phone to ping. So I might get 30 or 40 alerts, I would review them when if I get time....Please leave a 'Helpful' note, so I know my efforts have helped others.

I have other Kami cameras and I needed another for the back of the house. This was great value and so easy to set up through the app. So far it working well with the SD card only. I can watch a live feed and it picks up any movement such as cats walking around outside so is sensitive enough.

Installing the YI Home Camera 3 took only about 15 minutes, with no tools required. The app and voice prompts from the camera walked me through every step of setup.The camera base has adhesive so you can conveniently stick it to a wall or another flat surface with no screws. The magnetic base lets you securely attach it to a metal surface like a refrigerator (so you can finally see who's been eating your favorite yogurt). The camera needs to be plugged into a wall, but its cord is only about 6 feet long, so if you want to put it somewhere farther from an outlet, you'll need to use an extension cord.The YI 3 camera has an attractive modern design, but it's not as maneuverable as other home security cameras. It doesn't have a handy ball socket like Nest Cam or a fully panning lens like Wyze—you can only move the YI up and down—so mounting it on a wall might make it difficult to get a good viewing angle.Fortunately, the YI Home Camera 3's wide-angle lens makes up for its lack of maneuverability. No matter the size or shape of the room I placed it in, it was easy to find a good angle that captured the majority of the room's area.Unfortunately, the YI 3 often had very poor connectivity. Whenever I opened the app, it took several seconds to a full minute to buffer. When you're anxious to see what triggered a notification, that amount of time feels like an eternity. If it did finally manage to connect, the video was choppy and occasionally pixelated. Sometimes the app would tell me the camera couldn't connect and ask me to check network settings. When I did, it always showed connectivity as "excellent.Pros-Two-way audio-Easy installation - just take it out of the box, connect to a plug and a phone and its ready to use-Different alert types-Low price tag-Ease of access and anywhere accessibleCons-Choppy and blur video-Massive network issues and connection delays