Abode Cam2
The Abode Cam2 is a small form security IP camera. This camera connects directly with the Abode App and integrates directly with the Abode security systems available today.
First impressions of the Abode cam2 are that it's well made and impressively small for its very low price. The Abode Cam2 is available on Amazon and on the Abode website here
The Cam2 is compact enough to use indoors without being intrusive or eye catching which is good. The Cam2 is also has a IP65 waterproof rating allowing the camera to be installed outside as well. The Cam2 is supplied with a decent length USB power lead as well allowing for easy installation even went the mounting location is not close to a power source.
The mounting solution provided by the camera is similar to other cameras that use a similar form factor. The solution provides a built in mount which can either be mounted flat or pull the mounting plate away from the main housing to expose a small leg and turntable allowing the camera to be angled and swivelled to the desired mounting angle.
It's white exterior with black face makes for a good looking design. It has 4 IR LEDs hidden round the lens for night vision and also has a colour night vision option. The Cam 2 comes with a relatively decent 1080p lens. This is the minimum resolution or lens quality you would want to go for as any lower would lead to a loss in details for identification of subjects in view of the camera.
The lens provides crisp visuals from the camera when viewing in the app. There was noticeable lag of 3 seconds on the feed from the camera when viewing in the app. This isn't really an issue though as the feed was stable and reliable on most of the time, although there was a significant time delay of between 5-10 seconds for the stream to be displayed in the app. Although I found that the notifications for motion alerts were received much quicker than other cameras at this price point.
The pairing process for the Cam2 was super easy and straightforward using the Abode app. by tapping on “add new device” in the app, a walkthrough process is started to pair the camera to your hub. follow the instructions on screen and in less than 3 minutes the camera will be available in the Abode app.
After pairing is complete you will be able to see a preview of the camera on the main screen in the app.
From the settings menu you are able to set the motion detection to on and also set up a detection area on the feed. This is good for if the Cam2 is facing a busy street or trees which could trigger the motion detection even when a person is not in view. To use person detection mode on the Cam2 the standard subscription is required however with this enabled motion detection did seem a lot more accurate with less false alerts for other motion in view of the camera.
The camera has colour night vison as well as standard night vision. Colour night vision is only available when the scene is not in complete darkness. This basically boosts the brightness and colour definitions when viewing the feed from the camera. This is certainly helpful at night to give a more realistic view of what is in front of the camera in low light situations.
This camera also provides 2 way talk which is good to see however the audio produced from the camera can be difficult to understand as it is being produced my a tiny speaker inside the camera. This isn't surprising as the camera's form factor is so small.
Abode provide the ability to view the cam2 feeds in the app on any subscription level however in order for the streams to be saved only subscriptions above Basic allow this. This does mean that the user would need to spend more on their abode subscription to save streams from the Cam2. There doesn't seem to be a way to access the feed from third party applications like ISpy or Blue Iris at the moment but I hope Abode allow access to the RTSP feed in the future as Wyze have done recently with their V3 cam.
The feed from the Cam2 can also be view on Amazon Alexa devices with a screen such as the Echo show.
There are many cameras on the market in the price range. If you have an Abode Security system already and are looking to expand your system to include cameras then the Cam2 is for you, especially if you are already paying for the higher subscription levels. The Cam2 will provides a decent, feature rich, camera solution at a good price point and with the added bonus of all the security features being available all in the same place, within the Abode app.
I'd like to thank Abode for providing the Cam2 for review.
To pick up an Abode Cam2 they are available on Amazon here
or on the Abode website here
