Have a 2k tapo camera but looking at many reviews on this camera on you tube this was by FAR the best review I have seen on this camera, excellent review and clarified questions I had on smart view and other issues. I will be buying one. WELL DONE..!😊😊😊😊
I have a modem in my summer cottage and that has unlimited surf....so instead of having wireless connections I ran the cables on the inside of the cottage as discreetly as possible and connected them directly to the modem, so that I have continuous connection...I also installed 512GB cards in each of them to have maximum storage...the cameras will only be on standby mode during the summer while we are living there - but as soon as the end of season comes around they are on full alert.....this video not only gave a good review it he shows the settings in detail....big thumbs up from me!
Thank you. The Tapo app has been updated in the last month or so and addresses the remaining niggles I had with the app, so I’m even more pleased with the cameras now than I originally was. I’m up to 9 of them now!
I had some other cameras that didn't deliver...so I was looking around and this one came up....I like TP-Link....find their support always helpful and the guarantee on their products is very good....I bought two of these cameras to protect my summer cottage on an island near Sundsvall in Sweden...have to say I am impressed! Thank you so much for doing this video.....
Your very welcome. I’m up to 9 of them now, not all this dome one, but found them to be superb. It’s a year now since I had the first of my C520WS and I’m still as impressed today as I was back then.
@@ToughMonkey sitting watching your video again as I write this.. Like I wrote earlier...TP-LINK has become ny main company for all sorts of products...thanks for the quick reply and keep doing vidos🙂
This is one of the best reviews of this camera. I have just put in the Tapo door bell and two c220 indoor cameras. Very happy with them. Same as you my external cameras are Swann. Which are no way near the image quality as these.
First time i've watched one of your videos and a good review of the 520WS. I had recently purchased the similar 510 which i have been more than happy with. Only my 3rd camera with Tapo but they seem to work very well and the app is dead easy to use.
Yes they will. Both phones would need to be logged on to the same Tapo account, but my wife and I can view all of our Tapo cameras at the same time from different phones, and tablets as well. That’s quite a big thing actually as I’ve got cameras from some much larger brands that kick one phone out if you try to access from another phone. The Tapo has no issues. You can view live images from more than one device at the same time.
I owned this camera and i was able to “share” the device to my sister’s tapo account - we have different tapo email id. I just have to share it to hers through Tapo Application. She does not need to use the same tapo account with me
How do you install cables? Every review I've seen omits this topic. Camera has to be connected to the power, do you have to drill a hole in the wall to reach the inside where the power outlet is? Or you create an outdoor power outlet?
My previous video for three other Tapo cameras focussed quite heavily on the cabling issues. Apologies, I didn’t go into to much about wiring these ones up other than showing the power cable and discussing the option of using BNC cables as an alternative. Basically, yes. These are an externally powered device. They don’t have batteries or use solar energy so you will need to wire them to the mains. This is one of the biggest considerations with external cameras, especially since the power adapter that comes with external cameras are usually too big to fit inside a standard weather-proof outdoor socket. It means that you’ll need to drill a hole through your external wall big enough for the cylindrical power connector to fit through and connect it to an indoor socket. The one that is in the video, however, is close to my kitchen window. I discovered that the cable is slim enough for me to open the side-opening kitchen window and have the cable basically squeezed into the rubber window seal when it shuts. It hasn’t damaged the cable and the window is weather-sealed, so I was able to get power to the camera without any drilling into my walls.
Great review @toughmonkey - I've bought this camera and was looking around for video's on setup externally, especially to do with the wiring ... what extension wire do you use to extend it to the internal power socket?
Hi, the cable that comes with it is 3m long, with a 9v output voltage. Generic extension cables are available, which I used on the one in the video. I've since bought two more which I used the power line part of BNC cables I had on my previous Swann CCTV installation. They can be a cheapish method of powering over long distances (I use 15m BNC cables). This is the data sheet from TP-Link's website that may be of use to you: static.tp-link.com/upload/product-overview/2024/202411/20241101/Tapo%20C520WS&Tapo%20C52A%202.0&2.6&2.8_Datasheet.pdf
Looks like a decent cam. I've been using the C320WS for a couple of years and it's a solid camera but the microphone has stopped working (possibly water ingress somewhere?). The only real issue I have with these cameras is the cable length, 3m is just not long enough to suit most installs. Thanks for showing that it has active detection tracking - one thing I would have wanted to know about the camera. Oh, and the framerate - the C320WS only has 15fps which isn't great, nice to see the C520WS has 25fps!
Agree with everything you’ve said. Cable length of all security cameras, inside and out, are always a bit stingy. I usually end up using extensions of some nature. I discovered I could use BNC cables to deliver power to it, and I’ve got loads of that floating around from various Swann CCTV systems I’ve had over the years. The 320WS is a solid little camera. Mine is doing a good job and it performs better than my similar Swann cameras. I would have been happy if the C520 matched the performance of the C320….but as it turns out I’ve been even more impressed. It’s just a shame that Amazon haven’t brought the price down on Black Friday to the same price as Prime Day.
@@otszzz79 that’s useful to know. There must obviously be a limit on what it can do with exposure to weather. We’ve had two major storms pass through in the last couple of weeks and the camera is in a very exposed position in the direction of the wind and it’s been perfectly fine. But a storm isn’t a tornado so haven’t been able to test it under those conditions.
@@pspr33 i know they are cheap, but still. It was advertised as outdoor, waterproof. But even with a protection cover above them, they still affected by the rainy weather. They serve my purposes, if they break I get a new one for the 20 bucks
So far, after just shy of two months of use, I've continued to be very impressed by the C520WS. I've got all of the settings turned up to highest quality, I've adjusted the sensitivity to get the best balance of motion triggers and I've still not filled the 256GB memory card so I've still got access to all recordings from nearly two months ago. That's useful information to know when deciding if local or cloud recording is best for you. My observations over my time with it are that the recordings have been clear both visually and sound. The built in light is suprisingly powerful. The motion tracking is excellent and follows animals and humans around very well and the camera returns to where I want it to be by default. The app is truly great, one of the standout features of the whole Tapo experience, and gets better with additional cameras. I've used so many security camera apps over the last few years and I can't say how nice it is to use the Tapo app. Connection from the app to the camera is almost immediately, even when I'm away from home. I was away over the weekend and controlling the camera was as responsive as if I was sat on the same network. I would balance my enthusiasm by saying that you'll never get the sensitivity quite perfect on the camera. Rain can snow fall can reflect back on the camera when its in Infra Red / Night mode and trigger a motion detection, so you will get quite a few false positives. It's something I've experienced with every security camera and you learn to adapt your notifications. If you have notifcations on 24/7 for every notifcation your phone will be constantly buzzing if it rains. Additionally, I've had 1no instance where the camera had disconnected. I don't know what caused the disconnection, but I turned it off and on again and it was perfectly fine. Overall though, I have been massively impressed with the camera and I have plans to purchase at least one more, possibly two. I've found it to be every bit as good as the bullet cameras, but offers more versatility with positioning and tracking. And, one last thing which no one ever mentions. Spiders. A weird jump but bear with me. Spiders are the bane of CCTV cameras. I don't know if they're attracted by the Infra Red lights or something, but every bullet security camera I've got (currently 12 active) gets spiders webs in front of them. Every one. I have to regularly go around my house and garden with an extendable feather duster to clear off the cobwebs which can obscure the camera when it gets dark (can't see them in daylight, but they reflect back when in Infra red mode). The C520WS camera hasn't had one cobweb in front of it. I can only assume that the dome shape and the fact that I've positioned it on a mount that moves it away from the wall into an exposed position doesn't lend itself to building cobwebs. It sounds a silly, insignificant point to make....but after regularly cleaning security cameras for 6-7 years since I had my first camera, I can tell you it's a big deal.
@@ToughMonkey Amazing! Btw, how do you clean up the tapo c520? I never have security camera and I'm looking for one right now. I'm interest on the tapo c520. 😊
A couple of months back, we unfortunately experienced a car break-in. At that time, we didn't have a security camera in place, despite having implemented various security measures, including alarms. The only missing piece in our security setup was a reliable camera to monitor our parking lot. Given that we've already stretched our budget to secure the car, I'm now on the lookout for the best camera that offers features like pan and tilt, sound capabilities, and, most importantly, night vision. The camera I'm considering seems like an excellent choice, and it's priced at approximately 100 USD in Sweden. However, I do have one significant concern: will it be able to operate effectively in extremely cold temperatures? Our location can get quite chilly, and I'm worried that the camera might not function properly in sub-zero conditions. Your comprehensive review has been incredibly convincing so far, and you've covered all the key aspects. The only piece of information I couldn't find in your review is the camera's operational temperature range. If you could provide that information, it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks a lot!
Hi, thanks for the great feedback. I’ve checked Tapo’s website to see if it gives that information, and found it on the Specification page which is quite well hidden. It says that the operating temperature range is minus 30 degrees Celsius to 60 degrees (minus 22 Fahrenheit to 140 degree). That seems pretty good and should be good for the UK and most of Europe, but maybe some areas of Scandinavia might push that. Hope that helps.
@@ToughMonkey Excellent, thank you so much for taking your time going though all that! Indeed, last winter we had about minus 20-25 degrees Celsius. Then I should be all set, I'll get about ordering this camera. Thank you again for both the excellent review and for your help!! 😊
Thank you. In the Tapo app select the camera and the. In the top right corner there should be a cog-shaped icon. Click on that and towards the top of the options screen that comes up will be one called “Detection”. There’s quite a good range of options in there to set up the camera for different types of activations, motion zones, timings etc. Hope that helps.
Glad it was of use. Since I published that video I've bought three more because I think they're excellent. I've replaced all of the existing Swann CCTV cameras as the Tapo is such a better image. Tapo have also upgraded the app that I demonstrated to be even better, which was one of my few previous criticisms. In total I've got 12 active Tapo cameras, which is the biggest commendation I can give if I keep buying more of them!
Thank you. Yes, I was able to use the Swann cable. Not on this particular camera but I’ve since purchased another one which I swapped an old and tried Swann camera out for. I taped off the video cable part of the BNC cable and used the power cable part to power the Tapo camera so I didn’t have to re-route cables. That one was particular awkward as well as the Swann was connected through the roof, so being able to use the same cable was a relief. One thing I did note, however, is that BNC cables can deteriorate. One of the other Swann cameras in my garden was becoming temperamental. When I investigated I discovered that the cable itself was at fault, not the camera. It had deteriorated over 7-8 years of weather exposure. However, it is possible to power the Tapo using the powered side of a BNC cable.
@@ToughMonkey thank you very much for that information, I have 2 Swann cameras in use but the quality is not very good now, so it will be easier to change to Tapo cameras if I can use the Swan cables.
That's interesting to hear. I've not seen anything about issues with connecting to a WPA2 network, although in honesty I try not to look at other reviews before I do my own reviews, where possibly, as it can influence the independance of my own views. I can only say from my own experience I had no issues at all connecting to my Virgin Huib 5 which has WPA2 protocols as default. In fact, the very reason I upgraded from my previous IP camera system was that those camera absolutely refused to connect to my Virgin Hub 5 when I upgraded my router from my previous ASUS router. The 7 Tapo cameras I currently have all connected with no hesitation whatsoever. The only thing I could think of would be if they were trying to deliberately connect to 5Ghz wi-fi rather that 2.5Ghz. These camera at 2.5Ghz, as many IP cameras are. A few cameras are available with 5Ghz, and most people will tell you they'd rather connect over 5Ghz as the data transmission is greater, however IP cameras are often located a long way from the router and even outside with lots of obstructions between the camera and the router and in my experience you'll get a more reliable connection and further away using 2.5Ghz. But, from my point of view, I had no issues connecting to the camera during set up, and accessing the camera via the Tapo app takes about 1 second when you first open the app, and then it resonds immediately to inputs from then on.
Great video thanks. Can you do a video showing how the integration between the camera and a tapo smart plug. Can you control the smart plug when the camera detects a person or car?
I don’t believe that there is any interaction. The Tapo app recently got updated to integrate both Tapo and TP-Link branded products, but I don’t think there’s any cross-over other than being able to control them all from the same app. There’s nothing I can see in the settings for both the camera or the smart plugs that would allow you to, for example, turn a lamp on if a motion was detected on the camera. I did wonder, however, if I could set up a routine in the Alexa app. As I’ve got all of my Echos, Hue bulbs, smart sockets, cameras and other gadgets grouped into rooms / zones I thought it might be possible to create a routine where if the Tapo camera detected a motion I could get it to turn on a Hue bulb / smart socket / announcement through an Echo speaker which would rather good. But, sadly, when I tried to set it up it simply says that the Tapo device doesn’t support this action.
@@ToughMonkey I have Ezviz cameras at the moment and I can't get an Alexa routeen to turn on the tapo plugs from motion from the cameras. I was hoping that the tapo cameras would be different and worked the routeen. The tapo camera I had my eye on is the C520WS, have you tried that camera with the integration?
@@MarkHardman-h6j This video is for the C520WS and I've tried to configure the camera to integrate actions of other devices, both Tapo branded and other (such as Hue or Echo) but I've not been able to do it either in the Tapo app or the Alexa app.
How it reacts depends on the sensitivity level you set it to. If it’s too sensitive it will hunt around and search for movement. In night vision mode rain and snow show up as white as it’s reflecting back to the sensor. It’s basically the same as every other security camera I’ve used in that regard.
The Tapo app is free to download and free to use. There is a subscription if you want to use cloud storage for your recordings, or you can supply your own microSD card and record locally.
@@ToughMonkey hi new to this type of camera can you watch what's recorded on sd card on app or got take out put into laptop also 512gb how many hours can hold on 2k and 1080
@@mlaverty14 you can watch the footage straight from the app without having to remove the memory card, and provided your WiFi is decent enough you can access it very quickly. The amount of footage you can hold will be dependant on your settings. If you’re recording continuously at the highest settings it’ll obviously fill up much quicker than if you set it to motion detection recordings only. You can alter the quality of the recording in the app, as well as set up schedules so that you can have it recording continuously through the night but on motion detection only during the day for example. Set it up exactly how you want. I’ve got mine on highest quality and motion detection recording and it doesn’t miss anything. The 128gb memory card only filled up for the first time about a week ago since I set the camera up, so at least two months. Once it fills up it loops around and begins to over-write the first things on the memory card.
Would you recommend the C520WS over C320WS? I think I would love the 360° horizontal & 130° vertical viewing range but at the moment I can buy two C320WS for the price of one C520WS.
It’s really down to whether you have a suitable location for a dome camera. Both cameras are excellent, but the added versatility of the dome camera gives it the edge in certain scenarios. On the corner of a property it’s an absolute winner, but there’s little reason if you’ve got an area that a static camera will cover. The Black Friday deals have gone live on Amazon in the last few minutes and there’s been no further reductions that I can see so far. The C320 is £36.99 vs £69.99 for the C520 (I paid £49.99 on Prime Day). As another possibility, the C510 is currently available at £39.99 for the marginally less well-specced dome camera.
A handy feature for recording onto the sd card is the loop option.. so once the card is full... it will continue recording over the oldest footage stored on the card.. I was thinking I would have to keep climbing up and removing the card to clear it every few months... even tho went with a 512 sd card... so should take a lot of storage. Being new to these I didn't realise you can see all the stored vids on your phone or laptop that been stored on the card and download it to your desktop without needing the card out of the camera. great review btw.
I don't know if there's a limit to how many iPhones/iPads can be connected at any one time, but I do know that it is multiple devices. This is a really important point as some apps I've used will only let one device be connected at anyone time. Arlo, for example, boots me out of my iPhone if I try to log on with my iPad. With the Tapo app, my wife and I can both log on with either our iPhone or iPad and view live footage without conflict.
Thank you. I’ve got no plans to review the C425 camera at this time. The Tapo cameras are ones I’ve bought myself and subsequently reviewed, rather than products supplied via Amazon Vine that some of my reviews are based on. The C425 are fully wireless cameras which I’ve got other products filling that brief (Arlo Pro 4 & 5 for example). If TP-Link would like to supply a set for testing I’ll happily review them, but I’ve got no need for them myself. I’d put them against the C320WS rather than the C520WS though as they’re both bullet cameras. The C520 offers very different features and feel targets a different requirement to a bullet cam.
Thank you. The corner mount that I used to install the Tapo camera on the corner of my house was the WiTi Universal Corner Mount. I bought it from the UK Amazon site here: WiTi Universal Corner Mount for Security Camera, Stainless Steel Mounting Corner Bracket for Ring Blink, Suitable for CCTV Cameras LED Wall/Stage Lights, Solar Panels (small size) amzn.eu/d/6OE56uX
@@ToughMonkeyThank you in advance for your response, I also bought a camera like that, do you think it really makes a difference to mount it on a corner stand? Do we actually gain something in terms of viewing?
@@PedroOliveira1975 it adds extra degrees of rotation. If you mount a dome camera on a straight wall it can only rotate 180 degrees. If you mount it on a corner then it can rotate 270 degrees. In my case the camera can effectively cover two sides of my house instead of just one. When the price is correct I’ll buy another one and place it on the opposite corner of my house so that I can cover all four elevations of my house with just two cameras.
Hi. If going to have a extension power cable 3 m or 5 m length. Get a 12v power supply instead of the factory 9v power supply. As i had issues loading up if used a 5 m length cable. Struggling to load.
Many thanks for your explanations. I am a greenhorn and I have a learned a lot from you. My question is : can you indicate to me which memory card I should use. Which brand which capacity please. I will order. Then I have read that you can use as well an external storage unit. Is this good? When i vision can I use as well beside my handy a normal computer. Can they store as well the images/videos.on top? Many thanks for your time.
The memory card it takes is a MicroSD card. These are available in a huge combination of sizes and specifications and it’s very easy to get lost. I’ve got various cards for different devices. For example my Canon digital film camera has a U3 UHS-II card capable of 250mb/s data transfer, but IP cameras don’t need those kinds of speeds. I always recommend SanDisk memory cards, and I usually use their SanDisk Extreme microSDXC card which is 190MB/s, UHS-I, Class 10, U3. They’re often on offer on Amazon, although I’ve just looked and they’re at least 50% higher than they’ve been recently. 128GB should be enough for most people and last me a couple of months at highest settings with motion detection only recordings. I’ve not attempted to use an external storage device so I couldn’t really comment on if that works. If you want to view your recordings on your computer then you’ll need to remove the memory card from the camera and put it into your computer. I can only access the memory card when it’s in the camera via the app. If you do put the memory card into your computer then you can obviously save the footage and still to a separate disk if you want to keep recordings longer.
Many, many thanks for your great help and your precious time you spent to answer. I really appreciate. I wish you a great year to come. All my very Best to You. Thank you.@@ToughMonkey
I assume you didn't extract the footage from the SD card but from live view? Since resolution changing only affects the live view, and the camera always records in 2K. Capturing from live view will always have lower quality then using the actual recorded file from the SD card.
The footage on this video is extracted from the SD card recordings via the app. So, not live view but also not physically by me taking the SD card out of the camera and putting it into my computer to pick files out in Windows file explorer. I tested it how the vast majority of people will review their footage.
I’ve tried to confirm this one way or another. No where can I see on Tapo’s webpages or the instructions that it does or doesn’t. It has an Ethernet port alongside the DC power cable, but as far as I can tell the Ethernet is purely for a wired network connection and not for power delivery. More and more devices accept Power over Ethernet, and TP-Link/Tapo themselves list PYZ and dome cameras as possible uses for it on their sales pages for PoE network switches, but I don’t see anything that would suggest the 520 is compatible.
Yes, you can view all Tapo cameras that are linked to the Tapo app from anywhere and not just when you’re at home on your WiFi network. Provided you’ve not got something on your router preventing that of course.
Excellent review! I bought the HD (C500) recently and have been similarly impressed. Like you I had old low res BNC powered cameras and gambled that this HD Tapo would run on the old BNC cables. I was delighted to discover it does! I used the power cable that came with the camera at the other end of the BNC cable and happy days! Considering buying a second 2k camera after your review but hesitant given you couldn’t make the 2k camera app work. Any updates on that would be greatly appreciated! Thanks again
Great review! Got a little confused between the difference between Pano and Patrol? Can you set, let' say, 2 or 3 camera positions then have the "Pano" function only go on those saved positions? I believe patrol just goes around but I need to have 2 or 3 fixed positions that the camera will position every few seconds.
Yes, I got mixed up in my description during my voice-over. The app has three functions in the same sub-menu. Pan/tilt is entirely manual. You use the on-screen joystick to move the camera around. Pan works like taking a panoramic photo on your phone. You let the camera do a sweep to calibrate itself over 180, 270 or 360 degrees. You see a wide, narrow panoramic image of that sweep and you can touch anywhere on that image and the camera will quickly jump to it. Patrol is split into two separate functions. The first is a one-time patrol where the camera will go full left and then full right, or full up and full down. You press a button in a the menu and it will do that once. The second is “Patrol Mode”. Here you can add “Marks”, where you can select a number of set locations that you want the camera to jump to. You then define when you want it to do that. Always on, during the day, during the night or custom time. In custom time you choose at what time and on what day. It’s this latter function that I believe you’re after, however the shortest period of time you can set it to each position is 2 minutes. You can choose 2-59 minute intervals, but I can’t see anything shorter than that.
@@ToughMonkey Thanks! The latter function is what I'm looking for! However, I've been reading (in general for Tapo devices), that this function together with motion tracking -- it will leave to the last spot where motion was last detected and it will not reset to the original or any of the mark position to continue the cycle. So I guess, for example, if you are patroling at two marked position, and motion tracking stopped from one of those marked position or outside of any of those marked position, it will just sit there forever. Have you seen this behavior with this model? Thanks again for your great work!
I already installed the C520WS model. In patrol mode, with motion tracking on, after following the motion, this cam will go back to patrol mode using the preset mark that you have set. The only downside though is the camera layover of 2 minute, you cant set any lower than that.
@@noloboy Yes, that does happen. It happens with all of the dome cameras I've tested over the last couple of years in fact. They're great at tracking something when it comes into sight of the camera, but if it follows the subject until it leaves the range of the camera the camera will then stay there until it detects something else. It requires some form of "return to default" function after a defined period of time. All that said, the Tapo does seem to be in roughly the same position when ever I look at the App. That's after it's followed myself, my wife, the dog, cats and foxes around. It seems better at being where I want it to be then the other cameras I've tried.
@@khairoolakmalkhalid7695 It would be certainly nice to have the ability to go lower than two minutes. I suspect it's to preserve the life of the motor, as they do show a warning on the app that continuous patrolling will reduce the life of the camera, but it would be nice to make that decision ourselves.
You don’t need any subscriptions to view footage provided you use a micro-SD card to capture the video locally. You’d need to supply your own micro-SD card, and I’d recommend 128GB or 256GB. The only reason I would ever recommend a cloud-based subscription is if the camera is going to located somewhere that it could potentially be damaged/stolen. If someone can get to the camera they could potentially remove the memory card and therefore you wouldn’t be able to access the footage. That wouldn’t be a problem if the footage is being saved to the cloud.
Pretty much. In the box you get a few attachments to cap off and waterproof the ethernet port if you're not using it. There's also a silicone ring that sits between the connectors of the 9v power cable. In my case the cable runs down behind a drain pipe so I taped it up with some insulation tape and tucked it out of sight.
Can You Please share the Product Link For The Universal Corner Additional Mount As Mentioned in the Video in the Installation Time Frame, Please Reply, I need it Specifically for the Tapo c520ws Wifi Camera
Yes, that’s one of the biggest attractions to me. Unlike The Arlo cameras I also have that only allow one device to access the cameras at one time, the Tapo app allows two or more devices to access the live view of the camera at the same time. You don’t get kicked out of one device if you try to access from another.
Thanks for your review! Do you know if it's compatible with Tapo's H200 hub? I'd really like to be able to have recordings saved inside the house (in case someone runs away with the camera)
Hi, and thank you. I know what you mean about people running off with your camera and recordings. It’s the only real concern I have with recording to an internal memory card rather than “off site”. From what I read about the Tapo H200 it can be used as a main hub for Tapo security cameras, but currently only the C420, C400 and the D230 door bell camera. I can’t see anything that says it’s compatible with the C520 or any other camera in the range. That is a bit of a shame really as it’s a useful thing to have. I have a camera by another brand that came with a hub for just that reason, although the camera itself and its app were pretty useless. I suspect that most camera companies would rather you subscribe to their subscription cloud services instead.
Yea, I really like this camera because of PoE and well functioning app (key point)... But the on-camera-storage is a worry. Looked a bit at Eufy, as they have their homebase hub, but don't know how good their app is 🤔
Hello:.. amazing review! Just yesterday went to chk out at store either a ezviz h8c 2k 4mp or tapo c520ws. Looking to get either one. Have u any info on the ezviz pls? If yes, what's do you suggest? I believe tapo doesn't have full color version in this model apart from starlight feature comparison to full color version with ezviz. Thanks.
Yes it can. In the Tapo app, go to Settings (image of a hexagonal nut in the top right corner) and then Storage & Recording. In there is Recording Schedule which shows a block chart of 7 days / 24 hours. For each hour of every day you can choose Continuous Recording, Detection Recording or Don’t Record. You’ll obviously need a sizeable Micro SD card for continual recording if you have the settings turned up high. This camera can take up to 512GB cards.
When I turned that on during the tests it showed a square on the live view that appeared around anything that moved, presumably to illustrate to the viewer what it was that triggered a detection. The “running man” symbol as I call it represents general motion being picked up. A person being detected is indicated by a green icon of a head and shoulders. The day I was testing the menu functions was a sunny and breezy day I recall, and the shadows being cast onto the ground had the tag’s square dancing all over the place. There are adjustments the user needs to make to the sensitivity if you’ve got a lot of vegetation likely to move in the wind in shot, but that’s true of any security camera. Rain can also be detected as movement, most notably in night vision…again something common with cctv. So far though, I’ve not had any spiders set up shop in front of the camera. My Swann cameras need clearing every few days of spiders webs. I’ll look on the camera at night and there will be what looks like an alien facegrabber staring back at me.
Can this be hardwired to an existing electric cable? Just wondering how id connect it to power. Have an option to replace an existing hard wired floodlight. Many Thanks
I don’t know is the honest answer, but wouldn’t have thought so. At least not directly. My dad is the (retired) sparky in the family and if you’d see some of my multi-gang adapters you’d spot that I have a slightly more cavalier attitude to electrical standards. But I would highly doubt the camera could be wired directly to the mains in a safe way. My own reaction would be to fit an external socket onto that existing mains and plug the camera’s own adapter into that. Someone else may be able to advise better, but I wouldn’t want to tell you something I simply don’t know is possible or safe.
I’ve had a look through the options and it looks like it’s simply Patrol Mode on or off. The options allow you to pick points for the camera to pan between, but no means of selecting it to do that only during a chosen period of the day. I could see the benefit of that if you could, but I don’t believe it’s currently available.
It's a difficult one to answer accurately as I've got my camera set up for motion recording, so it's not recording 24/7. That said, with the 128GB card that I have in it, since the day I set it up (15th October 2023) it's been recording anything from 20-100 motion events every day, each of a minimum 1 minute up to 3 minutes at full quality, and it's not yet filled the memory card. It's at 110 of 114GB useable memory so it will shortly be starting to loop over footage, but I'm more than happy with 2 months of recording on that basis. Obviously, that would be approximately halved with a 64GB card.
Hey sir thanks for uploading video just need to know about its built quality as kids plays does ball and football might affect camera and also does camera survive in rainy weather!
@@dimpledimple6965 The build of the camera is mainly plastic, and I'd be sceptical about it surviving too many hits with a football. The antenae are exposed and likely to snap off if struck hard, and because the dome rotates I'd expect damage if a ball was to hit it forcefully rotate dome. It's survived plenty of rainy and snowy days here in the UK over the last two months so I've got no issue there. The only thing you'll notice with rain and snow is that you'll get a lot of motion detections at night as the rain and snow reflect back when it's in night vision mode and it picks it up as motion, just like every other security camera I've tried does as well.
@@ToughMonkey plz suggest me something better i need many areas to cover n main point is i shared i am scared of thats y i m planning to fix it not on ground floor rather some upward area but . Can i have something your insta id or something i can tell u in detail! I need proper help! Becz i m suffering with things!
When tracking objects Is it turning by itself? Is it actievly searching while turning or just when you point at some spot it registered movement only in that particular scene? 😢
Once you active object tracking in the settings it does everything itself. While you can set up pre-set points that the camera will move to at your suggestions, the object tracking is entirely automatic. The camera will track whatever moves and then return to its home location when the motion ceases. It's quite unnerving when I'm out in the garden with the dog and the camera is constantly following me around.
Obviously I don’t know what distance the car is away in your case but I’ve found the image to be very clear. Do make sure that the visual settings are on high as they were set quite low by default on mine when I first set it up. If I remember it was originally set to 720p and I had to change it to 2K QHD.
This camera is pan and tilt only. It does not have an optical zoom. If you are zooming in with this camera then you’re doing it digitally so all you’re doing through the app is zooming in on the image, not the subject. The more you zoom the more pixelated the image will become.
My camera will be installed far away from a plug. What can i do to bring power to the unit? Extension cable, or i will have loses? Will need about 5 meters to reach the camera from plug. Thanks!
I've used extension cables on several of my cameras and not had any issues. You won't have losses of power, certainly nothing that will affect the camera. The only issue you could possibly have would be Wi-fi strength. I don't see 5m being a problem, unless there are a lot of obstructions between the camera and your router.
I have other questions please, if you do not mind: I want to installe my camera a bit higher up. I have a railroad 200 meters away. If a train passes by will it be detected. The street is 40 meter aways from the camera. My fence is 2 meters high. When a truck passes I can see the rooth of it. Will the camera detect it? The detection goes how far? Should I installe a blind around the camera to cancel out those "farer" areas which may be detected? Many many thanks for your help.
In the app you can set up the camera's blind spots. You block out areas on the image that you want the camera to ignore detection in. I do that in my back garden in areas where I know that tree branches or plants are likely to sway in the wind and trigger motion detection. You don't need a physical blind on the camera. One thing I will caveat that with though is that as this is a dome camera that moves around, the blind spots you dictate will also follow as the camera pans around. To lessen that impact I have a "default view" that the camera sits at most of the time and I set up the blind spots on that default view and accept that it will also have a blind spot when it moves around.
Thanks, I have been specifically looking for proof of Pet Detection working as I will be adding this camera before my gate as my husband is useless in keeping the gate closed; I have a protective dog breed. My dog was out for 10 minutes in the driveway by himself he was recorded on all my cameras but I didn't get any notifications as he is not a human for the human detection to work on my Reolink & Ezviz cameras. My Swann system hard drive is malfunctioning that I have set to record everything, I have a TV monitor to see what is going on when home, but no notifications as I rely on my other cameras for "human detection"...still haven't found a system to replace my old Swann system solely because I only need 2 analog cameras/BNC cables, not 4-8 cameras in the packages. Reolink has just told me they just came out with an upgraded camera with pet detection as I have an old version camera already installed for years after my gate in the driveway. With this TP-Link camera and new Reolink camera I will have notifications telling me when my Dogs leave the backyard, and enter the driveway. Just need a recommendation on a good DVR 4-channel security camera W/BNC cables to replace to old Swann system....Looking at Hiseeu pan & tilt system that has BNC cables
When you find a good replacement for your Swann, let me know. I’m seriously considering replacing all of the Swann cameras with more TP-Link Tapo cameras, I’ve been that impressed with them.
I’ve tried to confirm this one way or another. No where can I see on Tapo’s webpages or the instructions that it does or doesn’t. It has an Ethernet port alongside the DC power cable, but as far as I can tell the Ethernet is purely for a wired network connection and not for power delivery. More and more devices accept Power over Ethernet, and TP-Link/Tapo themselves list PYZ and dome cameras as possible uses for it on their sales pages for PoE network switches, but I don’t see anything that would suggest the 520 is compatible.
nice review.. because i have 16 channel dvr camera.. and my expierence with this tapo is brillant.. you are correct on the live screen of the app. it's very fast compare to my DVR system.
@@ToughMonkey i have a tapo c220 as of now and i will order the c520ws. Base on the specs. I think almost the same. I difference is just the led light.
I’ve got mine set really quite low for sensitivity and programmed it to only send alerts during certain times. Rain is also something that can play havoc with triggering motion on the camera. The drawback of having a movable dome camera is that they’re not as effective at being able to blank out areas that have high movement. For example, my camera is looking over a garden that has a lot of trees, plants, hedges, bushes etc that even in a minor breeze can sway and trigger movement notifications. With a static camera it’s very easy to black out the areas those items are located so that they don’t constantly trigger notifications, but with a dome camera it’s moving around and those black-out zones also move with it. That’s true of all dome cameras. So, in my case, the other cameras in my garden are used for motion detection, the dome camera is set to low sensitivity and reduced notifications.
Wow thanks for that info i am a new user of tapo, before i slept last night i set the sensitivity around 7 because i have amazon deliveries in the morning and its too late to realize that we have high foot traffic around 6 to 8 am i woke up to nearly hundreds of motion detection plus the trees and birds 😢
Do you need the cloud storage to view online or live? It has an SD slot, but is that just for storage or does it let you record and view it via the app?
With the SD card I can watch live footage or watch recorded footage all through the app. Cloud storage isn’t required if you have a micro SD card, unless you want to store footage off site. That option is beneficial if you think there’s a chance that the camera could be stolen or damage. The memory card with the culprit could be lost otherwise.
That’s a good question as it’s not blatantly clear on the marketing notes what band it operates on. It’s hidden inside the Specification page on Tapo’s website where it confirms its 2.4Ghz only. It’s something I’ve overlooked myself recently because I changed router about a year ago that automatically sorts out what band a device should be on, whereas previously I had to select either 2.4Ghz or 5Ghz manually when setting up a new device. What I would say on that is I would recommend 2.4Ghz for security cameras, especially outdoor cameras, as 2.4Ghz gives significantly better range and doesn’t get effected quite as much by obstructions such as thick external walls between the camera and the router. That gives you more option on placement of the camera. Obviously, 5Ghz gives you more bandwidth and theoretically better performance, but I’ve not noticed any lapse in performance from any of my Tapo cameras. I’ve got 7 2K cameras all operating on the same app and they’re really quick to access the footage or watch live. And that’s just Tapo cameras. I’ve got over 30 cameras operational from one manufacturer or another and they’re all on 2Ghz so I’m personally not too concerned
Bought the smart plugs to controll my bearded dragons lights their fantastic!, bought the indoor tc70 pan cameras for their tanks so i can monitor their activity whilst im at work or away on holiday again fantastic, decided i want to change my chinese 5mp pan outdoor camera that has an awfull app, slow tracking and now has stopped panning like my previous chinese camera, this 520ws is currently on sale at £69.99 would you say its a winner to add to my current tapo stuff? Great video matey 👌🏻
Thank you. I’d definitely say it’s worth £69.99, but I’m hung up on the fact that I paid £49.99 for it on Prime Day. It’s not gone down that low since, even during Black Friday. I used to use CamelCamelCamel to check prices but Keepa.com also shows Lightning Deals. If you haven’t used those websites you just copy and paste the product’s URL into their search function and it’ll show you the price variations. I’m still smitten with my camera and I’m going to get a second one (when I get over it being £20 more than the one in the video). The Tapo C225 is a superb internal camera and would highly recommend that, although it’s not currently on offer. It was £38.90 during Black Friday. Tapo products do regularly come on offer though.
@@ToughMonkey appreciate the reply, I love the app and I'm impressed with my current products, TP-link have been going a long time and were pioneers in the early days with WiFi booster/routers etc... so I knew they had to be decent these days with the way technology has moved. Thinking of getting a tapo door bell and a couple of outdoor cctv cameras, this review has really helped me, I'll sub 🤜🏻🤛🏻
You're correct about the size of the plugs on the Tapo, and it's the case with all of the other mains-powered external cameras I've got from other brands. I have several Masterplug external weatherproof sockekts around my back garden and other than basic UK plugs I can't use them for many devices at all. The issue is that most cameras use a larger plug with built-in transformers or whatever it is that they need to step-down the power being delivered to the camera. I have the same issue with a few smart plugs and garden lights I have too. Instead I have to use a Masterplug WBX-MS weather proof box (amzn.eu/d/i9j0xhe) to plug in larger devices, which then has a standard extension cable going to one of my outdoor sockets. It's a faff, but it works for me.
@@White_Rose_Al They changed it a while back. I discussed this in my earlier Tapo camera video because it caused me an issue with wiring up a load of internal cameras I'd bought from Tapo. I don't understand why they needed a plug like this. USB, especially USB-C, are perfect for these kinds of devices.
I completely agree, my biggest issue with Tapo is the oversize need for drilling power and Ethernet loom into a property. Its great to have an Ethernet option but you should be able to remove this if not required. I ended up having to get a USB to power connector, 9v 0.6A and use a USB power adapter
It doesn’t have an optical zoom so it’s not going to be any use over those ranges. My garden is about 60m in length and faces aren’t really identifiable at that range, it’s more suited to 1-30m type range. These products are aimed at the domestic market which with few exceptions aren’t going to be exceeding that sort of length with a single camera. You’d need a full PTZ with a significant optical zoom for the distances you’re looking at.
@@ToughMonkey thank you for the prompt response and the valuable info. Can't find a PTZ wifi cam with optical zoom to fulfill this purpose. I need a good cam with exceptional software (like imou life and tapo) that is budget wise :) can you suggest something?
@@TuningLovers I tested a SV3C PTZ dome WiFi camera with 15x optical zoom in late 2022 which was really good, built of solid metal and was impressive. The software wasn’t as good as Tapo though. I tested it in my garden so up to 60m I know it was strong but no idea of distances further than that. amzn.eu/d/3L6AptZ
Just wondering which one model woudl you recommend the Tapo C510W or the Tapo C520WS. Recently a neighbors friend backed up into my vehicle and is not being cooperative so now i need a security camera to document future bull shiet!! lol
I’ve not tried the C510 to know if the quality gap is different enough to warrant the extra cost of the C520. All I can realistically say is that I’ve been so thoroughly impressed with the C520 that I’ll be buying another one during the Black Friday deals….assuming they come down to the same price I paid for it a couple of months ago. The difference, on paper at least, is marginally higher resolution on the C520 and the lens allows more light to the sensor so it should have better images in low light conditions.
I would add to my last response that the start of Amazon’s Black Friday deals have just started and there’s been no further reduction on the C520 on the UK site. It’s currently £69.99 (I paid £49.99 on Prime Day) while the C510 is currently £39.99. £30 is quite a difference so that’s a tempting saving. I’m going to wait to see if it gets reduced during the course of Black Friday.
Planning on purchasing this to go with my c420 bullet style ones. Just wondering is there a modem router (Tapo based maybe) you could recommend? as the wifi signal I receive via now broadband is dire giving me a signal range of -52 to -83 to some Tapo products
Hello and thank you for your great video. I hope you can understand my message. Is it possible to view the surveillance on several mobile phones? There are 3 of us who, if possible, would like to be able to see it. We don't have good wifi around our whole house, so we have 2 wifi routers for good coverage. can you see all cameras if some of them are connected to another wifi network. Or will it be difficult to make it work? We're probably going to have 4 or more cameras. But you've shown 7 on, shown in your video. Greetings Esben from Denmark
This is a very good PTZ for 'simple use', its PTZ speed is excellent, although it doesnt always hit the preset points accurately, low light performance is great. It falls down if you want to use it for more complicated set ups, like FTP of images to a server to creating timelapse (weather/construction etc), and I believe if you use an SD card you cant connect to a NVR/DVR. By the way, 75 ohm BCN cable can not be used for power, I think you might be referring to Siamese twin?
It’s even simpler than that. It’s not a PTZ camera as it doesn’t have optical zoom, so just a PT camera. But, then, nowhere does the camera claim to do anything that you’ve described so it would be unfair to judge it on features that very few people are likely to require. A few months now down the line and I continue to be impressed with the performance of it, certainly against all of my other systems currently in operation. Regarding the power over BNC cables, it does work. I have many left-over bundles of BNC cables from my various Swann cameras and have successfully powered the Tapo camera from 60ft/18m BNC cables. It’s not good practice to use BNC cables as the connections carry a risk of shock and people don’t expect signal cables to carry power, amongst other reasons, but in my case where those cables are already installed in some awkward positions to existing Swann cameras it’s given me an option when I choose to replace them.
@@ToughMonkeyah, the swann cable is terminated in BNC connectors, there’s no such thing as BNC cable. Standard CCTV cable 75ohm RG49 coax which you can’t use to supply power, swann use very thin gauge copper wire, which is why you’re camera will reset as it’s only just getting enough power due to the volt drop and not being able to supply enough current, usually when turning the LED’s on. Sorry, it’s just habit of referring to this type of camera as PTZ, when you’re correct, there is no (optical) zoom, although you can still zoom digitally. 😉
@@ShotInTheDark yeah, that’s just my poor description. I just refer to it as the BNC cable but you’re right, the actual BNC side of it isn’t powering it, that’s sending the video signal. The other half of the cable does have the ability to transfer power from the mains socket end required to run the Tapo camera though. It’s been able to power my camera from a very long range using existing cabling rather than having to buy an extension.
They are pretty good cameras though, I’ve ordered another one from Amazon, $70 can. And like you mentioned, they fire up really fast, on my DVR with a mixture of 20 AHD and IP cameras, the TAPO fires up streaming as fast as the regular cabled cameras.
@@ShotInTheDark Agreed. I’ve got 8 Tapo cameras currently and have plans to replace two Arlo Pros with another couple (since I got the email a couple of days ago saying Arlo were putting their subscription costs up by 30%). The speed which they connect is impressive.
The notification that you get on detection, do not come with any alerting sound like when you get a new email or text. I checked rechecked got tech support on the phone and it is still not resolved. Does anybody know about this? Thank you!
@@tanweychong5289 it is not a zoom camera. There is no optical magnification on the camera. You are only magnifying digitally by enlarging the image. Like all digital images, if you pixel peep, you will see pixels.
@@tanweychong5289 Double tap on the area you want to see so it enlarges to native resolution. If you pinch it will enlarge beyond native and you will see pixelation.
Satın aldım. Tapo uygulamasında Ev internetiyle çevrim içi çalışıyor ama iPhone telefonumun hücresel ile bağlıyken çevrim dışı gözüküyor. İki ayrı ev internet modemim var birinde bu problemi yaşıyorum. Çözüm var mı?
Hi can anybody help if I put sd card in camera can I watch on app what's been recorded also anyway know how many hours 512gb card will hold before rewrites over in 2k and 1080 thanks
you can watch the footage straight from the app without having to remove the memory card, and provided your WiFi is decent enough you can access it very quickly. The amount of footage you can hold will be dependant on your settings. If you’re recording continuously at the highest settings it’ll obviously fill up much quicker than if you set it to motion detection recordings only. You can alter the quality of the recording in the app, as well as set up schedules so that you can have it recording continuously through the night but on motion detection only during the day for example. Set it up exactly how you want. I’ve got mine on highest quality and motion detection recording and it doesn’t miss anything. The 128gb memory card only filled up for the first time about a week ago since I set the camera up, so at least two months. Once it fills up it loops around and begins to over-write the first things on the memory card. I can’t honestly tell you the exact hours as I’ve never had it set up for continuous recording.
A WiFi or Power Over Ethernet camera, of which this is WiFi, remains an IP camera. It is not on a closed circuit and uses the internet to communicate its signal. Definition (not my words): What is an IP Camera? IP cameras are surveillance cameras that are connected to the internet in some way. Whether through a Wi-Fi connection or a Power over Ethernet (PoE) cable, the data from such a camera is sent to its destination via the internet. IP stands for Internet Protocol, and that means that any camera that sends data over an internet connection is therefore an IP camera.
You can invert the image in the Video & Display options in the Tapo app so you could place it upside down if you wished. That option is more common with the internal dome cameras as they sit on their base usually but many people, like me, attach them under cabinets or to ceilings, but this has a mounting bracket for fixing to a wall. I’d note that dome cameras only have so much range of movement of the dome towards the main body of the camera, which is why they’re usually suspended to allow them to rotate and see what’s happening underneath. They can rotate fully downwards when suspended, but can only do up by a shallow amount of degrees before it starts looking at its own body. If you were to invert the camera it would mean that it would be able to look into the sky without restriction, but you wouldn’t be able to see directly underneath the camera. Worth bearing in mind; obviously I don’t know your particular application. Regarding the infra red, I think that might cause an issue. In the Night Mode settings you have three options. Infra red mode only. Full colour mode only or Smart mode, which flicks between the two when necessary. It’s the only option I can find to de-activate the infra red, however full colour mode will use the spotlight to light up the patrol area instead. You can choose how long the spot light comes on for, and how brightly, but not permanently disable it. Again, I don’t know your application, but I people have asked before about using it internally and looking out of a window. Infrared always messes that up as it reflects back on itself off the window, and so would a spot light.
@@ToughMonkey thank you for your reply, i have ordered one of each, maybe cover the IR with tape? i want to use the dome within an Observatory to look up as a sky view camera but not use any light that will affect the astrograph optics
Yes it’s cheaper to avoid cloud based storage but here’s my problem with internal memory…..when the bad guy steals your camera, he steals your data too. Dumb me thinks
It needs to be assessed on each persons requirements. If the camera is going to be in an easily accessed place then yes, of course it would be sensible to consider cloud storage. But if you’re going to be mounting it high up, perhaps under a soffit board or corner of your property at upper floor level, then internal memory storage is perfectly acceptable. In my own application I can use it at a lower level because the camera itself is covered by two of my Swann cameras so if a prowler wants to spend time trying to disable the Tapo camera it’s just time spent being filmed by another camera.
I’m very similar. Five internal cameras and three external ones, four different models. I don’t have Tapo branded bulbs or smart sockets but I have had eight TP-Link smart sockets which operate on the same app for many years. I’ve got several network devices by TP-Link too so I’m confident in the company, be it under their TP-Link or Tapo branding.
The nature of my videos are intentionally laid out this way. They’re accompaniments to my Amazon Vine reviews, which are requested by Amazon to be as thorough and detailed as possible, tell a story and show that it’s not a 5 minute throw-away test. I’m fortunate with the Vine products that I get a few weeks to fully test products, unlike many reviewers that only get a product for a brief window and have limits on what they can talk about. I stick to that format even when it’s not a Vine-supplied product, as is the case here. I appreciate that not everyone enjoys that format, and I do put chapter points to jump straight to the summary of my reviews, but while my reviews on Amazon remain popular I don’t think I need to change too much. Amazon reviews came first, RUclips was only ever intended to visualise what I’m writing about. There’s plenty of other people doing quick videos out there.
For a domestic IP camera I think the sound quality is as expected. It's no worse than the cameras I have that cost four times as much. I'm not expecting it to rival my Blue Yeti. As they're unshielded via a muffler/dead cat the microphones are usually quick to pick up wind distortion but considering mine is placed right in the line of the usual wind direction I think it's performing well. Heck, my Swann CCTV cameras don't even have any kind of sound, 1 way or 2 way. I certainly wouldn't say a domestic IP camera is completely let down on sound quality alone.
I have some iegeek cameras and the sound is far better, the tapo picks next to nothing up , i can't even hear a car go past yet the iegeek can easily pick up people speaking out side ,maybe i have a fake copy of the same camera @@ToughMonkey
TP are swapping the camera , i was 1m away from the camera and you could just about hear me if you put headphones on and turned everything up full. It not a matter of sound quality but having some would help, i have a lot of deliveries so being able to hear someone is a must , i couldn't @@Tsamados
Have a 2k tapo camera but looking at many reviews on this camera on you tube this was by FAR the best review I have seen on this camera, excellent review and clarified questions I had on smart view and other issues. I will be buying one. WELL DONE..!😊😊😊😊
Thank you. I hope you enjoy your new camera. Mine are still working very well and I don’t regret the purchases.
We got this few days back. Really liking it. Love the shortcuts you can add to quickly rotate the camera.
I have a modem in my summer cottage and that has unlimited surf....so instead of having wireless connections I ran the cables on the inside of the cottage as discreetly as possible and connected them directly to the modem, so that I have continuous connection...I also installed 512GB cards in each of them to have maximum storage...the cameras will only be on standby mode during the summer while we are living there - but as soon as the end of season comes around they are on full alert.....this video not only gave a good review it he shows the settings in detail....big thumbs up from me!
Thank you. The Tapo app has been updated in the last month or so and addresses the remaining niggles I had with the app, so I’m even more pleased with the cameras now than I originally was. I’m up to 9 of them now!
This was the best review of a camera i ever seen! Thoughts that continue over a week when using then reviewing, i really like you!
Thank you, I appreciate the comment.
I had some other cameras that didn't deliver...so I was looking around and this one came up....I like TP-Link....find their support always helpful and the guarantee on their products is very good....I bought two of these cameras to protect my summer cottage on an island near Sundsvall in Sweden...have to say I am impressed! Thank you so much for doing this video.....
Your very welcome. I’m up to 9 of them now, not all this dome one, but found them to be superb. It’s a year now since I had the first of my C520WS and I’m still as impressed today as I was back then.
@@ToughMonkey sitting watching your video again as I write this..
Like I wrote earlier...TP-LINK has become ny main company for all sorts of products...thanks for the quick reply and keep doing vidos🙂
This is one of the best reviews of this camera.
I have just put in the Tapo door bell and two c220 indoor cameras.
Very happy with them.
Same as you my external cameras are Swann. Which are no way near the image quality as these.
Thank you for the comments. My remaining Swann cameras are close to expiring so I’m going to replace those with some more Tapo cameras too.
First time i've watched one of your videos and a good review of the 520WS. I had recently purchased the similar 510 which i have been more than happy with. Only my 3rd camera with Tapo but they seem to work very well and the app is dead easy to use.
Thank you. Yes, at the end of the day that’s all we really want. Good quality and easy to use. That’s why I’ve really warmed to the brand.
Thanks for making this review on the Tapo C520WS. Much appreciated. 👍
You’re very welcome.
Will these connect to more than one phone. i've just purchased the c500
Yes they will. Both phones would need to be logged on to the same Tapo account, but my wife and I can view all of our Tapo cameras at the same time from different phones, and tablets as well. That’s quite a big thing actually as I’ve got cameras from some much larger brands that kick one phone out if you try to access from another phone. The Tapo has no issues. You can view live images from more than one device at the same time.
I owned this camera and i was able to “share” the device to my sister’s tapo account - we have different tapo email id. I just have to share it to hers through Tapo Application. She does not need to use the same tapo account with me
How do you install cables? Every review I've seen omits this topic. Camera has to be connected to the power, do you have to drill a hole in the wall to reach the inside where the power outlet is? Or you create an outdoor power outlet?
My previous video for three other Tapo cameras focussed quite heavily on the cabling issues. Apologies, I didn’t go into to much about wiring these ones up other than showing the power cable and discussing the option of using BNC cables as an alternative.
Basically, yes. These are an externally powered device. They don’t have batteries or use solar energy so you will need to wire them to the mains. This is one of the biggest considerations with external cameras, especially since the power adapter that comes with external cameras are usually too big to fit inside a standard weather-proof outdoor socket. It means that you’ll need to drill a hole through your external wall big enough for the cylindrical power connector to fit through and connect it to an indoor socket.
The one that is in the video, however, is close to my kitchen window. I discovered that the cable is slim enough for me to open the side-opening kitchen window and have the cable basically squeezed into the rubber window seal when it shuts. It hasn’t damaged the cable and the window is weather-sealed, so I was able to get power to the camera without any drilling into my walls.
Great review @toughmonkey - I've bought this camera and was looking around for video's on setup externally, especially to do with the wiring ... what extension wire do you use to extend it to the internal power socket?
Looking into these cameras and wondered how long is the power cable supplied?
Hi, the cable that comes with it is 3m long, with a 9v output voltage. Generic extension cables are available, which I used on the one in the video. I've since bought two more which I used the power line part of BNC cables I had on my previous Swann CCTV installation. They can be a cheapish method of powering over long distances (I use 15m BNC cables).
This is the data sheet from TP-Link's website that may be of use to you:
static.tp-link.com/upload/product-overview/2024/202411/20241101/Tapo%20C520WS&Tapo%20C52A%202.0&2.6&2.8_Datasheet.pdf
Looks like a decent cam.
I've been using the C320WS for a couple of years and it's a solid camera but the microphone has stopped working (possibly water ingress somewhere?).
The only real issue I have with these cameras is the cable length, 3m is just not long enough to suit most installs.
Thanks for showing that it has active detection tracking - one thing I would have wanted to know about the camera. Oh, and the framerate - the C320WS only has 15fps which isn't great, nice to see the C520WS has 25fps!
Agree with everything you’ve said. Cable length of all security cameras, inside and out, are always a bit stingy. I usually end up using extensions of some nature. I discovered I could use BNC cables to deliver power to it, and I’ve got loads of that floating around from various Swann CCTV systems I’ve had over the years. The 320WS is a solid little camera. Mine is doing a good job and it performs better than my similar Swann cameras. I would have been happy if the C520 matched the performance of the C320….but as it turns out I’ve been even more impressed. It’s just a shame that Amazon haven’t brought the price down on Black Friday to the same price as Prime Day.
Also had a crackling sound and some fog on the lens after the typhoon here. Took it down, left it in the rice sack overnight and it is fine again.
@@otszzz79 oh, I might try that but I've got a feeling mines too far gone now ;(
@@otszzz79 that’s useful to know. There must obviously be a limit on what it can do with exposure to weather. We’ve had two major storms pass through in the last couple of weeks and the camera is in a very exposed position in the direction of the wind and it’s been perfectly fine. But a storm isn’t a tornado so haven’t been able to test it under those conditions.
@@pspr33 i know they are cheap, but still. It was advertised as outdoor, waterproof. But even with a protection cover above them, they still affected by the rainy weather. They serve my purposes, if they break I get a new one for the 20 bucks
Exlent review, any update after the long use?
So far, after just shy of two months of use, I've continued to be very impressed by the C520WS. I've got all of the settings turned up to highest quality, I've adjusted the sensitivity to get the best balance of motion triggers and I've still not filled the 256GB memory card so I've still got access to all recordings from nearly two months ago. That's useful information to know when deciding if local or cloud recording is best for you. My observations over my time with it are that the recordings have been clear both visually and sound. The built in light is suprisingly powerful. The motion tracking is excellent and follows animals and humans around very well and the camera returns to where I want it to be by default. The app is truly great, one of the standout features of the whole Tapo experience, and gets better with additional cameras. I've used so many security camera apps over the last few years and I can't say how nice it is to use the Tapo app. Connection from the app to the camera is almost immediately, even when I'm away from home. I was away over the weekend and controlling the camera was as responsive as if I was sat on the same network.
I would balance my enthusiasm by saying that you'll never get the sensitivity quite perfect on the camera. Rain can snow fall can reflect back on the camera when its in Infra Red / Night mode and trigger a motion detection, so you will get quite a few false positives. It's something I've experienced with every security camera and you learn to adapt your notifications. If you have notifcations on 24/7 for every notifcation your phone will be constantly buzzing if it rains. Additionally, I've had 1no instance where the camera had disconnected. I don't know what caused the disconnection, but I turned it off and on again and it was perfectly fine.
Overall though, I have been massively impressed with the camera and I have plans to purchase at least one more, possibly two. I've found it to be every bit as good as the bullet cameras, but offers more versatility with positioning and tracking. And, one last thing which no one ever mentions. Spiders. A weird jump but bear with me. Spiders are the bane of CCTV cameras. I don't know if they're attracted by the Infra Red lights or something, but every bullet security camera I've got (currently 12 active) gets spiders webs in front of them. Every one. I have to regularly go around my house and garden with an extendable feather duster to clear off the cobwebs which can obscure the camera when it gets dark (can't see them in daylight, but they reflect back when in Infra red mode). The C520WS camera hasn't had one cobweb in front of it. I can only assume that the dome shape and the fact that I've positioned it on a mount that moves it away from the wall into an exposed position doesn't lend itself to building cobwebs. It sounds a silly, insignificant point to make....but after regularly cleaning security cameras for 6-7 years since I had my first camera, I can tell you it's a big deal.
@ToughMonkey69 Thanks bro for the reply, this sound amazing. Also, I have to mention the idea of placing it on the corner is brelint. Stay secure.
@@ToughMonkey Amazing! Btw, how do you clean up the tapo c520? I never have security camera and I'm looking for one right now. I'm interest on the tapo c520. 😊
A couple of months back, we unfortunately experienced a car break-in. At that time, we didn't have a security camera in place, despite having implemented various security measures, including alarms. The only missing piece in our security setup was a reliable camera to monitor our parking lot. Given that we've already stretched our budget to secure the car, I'm now on the lookout for the best camera that offers features like pan and tilt, sound capabilities, and, most importantly, night vision.
The camera I'm considering seems like an excellent choice, and it's priced at approximately 100 USD in Sweden. However, I do have one significant concern: will it be able to operate effectively in extremely cold temperatures? Our location can get quite chilly, and I'm worried that the camera might not function properly in sub-zero conditions.
Your comprehensive review has been incredibly convincing so far, and you've covered all the key aspects. The only piece of information I couldn't find in your review is the camera's operational temperature range. If you could provide that information, it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks a lot!
Hi, thanks for the great feedback. I’ve checked Tapo’s website to see if it gives that information, and found it on the Specification page which is quite well hidden. It says that the operating temperature range is minus 30 degrees Celsius to 60 degrees (minus 22 Fahrenheit to 140 degree). That seems pretty good and should be good for the UK and most of Europe, but maybe some areas of Scandinavia might push that. Hope that helps.
@@ToughMonkey Excellent, thank you so much for taking your time going though all that! Indeed, last winter we had about minus 20-25 degrees Celsius. Then I should be all set, I'll get about ordering this camera. Thank you again for both the excellent review and for your help!! 😊
Great review! I bought one after watching this but I can’t see where I can set the camera to follow the detection?
Thank you. In the Tapo app select the camera and the. In the top right corner there should be a cog-shaped icon. Click on that and towards the top of the options screen that comes up will be one called “Detection”. There’s quite a good range of options in there to set up the camera for different types of activations, motion zones, timings etc. Hope that helps.
Thanks for your nice explanation and I bought one because of you 2morow it will arrive.
Glad it was of use. Since I published that video I've bought three more because I think they're excellent. I've replaced all of the existing Swann CCTV cameras as the Tapo is such a better image. Tapo have also upgraded the app that I demonstrated to be even better, which was one of my few previous criticisms. In total I've got 12 active Tapo cameras, which is the biggest commendation I can give if I keep buying more of them!
The dog is huge! 😁
I enjoyed your review, did you manage to use the swann cable on the Tapo camera ?
Thank you. Yes, I was able to use the Swann cable. Not on this particular camera but I’ve since purchased another one which I swapped an old and tried Swann camera out for. I taped off the video cable part of the BNC cable and used the power cable part to power the Tapo camera so I didn’t have to re-route cables. That one was particular awkward as well as the Swann was connected through the roof, so being able to use the same cable was a relief.
One thing I did note, however, is that BNC cables can deteriorate. One of the other Swann cameras in my garden was becoming temperamental. When I investigated I discovered that the cable itself was at fault, not the camera. It had deteriorated over 7-8 years of weather exposure.
However, it is possible to power the Tapo using the powered side of a BNC cable.
@@ToughMonkey thank you very much for that information, I have 2 Swann cameras in use but the quality is not very good now, so it will be easier to change to Tapo cameras if I can use the Swan cables.
I saw a few reviews that the cam wouldn't connect to a WPA2 network, maybe this was user error though ?
That's interesting to hear. I've not seen anything about issues with connecting to a WPA2 network, although in honesty I try not to look at other reviews before I do my own reviews, where possibly, as it can influence the independance of my own views. I can only say from my own experience I had no issues at all connecting to my Virgin Huib 5 which has WPA2 protocols as default.
In fact, the very reason I upgraded from my previous IP camera system was that those camera absolutely refused to connect to my Virgin Hub 5 when I upgraded my router from my previous ASUS router. The 7 Tapo cameras I currently have all connected with no hesitation whatsoever.
The only thing I could think of would be if they were trying to deliberately connect to 5Ghz wi-fi rather that 2.5Ghz. These camera at 2.5Ghz, as many IP cameras are. A few cameras are available with 5Ghz, and most people will tell you they'd rather connect over 5Ghz as the data transmission is greater, however IP cameras are often located a long way from the router and even outside with lots of obstructions between the camera and the router and in my experience you'll get a more reliable connection and further away using 2.5Ghz.
But, from my point of view, I had no issues connecting to the camera during set up, and accessing the camera via the Tapo app takes about 1 second when you first open the app, and then it resonds immediately to inputs from then on.
@@ToughMonkey thanks, very thorough
What is max distance for personne detection?
Great video thanks. Can you do a video showing how the integration between the camera and a tapo smart plug. Can you control the smart plug when the camera detects a person or car?
I don’t believe that there is any interaction. The Tapo app recently got updated to integrate both Tapo and TP-Link branded products, but I don’t think there’s any cross-over other than being able to control them all from the same app. There’s nothing I can see in the settings for both the camera or the smart plugs that would allow you to, for example, turn a lamp on if a motion was detected on the camera.
I did wonder, however, if I could set up a routine in the Alexa app. As I’ve got all of my Echos, Hue bulbs, smart sockets, cameras and other gadgets grouped into rooms / zones I thought it might be possible to create a routine where if the Tapo camera detected a motion I could get it to turn on a Hue bulb / smart socket / announcement through an Echo speaker which would rather good. But, sadly, when I tried to set it up it simply says that the Tapo device doesn’t support this action.
@@ToughMonkey I have Ezviz cameras at the moment and I can't get an Alexa routeen to turn on the tapo plugs from motion from the cameras. I was hoping that the tapo cameras would be different and worked the routeen. The tapo camera I had my eye on is the C520WS, have you tried that camera with the integration?
@@MarkHardman-h6j This video is for the C520WS and I've tried to configure the camera to integrate actions of other devices, both Tapo branded and other (such as Hue or Echo) but I've not been able to do it either in the Tapo app or the Alexa app.
Thanks for trying, I have the camera in my basket and was ready to hit go. I am glad I asked you first.
How is it when it rains/snow?
How it reacts depends on the sensitivity level you set it to. If it’s too sensitive it will hunt around and search for movement. In night vision mode rain and snow show up as white as it’s reflecting back to the sensor. It’s basically the same as every other security camera I’ve used in that regard.
Hi does anybody know if tapo app is free or is it subscription
The Tapo app is free to download and free to use. There is a subscription if you want to use cloud storage for your recordings, or you can supply your own microSD card and record locally.
@@ToughMonkey hi new to this type of camera can you watch what's recorded on sd card on app or got take out put into laptop also 512gb how many hours can hold on 2k and 1080
@@mlaverty14 you can watch the footage straight from the app without having to remove the memory card, and provided your WiFi is decent enough you can access it very quickly. The amount of footage you can hold will be dependant on your settings. If you’re recording continuously at the highest settings it’ll obviously fill up much quicker than if you set it to motion detection recordings only. You can alter the quality of the recording in the app, as well as set up schedules so that you can have it recording continuously through the night but on motion detection only during the day for example. Set it up exactly how you want. I’ve got mine on highest quality and motion detection recording and it doesn’t miss anything. The 128gb memory card only filled up for the first time about a week ago since I set the camera up, so at least two months. Once it fills up it loops around and begins to over-write the first things on the memory card.
Thanks very much for all the help very helpful 👍
Would you recommend the C520WS over C320WS? I think I would love the 360° horizontal & 130° vertical viewing range but at the moment I can buy two C320WS for the price of one C520WS.
It’s really down to whether you have a suitable location for a dome camera. Both cameras are excellent, but the added versatility of the dome camera gives it the edge in certain scenarios. On the corner of a property it’s an absolute winner, but there’s little reason if you’ve got an area that a static camera will cover. The Black Friday deals have gone live on Amazon in the last few minutes and there’s been no further reductions that I can see so far. The C320 is £36.99 vs £69.99 for the C520 (I paid £49.99 on Prime Day). As another possibility, the C510 is currently available at £39.99 for the marginally less well-specced dome camera.
A handy feature for recording onto the sd card is the loop option.. so once the card is full... it will continue recording over the oldest footage stored on the card.. I was thinking I would have to keep climbing up and removing the card to clear it every few months... even tho went with a 512 sd card... so should take a lot of storage. Being new to these I didn't realise you can see all the stored vids on your phone or laptop that been stored on the card and download it to your desktop without needing the card out of the camera. great review btw.
Yes, these cameras are really very good. 8-9 months down the line since I bought it and I’m still impressed with it.
good video, well explained, do you know how many iPads/phones I can use, ie I have an iPad by my door plus front room, also 2 mobiles, TIA
I don't know if there's a limit to how many iPhones/iPads can be connected at any one time, but I do know that it is multiple devices. This is a really important point as some apps I've used will only let one device be connected at anyone time. Arlo, for example, boots me out of my iPhone if I try to log on with my iPad. With the Tapo app, my wife and I can both log on with either our iPhone or iPad and view live footage without conflict.
Great review. Can you review and compare Tapo C520WS vs Tapo C425WB. I keep going back and forth between these 2
Thank you. I’ve got no plans to review the C425 camera at this time. The Tapo cameras are ones I’ve bought myself and subsequently reviewed, rather than products supplied via Amazon Vine that some of my reviews are based on. The C425 are fully wireless cameras which I’ve got other products filling that brief (Arlo Pro 4 & 5 for example). If TP-Link would like to supply a set for testing I’ll happily review them, but I’ve got no need for them myself. I’d put them against the C320WS rather than the C520WS though as they’re both bullet cameras. The C520 offers very different features and feel targets a different requirement to a bullet cam.
Congratulations, I really liked the video, can you provide the support link for the camera to place in the corner?
Thank you. The corner mount that I used to install the Tapo camera on the corner of my house was the WiTi Universal Corner Mount. I bought it from the UK Amazon site here: WiTi Universal Corner Mount for Security Camera, Stainless Steel Mounting Corner Bracket for Ring Blink, Suitable for CCTV Cameras LED Wall/Stage Lights, Solar Panels (small size) amzn.eu/d/6OE56uX
@@ToughMonkeyThank you in advance for your response, I also bought a camera like that, do you think it really makes a difference to mount it on a corner stand? Do we actually gain something in terms of viewing?
@@PedroOliveira1975 it adds extra degrees of rotation. If you mount a dome camera on a straight wall it can only rotate 180 degrees. If you mount it on a corner then it can rotate 270 degrees. In my case the camera can effectively cover two sides of my house instead of just one. When the price is correct I’ll buy another one and place it on the opposite corner of my house so that I can cover all four elevations of my house with just two cameras.
@@ToughMonkey Without a doubt, good continuation, thank you
Hi. If going to have a extension power cable 3 m or 5 m length. Get a 12v power supply instead of the factory 9v power supply. As i had issues loading up if used a 5 m length cable. Struggling to load.
Many thanks for your explanations. I am a greenhorn and I have a learned a lot from you. My question is : can you indicate to me which memory card I should use. Which brand which capacity please. I will order. Then I have read that you can use as well an external storage unit. Is this good? When i vision can I use as well beside my handy a normal computer. Can they store as well the images/videos.on top? Many thanks for your time.
The memory card it takes is a MicroSD card. These are available in a huge combination of sizes and specifications and it’s very easy to get lost. I’ve got various cards for different devices. For example my Canon digital film camera has a U3 UHS-II card capable of 250mb/s data transfer, but IP cameras don’t need those kinds of speeds. I always recommend SanDisk memory cards, and I usually use their SanDisk Extreme microSDXC card which is 190MB/s, UHS-I, Class 10, U3. They’re often on offer on Amazon, although I’ve just looked and they’re at least 50% higher than they’ve been recently. 128GB should be enough for most people and last me a couple of months at highest settings with motion detection only recordings.
I’ve not attempted to use an external storage device so I couldn’t really comment on if that works. If you want to view your recordings on your computer then you’ll need to remove the memory card from the camera and put it into your computer. I can only access the memory card when it’s in the camera via the app. If you do put the memory card into your computer then you can obviously save the footage and still to a separate disk if you want to keep recordings longer.
Many, many thanks for your great help and your precious time you spent to answer. I really appreciate. I wish you a great year to come. All my very Best to You. Thank you.@@ToughMonkey
You powered it using POE?
Does starlight night vision works ?
I assume you didn't extract the footage from the SD card but from live view? Since resolution changing only affects the live view, and the camera always records in 2K. Capturing from live view will always have lower quality then using the actual recorded file from the SD card.
The footage on this video is extracted from the SD card recordings via the app. So, not live view but also not physically by me taking the SD card out of the camera and putting it into my computer to pick files out in Windows file explorer. I tested it how the vast majority of people will review their footage.
So how did your installed BNC cables work on the Tapo camera? What do we need to make it work instead of using the power brick that came with it?
Can I use the android tv app to watch on tv, I would like to install more of these cameras?
Does you need to have the two wire on if you only use wireless installation?
It can function via Ethernet cable or wifi, however, it needs a permanent supply for power. There isn’t a power over Ethernet option.
If I use a PoE switch, can I power this camera via Ethernet? Nice Unboxing...
I’ve tried to confirm this one way or another. No where can I see on Tapo’s webpages or the instructions that it does or doesn’t. It has an Ethernet port alongside the DC power cable, but as far as I can tell the Ethernet is purely for a wired network connection and not for power delivery. More and more devices accept Power over Ethernet, and TP-Link/Tapo themselves list PYZ and dome cameras as possible uses for it on their sales pages for PoE network switches, but I don’t see anything that would suggest the 520 is compatible.
😊 have you tested the new Tabo 320wb v1 camera it has full night vision?
I reviewed the C320 earlier in the year alongside a couple of other Tapo cameras here: ruclips.net/video/JNbicdKwPT4/видео.htmlsi=s-oMvvuoc3Ax6t2F
Hello, can I see the images live on the app outside the home? Is it necessary to change settings on the router?
Yes, you can view all Tapo cameras that are linked to the Tapo app from anywhere and not just when you’re at home on your WiFi network. Provided you’ve not got something on your router preventing that of course.
Excellent review! I bought the HD (C500) recently and have been similarly impressed. Like you I had old low res BNC powered cameras and gambled that this HD Tapo would run on the old BNC cables. I was delighted to discover it does! I used the power cable that came with the camera at the other end of the BNC cable and happy days! Considering buying a second 2k camera after your review but hesitant given you couldn’t make the 2k camera app work. Any updates on that would be greatly appreciated! Thanks again
Can you tell me how far is the recording distance of this cam? Can it cover distance up to 250-300m?
Très bien review! Merci bien!
Great review! Got a little confused between the difference between Pano and Patrol? Can you set, let' say, 2 or 3 camera positions then have the "Pano" function only go on those saved positions? I believe patrol just goes around but I need to have 2 or 3 fixed positions that the camera will position every few seconds.
Yes, I got mixed up in my description during my voice-over. The app has three functions in the same sub-menu. Pan/tilt is entirely manual. You use the on-screen joystick to move the camera around. Pan works like taking a panoramic photo on your phone. You let the camera do a sweep to calibrate itself over 180, 270 or 360 degrees. You see a wide, narrow panoramic image of that sweep and you can touch anywhere on that image and the camera will quickly jump to it. Patrol is split into two separate functions. The first is a one-time patrol where the camera will go full left and then full right, or full up and full down. You press a button in a the menu and it will do that once. The second is “Patrol Mode”. Here you can add “Marks”, where you can select a number of set locations that you want the camera to jump to. You then define when you want it to do that. Always on, during the day, during the night or custom time. In custom time you choose at what time and on what day.
It’s this latter function that I believe you’re after, however the shortest period of time you can set it to each position is 2 minutes. You can choose 2-59 minute intervals, but I can’t see anything shorter than that.
@@ToughMonkey Thanks! The latter function is what I'm looking for! However, I've been reading (in general for Tapo devices), that this function together with motion tracking -- it will leave to the last spot where motion was last detected and it will not reset to the original or any of the mark position to continue the cycle.
So I guess, for example, if you are patroling at two marked position, and motion tracking stopped from one of those marked position or outside of any of those marked position, it will just sit there forever.
Have you seen this behavior with this model?
Thanks again for your great work!
I already installed the C520WS model. In patrol mode, with motion tracking on, after following the motion, this cam will go back to patrol mode using the preset mark that you have set. The only downside though is the camera layover of 2 minute, you cant set any lower than that.
@@noloboy Yes, that does happen. It happens with all of the dome cameras I've tested over the last couple of years in fact. They're great at tracking something when it comes into sight of the camera, but if it follows the subject until it leaves the range of the camera the camera will then stay there until it detects something else. It requires some form of "return to default" function after a defined period of time. All that said, the Tapo does seem to be in roughly the same position when ever I look at the App. That's after it's followed myself, my wife, the dog, cats and foxes around. It seems better at being where I want it to be then the other cameras I've tried.
@@khairoolakmalkhalid7695 It would be certainly nice to have the ability to go lower than two minutes. I suspect it's to preserve the life of the motor, as they do show a warning on the app that continuous patrolling will reduce the life of the camera, but it would be nice to make that decision ourselves.
Great review ! Do you know if I could use the app to view footage without the tapo care subscription?
You don’t need any subscriptions to view footage provided you use a micro-SD card to capture the video locally. You’d need to supply your own micro-SD card, and I’d recommend 128GB or 256GB. The only reason I would ever recommend a cloud-based subscription is if the camera is going to located somewhere that it could potentially be damaged/stolen. If someone can get to the camera they could potentially remove the memory card and therefore you wouldn’t be able to access the footage. That wouldn’t be a problem if the footage is being saved to the cloud.
Hi, thanks for the time you’ve put in for the review and answering comments. What is the quality of the two way audio like? Thanks
One point what did you do with the ethernet cable as you set up wireless ??? does it just hang there
Pretty much. In the box you get a few attachments to cap off and waterproof the ethernet port if you're not using it. There's also a silicone ring that sits between the connectors of the 9v power cable. In my case the cable runs down behind a drain pipe so I taped it up with some insulation tape and tucked it out of sight.
Can You Please share the Product Link For The Universal Corner Additional Mount As Mentioned in the Video in the Installation Time Frame, Please Reply, I need it Specifically for the Tapo c520ws Wifi Camera
This is what I used in the video:
amzn.eu/d/0EDSEWC
Good job ith the revievv. One uestion please, can the camera be installed and used in the same time on 2 or more devices ?(mobile phones)
Yes, that’s one of the biggest attractions to me. Unlike The Arlo cameras I also have that only allow one device to access the cameras at one time, the Tapo app allows two or more devices to access the live view of the camera at the same time. You don’t get kicked out of one device if you try to access from another.
That 'power (and ethernet) cable? Is that an option? Thinking of the hole needed to get through a wall for power?
Thanks for your review! Do you know if it's compatible with Tapo's H200 hub? I'd really like to be able to have recordings saved inside the house (in case someone runs away with the camera)
Hi, and thank you. I know what you mean about people running off with your camera and recordings. It’s the only real concern I have with recording to an internal memory card rather than “off site”. From what I read about the Tapo H200 it can be used as a main hub for Tapo security cameras, but currently only the C420, C400 and the D230 door bell camera. I can’t see anything that says it’s compatible with the C520 or any other camera in the range. That is a bit of a shame really as it’s a useful thing to have. I have a camera by another brand that came with a hub for just that reason, although the camera itself and its app were pretty useless. I suspect that most camera companies would rather you subscribe to their subscription cloud services instead.
Yea, I really like this camera because of PoE and well functioning app (key point)... But the on-camera-storage is a worry.
Looked a bit at Eufy, as they have their homebase hub, but don't know how good their app is 🤔
Hello:.. amazing review! Just yesterday went to chk out at store either a ezviz h8c 2k 4mp or tapo c520ws. Looking to get either one. Have u any info on the ezviz pls? If yes, what's do you suggest?
I believe tapo doesn't have full color version in this model apart from starlight feature comparison to full color version with ezviz. Thanks.
Just brought this camera, after my car keeps getting marks on from someone up the street, would you have an idea how long the power cable is?
I believe it’s 3.0m long.
Great review here and on amazon 👍
Thank you.
Hi
This camera can recording nonstop?
Yes it can. In the Tapo app, go to Settings (image of a hexagonal nut in the top right corner) and then Storage & Recording. In there is Recording Schedule which shows a block chart of 7 days / 24 hours. For each hour of every day you can choose Continuous Recording, Detection Recording or Don’t Record. You’ll obviously need a sizeable Micro SD card for continual recording if you have the settings turned up high. This camera can take up to 512GB cards.
Any idea what the Tag ON/OFF option on the app is for?
When I turned that on during the tests it showed a square on the live view that appeared around anything that moved, presumably to illustrate to the viewer what it was that triggered a detection. The “running man” symbol as I call it represents general motion being picked up. A person being detected is indicated by a green icon of a head and shoulders. The day I was testing the menu functions was a sunny and breezy day I recall, and the shadows being cast onto the ground had the tag’s square dancing all over the place.
There are adjustments the user needs to make to the sensitivity if you’ve got a lot of vegetation likely to move in the wind in shot, but that’s true of any security camera. Rain can also be detected as movement, most notably in night vision…again something common with cctv. So far though, I’ve not had any spiders set up shop in front of the camera. My Swann cameras need clearing every few days of spiders webs. I’ll look on the camera at night and there will be what looks like an alien facegrabber staring back at me.
@@ToughMonkey I thought it was but weird i dont see any squares on mine.
Also, it seems to be available only on the C520WS. Its not available on the C320WS, C510W, C500, C420 or C100. @@ToughMonkey
Can this be hardwired to an existing electric cable? Just wondering how id connect it to power. Have an option to replace an existing hard wired floodlight. Many Thanks
I don’t know is the honest answer, but wouldn’t have thought so. At least not directly. My dad is the (retired) sparky in the family and if you’d see some of my multi-gang adapters you’d spot that I have a slightly more cavalier attitude to electrical standards. But I would highly doubt the camera could be wired directly to the mains in a safe way. My own reaction would be to fit an external socket onto that existing mains and plug the camera’s own adapter into that. Someone else may be able to advise better, but I wouldn’t want to tell you something I simply don’t know is possible or safe.
Thanks for the reply, yep that's an option I guess. Maybe will just go a hard wired camera, but a weatherproof socket does make sense, thanks bud.
Can you set up schedules for patrolling or does it do it only continuously?
I’ve had a look through the options and it looks like it’s simply Patrol Mode on or off. The options allow you to pick points for the camera to pan between, but no means of selecting it to do that only during a chosen period of the day. I could see the benefit of that if you could, but I don’t believe it’s currently available.
If it’s connected to a suitable DVR/NVR via ONVIF the DVR can control the patrols. But it can’t do it natively via the app
Nice video, good job ! Cheers from France...
Question regarding Tapo C520WS: How many days can a 64 GB SD card record using QHD (2560*1440)?
It's a difficult one to answer accurately as I've got my camera set up for motion recording, so it's not recording 24/7. That said, with the 128GB card that I have in it, since the day I set it up (15th October 2023) it's been recording anything from 20-100 motion events every day, each of a minimum 1 minute up to 3 minutes at full quality, and it's not yet filled the memory card. It's at 110 of 114GB useable memory so it will shortly be starting to loop over footage, but I'm more than happy with 2 months of recording on that basis. Obviously, that would be approximately halved with a 64GB card.
Hey sir thanks for uploading video just need to know about its built quality as kids plays does ball and football might affect camera and also does camera survive in rainy weather!
@@dimpledimple6965 The build of the camera is mainly plastic, and I'd be sceptical about it surviving too many hits with a football. The antenae are exposed and likely to snap off if struck hard, and because the dome rotates I'd expect damage if a ball was to hit it forcefully rotate dome. It's survived plenty of rainy and snowy days here in the UK over the last two months so I've got no issue there. The only thing you'll notice with rain and snow is that you'll get a lot of motion detections at night as the rain and snow reflect back when it's in night vision mode and it picks it up as motion, just like every other security camera I've tried does as well.
@@ToughMonkey plz suggest me something better i need many areas to cover n main point is i shared i am scared of thats y i m planning to fix it not on ground floor rather some upward area but . Can i have something your insta id or something i can tell u in detail! I need proper help! Becz i m suffering with things!
When tracking objects Is it turning by itself? Is it actievly searching while turning or just when you point at some spot it registered movement only in that particular scene? 😢
Once you active object tracking in the settings it does everything itself. While you can set up pre-set points that the camera will move to at your suggestions, the object tracking is entirely automatic. The camera will track whatever moves and then return to its home location when the motion ceases. It's quite unnerving when I'm out in the garden with the dog and the camera is constantly following me around.
I have bought this camera,but if zooming the image not clear, even car number plate also can't see clearly
Obviously I don’t know what distance the car is away in your case but I’ve found the image to be very clear. Do make sure that the visual settings are on high as they were set quite low by default on mine when I first set it up. If I remember it was originally set to 720p and I had to change it to 2K QHD.
I already put to 2k, but still zooming not clear, I don't u mean ur image clear is what distance, u have zooming or not
This camera is pan and tilt only. It does not have an optical zoom. If you are zooming in with this camera then you’re doing it digitally so all you’re doing through the app is zooming in on the image, not the subject. The more you zoom the more pixelated the image will become.
My camera will be installed far away from a plug. What can i do to bring power to the unit? Extension cable, or i will have loses? Will need about 5 meters to reach the camera from plug. Thanks!
I've used extension cables on several of my cameras and not had any issues. You won't have losses of power, certainly nothing that will affect the camera. The only issue you could possibly have would be Wi-fi strength. I don't see 5m being a problem, unless there are a lot of obstructions between the camera and your router.
@@ToughMonkey thanks mate!
A alimentação pode ser PO
A alimentação pode ser POE?
I have other questions please, if you do not mind: I want to installe my camera a bit higher up. I have a railroad 200 meters away. If a train passes by will it be detected. The street is 40 meter aways from the camera. My fence is 2 meters high. When a truck passes I can see the rooth of it. Will the camera detect it? The detection goes how far? Should I installe a blind around the camera to cancel out those "farer" areas which may be detected? Many many thanks for your help.
In the app you can set up the camera's blind spots. You block out areas on the image that you want the camera to ignore detection in. I do that in my back garden in areas where I know that tree branches or plants are likely to sway in the wind and trigger motion detection. You don't need a physical blind on the camera. One thing I will caveat that with though is that as this is a dome camera that moves around, the blind spots you dictate will also follow as the camera pans around. To lessen that impact I have a "default view" that the camera sits at most of the time and I set up the blind spots on that default view and accept that it will also have a blind spot when it moves around.
Is the weatherproof plug for the Ethernet port (if not used) provided in the box?
Yes, that’s correct.
Thanks, I have been specifically looking for proof of Pet Detection working as I will be adding this camera before my gate as my husband is useless in keeping the gate closed; I have a protective dog breed. My dog was out for 10 minutes in the driveway by himself he was recorded on all my cameras but I didn't get any notifications as he is not a human for the human detection to work on my Reolink & Ezviz cameras. My Swann system hard drive is malfunctioning that I have set to record everything, I have a TV monitor to see what is going on when home, but no notifications as I rely on my other cameras for "human detection"...still haven't found a system to replace my old Swann system solely because I only need 2 analog cameras/BNC cables, not 4-8 cameras in the packages. Reolink has just told me they just came out with an upgraded camera with pet detection as I have an old version camera already installed for years after my gate in the driveway. With this TP-Link camera and new Reolink camera I will have notifications telling me when my Dogs leave the backyard, and enter the driveway. Just need a recommendation on a good DVR 4-channel security camera W/BNC cables to replace to old Swann system....Looking at Hiseeu pan & tilt system that has BNC cables
When you find a good replacement for your Swann, let me know. I’m seriously considering replacing all of the Swann cameras with more TP-Link Tapo cameras, I’ve been that impressed with them.
Hi does this camera work via poe
I’ve tried to confirm this one way or another. No where can I see on Tapo’s webpages or the instructions that it does or doesn’t. It has an Ethernet port alongside the DC power cable, but as far as I can tell the Ethernet is purely for a wired network connection and not for power delivery. More and more devices accept Power over Ethernet, and TP-Link/Tapo themselves list PYZ and dome cameras as possible uses for it on their sales pages for PoE network switches, but I don’t see anything that would suggest the 520 is compatible.
nice review.. because i have 16 channel dvr camera.. and my expierence with this tapo is brillant.. you are correct on the live screen of the app. it's very fast compare to my DVR system.
Thank you. Yes, several months down the line I’m still very impressed with it.
@@ToughMonkey i have a tapo c220 as of now and i will order the c520ws. Base on the specs. I think almost the same. I difference is just the led light.
Brilliant review, made my mind up that this is the one I will purchase
Can i ask what is the best sensitivity for this? I have a lot of notification for movement of plants and birds
I’ve got mine set really quite low for sensitivity and programmed it to only send alerts during certain times. Rain is also something that can play havoc with triggering motion on the camera. The drawback of having a movable dome camera is that they’re not as effective at being able to blank out areas that have high movement. For example, my camera is looking over a garden that has a lot of trees, plants, hedges, bushes etc that even in a minor breeze can sway and trigger movement notifications. With a static camera it’s very easy to black out the areas those items are located so that they don’t constantly trigger notifications, but with a dome camera it’s moving around and those black-out zones also move with it. That’s true of all dome cameras.
So, in my case, the other cameras in my garden are used for motion detection, the dome camera is set to low sensitivity and reduced notifications.
Wow thanks for that info i am a new user of tapo, before i slept last night i set the sensitivity around 7 because i have amazon deliveries in the morning and its too late to realize that we have high foot traffic around 6 to 8 am i woke up to nearly hundreds of motion detection plus the trees and birds 😢
Do you need the cloud storage to view online or live? It has an SD slot, but is that just for storage or does it let you record and view it via the app?
With the SD card I can watch live footage or watch recorded footage all through the app. Cloud storage isn’t required if you have a micro SD card, unless you want to store footage off site. That option is beneficial if you think there’s a chance that the camera could be stolen or damage. The memory card with the culprit could be lost otherwise.
@@ToughMonkey fantastic. Thanks
bro question its compatible with 5ghz wifi frequency?
That’s a good question as it’s not blatantly clear on the marketing notes what band it operates on. It’s hidden inside the Specification page on Tapo’s website where it confirms its 2.4Ghz only.
It’s something I’ve overlooked myself recently because I changed router about a year ago that automatically sorts out what band a device should be on, whereas previously I had to select either 2.4Ghz or 5Ghz manually when setting up a new device.
What I would say on that is I would recommend 2.4Ghz for security cameras, especially outdoor cameras, as 2.4Ghz gives significantly better range and doesn’t get effected quite as much by obstructions such as thick external walls between the camera and the router. That gives you more option on placement of the camera. Obviously, 5Ghz gives you more bandwidth and theoretically better performance, but I’ve not noticed any lapse in performance from any of my Tapo cameras. I’ve got 7 2K cameras all operating on the same app and they’re really quick to access the footage or watch live. And that’s just Tapo cameras. I’ve got over 30 cameras operational from one manufacturer or another and they’re all on 2Ghz so I’m personally not too concerned
Which is tha best recommended SD card suitable for C520ws can you suggest the specifications
Bought the smart plugs to controll my bearded dragons lights their fantastic!, bought the indoor tc70 pan cameras for their tanks so i can monitor their activity whilst im at work or away on holiday again fantastic, decided i want to change my chinese 5mp pan outdoor camera that has an awfull app, slow tracking and now has stopped panning like my previous chinese camera, this 520ws is currently on sale at £69.99 would you say its a winner to add to my current tapo stuff?
Great video matey 👌🏻
Thank you. I’d definitely say it’s worth £69.99, but I’m hung up on the fact that I paid £49.99 for it on Prime Day. It’s not gone down that low since, even during Black Friday. I used to use CamelCamelCamel to check prices but Keepa.com also shows Lightning Deals. If you haven’t used those websites you just copy and paste the product’s URL into their search function and it’ll show you the price variations.
I’m still smitten with my camera and I’m going to get a second one (when I get over it being £20 more than the one in the video). The Tapo C225 is a superb internal camera and would highly recommend that, although it’s not currently on offer. It was £38.90 during Black Friday. Tapo products do regularly come on offer though.
@@ToughMonkey appreciate the reply, I love the app and I'm impressed with my current products, TP-link have been going a long time and were pioneers in the early days with WiFi booster/routers etc... so I knew they had to be decent these days with the way technology has moved. Thinking of getting a tapo door bell and a couple of outdoor cctv cameras, this review has really helped me, I'll sub 🤜🏻🤛🏻
The plug size on the Tapo series is ridiculous, no good if you have outside waterproof sockets set at height.
You're correct about the size of the plugs on the Tapo, and it's the case with all of the other mains-powered external cameras I've got from other brands. I have several Masterplug external weatherproof sockekts around my back garden and other than basic UK plugs I can't use them for many devices at all. The issue is that most cameras use a larger plug with built-in transformers or whatever it is that they need to step-down the power being delivered to the camera. I have the same issue with a few smart plugs and garden lights I have too. Instead I have to use a Masterplug WBX-MS weather proof box (amzn.eu/d/i9j0xhe) to plug in larger devices, which then has a standard extension cable going to one of my outdoor sockets. It's a faff, but it works for me.
@ToughMonkey69 whats really strange, the older Kasa range from TP-Link all terminated in USB. So a USB adapter was perfect
@@White_Rose_Al They changed it a while back. I discussed this in my earlier Tapo camera video because it caused me an issue with wiring up a load of internal cameras I'd bought from Tapo. I don't understand why they needed a plug like this. USB, especially USB-C, are perfect for these kinds of devices.
I completely agree, my biggest issue with Tapo is the oversize need for drilling power and Ethernet loom into a property. Its great to have an Ethernet option but you should be able to remove this if not required.
I ended up having to get a USB to power connector, 9v 0.6A and use a USB power adapter
Can you tell me how far is the recording distance of this cam? Can it cover distance up to 250-300m? I have Tapo C310 and its not pretty good!
It doesn’t have an optical zoom so it’s not going to be any use over those ranges. My garden is about 60m in length and faces aren’t really identifiable at that range, it’s more suited to 1-30m type range. These products are aimed at the domestic market which with few exceptions aren’t going to be exceeding that sort of length with a single camera. You’d need a full PTZ with a significant optical zoom for the distances you’re looking at.
@@ToughMonkey thank you for the prompt response and the valuable info. Can't find a PTZ wifi cam with optical zoom to fulfill this purpose. I need a good cam with exceptional software (like imou life and tapo) that is budget wise :) can you suggest something?
@@TuningLovers I tested a SV3C PTZ dome WiFi camera with 15x optical zoom in late 2022 which was really good, built of solid metal and was impressive. The software wasn’t as good as Tapo though. I tested it in my garden so up to 60m I know it was strong but no idea of distances further than that.
amzn.eu/d/3L6AptZ
Just wondering which one model woudl you recommend the Tapo C510W or the Tapo C520WS. Recently a neighbors friend backed up into my vehicle and is not being cooperative so now i need a security camera to document future bull shiet!! lol
I’ve not tried the C510 to know if the quality gap is different enough to warrant the extra cost of the C520. All I can realistically say is that I’ve been so thoroughly impressed with the C520 that I’ll be buying another one during the Black Friday deals….assuming they come down to the same price I paid for it a couple of months ago.
The difference, on paper at least, is marginally higher resolution on the C520 and the lens allows more light to the sensor so it should have better images in low light conditions.
I would add to my last response that the start of Amazon’s Black Friday deals have just started and there’s been no further reduction on the C520 on the UK site. It’s currently £69.99 (I paid £49.99 on Prime Day) while the C510 is currently £39.99. £30 is quite a difference so that’s a tempting saving. I’m going to wait to see if it gets reduced during the course of Black Friday.
Planning on purchasing this to go with my c420 bullet style ones. Just wondering is there a modem router (Tapo based maybe) you could recommend? as the wifi signal I receive via now broadband is dire giving me a signal range of -52 to -83 to some Tapo products
Hello and thank you for your great video.
I hope you can understand my message.
Is it possible to view the surveillance on several mobile phones?
There are 3 of us who, if possible, would like to be able to see it.
We don't have good wifi around our whole house, so we have 2 wifi routers for good coverage.
can you see all cameras if some of them are connected to another wifi network.
Or will it be difficult to make it work?
We're probably going to have 4 or more cameras. But you've shown 7 on, shown in your video.
Greetings Esben from Denmark
This is a very good PTZ for 'simple use', its PTZ speed is excellent, although it doesnt always hit the preset points accurately, low light performance is great. It falls down if you want to use it for more complicated set ups, like FTP of images to a server to creating timelapse (weather/construction etc), and I believe if you use an SD card you cant connect to a NVR/DVR. By the way, 75 ohm BCN cable can not be used for power, I think you might be referring to Siamese twin?
It’s even simpler than that. It’s not a PTZ camera as it doesn’t have optical zoom, so just a PT camera. But, then, nowhere does the camera claim to do anything that you’ve described so it would be unfair to judge it on features that very few people are likely to require. A few months now down the line and I continue to be impressed with the performance of it, certainly against all of my other systems currently in operation.
Regarding the power over BNC cables, it does work. I have many left-over bundles of BNC cables from my various Swann cameras and have successfully powered the Tapo camera from 60ft/18m BNC cables. It’s not good practice to use BNC cables as the connections carry a risk of shock and people don’t expect signal cables to carry power, amongst other reasons, but in my case where those cables are already installed in some awkward positions to existing Swann cameras it’s given me an option when I choose to replace them.
@@ToughMonkeyah, the swann cable is terminated in BNC connectors, there’s no such thing as BNC cable. Standard CCTV cable 75ohm RG49 coax which you can’t use to supply power, swann use very thin gauge copper wire, which is why you’re camera will reset as it’s only just getting enough power due to the volt drop and not being able to supply enough current, usually when turning the LED’s on.
Sorry, it’s just habit of referring to this type of camera as PTZ, when you’re correct, there is no (optical) zoom, although you can still zoom digitally. 😉
@@ShotInTheDark yeah, that’s just my poor description. I just refer to it as the BNC cable but you’re right, the actual BNC side of it isn’t powering it, that’s sending the video signal. The other half of the cable does have the ability to transfer power from the mains socket end required to run the Tapo camera though. It’s been able to power my camera from a very long range using existing cabling rather than having to buy an extension.
They are pretty good cameras though, I’ve ordered another one from Amazon, $70 can. And like you mentioned, they fire up really fast, on my DVR with a mixture of 20 AHD and IP cameras, the TAPO fires up streaming as fast as the regular cabled cameras.
@@ShotInTheDark Agreed. I’ve got 8 Tapo cameras currently and have plans to replace two Arlo Pros with another couple (since I got the email a couple of days ago saying Arlo were putting their subscription costs up by 30%). The speed which they connect is impressive.
great review !
The notification that you get on detection, do not come with any alerting sound like when you get a new email or text. I checked rechecked got tech support on the phone and it is still not resolved. Does anybody know about this? Thank you!
The image quality of the WS versions of the cameras are all top notch.
I just bought, but the image of zooming why not clear
@@tanweychong5289 it is not a zoom camera. There is no optical magnification on the camera. You are only magnifying digitally by enlarging the image. Like all digital images, if you pixel peep, you will see pixels.
@@tanweychong5289 Double tap on the area you want to see so it enlarges to native resolution. If you pinch it will enlarge beyond native and you will see pixelation.
@@tanweychong5289 go to the app, click the camera or record button and save/export the file.
Thank you for nice review. Nice foxes. 🦊
Satın aldım. Tapo uygulamasında Ev internetiyle çevrim içi çalışıyor ama iPhone telefonumun hücresel ile bağlıyken çevrim dışı gözüküyor. İki ayrı ev internet modemim var birinde bu problemi yaşıyorum. Çözüm var mı?
Como instalar a aplicação numa TV LG IOS?
Tp Link C520 বাংলাদেশে কি পাওয়া যাবে । জানাবেন ধন্যবাদ।
Can you share a link to the wall mount you mentioned (to put it on a wall end to cover two sides). I am not able to find it.
It’s the WiTi universal corner mount: WiTi Universal Corner Mount for... www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C1N7YM6M?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
Hi can anybody help if I put sd card in camera can I watch on app what's been recorded also anyway know how many hours 512gb card will hold before rewrites over in 2k and 1080 thanks
you can watch the footage straight from the app without having to remove the memory card, and provided your WiFi is decent enough you can access it very quickly. The amount of footage you can hold will be dependant on your settings. If you’re recording continuously at the highest settings it’ll obviously fill up much quicker than if you set it to motion detection recordings only. You can alter the quality of the recording in the app, as well as set up schedules so that you can have it recording continuously through the night but on motion detection only during the day for example. Set it up exactly how you want. I’ve got mine on highest quality and motion detection recording and it doesn’t miss anything. The 128gb memory card only filled up for the first time about a week ago since I set the camera up, so at least two months. Once it fills up it loops around and begins to over-write the first things on the memory card. I can’t honestly tell you the exact hours as I’ve never had it set up for continuous recording.
This isn't an ip camera, it's POE or WIFI. Although camera account is available to connect to a NVR
A WiFi or Power Over Ethernet camera, of which this is WiFi, remains an IP camera. It is not on a closed circuit and uses the internet to communicate its signal.
Definition (not my words):
What is an IP Camera?
IP cameras are surveillance cameras that are connected to the internet in some way. Whether through a Wi-Fi connection or a Power over Ethernet (PoE) cable, the data from such a camera is sent to its destination via the internet.
IP stands for Internet Protocol, and that means that any camera that sends data over an internet connection is therefore an IP camera.
Yea the app is good
can you turn off or cover the IR sensor as need it with no light? would it work upside down?
You can invert the image in the Video & Display options in the Tapo app so you could place it upside down if you wished. That option is more common with the internal dome cameras as they sit on their base usually but many people, like me, attach them under cabinets or to ceilings, but this has a mounting bracket for fixing to a wall. I’d note that dome cameras only have so much range of movement of the dome towards the main body of the camera, which is why they’re usually suspended to allow them to rotate and see what’s happening underneath. They can rotate fully downwards when suspended, but can only do up by a shallow amount of degrees before it starts looking at its own body. If you were to invert the camera it would mean that it would be able to look into the sky without restriction, but you wouldn’t be able to see directly underneath the camera. Worth bearing in mind; obviously I don’t know your particular application.
Regarding the infra red, I think that might cause an issue. In the Night Mode settings you have three options. Infra red mode only. Full colour mode only or Smart mode, which flicks between the two when necessary. It’s the only option I can find to de-activate the infra red, however full colour mode will use the spotlight to light up the patrol area instead. You can choose how long the spot light comes on for, and how brightly, but not permanently disable it. Again, I don’t know your application, but I people have asked before about using it internally and looking out of a window. Infrared always messes that up as it reflects back on itself off the window, and so would a spot light.
@@ToughMonkey thank you for your reply, i have ordered one of each, maybe cover the IR with tape? i want to use the dome within an Observatory to look up as a sky view camera but not use any light that will affect the astrograph optics
Ok, tôi đã mua c 510W, cảm ơn bạn nhiều.
Yes it’s cheaper to avoid cloud based storage but here’s my problem with internal memory…..when the bad guy steals your camera, he steals your data too. Dumb me thinks
It needs to be assessed on each persons requirements. If the camera is going to be in an easily accessed place then yes, of course it would be sensible to consider cloud storage. But if you’re going to be mounting it high up, perhaps under a soffit board or corner of your property at upper floor level, then internal memory storage is perfectly acceptable. In my own application I can use it at a lower level because the camera itself is covered by two of my Swann cameras so if a prowler wants to spend time trying to disable the Tapo camera it’s just time spent being filmed by another camera.
I have every Tapo device from 6 CCTV cameras 4 adapters to control my lighting and bulbs using Alexa pod I wouldn't buy anything else.
I’m very similar. Five internal cameras and three external ones, four different models. I don’t have Tapo branded bulbs or smart sockets but I have had eight TP-Link smart sockets which operate on the same app for many years. I’ve got several network devices by TP-Link too so I’m confident in the company, be it under their TP-Link or Tapo branding.
@@ToughMonkey I just wish that Tapo would make a DVR for my cameras at the moment I'm using a Sansco DVR
stop talking too much mate.... youtube... straight to the point
The nature of my videos are intentionally laid out this way. They’re accompaniments to my Amazon Vine reviews, which are requested by Amazon to be as thorough and detailed as possible, tell a story and show that it’s not a 5 minute throw-away test. I’m fortunate with the Vine products that I get a few weeks to fully test products, unlike many reviewers that only get a product for a brief window and have limits on what they can talk about. I stick to that format even when it’s not a Vine-supplied product, as is the case here. I appreciate that not everyone enjoys that format, and I do put chapter points to jump straight to the summary of my reviews, but while my reviews on Amazon remain popular I don’t think I need to change too much. Amazon reviews came first, RUclips was only ever intended to visualise what I’m writing about. There’s plenty of other people doing quick videos out there.
completely let down by the poor sound quality
For a domestic IP camera I think the sound quality is as expected. It's no worse than the cameras I have that cost four times as much. I'm not expecting it to rival my Blue Yeti. As they're unshielded via a muffler/dead cat the microphones are usually quick to pick up wind distortion but considering mine is placed right in the line of the usual wind direction I think it's performing well. Heck, my Swann CCTV cameras don't even have any kind of sound, 1 way or 2 way. I certainly wouldn't say a domestic IP camera is completely let down on sound quality alone.
I have some iegeek cameras and the sound is far better, the tapo picks next to nothing up , i can't even hear a car go past yet the iegeek can easily pick up people speaking out side ,maybe i have a fake copy of the same camera @@ToughMonkey
Why do you need good sound quality for a CCTV camera?
TP are swapping the camera , i was 1m away from the camera and you could just about hear me if you put headphones on and turned everything up full.
It not a matter of sound quality but having some would help, i have a lot of deliveries so being able to hear someone is a must , i couldn't @@Tsamados
My last comment was deleted for some reason, the sound doesn't work on these properly end of. @@Tsamados
SIM CARD ?
No SIM card needed.
Can you store recordings into NAS?
Can't answer for this particular camera but I've got 4 other Tapo cameras feeding my Synology Surveillance Station (2 free licences + 2 purchased).