Withings Home review
Over the past five years, home surveillance cameras have grown more popular. Gone are the days of having to book an appointment with a security specialist to have one installed. Now you can simply visit your local electronics store, purchase an extremely reliable Wi-Fi camera, take it home and configure it yourself.
Due to the increase in demand for these can-sized CCTV units, manufacturers are constantly thinking of new ways to innovate — and that’s exactly what Withings has executed with its brand new ‘Home HD’ camera. This system allows you to remotely keep tabs on your home via a companion application, which is available to download for Android-powered smartphones and tablets via the Play Store.
But does the Withings Home stand up to the competition? Hit the break below to read our full review.
Design
In terms of design, the Withings Home is by far one of the most elegant monitoring systems on the market. It features a 5MP CMOS wide-angle camera, which is securely enclosed in a protective cylindrical wooden body. The removable casing is about the size of a medium-to-large tumbler glass, measuring in at just 3.4 inches tall by 3 inches in diameter.
The device’s base is constructed from a single piece of white reinforced plastic, which has been lined with magnets specifically to make docking the Home’s hardware a breeze. Simply position the unit on its accompanying ‘disc’ mount, which incidentally looks and works like a saucer, either backward, forward or slightly on its side to achieve the optimum surveillance angle for your environment.
On the rear of the Home, you’ll find three connection ports: micro-USB for power, Ethernet for those wishing to use a direct connection to the Internet and USB 2.0 for attaching an overhead light. There are also two environmental sensors on the back of the device, which are used in unison with the Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) analyser positioned at the top of the casing, to detect any anomalies in air quality.
Setup
Configuring the Home couldn’t be easier. Simply take the product out of its box and plug it into the wall, then download and open the companion app on your smartphone or tablet and follow the extremely straightforward step-by-step instructions to get connected to a Wi-Fi network and install any available software updates.
The entire setup process should only take about five minutes, providing you don’t run into any issues along the way. However, if you do, don’t panic. The application will automatically amend them for you by remotely formatting, rebooting and restoring the device back to its factory settings.
Features
As expected, the Withings Home isn’t short on functionality. In addition to recording video in Full HD (1080p) at 30 frames per second, the device also bundles a microphone and speaker, which enables you to communicate with family, friends, pets or, heaven forbid, intruders.
The lens itself spans to a whopping 135-degree view angle and supports 12x optical zoom with auto enhancement during live video playback. This permits you to alter the pan and tilt of the video feed — so you can focus your attention on the smaller detail of a room if you so wish. There’s also integrated night vision, which automatically comes into play as soon as the sun sets in your location.
Should you want to use the Home security camera to monitor a baby or child, Withings has you covered. The unit has a built-in night light, which can display a spectrum of colors either individually or simultaneously as part of a rainbow mode. There’s also a lullaby that can be played, too.
Companion App
As previously mentioned, the Withings Home comes with a dedicated mobile app, which works in conjunction with the device itself. Not only does it make the setup process super easy, but it also gives you the resources to monitor your home from anywhere in the world.
The app equips you with the ability to view a journal containing video footage and sound clips of any activity that took place in your home when you were out. You can even view the air quality at the precise moment the motion was detected.
Closing
Overall, the Withings Home is a great little all-in-one Wi-Fi Camera that enables you to remotely monitor your home for the incredibly reasonable price of $189.95. The quality is always crystal clear, and there’s no bandwidth lag, which makes this an extremely reliable unit.
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