Reolink Argus: usb powered mode
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I have Reolink Argus cameras, it has usb powered and work constantly.
It will be great if there is an option for batteries powered and usb powered.
It will not go to sleep mode when switched to usb powered mode.
PIR sensor detects a person and start record immediately and no more delay.
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The micro-USB port in the battery compartment can be used to power the camera (5V 2A) although it was not designed for this exact purpose. It's for debugging in manufacturing process. Reolink Argus is an outdoor camera and powering in that way may incur elements and water getting in and in turn cause irreversible damage to the camera. This kind of damage is not taken as within warranty from Reolink.
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Are you plugging it into a power outlet or a solar panel?...Yes I know the warranty will void, but I have several cams. Was thinking of connecting it to a solar panel since my batteries are only avg 3-5 weeks.
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Hi communities,
The solar panel made officially by Reolink is coming soon, which will be a great pal to Argus and Argus2 (rechargeable version). Please stay tuned for our release news. -
I think the usb powered option is useful. For example you can connect one of those common power bank for tablets and cells of 10-20.000 mAh and your Argus cam will last for many months. And you have a rechargeable battery.
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How about some specs on the Argus 2, like its mAh rating?
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Hi guys,
I know you may be concerned about the coming Argus2. Please subscribe to us to stay updated! -
oh i was still hoping that the micro usb power will behave the same...if its always powered on, it means that its taking more power right?
In this case if i attach with lets say a 20,000mah power bank, I wonder how long it will last? -
Hi ray0006,
No, there won't be more power taken. Nothing about power is changed. -
In this case if i attach with lets say a 20,000mah power bank, I wonder how long it will last?
I'm testing a 20.000 mAh power bank but it seems not to be a good idea. The battery is almost empty after only 8 days with PIR sensor always on and an average 15 min/day of usage (battery statistics in the app). I don't know if is the cam that consume more than I thought or is the power bank that is not suitable for this use. I will make a test with an other power bank and with standard 123A batteries. I will also get an amp meter to measure the actual power consumption.
As soon as I have some data I'll post here. -
Hi papini,
that is what i'm afraid of as well.
Maybe when its connected through micro usb, its always drawing 5v2amps?
@Bob, does the camera goes into standby mode like in battery even when there is a micro usb connected? -
Maybe when its connected through micro usb, its always drawing 5v2amps?
No, no, I don't think so. I have noticed the leds of my power bank (an Anker powercore 20100) are slowly blinking when connected to the Argus cam. I suppose the low consumption of the cam make the power bank to shut down and restart and this could "awake" the camera, increasing the consumption.
Anyway I'm trying a new power bank and this time I don't see any blinking leds. As I said, I'll report here some result. -
So i connected the Argus to a xiaomi Power Bank with 10.000 mAH. But when i close the app and want to connect to the cam to have a Look for live view, the argus is offline. Then i push the on button from the Power Bank and it Works again Till i close the app. After some seconds the cam is then again offline. Why that? Seems the cam doesnt took enough energy and the Power bank shutts off?
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(...) Seems the cam doesnt took enough energy and the Power bank shutts off?
Exactly. Also the new power bank I tried (Orico 20.000 mAh) turns off after few minutes when connected to the Argus camera. The problem is that these power banks are too much "smart"; they auto shut off when there's no power absorption and probably the consumption of Argus camera is too much low to be detected.
We would need a "stupid" raw battery pack to work with the Argus camera. It's a pity cos these common power banks are cheap. I think I will open my power bank and try to connect directly the battery to the Argus through a 5v converter bypassing the circuitry. -
So the smart energy Savings are the reason for this. Sh..t
Which accu is then best with the a good Duration and a "cheap" Price and that fits to the body. It Really seems that reolink Tooks the expensiviest batteries from the Market ;( -
I have some news.
I made some measures on the Argus energy consumption. I have posted them here:
https://reolink.com/topic/argus-power-consumption/#post-89998
Regarding the use of an usb power bank I have come to the conclusion that they are not suitable for this purpose. Some power banks auto shut off for the low energy flow of the Argus camera in stand by mode (Orico 20.000 mAh, TeckNet PowerZen P3 16750mAh).
The only one that I find to keep powering the cam is the Anker Powercore 20100 but I noticed the duration of the battery is poor (about 8 days with an average 15 min/day of usage). I can't explain that. I suppose the circuitry of the power bank has a self consumption that is low but not insignificant when you consider a 24/7 usage.
Personally at the end I chose to use the usb powered mode with a mini ups as bakup. If someone is interested I used this mini ups (you can find it also in some china retailers):
https://www.amazon.com/Uninterruptible-Portable-Applications-Protection-%E3%80%90Cetified/dp/B0719GVTNX/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1516796062&sr=8-3&keywords=mini+ups -
Personally at the end I chose to use the usb powered mode with a mini ups as bakup.
To be clear, I meant the cam is connected through the usb cable to the electricity grid. -
Thanks for the idea here.
I also have hooked up to the usb input.
I connected the usb power lines to a cheap solar powered light I got from Banggood. I simply opened the solar powered light, disconneced the light and connected the usb power lines directly to the 3.7V lithium battery.
