Battery cameras - totally disappointed

[user_677627617915061_677627617915061]

This is a message to raise a complaint, already expressed by others, regarding the limitations of battery-powered cameras. These limitations have been justified multiple times with reasons such as hardware power limits or battery consumption, but I believe they are just excuses.

This applies to the support of protocols such as ONVIF or RTSP, but it does not justify the inability to access an image snapshot, the inability to send an image via FTP instead of email, or the inability to receive motion notifications through a URL call.

At the same time, there are missing functionalities that could reduce battery and CPU consumption, such as the ability to set motion detection on only a portion of the image.

These are functionalities that any product intended for a not entirely unaware audience, an audience that wants to integrate it with a smart home system or simply with their voice assistant, must have.

It's a shame because otherwise, Reolink products are excellent.

[joseph_1979]

@user_677627617915061_677627617915061 Technically it is possible for the camera to wake up periodically and upload an image(s) but the battery will soon be drained especially when the camera will be triggered often.

[user_677627617915061_677627617915061]

@joseph-chircop_497308027822318
The camera is always up, otherwise the motion detection wouldn't work. And it's always connected, otherwise, it would not be possible to connect with the app.
From the battery perspective, the cost to upload the image or send an email when a motion is detected is almost the same.

[Crimp On_62210811129]

Alas, the battery powered cameras rely on a cheap Passive Infra Red (PIR) chip to detect motion. Whereas the line powered cameras compare video frames to detect how many pixels have changed, the battery cameras get a signal from the PIR chip, "motion detected". PIR chips are dirt cheap and consume practically no battery. (A single AA can keep a PIR sensor going for months and months.)
Thus, the idea of limiting detection to only part of the video frame is not feasible.

With all their limitations, there is a substantial market for "wireless" cameras (The Arlo, Nest, and Ring brands come to mind.) Personally, I found the lack of features and the "change the battery" problem made them unsuitable for me.

[joseph_1979]

@user_677627617915061_677627617915061 Only the PIR circuitry (typivally consumes around 40 microA) is always active if enabled while the other parts are in cold state. Once PIR detects motion then the appropriate hw and routines are activated. This is why battery operated cams are mostly equipped with PIR.

[joseph_1979]

@crimp-on_62210811129 Of course if there is power then undoubtedly the power fed cameras are the best choice.

[Crimp On_62210811129]

Another disappointment with the battery cameras is there is no provision for changing how the software functions if the user:

• Connects the camera to a solar panel (which Reolink sells) and thus can recharge the batteries every day, or
• Connects the camera to a USB power supply, which provides infinite power.

The cameras are designed and programmed around the concept of prolonging battery life, with no provision for the user to say different.

The nerd in me wants to determine what the battery cameras are doing to conserve power. I have a strong suspicion that it is the modern technique described in this web article:
howiwifi(dot)com/2020/06/25/power-save-methods/

In other words, the camera responds to connection attempts from the Reolink app or Reolink Client because it sends one quick frame every couple of seconds and if nothing comes back, it goes back to low power mode. When I open the Windows Client, for example, regular RLC camera very quickly show the "Connected" status, and the battery camera remain "unconnected". Clicking on the camera causes it to connect in 3-4 seconds. A nerd with good Wireshark skills could probably capture the sequence of "wake" events and determine exactly how long the sleep periods are.