Where can you use the Tapo Color Pro in your home? Save $20 with code: 20COLORPRO Tapo ColorPro on Amazon: geni.us/rRa59o TP-Link Tapo Store: bit.ly/3oByZbF
It bugs me that it's not wireless i already have some of there outdoor cams that are wireless have a removable battery that is re chargeable. What if where I wanna mount it isn't near a power source
Hi Brett, I watch a lot of review videos on security cams and you did a fantastic job with this one. I love how you took your time and went thru almost ever setting. That is what I really like seeing on these reviews. As for this cameras there is a awful to like about them with the color night quality really being it's strength. The one thing that is missing that I would like to see is the ability to view all the live and recorded images from my computer browser when I'm at work like on the Google Nest cameras. For me this is an important feature.
@ 31:22, wait what.... did they finally allow us to store footage directly on the NAS?, because I have a C320WS and I could just record to the NVR and I was so annoyed really and had to buy a dedicated NVR just to store the footages on a large hard drive. I did raise this to them before as my 10yr old camera from D-Link could do it, but not their supposedly modern cams.
I don't think they allow direct recording to a NAS, but there are ways around this. First of all, most NAS boxes have a NVR function. Taking it further, if your NAS is basically a home server or if you have a Synology NAS, you can install one of the many NVR software solutions available in a Docker container. If everything else fails, with a cheap SBC, such as a Raspberry Pi, or even a cheaper alternative (but prefferably one with a gigabit port), you can directly run one of those software solutions and mount a storage pool from your NAS as recording storage. There are a ton of free and open source solutions. Having the camera to directly write to the NAS would honestly be foolish, because you wouldn't have any way to properly access your files. IDK what format they use, but terrabytes of raw video with no metadata are not very useable. Using it only for backups wouldn't be that bad tho, but from what I know those cameras can't record to microSD and stream the video for a NVR at the same time. I might be wrong. I hope I am wrong, lol.
@@vhateg I just bought one of this 5 days ago, i can confirm that there is indeed no way to directly record on a NAS. On your other inquiry about recording on both micro sd card and nvr, it can. I have one of my c230ws camera recording directly on the sd card while also saving its footages on the nvr, its my earlier setup with sdcard only actually, but later on when i had the nvr, i just kept it there as additional redundancy since its much faster to access footages on that sd card anyway than on my nvrs hdd drive.
@@iam_joshua_bcxvii Can you elaborate a bit on the NVR you are using? Is it a piece of software running on your PC or Mac? Or is it a stand-alone box that resembles a VCR? (OMG I just dated myself, LOL)
@@Martin-Techno-Gadget-Guy LOL, I remember a VCR, I remember rewinding it with a fork, though I am a mid 90s kiddo so I barely remember it already. Anyhow, an NVR is a standalone box that indeed resembles a VCR or a DVD player. Its primary role is to stream the footages on your cameras on the local network and store it on the HDD/SSD inserted inside or externally on the NVR. Its a cheap way to have a large storage for this WiFi Cameras really instead of buying each and everyone of this cameras micro SD card or subscribing to the Tapo Care. PS: The Issue with slow accessing of footages on the NVR seems to be just an issue in the App and not my my HDD in the NVR, because when I am trying to access the footage via my PC on the Vigi Security manager for Windows, the scrolling thru the timeline is responsive anyway unlike on the Android app they have. Anyhow, yea, the NVR Vigi app for android is slow and unresponsive, this is despite me having a flagship android phone that is an S23 Ultra alright.
@@iam_joshua_bcxvii Excellent, thank you for the reply that explains this. It looks like there are also some NVR apps that can live on the computer (mac and PC) and not have a stand along box. Maybe these allow for better (faster) scrubbing?
Great review. I appreciate you not just telling what the camera does but actually showing how you’re doing it. I do not see in TP-Link’s camera info that the cam is POE compatible. You show that you’re using a POE adaptor but it appears to be located at the end of the cable near the camera. Is it not a POE Injector?
two questions that am not sure if i got the awnsers from this video. First: Can you use it for free?(with no subscription) and still get live feed of the camera and notifications? Second: whe wifi signal is it strong enough to reach about 20-30 meters through walls?
At 1 minute 50 seconds you read on the box it can use a 512GB SD Card storage, but at 5 min 45 secs you read in the app that 128GB was the maximum. On their website it states 512GB.
I think he means wired with Power (IE not a battery cam) OR he means he has the luxury of running ethernet cables which provide power over ethernet and adds security and speed to the data connection.
Thanks for the video, I'm thinking of getting this device I just want to know if it is possible to use a tapo plug with this device to turn a light on in my home when camera detects motion
I want an indoor camera, running AI, to watch the window of my woodstove, and alert me when the fire is about to go out, and I can put on more wood while it still will
@@TechWithBrett especially when I'm at my vacation home, and visits my neighbors. While I'm at the neighbors, it would be so nice to get a push notification: "About time to watch the fireplace". Instead of walking over to realize, it's burning happily for at least half an hour or more; or to realize, I have to start the fire all over again. Just a camera for remote view would probably help a lot, but just thinking about what machine learning AI possibly could do, deters me from buing a random web cam.
Are you able to access the cameras if your WiFi is off and you are only using your cellular signal? There was someone in the Amz reviews said you have to be on WiFi to view the cameras and that did not sound right. Thanks for clarifying. Great video!
who the hell turns off a wifi router anyway, the darn thing uses little power anyway. Mine keeps on running 24/7 for years, LOL. Anyhow wifi is needed for this cameras if you have them connected wirelessly and recording thru NVR, but you can connect this thru LAN probably still connected thru a switch to power the unit anyway and that by the end of the day still uses power. You may be able to turn it off anyway, but can't access the camera remotely as you turned off the main way it will communicate with any device anyway. But if you have an SD card on the unit itself, you'd still be able to view the footages later on once the camera is connected to the WiFi ot network again.
@@iam_joshua_bcxvii - it isn't about turning the router off, but rather being able to reach your cams when you are away via cellular signal. So meaning no WiFi on the device trying to reach the cameras.
@@mosszaphod youll be able to rwach thid cameras anywhere aroubd the globe so long as this cameras itself are connected to a wifi neywork that has internet connectivity, otherwise its jist for local network access
Where can you use the Tapo Color Pro in your home?
Save $20 with code: 20COLORPRO
Tapo ColorPro on Amazon: geni.us/rRa59o
TP-Link Tapo Store: bit.ly/3oByZbF
It bugs me that it's not wireless i already have some of there outdoor cams that are wireless have a removable battery that is re chargeable. What if where I wanna mount it isn't near a power source
Do you have a new Amazon code?
Is the 310WB better than the WS?
The camera is perfect! Bought it yesterday and set it up today. I am also really impressed! Thanks for the video :)
Hi Brett, I watch a lot of review videos on security cams and you did a fantastic job with this one. I love how you took your time and went thru almost ever setting. That is what I really like seeing on these reviews. As for this cameras there is a awful to like about them with the color night quality really being it's strength. The one thing that is missing that I would like to see is the ability to view all the live and recorded images from my computer browser when I'm at work like on the Google Nest cameras. For me this is an important feature.
best comparision and detailed video I've ever found on Tapo ColorPro. Thank you so so so much bro!
Impressive tech
It's crazy what the can now do with these small cameras.
Hi
The quality of the picture is amazing 🤩
Has my vote 👏👌
Have 2K is really amazing!
@ 31:22, wait what.... did they finally allow us to store footage directly on the NAS?, because I have a C320WS and I could just record to the NVR and I was so annoyed really and had to buy a dedicated NVR just to store the footages on a large hard drive. I did raise this to them before as my 10yr old camera from D-Link could do it, but not their supposedly modern cams.
I don't think they allow direct recording to a NAS, but there are ways around this. First of all, most NAS boxes have a NVR function. Taking it further, if your NAS is basically a home server or if you have a Synology NAS, you can install one of the many NVR software solutions available in a Docker container. If everything else fails, with a cheap SBC, such as a Raspberry Pi, or even a cheaper alternative (but prefferably one with a gigabit port), you can directly run one of those software solutions and mount a storage pool from your NAS as recording storage. There are a ton of free and open source solutions.
Having the camera to directly write to the NAS would honestly be foolish, because you wouldn't have any way to properly access your files. IDK what format they use, but terrabytes of raw video with no metadata are not very useable. Using it only for backups wouldn't be that bad tho, but from what I know those cameras can't record to microSD and stream the video for a NVR at the same time. I might be wrong. I hope I am wrong, lol.
@@vhateg I just bought one of this 5 days ago, i can confirm that there is indeed no way to directly record on a NAS.
On your other inquiry about recording on both micro sd card and nvr, it can. I have one of my c230ws camera recording directly on the sd card while also saving its footages on the nvr, its my earlier setup with sdcard only actually, but later on when i had the nvr, i just kept it there as additional redundancy since its much faster to access footages on that sd card anyway than on my nvrs hdd drive.
@@iam_joshua_bcxvii Can you elaborate a bit on the NVR you are using? Is it a piece of software running on your PC or Mac? Or is it a stand-alone box that resembles a VCR? (OMG I just dated myself, LOL)
@@Martin-Techno-Gadget-Guy LOL, I remember a VCR, I remember rewinding it with a fork, though I am a mid 90s kiddo so I barely remember it already. Anyhow, an NVR is a standalone box that indeed resembles a VCR or a DVD player. Its primary role is to stream the footages on your cameras on the local network and store it on the HDD/SSD inserted inside or externally on the NVR. Its a cheap way to have a large storage for this WiFi Cameras really instead of buying each and everyone of this cameras micro SD card or subscribing to the Tapo Care.
PS:
The Issue with slow accessing of footages on the NVR seems to be just an issue in the App and not my my HDD in the NVR, because when I am trying to access the footage via my PC on the Vigi Security manager for Windows, the scrolling thru the timeline is responsive anyway unlike on the Android app they have. Anyhow, yea, the NVR Vigi app for android is slow and unresponsive, this is despite me having a flagship android phone that is an S23 Ultra alright.
@@iam_joshua_bcxvii Excellent, thank you for the reply that explains this. It looks like there are also some NVR apps that can live on the computer (mac and PC) and not have a stand along box. Maybe these allow for better (faster) scrubbing?
Amazing Review, really professional and engaging!
Very impressive on the picture quality I wish Unifi had something like this.
You can also power the camera with a Poe injector eliminating the power brick.
Great review. I appreciate you not just telling what the camera does but actually showing how you’re doing it. I do not see in TP-Link’s camera info that the cam is POE compatible. You show that you’re using a POE adaptor but it appears to be located at the end of the cable near the camera. Is it not a POE Injector?
two questions that am not sure if i got the awnsers from this video.
First: Can you use it for free?(with no subscription) and still get live feed of the camera and notifications?
Second: whe wifi signal is it strong enough to reach about 20-30 meters through walls?
At 1 minute 50 seconds you read on the box it can use a 512GB SD Card storage, but at 5 min 45 secs you read in the app that 128GB was the maximum. On their website it states 512GB.
Yeah that is a bit off but I don't think 512GB will have any problem.
Is the zooming good and clear
without the light is it grainy? can you tell peoples faces in the dark with this lens? the face in this video looks blurry to me.
Камеру не могу установить. Подарили, но почему то нет блока питания. Какой блок питания подходит?
WOW THAT'S FAST MOTION DETECTION IT TAKES MY NEST 18 SEC
When is this on sale in the UK please?
Hello, do you know if TAPO makes a PC app for viewing live like most other brands?
The link you have says wired who wires cameras
I think he means wired with Power (IE not a battery cam) OR he means he has the luxury of running ethernet cables which provide power over ethernet and adds security and speed to the data connection.
work with google home, while unable to stream the video from the camera? what does it mean?
Great review Brett 👌🏻. Looks like a really good Security Camera.
Thanks 😊,
JaneLee - in Suburban Philadelphia
6/2/23
Great video! Which poe adapter did you use?
Thanks for the video, I'm thinking of getting this device I just want to know if it is possible to use a tapo plug with this device to turn a light on in my home when camera detects motion
Yep! You can do this in the Smart section of the Tapo app.
Thanks for detail information form Türkiye
is this an IP camera, basically can it be used with OBS studio to live stream on youtube, basically does it have rtsp protocol supported
answer is YES
Does this camera allow continuous 24/7 recording?
Yes, but only to the internal chip and not to the cloud. Cloud is event recording only.
This is nice
Is ALEXA a must with this camera? TY I SUBSCRIBED
Thank you! You don't have to use Alexa with it but it is nice that you can view that camera feed on Echo Show devices.
I want an indoor camera, running AI, to watch the window of my woodstove, and alert me when the fire is about to go out, and I can put on more wood while it still will
That would be amazing.
@@TechWithBrett especially when I'm at my vacation home, and visits my neighbors.
While I'm at the neighbors, it would be so nice to get a push notification: "About time to watch the fireplace".
Instead of walking over to realize, it's burning happily for at least half an hour or more; or to realize, I have to start the fire all over again.
Just a camera for remote view would probably help a lot, but just thinking about what machine learning AI possibly could do, deters me from buing a random web cam.
Interesting
Did Tapo compensate you for this review? Did they approve it before it was published?
They provided the product and they had me adjust 1 technical error. All opinions are my own.
Are you able to access the cameras if your WiFi is off and you are only using your cellular signal? There was someone in the Amz reviews said you have to be on WiFi to view the cameras and that did not sound right. Thanks for clarifying. Great video!
who the hell turns off a wifi router anyway, the darn thing uses little power anyway. Mine keeps on running 24/7 for years, LOL. Anyhow wifi is needed for this cameras if you have them connected wirelessly and recording thru NVR, but you can connect this thru LAN probably still connected thru a switch to power the unit anyway and that by the end of the day still uses power. You may be able to turn it off anyway, but can't access the camera remotely as you turned off the main way it will communicate with any device anyway. But if you have an SD card on the unit itself, you'd still be able to view the footages later on once the camera is connected to the WiFi ot network again.
@@iam_joshua_bcxvii - it isn't about turning the router off, but rather being able to reach your cams when you are away via cellular signal. So meaning no WiFi on the device trying to reach the cameras.
@@mosszaphod youll be able to rwach thid cameras anywhere aroubd the globe so long as this cameras itself are connected to a wifi neywork that has internet connectivity, otherwise its jist for local network access
Hi
Unfortunately, it is a wired cam😢
There is Wi Fi connection, you can use the cam by both ethernet and Wi Fi
Sorry, I mean that it is not a battery Webcam
@@neillee1876 oh my bad I thought you were talking about the connection