My Tech Recommendation for 2022 - Wyze Cam v3

It's a little close to Christmas to make this a gift suggestion, though if you're lucky your local Home Depot may have one in stock, but if you are looking for a cost effective solution to home monitoring / security then the Wyze Cam v3 is tough to beat.

This little 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi enabled indoor / outdoor camera sells for just $33 US or $44 Canadian and has a terrific set of features:

• Starlight CMOS Sensor for ultra low-light conditions
• IP65-rated weatherproof with "extreme" temperature tolerance from -4°F to 113°F (-20°C to 45°C)
• Local Storage (microSD card required) or store in the Cloud (limited to 14 second clips unless subscribed to Cam Plus)
• 1920x1080p Full HD
• 20 frames per second (fps) day time and 15 fps night time
• 3 mounting options
• Simultaneous 2-way communication via the Wyze app and camera speaker / microphone
• Speaker can emit mini siren when triggered by the Wyze app
• Near-IR and Far-IR lights for indoor and outdoor night vision

Wyze Cam v3

The object recognition is quite good with the Wyze Cam v3 and Wyze app, they're able to send alerts when recognizing simple motion or sounds (you set the threshold) but also can distinguish between vehicles, persons, pets, and packages and send specific alerts for each.

Wyze app vehicle detection

I have a Google Nest Hub and Wyze has made it simple to connect to that device, a single "Stream living room camera" command and the two work great together to act as a real time monitoring solution. You can also monitor through the Wyze app on your Android 5.0+ or iOS 9.0+ mobile device.

Google Nest Hub streaming camera video

If there is a knock on the Wyze Cam v3 it's fairly minor, in my case, but there are no battery options. It's USB powered via an included 6' micro USB cable / AC block which means you are limited to where you can place it based on proximity to an AC outlet and you'll have to provide your own backup power solution incase of power disruption. Of course your internet connection will also have to have a backup option or you'll need a microSD to save locally, but alerts will be affected without internet connectivity.

Wearable Video Cameras The Next Consumer Must Have?

A few years back I purchased a Flip Ultra video cam, and recently upgraded to a Flip Mino HD (G.N. you and the girls can keep the Ultra :)). I'm loving the Mino even more than I did the Ultra as it is smaller, lighter, and has a rechargeable battery built in, all with the same ease of use I grew accustomed to. It seems as though the next hot item in mobile video cams might be the wearable kind, enabling us to go about our business and capture our moments with out much thought involved. I do after all have to think about reaching for my Flip cam and aim it at the objects of my interest. 

The New York Times has an interesting article called "When a Camcorder Becomes a Life Partner" by Anne Eisenberg. The article describes two intriguing products, the more intrusive but better recording quality GoPro HD Hero 960 ($179.99 US) and the Looxcie ($199 US), which loops over the ear and is reminiscent of a hands free Bluetooth phone headset.

The GoPro features:

High-Definition video at 1,280 x 960 pixels and 30 frames a second. This device is a small cube less than two inches high and can be mounted into a waterproof case which combinedweigh less than six ounces. The lens can capture photos or video at 170-degree angle, and the camera mounts to a headband or plastic plates that can attach it to flat or curved surfaces.

The Looxcie:

Loops over the ear and is built into a Bluetooth headset that streams digital images wirelessly to your Android phone using a free Looxcie app. From there, the the video clips can go directly to e-mail. This is the less obvious of the two cameras but also only captures video at 15 frames per second and 480 x 320 pixels.

In either case, expect to see these and similar devices showing up at sporting events and school plays in your neighbourhoods soon.