Finally, Yi released their first outdoor security camera. There are a lot of you guys have waited for this. I made a couple of videos a while back and reviewed 2 outdoor cases designed for a dropcam or the older nest cameras that can fit the Yi Home camera but both of them are now out of stock and I guess they are not manufactured anymore.
So, this camera is the answer for those that are wanting the video clarity of the Yi in a weatherproof outdoor design.
Let’s check out the camera’s features:
It has a 1080p resolution and records at 20 frames per second
It has a 110 degrees wide angle lens
It is Weatherproof..so rain – it is IP65 rated, sun or snow…it has an operating temperature of up to 122 degrees fahrenheit and can go as low as 5 degrees.
It has nightvision with 12 infrared LEDs that can reach up to 50 feet
It has 2 way audio
It has a deterrent alarm – now, this is motion triggered and cannot be activated manually..I’ll show you later on how it sounds.
It has 10 feet cable – which is in the short side. You will have limited mounting options with this.
It uses highly sensitive algorithms for motion detection…they are not using a PIR sensor but uses the camera’s footage plus software in determining if there is a motion activity or not.
Now, Yi marketed this camera with their cloud storage which you will see all over the box and their flier but it doesn’t mention anything that it records to a micro SD card also. We will talk more about that later.
So, let’s open up the box…
We have a social media information and help card
We have the flier for their cloud service
We have the instruction manual..
Limited Warranty
Mounting template
A pretty cool window decal…”the real safety can not be taken away” hmmm.
On this box…we have
2 very small screws…these are extra screws for the SD card cover
Then we have a small phillips screw driver for the little screws.
We have some cable clips 8 of them
Then we have some screws and plastic anchors
Now, take note that there are 10 screws and anchors
Then we have the camera itself…
It has an off white color..made of hard plastic..and is pretty light..
It looks and feel durable…
It has a screw attachment here in the back
We have the 10 foot USB power cable…
It is permanently attached on the camera’s side
Then we have the power brick just like their other cameras..output is 5 volts and
1 ampere. Now, guys the power brick and the USB cable plug are not weatherproof.
So, when installing outdoors, you will need a weatherproof outlet that the cover has enough clearance for the power brick and the USB plug plugged in. I think it will in my case and will check it out later during the install.
We have the mounting plate..and it is a ball joint so that it can easily be adjusted. Now, everything here in the mount is plastic…hard plastic..no metal..so nothing to rust…
Now, let’s put in the micro SD card. Take note guys. There is nothing in their paperwork that came with the camera that talks about the micro SD card slot. Just to clarify to anybody that is new to Yi home cameras.. their cameras have a micro SD slot and by default records footage to that. The Yi cloud is an option and can be used as a backup. So, you don’t need to subscribe to their cloud service to be able to view recorded videos.
Now, with this small phillips screw driver, we can unscrew the cover so that we can install the micro SD card. It has a rubber seal on the cover to make this weatherproof.
There is also a little button to reset the camera.
We just need to put in the micro SD card and push it in until it clicks.
Then we can replace the cover and screw it back in.
As you can see in the front lens of the camera are small holes for the status light on top and I guess the mic on the bottom. Surrounding the lens are 12 LEDs infrared for night vision…these LEDs light up and are visible at night.
On the bottom of the camera is the speaker.
Let’s plug in the camera and we will set it up.
If you are new..download the app and set up an account…If you already have an account…just click the + button on top..
Choose the Yi outdoor camera…click next..
Click I heard waiting to connect…
Then type in your WiFi’s password…
Click connect to Wifi..
I’ll name the camera outdoor.
Now, let’s check the live view…
Opened up pretty quick…and firmware update…let’s update and we will get it outside to install…
We need to install the mount with 4 screws…By the way..remember we have 10 screws and plastic anchors? and we have 8 cable clips..so if we use all 8 cable clips..that means we only have 2 screws left to install the camera. Or Yi gave us 2 extra cable clips..hmm..I dunno.
Anyways, I unscrewed the ball joint first so that I can install the mount without the camera dangling around… then just screw it back in and position the camera and you can lock the position by tigthening the screw ring.
As you can see here…10 feet is just enough to get the USB cable to the outlet.
Also I have this type of weatherproof outlet that has a cover that should have enough clearance to plug in the camera. The camera’s plug will stick out at least 2 1/2 inches out..so make sure you can close the cover to make this weatherproof…also on mine, you can lock it with a padlock so that it will be harder to unplug. With my wired Ring spotlight camera, you can see here that I still have a lot of cable left and it is installed way farther out than the Yi camera. This is not going to be a permanent install for the Yi…and I installed it here so that I can do a comparison video to the Ring spotlight camera in my upcoming videos. After tucking in the cables a bit..I didn’t use the cable clips yet…this is the Yi outdoor setup temporarily.
Let’s check out the Yi app for this outdoor camera. This is the live view shot when you open the camera in the app.
You turn on the speakers so that you can listen..
Clicking the gear icon on the top right corner will take you to the settings.
We have the status light where you can turn off the blue light.
Image rotation if you want to flip the camera’s view.
Lens distortion correction if you want to minimize the fish eye effect
We have the camera microphone…so that we can hear and listen
We have the night vision on or off
Time zone
and the current version of the firmware.
On smart detection settings…
we have the motion detection and when you turn it on, then other options pops up.
We can set activity region which basically you can set a zone in which motion will be detected.
Sensitivity level for the alerts which you can adjust to low medium and high
Then we have the camera alarm. It is only triggered by motion and you cannot manually control it like the Ring cameras.
Then we have the alert frequency and scheduling of the alerts if needed. Please note that these settings are for the alerts only. Motion detection recording is on and always going to be recording as long as there is motion.
Now on the live view mode…
we already checked out the speakers..
and if you want to record a video clip, click the camera icon to record and click it again to stop. The footage will be saved in your photos folder. We have the mic..which you need to push and hold to speak and release to listen.
If you want a snapshot of the current video..just click on the still camera icon. Your picture will also be saved in your phone’s album.
Click on the stretched arrow to put the video in landscape mode.
Let’s listen to the camera’s alarm when it senses motion.
You can hear a 3 second alarm and also you will get a notification.
Now let’s test the 2 way communication.
Here are some footage…this one is late afternoon…
This one is at night.
Alright guys, the Yi outdoor camera didn’t disappoint as to video quality. Footage in daytime is clear and even night time is pretty decent. My only complaints would be that it is wired and only has 10 feet of cable. If you are planning to drill a hole in a wall, ceiling or in the soffit..you will be needing a bigger hole at least 3 quarters to an inch in diameter to get the USB plug to go through.
The other thing I noticed is that the box, packaging and the instruction manual that came with the camera didn’t mention anything about the micro SD card slot and that you can use a micro SD card to record. Seems like they are marketing and pushing their cloud service with this camera. Saying it again, the cloud service is optional and the camera records by default to the micro SD card which you need to put in. It accepts 8-32 GB Class 4 and above micro SD card.