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Reolink

Local storage, FTP, and no subscription required to record

Reolink appears eight times here, and one property runs through every one of them.

No subscription

Every Reolink camera in this catalog records without a subscription, to a microSD card or to a Reolink recorder. Three models — the RLC-510WA, the TrackMix and the second-generation doorbell — also write to an FTP server you control, which no other brand in this catalog offers. As with a recorder indoors, taking the camera then does not take the footage, and FTP does so with no dedicated recorder or subscription.

Set against the cloud-only cameras in the same hubs, the three-year cost difference generally exceeds the price of the hardware.

Where the engineering is genuinely interesting

The TrackMix uses two lenses — one wide, one telephoto — so that zooming in on a person does not lose the scene around them. That is the oldest problem with tracking cameras, and it is the only product here that solves it rather than trading one for the other.

The battery doorbells use a 1:1 square sensor rather than a widescreen one, which shows a caller head to toe with the parcel at their feet. It looks odd on a phone and it shows the thing you bought a doorbell to see.

What to check

Dual-band Wi-Fi is present on some models and not others, and the wired kits are compatible with Reolink cameras only. Both are stated; neither is on the front of the box.

Every Reolink product we have reviewed

  • Reolink E1 (4 MP)

    4MP 2K · 355° pan · auto-tracking · cry detection · microSD to 512 GB

    Reolink states 4 MP, a 355° sweep with auto-tracking, and detection that includes a crying child. Recording goes to a card of up to 512 GB, to a Reolink NVR or to the maker's own hub, with no monthly fee for local storage.

    Best for: A room where the camera should follow what moves — a child's room, a workshop, a hallway with several doors.

    7.8/10

  • Reolink E1 Outdoor Pro

    4K UHD · 3× optical zoom · dual-band Wi-Fi 6 · 355° pan, 50° tilt · 24/7 recording

    Reolink states 4K with color night images, a genuine three-times optical zoom, dual-band Wi-Fi 6 and auto-tracking across a 355° sweep, with custom detection zones and continuous recording.

    Best for: A property where a face or a license plate at distance actually has to be readable.

    7.8/10

  • Reolink RLC-510WA-B

    5MP · dual-band 2.4/5 GHz · 30 m (98 ft) IR · microSD to 512 GB, NVR or FTP · IP66

    A fixed 5 MP bullet camera rather than a pan-and-tilt, and the only camera in this hub that will record to an FTP server, as well as to a Reolink NVR or a card. Reolink states dual-band Wi-Fi, person, vehicle and animal detection, and 30 m (98 ft) night vision.

    Best for: Someone who wants a fixed camera pointed at one thing permanently, recorded somewhere other than the camera itself.

    8.1/10

  • Reolink RLK8-520D4 (5 MP dome set)

    4× 5MP domes · 8CH NVR with 2 TB · 18 m (59 ft) cables supplied · 24/7 recording

    Four 5 MP dome cameras, an eight-channel recorder with a 2 TB drive, and 18-meter network cables in the box. Reolink states person and vehicle detection, continuous recording and compatibility with its 4, 5 and 8 MP cameras.

    Best for: A house wanting a system that will still be supported and expandable in five years.

    7.8/10

  • Reolink RLK8-800B4

    4× 4K bullets · 8CH NVR with 2 TB · person and vehicle detection · 24/7

    The 4K version of Reolink's wired kit: four 8 MP bullet cameras at 20 fps, an eight-channel recorder with a 2 TB drive pre-installed, and detection that filters branches and insects out of the alerts.

    Best for: A property where footage may have to be handed to somebody else, and detail decides whether it is any use.

    8.4/10

  • Reolink TrackMix WiFi

    4K · dual lens, wide and telephoto · 6× hybrid zoom · auto-tracking · Wi-Fi 6

    Two lenses in one housing — a wide one that keeps the whole scene and a telephoto one that follows a subject — combined into a single tracked image. Reolink states 4K full color day and night, dual-band Wi-Fi 6 and storage to card, FTP or its own hub.

    Best for: The one camera on a property that has to both watch everything and identify somebody.

    8.4/10

  • Reolink Video Doorbell (Battery)

    2K 4MP · 1:1 head-to-toe aspect · dual-band Wi-Fi · card to 256 GB · two charging methods

    Reolink uses a square 1:1 sensor rather than a widescreen one, so the frame is as tall as it is wide and shows a caller head to toe with the step included. Local storage to 256 GB, with no subscription required.

    Best for: A doorstep where the parcel matters as much as the caller.

    7.8/10

    ≈ $120

  • Reolink Video Doorbell B (2nd gen)

    2K 4MP · 150°×150°×180° 1:1 view · HDR · local person, vehicle, pet and parcel detection · dual-band

    The second-generation battery doorbell: the same square head-to-toe frame with HDR added, and detection that Reolink states runs locally on the device rather than in a cloud service.

    Best for: A bright doorway where a caller is backlit, and an owner who wants nothing leaving the house.

    8.4/10