I’ve reviewed a wide range of security cameras and Wi-Fi routers. Most homes in Australia struggle with Wi-Fi coverage and slow internet speeds.
What many people don’t even consider when buying a wireless security camera is whether their Wi-Fi network will even reach where they want to put that security camera, which creates a whole new challenge.
So, does the Swann MaxRanger 4K Mini address this challenge?
Table of contents
- Things to consider before buying a security camera
- Features
- Specifications and price
- Using the MaxRanger 4K Mini
- Who is the Swann MaxRanger 4K Mini for?
Things to consider before buying a security camera
With so many different security cameras and brands on the market, how do you choose which one best suits your needs? To simplify the decision-making process, these are some important things to keep in mind:
- Power: How does the device power itself? Mains, battery or solar are among the most common types. If you require mains power, is a power outlet available? If you rely on a battery, how long will it last? If you intend to use a solar panel, will it get enough direct sunlight to charge your battery?
- Connection: Some solutions use your home Wi-Fi, others use an Ethernet cable, and some employ their own wireless network. If using Ethernet, how will you run the cable? If you’re using a wireless technology for coverage, where do you want to place your camera?
- Footage duration: Do you want 24/7 video recording or just recording an incident? Most battery-powered cameras will not record continuously for 24/7.
- Night vision: All solutions claim some night vision, but there is a big difference between models. Some use spotlights or floodlights. Will the vision be clear enough to see what you want?
- Storage: Once the vision is captured, it can be stored on the camera, a home hub device, or in the cloud. Can the camera and the storage be stolen, or do you not want the footage in the cloud?
Swann MaxRanger 4K mini security camera features
The Swann MaxRanger 4K Mini is a long-range wireless security camera system that includes a home hub with an HDMI output.
What makes Swann different is that they have produced a product that does not use your Home Wi-Fi to connect to the cameras. Instead, they use an independent Wi-Fi ‘HaLow’ technology that has a quoted range of up to 300m, with a realistic range of approximately 100m in the presence of obstacles.
Home Wi-Fi has a typical range of 20m. This is further complicated by the fact that transferring a 4K video image requires excellent home Wi-Fi coverage, as the distance from a Wi-Fi hub affects the transfer speed.
I tested the two-camera bundle, which includes two Mini long-range cameras, a base station with a 32GB MicroSD card for storage, a USB-C charging cable, an Ethernet cable, a mouse and mounting hardware for the cameras. Swann also has a larger model with an integrated solar panel.
The cameras record in colour up to 4K, which has four times the pixels as Full HD commonly seen on free-to-air TV, enabling you to capture better detail. They are weatherproof, allow two-way voice communication, and feature a sensor light that is effective up to around 15m. The camera will pick up an image at night with no sensor light up to 20m away in black and white.
The smarts of this kit come in the form of a small box you connect to your Wi-Fi router via an Ethernet cable. This box receives and stores images from the cameras. It also has an HDMI outlet as well as a USB mouse port, allowing you to connect an external monitor. The monitor, combined with a mouse, allows you to have a dedicated security screen.
Images are only displayed, however, if a camera is triggered or you initiate a connection, so no 24/7 viewing. This is due to the battery life of each camera, which depends on how many times it is triggered, among other factors, affecting its battery lifespan. The base station features an LED to indicate its operational status. Up to eight cameras can be supported with one base station.
Storing footage on the base station means that to steal the footage, you would need to break into the house and find the base station. This is much more difficult than stealing a camera or someone hacking cloud storage. Cloud storage is also available for an additional $15 per month for extra redundancy. Additional external storage can also be connected to the USB-A port on the base station.
MaxRanger 4K Mini specifications and price
| Camera | 4K resolution 110º viewing angle Night vision up to 20m away IP66 weather resistance rating |
| Storage | 32GB MicroSD card |
| Dimensions | Camera: 60 x 60 x 89 mm Base station: 100 x 100 x 155 mm |
| Networking | Wi-Fi HaLow technology Up to 300m connection range |
| Price (RRP) | 2 Camera package $500 |
| Website | Swann Australia |
| Price (RRP) | $499.95 |
| Warranty | 2 years and Lifetime support |
Using the MaxRanger 4K Mini
If you are in a retailer, the Swann box is a great information tool. I appreciate the fact that the retail box is genuinely used to assist you in making an informed buying decision. When you open the box, the setup is simplified because the cameras are already synced with the base station. You will still need the Swann app, which is the same app for all Swann products, and to follow the on-screen instructions.
Unless you want multiple apps, it is simpler to stay with one brand after you start on a security camera journey, as any additional camera or doorbell you buy will appear on the same app.
To access your cameras, you can use either the app or connect via a computer monitor and mouse plugged into your base station. I loved the novelty of this, but in normal use, I have always reverted to just using the app.
Where this camera excels is its range. I wonder what people must think of my house, with six different brands of cameras along on the front of it, all of which are attached to the house and just within Wi-Fi range.
About 30m from the back of my house, I store a caravan, and there has been insufficient Wi-Fi to run a security camera until now. I have mounted a MaxRanger on a tree overlooking the separate street access to my van. The Camera would be 50m from the base station, with multiple walls and a tree in between, but the signal is perfect.
Perhaps I’m spoiled by other models with larger batteries, but I found the battery life to be a bit short, lasting around a month. I do tend to work the cameras hard in my testing, which does drain the batteries faster. An optional solar panel on my caravan camera should solve the recharge issue.
Speaking of charging, this is done via a USB-C cord. I have found that every other USB-C cord I have in the house won’t fit the camera, so you must use their supplied cord, which I find annoying.
The nighttime performance of the camera I would rank as average, and it is certainly not up to some of the latest technology available. You can see how it compares to the Reolink Altas security camera in the comparison below.
Most cameras on the market produce false triggers. This has been especially prevalent with the strong winds we have had lately, causing foliage to move in the camera views. I found the Swann to be excellent in this regard, as it did not deliver the false triggers that most of my cameras from other brands did
There are settings you can play with to reduce riggers by blocking areas you don’t want to trigger an alert. This camera does not support privacy zones, which would blur out part of an image. For example, blurring a neighbour’s window across the street.
If I were to choose cloud monitoring, it would cost $150 per year for 60 days of recordings, a lifetime warranty, insurance, and some additional alert features. The good news is that with the base station, you don’t need to pay anything extra, and your recordings will last as long as your storage capacity allows before they start overwriting.
I have yet to fill the included storage after more than a month. I also tested adding storage via USB, which was as simple as plugging in a thumb drive and formatting it.
Who is the Swann MaxRanger 4K Mini for?
The Swann MaxRanger 4K Mini is for anyone who wants a security camera to monitor areas where the camera will be out of Internet-connected home Wi-Fi router range. Indeed, this solution can be run with no internet at all. Swann has developed a system that effectively addresses one of the biggest challenges in wireless security camera installation.
Is it the perfect camera and ticks all the boxes? No, but that does not exist – yet! Swann also has the benefit of being an Australian company that designs security products for local conditions. Put the Maxranger 4K Mini on your shortlist.
The post Swann MaxRanger 4K Mini review: Security that goes the distance appeared first on GadgetGuy.
0 (mga) komento:
Mag-post ng isang Komento