Reolink’s wireless camera easily transitions from vanlife to homelife

As a part-time vanlifer, I’m constantly looking for opportunities to be alone in the world. But I also want to feel safe when parked overnight at an abandoned train station where there’s a non-zero chance of starring in a Netflix true-crime drama. That’s why I always travel with an axe, my reactive beagle, and — more recently — a pair of battery-powered Reolink Argus 4 Pro security cameras.

I chose this particular 4K camera to test because it works directly over my Starlink Mini’s Wi-Fi connection (5GHz or 2.4GHz) and doesn’t need a SIM card or data plan like more expensive go-anywhere cellular cameras. Its IP66 rating makes it suitable for use indoors and out, even when I return home to maximize value for money. And because the camera has two lenses that automatically stitch together footage for a 180-degree field of view — I’ve been testing two Argus 4 Pro cameras for a full 360-degree view of the area around my van.

There are two other things I really love about the Argus 4 Pro camera. First, it records directly to an SD card up to 512GB, which means no recurring monthly fees for cloud storage or services. Second, it’s fitted with a passive IR motion detector, night vision, floodlight, siren, and microphone / speaker that can all be automatically or manually triggered to ward off any intruders. Yes, there are several things that can be improved too, but none of those are deal breakers, in my opinion, especially at these prices: a single Argus 4 Pro 4k wireless camera costs just $107.99 at the time of this review — or $119.99 with a solar panel that could keep it running indefinitely.

The Argus cameras come with a few mounting options in the box, but nothing magnetic. So the first thing I did was order a pair of these rando $10 magnetic swivel mounts that attach the cams quickly to my van’s external hull when parked. That means the cameras can also be quickly stolen, along with any evidence stored on the SD cards, which is why I mount them up high and out of reach.

The 4K image quality from the 1/1.8 sensors and F/1.0 lenses is not great despite my strong Wi-Fi connection. Daytime footage when parked in a snowfield on a sunny day looked blown-out, for example, and nighttime videos were extremely noisy without resorting to the floodlights. But, the cameras are good enough and they act as deterrents. The siren and floodlight can be annoying to hikers, runners, and dog walkers, which is why I’m glad they can be disabled if I’m parked near a trailhead.

Importantly, these cameras also capture nocturnal visitors like foxes and wolves I might otherwise never have seen. Smart alerts tell me if a person, animal, or vehicle was detected, with footage marked by a corresponding icon for quick identification when scrolling through the archives.

The Reolink app is bad. When I’d hear a noise at night, I’d launch the app to see what was happening outside my van instead of climbing out of my warm bed and peeking through the insulated window coverings. Unfortunately, to show the live 360-degree video feed produced by the two Argus 4 Pros, I have to view them stacked on top of each other in portrait mode — or worse, side-by-side — making it difficult to see any detail captured in the 5120×1440 @15fps videos. In landscape orientation, the app can only show one live 180-degree video stream at a time.

I do like that the app allows me to trigger the alarm or floodlight while viewing live video. I can even turn on the microphone and speaker for two-way audio if I wish to engage.

I also like that a 6W USB-C solar panel can be added for less than $15 to keep the cameras operating indefinitely in some climates. I had one operating on the roof of my home for months on end, for example. Even without the solar panel, I was getting 6 to 8 weeks off a single charge with the motion sensor triggering a handful of pigeon videos each day. Alerts can be sent via email or via a push notification to your phone, with the latter supporting priority delivery to override any do-not-disturb settings.

Moving the cameras between my van and home isn’t as seamless as it could be. To move the cameras from my van’s Starlink to my home network I have to factory reset each device, which is silly — you can’t just switch Wi-Fi networks. Fortunately, the operation takes less than two minutes, and the effort results in two additional points of observation in and around my home.

The cameras can be added to Alexa and Google Home smart homes. And if you really want it, the Argus 4 Pro does work with Reolink’s $79.99 Home Hub for improved cross-camera tracking, reporting, and encrypted centralized storage of all your videos on your local network — again, without any fees.

I’ve become a big fan of Reolink’s battery-powered Argus 4 Pro 4K cameras in the few months I’ve been testing them at home and on the road. They’re quick to set up and provide peace of mind through surveillance that can be triggered automatically or through manual intervention. And best of all, Reolink won’t nickel and dime you to death with subscription fees since everything is accessed over your local Wi-Fi network with footage stored on SD cards. For a basic, wireless, 180-degree security camera, the Argus 4 Pro is hard to beat for the price.

Photography by Thomas Ricker / The Verge