REOLINK 5MP Security PoE IP Camera, Person/Vehicle/Pet Detection, Time-Lapse, 100ft IR Night Vision, Work with Smart Home, Support 512GB SD Card, Surveillance Outdoor Indoor, RLC-510A

Bought this to integrate into my Home Assistant server so I didn't have to publish video to a third party server for extra security and privacy. Integrated perfectly, worked like a charm. I like that data and power are over wired Ethernet PoE so I don't have to depend on Wifi. Very durably built, solid picture quality that remains stable since it is a wired connection. Have not really tried the "talk ability" (listening through it or broadcasting my voice), none of that is part of my HA integration. Solid camera for the money spent and does the job I need securely.

This is the second RLC-510A I've bought because the first one impressed me so much. You can tell right away, even while unboxing it, that it's a quality camera. It has some real weight to it—not that cheap plastic feel you get from budget models. It's a solid POE camera, too. No need for a separate injector; just plug it straight into your POE switch and you're good to go. The connection is stable with no drops, and since it supports RTSP, you're not locked into proprietary software. Mounting is straightforward, and you can log directly into the camera for configuration options. It works exactly the way you wish all the wannabe brands would. Yes, it costs more than the plastic bargain-bin cameras, but you truly get what you pay for. Overall, an awesome camera!

Love the ReoLink setup. Tons of features. I don't need a subscription. This is 1 of 12 ReoLink cameras I have. All the others are 8MP or 12MP. It's night vision is slightly blurrier but that's to be expected for 5MP resolution. Pros: - Great app. - Many IR lights. - Nice clear image, especially in daylight. 5MP is fine for most uses. 8MP allows for better detail but honestly, it's usually overkill unless you're monitoring something distant. - No subscription or NVR needed. Every camera has its own storage and web server. - PoE, although harder to install and requires a PoE+ switch, is far superior than battery/solar so that 24x7 recording is possible. With 24x7, you can still search on activations-only. - Weather proof. Cons: - Lighting is IR only. So it won't light the way. - Somewhat narrow FOV. That helps with resolution for what it is capturing, but not great for covering a wide area. - Only supports up to 256GB MicroSD card (like all ReoLinks, despite Amazon claims)

Ease of adding cameras is great. I like the app most of the time, especially when you can set areas to not alert. The Big Issue is that it forgets and you have to go back and reset some areas weekly. I have 13 cameras going at all times. I did add an extra hard drive in the main board so I can record 2 weeks worth before it loops due to the amount of cameras. They are water resistant but NOT water proof. I've had 4 fail in 2 years due to hard rains. So I am now building shields around them. To prevent the hard rains from ruining. Replacement is easy but costly.

I've wanted to review these for a long time. I did a lot of research on PoE (power over ethernet) cameras that are compatible with Synology NAS (network attached storage) devices, and these came up consistently in the top of just about everyone's budget camera list, and even in the top 10 on a list of cameras overall. While these cameras can be used as standalone cameras since they accept microSD cards for internal video clip storage, most people I've looked at used a Synology NAS to store their video. These cameras are 5 megapixel, which is a good resolution for many applications, and is higher than 1080 HD. 1080p HD is 1920 x 1080, while 5 megapixel is 2592 x 1944. This resolution is good enough to get very detailed stills and video, even being able to catch detailed license place numbers on passing cars, depending on the speed they're traveling. Where Reolink really shines are two VERY important areas: software and app support, and customer service. Reolink has computer software that runs on all platforms, with installers for Windows, Mac, IOS, and Android, and Linux/BSD support is available via fully-supported Browser intergrations. I've tested both the Windows software and the IOS app, and they both worked flawlessly. You can receive motion alerts via the software if a camera detects motion. These smart alerts can be tailored to say if a person was detected, or a vehicle. The individual cameras' detection zone can also be customized, so that a tree in the view of the camera won't trip the motion detection if the wind is blowing. That section of the view can be excluded. Very cool. The other area where Reolink shines is their customer service and support. I have had several email conversations with them, even prior to making any purchases. While I haven't had to reach out to them for technical support due to an issue, I've read plenty of others' reviews where they have, and Reolink is very attentive and helpful. Based on my pre-purchase experience, I can't imagine anything different. For the purchase price of around $50USD, these cameras are a fantastic value. You can splurge a bit and go up to around $80 to get the 4k/8 megapixel version, but for most uses, this is overkill. Reolink also makes a similar camera that instead of having a fixed zoom, has an optical zoom, making it ideal for areas that you want to zoom into, such as down a long driveway. Depending on model, there's a 3x or 4x optical zoom, which run anywhere from just over $100, to nearly $200, depending on features.

I have purchased several camera systems for various locations and they work great; the entire system is very easy to install and operate. The cameras in general are robust and of excellent quality, including everything necessary for a secure outdoor connection that withstands direct rain and extreme sun. Beyond the excellent product quality, their technical support and after-sales service are even better. I strongly recommend purchasing Reolink products.

If you just want to set the IP address to a fixed address and use it on a private network, this is problematic. They do not say what the default IP address is or the MAC address. Grok did find info on the default IP address, but when I got on the configuration web page, the manual IP address entry screen still needed a DHCP server. BOOTP did not work. It kept disappearing and going back to default IP.

Easy to install but this older model is kinda tricky to adjust once mounted. The newer model with the twist lock is an upgrade. Image quality is very good, as good as expected.