Smart Home Series – Should you buy a smart home security camera?

ICYMI: smart security cameras are all the rage. They've seen a huge increase in innovation to offer every convenience you need from night vision to cloud storage to ultra-stealthy designs. The only thing you need to decide is which one is best for your home.

• How secure is your home? According to the FBI, burglars avoid homes with security cameras. But, only 17% of homes have a security system in place.

There was a time when securing your home was all about having bulky padlocks and sturdy windows. But in the early 2000s, when the smart home industry started to grow, we saw a new evolution in home security. The latest security cameras at the time worked both inside and out for all-over visibility. These cameras have been upgraded exponentially over the years and, with each update, they are still getting better and better. In fact, latest burglary statistics say that burglars are most attracted to homes that do not have a home security system. However, this doesn’t seem to reduce break-ins as much as it’s supposed to because only 17% of houses actually have a home security system in place.

Only 17% homes have security cameras

Why the sudden boom in smart home security?

No matter how cool or smart this industry sounds, it has never had much focus. There are a variety of reasons its innovation was stalled:

1. Home security cameras monitor your home around the clock and notify you as soon as any disturbance is detected. But, this only happens if they are properly connected to a Wi-Fi system. If the network was down, they were virtually useless.
2. Some of the first home security cameras used to detect pets as foreign objects which resulted in a lot of unnecessary alarms. Imagine Fido running around the house at midnight and all of your security alarms go off.
3. Night vision wasn’t as good as promised. So, the results were poor in capturing anything that happened in the house after lights went out.
4. Break-ins happen pretty often in the United States. And, innovation breeds intelligence. Some burglars were smart enough to dismantle conspicuous cameras before robbing a house.
5. While outdoor cameras seem ideal for monitoring the outside of homes, they weren’t waterproof enough to handle all the different weather conditions.

Netatmo facial-recognition security camera

What’s changed?

In short, everything has changed. Home security is now considered to be a primary aspect of taking smart homes to the next level. In fact, Blake Kozak, a smart home and home security analyst with research firm IHS Markit, said at CES 2018, “security devices are the pillar of the connected home in North America, and we expect that security will remain a primary pillar for driving consumers to the smart home.” The latest innovations and technology is truly astounding:

1. Cameras can finally work even without Internet.
2. There are home security cameras with intelligent facial recognition to avoid false alarms.
3. Night vision has been improved so cameras can now function better even in the dark.
4. Cameras don’t look like cameras anymore. Kuna and Ring are embedding smart cameras in everyday objects like outdoor lanterns and doorbells, making them unrecognizable to intruders.
5. Cameras are now made weatherproof so you can use them anywhere inside and outside your home.

Arlo weatherproof home security camera

The latest trends

Other than the usual features, home security has also seen a lot of customizable systems recently. With peripherals such as adhesive sensors, you can cater the security systems to the needs of your home and family.

Simplisafe all-in-one home security system

Simplisafe is a great example. The result of a Kickstarter project, this connected system provides four different ways to stop intruders through multiple sensors. Angee is another camera that wants to give you more privacy while still offering peace of mind.

Angee security camera offers you privacy

Plus, insurance companies have finally started extending home insurance discounts to homeowners who utilize monitored security systems. These discounts can be as much as 30%.

With all of that said, we think home security cameras, smart or not, are a must for any home. Besides, it’s not always about home security. Sometimes, it’s just fun to watching your dog get up to no good. What do you say?