- 640 x 480 Resolution
- Built-in Microphone
- Motion Detection / Email & FTP Alert
- Wi-Fi Range Extender: Up to 300 Mbps
- 2-Year Warranty
Decent Camera, but get the one with Night Vision
01/23/2016
This review is from: TP-LINK TL-NC200 Wireless Surveillance Home Security Camera Motion Detection 300 Mbps Wi-Fi Expansion
Pros:
Has the option of either an Ethernet or wireless connection
Includes an 8-foot extension cable for the power connection
Defaulted to a time server to handle the time settings
LED can be turned off in case you don’t want anyone to know the camera is on
Android app looks very polished and works well
Has the ability to function as a wireless extender
Built in support for DDNS via NO-IP, DynDNS, and Comexe
With the video settings at high and the max FPS at 20, it actually looks pretty good despite only being at 640 x 480 resolution. According to the android app, the camera reported speeds of up to 600 KB/s over a wired connection and averaged around 500 KB/s with good lighting.
Below are benchmarks on the performance of the device’s wireless extension capabilities:
Wireless Extender (Ethernet) (5 Feet)
• Signal Strength: -38 dBm
• Internet Speed Test: Ping = 22 ms, Read = 16.23 Mbps, Write = 9.11 Mbps
Wireless Extender (Ethernet) (20 Feet)
• Signal Strength: -50 dBm
• Internet Speed Test: Ping = 13 ms, Read = 1.10 Mbps, Write = 0.45 Mbps
Wireless Extender (Wireless) (5 Feet)
• Signal Strength: -39 dBm
• Internet Speed Test: Ping = 14 ms, Read = 25.27 Mbps, Write = 11.75 Mbps
Wireless Extender (Wireless) (20 Feet)
• Signal Strength: -50 dBm
• Internet Speed Test: Ping = 15 ms, Read = 2.76 Mbps, Write = 5.11 Mbps
Power Consumption
• Ethernet: 1.7 Watts
• Wireless: 2.3 Watts
• Ethernet (Extender): 2.5 Watts
• Wireless (Extender): 2.8 Watts
Cons:
With the lack of night vision, it’s hard to see a use case for a camera like this. Even during the day, a room may not have enough light for this camera to see everything.
Motion detection is included but it doesn’t do anything other than log that there was motion detected. If it could trigger a recording or a picture to be taken that would be more useful.
Wireless Extender mode has no option for changing the wireless channel that it is utilizing nor is there any way to control the channel width either. Due to this, wireless performance while using the extender functionality was very inconsistent as its automatic channel and width selection were not always the optimal choice.
The 4X zoom combined with a resolution of only 640 x 480 looks terrible.
Built in microphone is a nice feature though it does sound very muffled.
Problems with their Cloud storage feature
• No storage limit indication
• No way to download or offload footage to your phone or computer
Overall Review:
To sum things up this camera, despite being very cheap in price was surprisingly good, especially with the additional ability of being a wireless extender. However, the lack of night vision limits its use case to nothing practical enough to not justify the additional cost of buying the model with night vision. For only $10 more this camera just isn’t worth it.
Manufacturer Response:
Dear Dominic,
Thank you for sharing your detailed review with us.
Your honest feedback is greatly appreciated as it helps us improve the usability and features of our Cloud Cameras and tpCamera App.
We intend to share your constructive comments with our internal development team in hope of possibly implementing some of the suggestions provided with future product releases.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding our products in the future, please feel free to contact our support team at the number and/or email provided for you below and an available technician will be happy to assist you.
Best Regards!
TP-LINK Support Team
866) 225-8139
ussupportteam@tp-link.com
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