Kami introduces Arlo security camera look-alike for just 90 bucks
Is the $90 Kami Outdoor Battery Camera a dupe of the pricey Arlo Pro 3?
This battery-powered outdoor camera by Kami costs just $90.
Kami, Yi's smart home security company, has a new camera -- the Outdoor Battery Camera. The Kami Outdoor Battery Camera is available for sale on Kami's online store starting today. And it only costs $90 (about £70, AU$135).
Specs and features
- HD live streaming
- 140-degree lens
- Battery-powered (Kami says it can last for "up to six months" on a single charge)
- Weather-resistant
- Night vision
- MicroSD card slot (card not included)
- Optional Kami Cloud service ($113 per year for up to five cameras, or just under $10 per month)
- Two-way audio
This all sounds pretty standard for a battery-powered outdoor camera, with a couple of notable exceptions. I haven't tested many outdoor cameras with microSD card slots. That local storage is a nice feature to have, particularly if you aren't interested in subscribing to the company's cloud service to access your saved video clips.
Its price stands out, too. $90 is a good price for a security camera, but it's especially good for an outdoor, battery-powered model. Compare that 90 bucks to the $200 Arlo Pro 3, for example, and the Kami Outdoor Battery Camera is starting to look pretty great. That could all change when we test it out and learn more about how it actually performs. But regardless, it's another example of the DIY home security industry's trend of lowering prices for camera hardware.
Kami also makes a point to note that the Outdoor Battery Camera can "be placed anywhere around the home without the need of a hub or cord." The cord part of that is obvious since it's a battery-powered camera, but the Arlo Pro 3 does require a hub to operate -- something that makes it more expensive and less convenient to install.
If this $90 Kami outdoor camera can deliver performance similar to the Arlo Pro 3 without needing a hub and with a much lower camera cost, this could be my new favorite weather-resistant home security camera. But, for now, I'll have to wait until I get my hands on one.
