If you like Nest Cam Indoor, you're probably going to like the $200/£150 Nest Cam Outdoor, too. That's because Nest essentially took its wide-angle high-definition indoor-only camera, wrapped it in a weather-friendly finish and offered it up to folks looking for a DIY outdoor camera.
That may seem a touch lazy to some, but Nest's indoor camera is great, so the team simply applied its core specs to another product. That's not all the Google/Alphabet property did, though.
Nest also updated its app to give every user 3 free hours of event-based cloud storage -- a significant upgrade that makes it more competitive with other DIY cams on the market. Now available for sale in the US with plans to expand internationally later this year, Nest Cam Outdoor is an outside-rate security camera I can comfortably recommend.
Venturing outside
There are quite a few outdoor-rated DIY security products on the market. Here's a non-exhaustive list of of the field today:
- Netgear Arlo
- Kuna Light Fixture
- Kuna Toucan
- SkyBell HD Wi-Fi Video Doorbell
- August Doorbell Cam
- Ring Video Doorbell
- Ring Video Doorbell Pro
- Ring Stick Up Cam
- Bird Home Automation DoorBird Video Doorbell
- Panasonic Outdoor Home Surveillance Camera Kit
- Panasonic Nubo (Europe only)
The vast majority of the products listed above are specialty outdoor products. The SkyBell HD Wi-Fi Video Doorbell, August Doorbell Cam, Ring Video Doorbell, Ring Video Doorbell Pro and Bird Home Automation DoorBird Video Doorbell, for instance, are all doorbell cameras. That means you'll have to replace your existing buzzer to set up one of these camera-equipped Wi-Fi versions. Similarly, you'll have to replace an existing wired outdoor light to install the Kuna Light Fixture.
Panasonic's Outdoor Home Surveillance Camera Kit worked fine, but was quite dated and we haven't yet reviewed the Panasonic Nubo, Ring Stick Up Cam or Kuna Toucan. But the Netgear Arlo is a solid competitor to Nest's Outdoor Cam. Take a look at the two cameras side by side:
Comparing Nest Cam Outdoor and Netgear Arlo:
| Nest Cam Outdoor | Netgear Arlo | |
| Price | $200/£150 | $180/£135/AU$240 |
| Color finish | White | White |
| Power source | 25-foot extension cord | 4 CR123 lithium 3-volt photo batteries |
| Resolution | 1080p HD | 720p HD |
| Live streaming | Yes | Yes |
| Continuous recording | Yes, with Nest Aware | No |
| Cloud storage | Free 3-hour event-based snapshots (Optional 10-day or 30-day continuous recording and storage with Nest Aware subscription for $10 or $30 per month) | Free 7-day event-based video clip storage (Optional 30- or 60-day event-based video clip storage with Arlo subscription for $10 or $15 per month) |
| Local storage | No | No |
| Mobile app | Yes, Android and iPhone | Yes, Android and iPhone |
| Web app | Yes | Yes |
| Night vision | Yes | Yes |
| Alerts | Motion and sound (Person Alerts added with Nest Aware) | Motion only |
| Activity zones | Yes, with Nest Aware | No |
| Operating temperature range | -4 to 104 degrees Fahrenheit (-20 to 40 degrees Celsius). | 14 to 122 degrees Fahrenheit (-9 to 50 degree Celsius) |
| Third-party integrations | Works with Nest, IFTTT | IFTTT |
While these cameras do share a lot of similarities, they have one major distinction -- their power source -- and it's really up to you whether you want to deal with a power cord or batteries. The Outdoor Cam's 25-foot power cord is long enough to give you quite a bit of leeway if your outdoor outlets aren't near your ideal installation spot. Still, you have to find a way to minimize the look of a long white cable hanging outside your house.
A battery-powered model like Netgear's Arlo makes installation easier, but you'll have to grab the camera from its installation spot periodically to swap out those hard-to-find CR123's.
I also have a question about theft with both of these units. Both Nest Cam Outdoor and Arlo look nice, but they have white finishes that aren't especially discreet. They also attach to their bases via magnets, making them simple to steal. For Nest Cam Outdoor, I'd suggest using the included clips to secure the power cord as a minimum precaution. Presumably you'll also get video footage of any thieves.
App stuff
When Nest announced the US retail availability of its Nest Cam Outdoor on September 8, it also launched a pretty major software update for both Android and iPhone. You can check out this post for the full details, but here's the gist:
Discuss Nest Cam Outdoor