Ezviz Floodlight 1080P Wired Camera Review

It is safe to say that the home security camera market is a little saturated nowadays. Things seemed to escalate quickly when cheap IP CCTV cameras came to the market, and I still use the Ezviz EZ-C3S-Wi-Fi today. Once companies like Arlo introduced wire-free solutions, the market boomed, it was now affordable and easy to install your home CCTV with no DIY skills at all.

To remain relevant companies have expanded their options to include a variety of features. Doorbell cams such as Ring are a recent trend, 4K cameras are becoming increasingly popular, plus AI object detection, I suspect floodlight cameras are another style that is going to become increasingly common over the next few years.

To date, I have reviewed the battery-powered Ring Spotlight Cam, which is good if you can place it somewhere to avoid false positives, otherwise it will drain the batteries quickly. One of the earliest floodlight cameras on the market is also one of the best, the Netatmo Presence stands out thanks to its object detection, but the build quality of the bracket is so so, and the floodlight can’t quite compete with the style that this camera uses, or the Ring Floodlight.

The Ezviz Floodlight is a new contender, it has a suspiciously similar design to the Ring Floodlight, with two directional floodlights to the side and the camera in the centre. Similar to both the Ring Floodlight and Netatmo this needs wiring into your home lighting. Its large floodlights would eat through a battery in days if not hours. This makes the installation a nightmare compared to battery-powered models, or even USB, but once it is done, it is maintenance-free and will be a superior solution to battery equivalents.

Priced at £199 it is not cheap, but it is less expensive than both the Netatmo and Ring equivalents. Furthermore, unlike Ring, there is no requirement for cloud recording, so the long-term costs should be considerably lower. There is a cloud recording option if you choose, and this will set you back £4.99 per camera for a 7-day plan which is quite expensive. Ring costs £2.50 per month for 30 days for one camera or £8 per month for unlimited.

Preview	Product	Rating	Price
	EZVIZ LC1 Outdoor Floodlight Camera - White	No ratings yet	£184.99	Buy on Amazon

Build Quality & Set-Up

As mentioned, compared to a battery-powered camera, getting this installed is orders of magnitude more difficult. If you have an existing outdoor camera, it will be a lot easier, if not, you are going to have to drill holes through walls and run cable, so for most, a professional will be required.

Thankfully I had a very old PIR floodlight that needed replacing. It still wasn’t easy; I am useless at DIY, so I needed the help of a more competent friend.

Inside the packaging you get all the screws you need, including plugs and screws for the wall itself, however, this is designed for the cable to run into an external electrical junction box and this is not supplied with the packaging. While it was annoying having to supply my own junction box, it made the installation a little easier than the Netatmo which uses a loose-fitting plasticy back box of its own.

The camera itself is actually very well made, it feels far more robust than the Netatmo and the Ring Spotlight. The two floodlights have multiple adjustments allowing you to point them in any direction. The camera and PIR itself can be pointed in various directions too.

When setting it up, I would strongly advise you to make sure a microSD is installed first. I didn’t and slotting the card in after installation is very awkward.

Once everything is installed, you will need to set the camera up via the Ezviz app. This was quite a quick process for me, and it is similar to many other cameras where you need to pass the Wi-Fi credentials over.

As always for security cameras, this uses the 2.4Ghz network, which is good for range but bad for bandwidth. So far, I have had no issues with this, though.

App

The Ezviz app is the same as the one used for the IP CCTV cameras, so all my cameras were available, which was a pleasant surprise. You can also include Hikvision cameras within this app, which I have done with the DS-2CD2142FWD, though you don’t get the same preview options on the main screen.

Each video feed is encrypted using the key on the side of the camera, and this can also be changed. So, this is quite a bit more secure than some of the cheaper models. It should also mean that any nosey employees at Ezviz won’t be able to access the feed, which sadly, was not true for Ring in the past.

Previously I stated motion settings were not available in the app, I was incorrect. Motion settings are available on the app, but they are in the alarm settings, you can adjust the sensitivity of it and select the area, as well as set up a schedule. As I have only just been made aware of this I have not tested it properly yet. However, it has the motion zone I defined from the PC app, the one issue I have is I don’t want it pushing notifications to me, just doing recordings of motion, I will have to see how I get on with that. One obvious option is just to remove notifications for the app from within Android. However, it would be more user-friendly to have motion recording settings, then the option to enable alarms for when this triggers.

24 hours after adjusting the motion settings under alarm, the recording accuracy has improved considerably, thanks to me dropping the sensitivity of the alerts. So far I have had no false positives.

Strangely, while the motion zones have no object detection or settings in the main app. You can adjust how the light works based on objects. It will only light up if it detects a person or animal. On the one hand, this is great, it stops you light going off all the time at night, but it seems odd not to use this for motion recording and notifications too.

From what I can tell this does not have onvif/RTSP so you can’t import it into the likes of Blue Iris, but it will work with an Ezviz NVR. At least, when I scanned my network I couldn’t find the correct IP so adding it into Blue Iris was not possible, nor would the software discover it automatically.

It is possible to set up 100 dB audible alerts from the camera, but as I live in a residential area, I chose not to use this as I would prefer to keep my neighbours friendly. You can also optionally manually trigger the alarm via the app or use the two-way audio.

Performance

I am surprised how quickly this connects to the live stream; it feels almost as fast as a wired connection. It also manages to maintain the live stream connection with few issues. This, therefore, allows me to leave the Ezviz windows app open on one of my side monitors while working (I mainly use this to make sure I don’t miss deliveries/pickups). In comparison, I still use the Netatmo and that is considerably slower and normally takes a little longer to establish an HD feed.

Video footage is excellent. 1080p is more than enough to make out features of any uninvited person on your property. My high placement and the wide angle mean that this camera covers the entire (small) back garden, as well as the road and the front gate to the side. Garage thefts are common around here, and this easily covers anyone trying to gain access through the door.

My garden is reasonably well lit, there is a streetlight nearby so it is never pitch black. Nighttime footage is also clear and easy to make out people and objects. When the flashlight lights up the camera doesn’t switch off night mode, so the footage recorded is still black and white. In my case, as there was decent lighting, the difference between footage with the light on, and off, is not that different.

The floodlight is very bright though, it works exactly how you want a flood light too, I had spots in my eyes after looking up and triggering it, it easily lights up my whole back garden.

Conclusion

From what I can tell, there are three proper flood light cameras on the market. This, the Ring Floodlight and the Netatmo Presence. All three have their strengths and weakness, though I have only reviewed two of them.

Compared to the Netatamo this has fantastic build quality, much superior lighting, a quicker app/camera connection that also has a nicer design, albeit lacking some config options. It is also the cheapest option on the market if you opt for local storage, which is always a big plus for me. However, for cloud storage, the Ring is cheaper, and you want that, you should think about the long-term costs of each choice.

Ezviz has a wide range of cameras too, so it is more feasible to build a home surveillance system under one brand/app than it is compared to Netatmo.

Neither Ring or Netatmo offer any form of network video recording, whereas you can with Ezviz products with their EZVIZ ezNVR. I have not used this device, but it should be a superior solution to recording to a microSD.

While the Netatmo doesn’t have the same control over motion zones that this does, it has vastly more accurate notifications thanks to AI object detection, to date, I have not had a false positive for notifications. Though it does sometimes think a rosebush moving in the wind is a cat.

Overall this is a superb camera, the floodlight feature is fantastic, and it easily lights up my entire back garden at night-time. Video quality is good, and access to the live feed is both quick and maintains connection well. With competitive pricing, this is well worth considering if you want the increased security a floodlight offers over a normal surveillance camera.

Preview	Product	Rating	Price
	EZVIZ LC1 Outdoor Floodlight Camera - White	No ratings yet	£184.99	Buy on Amazon

James Smythe( Editor-in-chief )

I am James, a UK-based tech enthusiast and the Editor and Owner of Mighty Gadget, which I’ve proudly run since 2007. Passionate about all things technology, my expertise spans from computers and networking to mobile, wearables, and smart home devices.

As a fitness fanatic who loves running and cycling, I also have a keen interest in fitness-related technology, and I take every opportunity to cover this niche on my blog. My diverse interests allow me to bring a unique perspective to tech blogging, merging lifestyle, fitness, and the latest tech trends.

In my academic pursuits, I earned a BSc in Information Systems Design from UCLAN, before advancing my learning with a Master’s Degree in Computing. This advanced study also included Cisco CCNA accreditation, further demonstrating my commitment to understanding and staying ahead of the technology curve.

I’m proud to share that Vuelio has consistently ranked Mighty Gadget as one of the top technology blogs in the UK. With my dedication to technology and drive to share my insights, I aim to continue providing my readers with engaging and informative content.

Last update on 2024-04-18 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API