Complete Motion Capture was recently rolled out by Wyze as a premium add-on service. Let’s look at the service and figure out if it’s worth spending some additional money.
We have been big fans of Wyze previously having looked at the Wyze Cam and Wyze Cam Pan.
Wyze Complete Motion Capture Service Description
A Wyze Cam out of the box is a great value. There’s few like it at this price point. Compact deign, an easy to use app and free cloud storage for motion events. The free cloud service provides twelve seconds of storage for the motion event.
The 12-second limitation can be problematic when a longer video clip is desired. I don’t know why Wyze chose this limit. It’s terribly short and often insufficient. Sure, it saves bandwidth (on your end) and storage space (on their end) but it just seems like it could have been longer.
So it’s Complete Motion Capture to the rescue. This is a premium add-on that removes the 12-second limit. The motion clip will last as long as there’s motion. Unlike the free cloud storage, this paid upgrade will record motion for as long as motion is detected, without wait time between recordings. These recordings are retained for 14 days then roll off.
This service is available on most Wyze Cams with the exception of the older Wyze Cam V1.
How to Set it Up
As of today, Wyze is offering a 2-week trial of the service. Setting it up is easy but cannot be done via the app.
Log onto your account via the Wyze web site. Just activate the service for the cameras you want. It starts you off with a free 14-day trial. You will be prompted when it’s time to start paying and that’s when you enter a credit card for payment.
Does it Work Well?
The still photo that accompanies this article shows a video clip that exceeds 12 seconds. The sensitivity remains the same as before but the video length will be as long as there is motion in view. Today was trash pickup day so we got to see the complete pickup and drive away. I suppose I should have picked something more exciting than this but you get the idea.
Is it Worth it?
Complete Motion Capture will set you back $1.49 monthly per camera. That’s among the least expensive premium services available.
It’s interesting that’s it priced per camera as some other manufacturers price their premium service on a location basis. This would cover multiple cameras in your home. In the case of Wyze, it’s going to set you back on a per camera basis.
There’s also the issue of bandwidth limitations set by an ISP. Some have no limitations whatsoever, some do. If the cameras will have extensive activity, you might bump up towards that limitation with a resulting bill or a data cap.
Now, as to the discussion of is it worth it. For your primary cameras, this makes sense to consider. Primary cameras are those pointing at an entry door or down a hallway. Bypassing the 12-second limitation is often necessary to get a complete picture of what’s going on. A $1.49 monthly investment is a bargain for added storage.
It’s probably not worth it for every camera in your home or office. Cameras that are secondary can likely be omitted and will save you money. Secondary cameras might be those positioned to view a single room. If setup properly, the primary cameras will catch any intrusion and using a premium subscription may not be needed for these cameras.