Seems like every camera manufacturer is making some extra coin by selling a cloud plan. Liftmaster / Chamberlain has joined the bandwagon for their myQ Garage Camera. Today, we’re answering the question of if the myQ Video Storage Plan is worth paying for?
Everything discussed is current as of December, 2023.
Any Chamberlain or LiftMaster Secure View Garage Door Opener with an integrated camera is eligible for the myQ Basic Video Storage Plan.
What is the myQ Video Storage Plan?
Want to watch video of why your garage door opened? You need to subscribe to a plan. Absence of a paid plan means you will get alerts when motion is detected and then check the live video. You won’t be able to see what happened leading to the motion alert.
Timing is everything. If you’re always reacting to every alert on your phone then can jump right into the myQ app to see what caused it, you’re fine. However, if you’re like most, you will want to see the action some time after it occurs. And if you’re like that, read on.
Three Levels of the myQ Video Storage Plan
Basic, 7-Day and 30-Day. Those are the names of what’s offered.
Basic Plans are available at $19.99 annually. The problem is these plans are only applicable to the Chamberlain Secure View line of garage door openers. These openers have the myQ camera integrated into the opener itself. The disadvantage to this is that if the camera fails, you may need to replace your opener (or you could buy a camera and just put it nearby).
The 7-Day Plan provides 7-days worth of video storage. The cost is $3.99 monthly or $39.99 annually. This plan covers a single camera and as the name days, retains the past seven days worth of video archives. This plan and the next permit downloading of a video clip onto your device for perpetual retention.
The 30-Day Plan provides thirty days of storage but also supports multiple cameras. The cost of this plan is $9.99 monthly or $99.99 annually.
So the break even is over three cameras. If you want to archive video of more than three cameras, then the Plus Plan is most cost effective.
Who Needs a myQ Video Storage Plan?
Now that you have a basic understanding of the plans offered, let’s determine if it’s needed.
The myQ cameras do not have any SD card storage option. That’s unfortunate as the only way to view a past event is to subscribe to a plan. The MyQ Garage Camera includes a 30-day trial of the myQ Video Storage Plan but after 30-days, it reverts to no plan. You will get alerts but can only view live video.
To realize the full value of the myQ Garage Camera, you will need to subscribe to a plan.
The plan ultimately chosen will more than likely depend upon how many MyQ cameras you have. Most should be fine with the 7-Day Plan. If you have more than two cameras, consider the 30-Day Plan as that allows unlimited camera support.