EZVIZ Mini Plus Wireless Surveillance Camera Review

Introduction EZVIZ Mini Plus Wireless Surveillance Camera Review Home security is a hot topic these days, but a lot of people are worried about the difficulty of setting up such solutions. But, they need not be as there are fast, easy, and competent solutions around. Today I'm taking a closer look at EZVIZ's Mini Plus wireless surveillance camera (product link) which is just such a solution. It's placeable close to everywhere, it can cover whole rooms, and it takes close to no skills to set it up. Smart Home Security for Everyone Securing your home is easy these days thanks to companies like EZVIZ and many others. There's a wide variety of offers on the market which all can help in this area. Each of them has their ups and down, but there's one out there that's suitable for just your needs. I'm sure of that. EZVIZ Mini Plus is small, as the name suggests, but it is also versatile and powerful. The tiny camera is only 52 x 29 x 85 mm, but it offers built-in Wi-Fi, day and night vision, Full HD video, and a memory card slot. The clever mounting technique also allows you to place it almost anywhere. With such a feature set in a tiny size, we're off to a good start Since we now know that it's easy to place due to its small size, let's talk configuration for a minute. And a minute (perhaps a few) is about the time you'll need to do this. All you need is your smartphone and the ability to read. Download the app and create a user, turn on the camera, scan the QR code, enter your Wi-Fi password and you're done. And that's it; you got a video-protected home now. Camera, Microphone, and Speaker EZVIZ's Mini Plus is using a 1/2.7" progressive scan CMOS image sensor. The lens is 2.8mm @ F2.0 with a horizontal angle of 116° and a diagonal of 135° while the shutter speed ranges from 1/30s to 1/100,000s. With it, the Mini Plus can capture excellent Full-HD 1920×1080p videos. The camera applies both noise reduction and wide dynamic range technologies. The noise reduction comes in the form of 3D-DNR which is multidimensional digital noise reduction. It also features true Wide Dynamic Range (120 dB WDR) for better details in challenging lighting. The audio part is covered by a microphone and speaker which both are built-in. These two parts have no further specifications listed. However, they do allow you to perform two-way communication. Day and Night time Recordings The Mini Plus from EZVIZ supports night vision on top of great day-time recordings. The camera switches automatically when the light gets low, so there's no manual adjustment or attention needed. The camera can record with as little as 0.02 lux at F2.2 with AGC on. With the help of the IR LEDs, it can record up to 7.5 metres at 0 lux. The video recording is done with H.264 which is the standard these days. Modern CPUs also process it well when editing. As far as the Bitrate goes, it supports Hi-Def, Standard and Basic with adaptive bitrate. Connection and Storage Options The Mini Plus from EZVIZ is a wireless surveillance camera which means that the only physical connection you'll need is for the power. It is dual-band Wi-Fi with support for both 2.4GHz and 5GHz, from IEEE 802.11b to 802.11ac. A great feature is that it will work with an 80MHz-band setup too, making it compatible with latest of routers. There are multiple storage options for your recorded video in the Mini Plus, as with all EZVIZ cameras as far as I know. The basic method is to store the video on a microSD card. The camera supports up to 128GB cards which should be more than sufficient. On top of that, the videos can be saved to an optional secure cloud (optional service). Last but not least, you get the EZVIZ app and EZVIZ Studio. With them, you can protect, capture, save and share what's valuable to you. There's also an EZVIZ NVR box available. Motion Detection and Alerts With the motion detection, the Mini Plus can notify when there's something going on. No matter whether you are at work, on vacation, or just out. The mobile app will keep you up-to-date on what's happening at home. With the mobile app, you have security at your fingertips. With live-view, real-time talk, instant alerts, video history, and zoom function - you have it all. Flexible placement There can be no doubt anymore that the Mini Plus is a competent home security camera. But, placement is at least as important as the quality. The Mini Plus can easily be set up almost anywhere you want. It has a magnetic base plate which means that you can place it on any metallic surface without the need for anything else. There's also a small metal plate included which you can fasten with two screws in your wall or ceiling. The camera base also allows for 180° swivels, making it possible to angle the camera correctly depending on the mounting location. Feature Highlights Full HD 1080p video Two-way audio Dual-band Wi-Fi Day and Night vision Supports MicroSD card up to 128GB Optional Secure Cloud Recording A Closer Look at the Camera and Accessories It's time to take a closer look at the EZVIZ Mini Plus. But before we can get to it, we'll have to unbox it. The Packaging and Accessories EZVIZ packed the Mini Plus in a cute box with all relevant information printed on it. The front has a picture of the camera itself, which is very close to actual size. There's also a basic description of what it is, a 1080p Full HD Wi-Fi camera. The specifications are listed on the rear of the box along with the requirements to use the compani0n software. The bottom has a bit of information too, but only a sticker with the product number, serial number, and model name. Inside, there is a good set of manuals and notes. Along with a quick-start guide, you also get a user manual, a warranty notice, and a small business card with the support information. While the notes and manuals are important, it's the actual camera and accessories that we're interested in. Along with the camera, you get a power supply, a USB cable, mounting screws, mounting plate, and adhesive pads. The Mini Plus Surveillance Camera We better have a look at the camera itself too. After all, it's what it's all about. The tiny camera features a lens on the front which takes up a huge part of the camera. Next to it are the two IR LEDs for nighttime vision. Below that, you can spot two holes for the audio part and two-way communication. We can also spot the swivel base on this photo which allows you to place it in any direction. The video can also be vertically flipped for the event that it is mounted upside-down. The rear side is almost fully covered by the product sticker. It isn't large, but it's also a mini camera that we're dealing with. Still, it has all the relevant information from the model over a description, to power consumption. There's also a QR code for the easy setup on your mobile phone. The same code is also found in the manual, just in case that it's placed where you can't reach with your mobile. The base is magnetic for easy placement on metallic surfaces. It also has a rubber ring all around which helps with the prevention of scratches on your surface. It also gives it a firm stand when placed on a flat surface. Connectors and Buttons The one side of the camera has the memory card slot hidden under a cover. Right news to it is the reset button which you'll need if you forget your details or generally just want to reinitialise it. There are also holes on both sides which help with the audio as well as offer air flow to the internal components. The power connector is located at the bottom of the camera, in the stand. This allows for an easy cable routing without the risk of a power cable running over the lens. The Power Supply The included power supply delivers 1A over the 5V connector. If you got another USB outlet near which can provide the same, then you won't need it. A lot of devices offer USB power these days, but many only offer 0.5A which would be too little. But it's worth considering when you set up your EZVIZ Mini Plus. Setup and Initialisation Download and Installation The EZVIZ app is available for Android and iOS users. Windows Mobile users won't find the app in their store. Still, Android and iOS cover the absolute majority of users in the target demographic. Downloading and installing it works like any other app, so I don't think I need to talk a lot about that. One thing I didn't like right from the start is the amount of access the app needs on my phone. A lot of the functions, I can understand. But some I just can't. For example, why does it need access to my camera? I can't stream to the camera with it. Phone and SMS are partially understandable as you can register the camera via your phone number instead of your email address. But still. So, if you're worried about application access on your mobile, you might want to think twice here. Application Setup Once the app is downloaded and you've launched it, you'll see something like the below screen. You can log in or create a new account. I don't have an EZVIZ account, so I created a new one. You can do this by email or via your mobile phone number. There are ups and downs to both methods, so it's up to you what you pick. However, I do think that most people will go for the email option. The registration is quick and done fully through the app. There's no need to navigate around some web pages for this as it's the case for some user accounts. Overall, the setup is very streamlined and easy even for novice users. All you need is to enter your location, email address, and desired password. Once that's done, you will get a verification email with a code to enter. Connect with the Mini Plus Camera Now that the app is installed and we got our user, we can connect the camera with the app and network. This is done quickly and without any trouble. To identify the camera and connect to it, just scan the QR code on either the camera or quick setup guide. You'll also need to select your Wi-Fi network and enter the password. If you're connected to a network with your phone, it will already know that and pre-select it. Still, you'll need to enter the password for it. Once the app has the necessary information, it will configure the camera. And that's it; your camera is ready for use. Before you get to the normal view, there is one more page with device setup. It allows you to turn on the audio, which is turned off by default, and set the time zone. But with those few things out of the way, we're ready. Mobile App Usage The mobile application is very easy to use. It might look simple at first glance, but there are a lot of features and functions in it. Main View When you open the EZVIZ application, you get a look similar to the one on the left. If you have multiple EZVIZ cameras, they'll all be listed here. From the list, you can select each camera and get to the live view - as seen on the right. The live view offers onscreen controls, allowing you to stop the live stream, talk through the camera, split the screen into four fields, flip the image upside down, and zoom. There are hotkeys to take screenshots and start a recording too. By default, the camera is set to standard resolution. Hitting that button will change it to high-res for better image quality and details. That does, of course, come at the cost of bigger files. Below the live view part is the cloud storage and video history. As a new customer, you get 30 days free trial period for this feature. CloudPlay Remote Video Backup Locale file storage won't help you if the thief also steals your security camera and memory card, that's a given. But such a scenario doesn't need to worry you with CloudPlay. CloudPlay is EZVIZ's remote video storage, and you get a 30-day trial with every camera. After the trial expired, you can continue it by paying the subscription fee or stop using it. Starting the trial doesn't require more than hitting the Free Trial button after which the menu looks like below. From the settings, you can also access your payment information and subscription information. You can do it all from within the app, and there's no need for an external browser or similar app. Digital Zooming The app can zoom too, up to 8 times. But it's only a digital zoom, making the image more blurry. Still, it allows you to check out something in more details. It could be especially useful on phones with smaller screens and lower resolutions. Adjustable GUI for Larger Control Buttons The CloudPlay and video history can be collapses which in return gives you bigger control buttons. Again, this is a feature which will come in handy for people with smaller displays on their phones. Camera and App Settings There are a lot of things which you can control for the EZVIZ Mini Plus. The settings page is well designed which makes it quick to find what you're looking for - or just see what's there. You can disable the Audio and status light as well as the alarm function. The IR lighting can also be manually disabled, but it might result in worse video quality. The settings page also allows you to set basics such as time, time zone, and daylight savings time. The wireless settings can also be accessed from here, and you can choose whether you want to encrypt the images or not. If you only have one camera set up, the name doesn't matter much. But if you have EZVIZ cameras placed all over your home, then you might want to label them. Each camera can have a name of up to 50 characters, so knock yourself out and creative. The video feed and playback options can also be shared with other people. The sensitivity for the motion detection is an important function. There can be many various reasons, depending on your location, where you need higher or lower sensitivity. The built-in alarm sound can be changed from soft to intense, or it can be turned off. Naturally, there are account and account security settings too. Pick an avatar, set your name, or just check up on your settings. Last but certainly not least, you get a scheduling option. Why have the camera work overtime if it's just you or your family that's running around your home. Turn off those pesky false push notifications when you know they aren't needed - or rather, turn them on when they ARE needed. Push Notifications and Records Naturally, the app comes with push notification which allows it to alert you when something is going on. There are various settings available for them, and you can turn them off if they should be interfering with your current activity. All events are logged within the app's main functionality. At the bottom of the main screen, you can switch to the messages tab which holds all the happened events. The More button in the same row offers direct access to various settings, including the My Album feature with local screenshots and video. Live View Features Rotation of the phone to vertical view is naturally working too. It gives much more real estate for the video, and it's more useful than the compact view when the phone is held normally. Tablet users will probably hold it like this anyway, but that's something else. We can see the time stamp on the video very well, letting us know when it was recorded. The onscreen controls pop in on the right side when you touch the screen. From here, you have access to often used functions. For example, you're able to switch to a multi-camera view. I only got one EZVIZ camera set up, so it isn't as much fun to do for me. For people with their whole home covered, it's awesome. Have everything at a quick glance. Depending on your mounting location, you might need to flip the image. That's also supported which allows you to screw the camera up on the ceiling. There's also a digital zoom function with 8-times magnification. Lastly, you're able to stop the live view. You might be on the go and want to save on data usage - or something else. Video Tests Testing the video quality of a surveillance system is quite easy for me. I'll simply grab my ski mask and raid my home. It's robbery time! Full Room Coverage with a Single Camera The Mini Plus from EZVIZ captures some great video during the daytime. Everything is crispy clear. https://youtu.be/eBI0cDkJ-uo The Perpetrator Could Come In Anywhere Just for the fun of it, I moved the camera to my backdoor. After all, the perpetrator could come in through any door or window. https://youtu.be/ZKc8rFoD-Do Complete Darkness We've seen some great video from the daytime, but what about at night? Here's a video where I stumble around in complete darkness. Enjoy! https://youtu.be/R1C4Ie1GYqs Now with Flash Light Since the darkness was a failure, the perpetrator (me) returned with a flashlight. The Mini Plus also handles this well and doesn't throw a fit when the light hits the lens. https://youtu.be/TPrtRPWIrR4 Final Thoughts and Pricing Pricing At the time of this review, you can get the EZVIZ Mini Plus for £79.99 on Amazon. I couldn't find it listed in the US at this time. A low price for a quality camera. However, keep in mind that extra charges may apply if you chose to continue the CloudPlay feature after the initial trial. Final Thoughts This was my first EZVIZ camera, and it was a joy to test it this past couple of weeks. The camera is tiny and easy to hide, which is great for a surveillance camera. It is mountable almost anywhere thanks to its magnetic base. It also comes with a metal plate included, allowing you to mount it where a magnet won't do it. The design also allows the Mini Plus to be angled and tilted. You can mount it up-side-down thanks to the feed-flip function. That leaves little to be desired. The Mini Plus can record locally to an EZVIZ NVR or a microSD card (up to 128GB). But there's also remote video storage called CloudPlay. CloudPlay is a paid-for feature, but there's a 30-day trial included. We saw perfect video recordings without dropped frames or other unwanted fragmenting. The wide 135-degree viewing angle allows for full room coverage when it's placed in or near a corner. The connection is made through Dual-band Wi-Fi which is compatible with the latest 80MHz routers too. There's even two-way audio built-in, allowing you to use it for more than protection. Get a notification and catch your cat on the table? Shout at it to get down. Or just talk to your baby while out on the road. There are many situations where two-way audio can be useful. The mobile app is pretty good. It comes with a lot of features, and it shows that it's an evolved piece of software. The Mini Plus is also compatible with Amazon's Alexa and Google Assistant with IFTTT. A big bonus for the smart home of tomorrow. Pros Easy to set up Great video quality Affordable Wide viewing angle Night vision Dual-band Wi-Fi Two-way audio Cons The cloud video storage is a paid feature, but there's a 30-day trial included "EZVIZ's Mini Plus is an affordable Wi-Fi surveillance camera with surprisingly great video and picture quality!" Thank You, EZVIZ, for this review sample.