As a security-conscious homeowner, you know how important having good security camera coverage of your property is. Luckily for us, modern wireless security cameras tend to have very good battery capacities now, which means that it’s absolutely possible to run security cameras solely off of solar power. Without further ado, lets take a look at the best solar powered outdoor wireless security cameras of 2023.
We are going to cover a range of budgets and features to help you find the perfect solar security camera to meet your needs.
- 1. ieGeek 2k (ZS-GQ1) – Best Overall Solar Powered Wireless Security Camera
- ieGeek ZS-GQ1 Solar – Key Details
- 2. Reolink 2k Solar Security Camera – Best Cheap Solar Security Camera
- Reolink 2k Solar – Key Details
- 3. ieGeek 2k 360° – Best Night Vision Solar Wireless Security Camera
- ieGeek 2k 360 – Key Details
- Conclusion – Solar Powered Wireless Security Cameras Are A Great Option In 2023
1. ieGeek 2k (ZS-GQ1) – Best Overall Solar Powered Wireless Security Camera
I’ve written a full in-depth review on this camera, in non-solar form, which you can check out here.
Long story short, this camera is absolutely brilliant – high resolution recording, long battery life, brilliant software for your smartphone and a very accurate motion sensor, all for an awesome price. How could I not put this in the top spot for our best overall category?
The camera itself if the ZS-GQ1 by ieGeek, and this kit comes with a solar panel which charges the battery, saving you from needing to spend time taking the camera down and charging it occasionally, or powering it from the mains.
ieGeek ZS-GQ1 Solar – Key Details
Here are the key details for those in a hurry:
- HD video recording in up to 1440p resolution
- Built in LED light to ward off intruders and film in good quality at night
- Excellent battery life – expect 2 months of normal usage per charge, or 24/7 power with the solar panel
- Awesome software – the features that you can play around with are way beyond what we expected from an app.
- 2.4GHz Wi-Fi connectivity for maximum compatibility and stable connection, even when outdoors
- IP65 Waterproof rating, built for the outdoors
- 24 hour support for any queries
Going down the list, it’s easy to see why it’s impossible for us not to recommend this camera. I simply will not stop raving about this until the secret is out, although with over 4000 5 star reviews on Amazon, it seems like it might not be quite so secret anymore.
This camera constantly comes up in our top picks for wireless security cameras, and for good reason. At well under £100, I don’t think there are any other devices that can quite compete for the perfect balance of price to performance that this little thing offers.
2. Reolink 2k Solar Security Camera – Best Cheap Solar Security Camera
Our top pick if you’re on a budget is the Reolink 2k Solar. At around £70 for both the camera and the solar panel to power the unit, it’s a fantastic deal. It doesn’t come quite as fully equipped as some of the more expensive options on the list, but at this price point it’s very hard to beat. As expected of any decent outdoor camera, it comes with an IP65 waterproof rating so you can trust that it will do the job even when it’s outside facing the elements.
Reolink 2k Solar – Key Details
The Reolink is able to record footage above just 1080p quality, thanks to it’s 3MP resolution. You can actually record video in a resolution of up to 1440p, which at this price point is pretty remarkable. On top of this, the Reolink comes with 6 built in infrared lights, which means that night vision recording is pretty stellar. You can expect very clear recording in the dead of night, up to 10 metres away, which is more than enough for most homes.
It comes with a reasonably sized build in rechargeable battery, which is exactly what we need here in the UK – this means that even when the sun isn’t quite enough to power the device, it can continue to run without any issues from the reserved power it has built up.
In terms of local storage, it comes with the best option – a Micro SD card slot, which supports memory cards of up to 128GB in size – more than enough for a vast majority of the average person’s needs. Just pop one of these little memory cards in the camera and it will save your footage to the device locally. You can also opt to use Reolink Cloud, which is an optional encrypted video storage service. At the moment, this cloud storage service offers a free rolling 7 day history, which means you can check footage recorded from the last 7 days for free.
If smart home integration is an important feature for you, you’re in luck. The Reolink works smoothly with both Alexa and Google Assistant, which is really convenient and makes using the cameras a lot more simple once you’ve got it all configured correctly.
Connectivity is easy and widely compatible with a majority of home Wi-Fi networks, since it connects to your network via 2.4GHz
Lastly, it’s important to talk about the customer experience. We’ve all had times where we need to contact a company’s support team, only to be left waiting for a response for days. Luckily Reolink want to make their customers into life long fans, which is why they have a 24/7 support line and 2 year warranty which comes with the camera.
3. ieGeek 2k 360° – Best Night Vision Solar Wireless Security Camera
If night surveillance is important to you but you also would prefer to have a wireless camera which can be powered solely from solar power, then the ieGeek 2k 360° is without a doubt your best option without breaking the bank.
I could talk for ages about this great security camera, but I’ll keep it short and to the point.
ieGeek have really built a name for themselves over the last few years in the space, thanks to their great features, brilliant software and awesome value for money.
Although the ieGeek 2k solar camera is more expensive than the Reolink, it does come with some additional options which make it a little better suited to night recording if that’s your main priority. It also supports video recording in up to 1440p (hence the name “2k”, if you were wondering).
ieGeek 2k 360 – Key Details
Firstly, it comes with some fantastically bright lights, which means the camera can record in full colour at night thanks to the integrated spotlight. If you want to stop unwanted intruders in their tracks, the bright LEDs are an effective deterrent.
Another really useful feature if you need a wide angle of recording is the ability to move the camera right from the app. It supports 355 degrees of horizontal rotation – this means you can move the camera left and right, almost in a complete circle – if you are needing to have coverage of a wide space, this is an absolute godsend, and more than justifies the extra price – you can easily record the same amount of space that it would take 2 static cameras.
Built right into the app (which is super easy to use by the way), you can control the camera and move it’s view up, down, left and right. James Bond technology for well under £200? Count me in.
Finally, another brilliant feature which has been well thought out are the built in antennas for connecting to your Wi-Fi network. These significantly improve the stability of the internet connection, so you shouldn’t find the camera to buffer whilst checking the camera’s view from the app.
Installation is an absolute breeze, which is made even quicker thanks to avoiding the need to run a load of cumbersome, unsightly cables across your property. It took us slightly longer, but ieGeek claim you are able to fit this camera in around 10 minutes, assuming you know what you’re doing. I would say it would realistically take more like 20 minutes if you’re anything like me.
In conclusion, the wide recording angle, great solar panel and bright spotlights in combination make this the best solar security camera for those who want to get the best clarity for in the dark.
Conclusion – Solar Powered Wireless Security Cameras Are A Great Option In 2023
Solar powered technology used to have a bad reputation in the UK – with our dark winters and inconsistent weather, a lot of devices were simply not well suited to the Great British climate. These days however, technology has come a long way and I’m happy to report that solar powered wireless security cameras are completely viable for us Brits.
Part of this is thanks to the impressive built in rechargeable batteries that power these devices, which means that even when the solar panel isn’t getting enough light to power the device, the battery is able to continue powering the camera for weeks, rain or shine, day or night.
If you previously had any reservations about whether a solar powered camera is even viable at all with out weather, I’m here to tell you not to worry about that any more.
Do Solar Powered Security Cameras Work At Night?
All of the security cameras in this article come with a built in battery – when no power is coming directly from solar power, the camera will run off the battery – as long as the battery still has life, the security camera will continue to work as expected even without sunlight.
How Much Sun Is Needed To Power a Security Camera?
It depends on the specific wireless security camera, but the quick answer is not a lot! As can be seen from the images of our top picks, the solar panels are fairly small in size for this reason – these little devices tend not to draw large amounts of power and are very energy efficient, so there is no need for a serious, large solar panel setup to power your camera.
Can I Still Power a Solar Camera From Mains Electricity?
It depends on the security camera you have, but all of these cameras come with standard charging points, making the cameras very easy to charge from mains power if you would like. This is not a standard feature on every single solar camera, but all of our top picks allow you to use alternative power sources alongside solar power, which can be really useful in the winter if you’re finding that the camera’s battery occasionally runs out.
How Much Is a Solar Powered CCTV Camera?
For the camera, SD card and solar panel, a normal price would be around the £100-£200 mark to cover everything you need to get up and running. This price point is for a single camera. If you were looking to have 5 solar powered security cameras to cover the entire outside of your property, you should be able to achieve this for well under £1000, especially if you opt for the budget-friendly Reolink.
Do Solar Powered Security Cameras Work In Winter?
Generally, yes. These cameras draw very little power, so they should tend to work all year round without any issues. If the camera does run out, giving it a quick charge from mains power to top the battery up should keep it going for another several weeks.
Do Solar Powered Security Cameras Work Inside?
In theory, yes – as long as the panel gets enough light, you can run a solar camera inside. It will need to be next to a window though. Alternatively, you can also charge these cameras from other power sources, such as simply plugging them into the mains, so you have other options if you change your mind and want to run one of these things inside.