I saw some suggestions in other threads, but those were all from a few years back. Technology and prices have changed. I have a couple of V3 cameras that are Window Mounted to see outside. Unfortunately, that means you have to turn OFF the IR light on the camera. If not, it will reflect off the window. So then, you are stuck with either leaving an outside light on, setting up a motion sensor light, or hoping there’s enough ambient light available or a nice moon.
I wanted an outdoor IR light for this purpose for my back porch. Luckily I have an AC outlet on the porch so this was easy. I tried a few, but the one I really like is in the link below. It’s only $21, it has 9 IR LED lights, it’s at the 940nm wavelength (Which I like because you won’t see the red glow). It also has a 120 degree angle. Very important. Most only do about 90 degrees. It can operate on any AC voltage from AC 85-265V. They do sell another model just like it with a power pack, but it’s pretty easy to spend a couple of dollars on an ac plug. It is nice to not be able to see any glow or light on the IR Illuminator; unlike the Wyze camera itself. For my other outdoor cameras, their IR light is good enough because it’s near my motion sensor flood lights. So anyone near is going to turn that on and get great lighting. Also, because the Wyze camera uses pixel for motion sensing, having decent lighting is very important. Without it, on a pitch black night, I could get to within 3 feet of the camera without it detecting motion.
I’ll show 2 pics one with and one without the IR lighting. The one without, to some, make not seem too bad. That’s only because the neighbor has a light on. Normally that’s off so you have to imagine it basically pitch black. If anyone uses their cameras indoors, window mounted, and might be interested in an IR illuminator, I highly recommend this. It’s got an expect life expectancy of about 50,000 hrs. That’s about 5 years running 24/7. (I’ll probably put a cheap $9 Dawn-to-Dusk adapter on the AC plug so it only powers up at night. But anyway, just an idea if anyone’s interested.
Oh, one little issue I forgot. You’ll notice on both that I accidentally left the screen door Slid Open. So you can see the grid pattern. Sorry. Normally that’s closed and the view spectacular. But I think you’ll get the drift with the lighting difference. For $21. I might buy another for a camera I plan on doing on the other side of the property.
The challenge a lot of people have had is that some of them will cause “night mode” to cycle on and off. If this one doesn’t do that, it is a good choice for those looking for one in the future.
I’ve considered getting one for my Panv3 that uses night mode (all my others have plenty of ambient light). It chases bugs, raindrops, dust, etc. In reality I wish they’d follow through on the new automations they were going to deploy, one of which was “turn on IR lights when motion detected” which would eliminate most or all of the issue.
Of course I have this spare OG laying around that I could use for the purpose. One has to assume its wavelength is the right range to not fool the camera. But I’m still trying to think of a better use for it.
Some others here have posted some crazy bright ones that look really good but that’s overkill for my needs.
This one definitely doesn’t make the night vision mode turn off. The picture above is with night vision mode set to auto. The camera likes it fine. I manually turned off night vision (with the IR illuminator on), here’s the results of that. Looks like crap. But I experimented turning the porch light on/off and other things. The camera sees this IR the same way it sees it’s internal IR. Only difference is this has 9 LED and the camera only has like 2 or 4. (Depending if using near or far 850nm/940nm). But if you leave the night vision mode set to auto, it works quite well.
That’s good, people have had luck with certain ones and not with others so it is good to have confirmation on ones that do work.
In addition to having more IR output, your camera won’t attract bugs and reflect off raindrops, dust, etc and trigger false events either, that’s one of the big benefits.
This camera shouldn’t be an issue. It’s indoors, through a window, and the porch is a covered porch. So any rain and such should be out of it’s “Near-Field” view. At least 15-20 feet away. But i am quite please with how well it illuminates the area. This is the one area, should someone want to jump the fence, they would try to enter. I do have a monitored alarm system, so this is mainly to ensure a visual record of the intruder. The other outdoor cameras have multiple purposes. e.g. mail, packages, if downstairs I can see if someone at the door is worth seeing or if they are Jehovah Witness or some solicitor. LOL. And the indoor cameras are mainly to keep an eye on the dogs and yell at their @SS when we’re gone to tell them to get OFF the couch. It is funny to watch the dogs get confused when I talk to them through the camera and they can’t figure out where I am. Hee Hee. But I do have plans for one of the new V4’s I have coming in in a few days I got on sale. This illuminator definitely comes in handy so I can mount a camera indoors, but on the window looking out. Makes it easier for power and weather.
Yeah the bugs and rain and stuff is only when the cam’s IR lights are on, and if yours is inside through a window, you don’t have that option anyway, didn’t realize it was set up that way. So you’re using the IR illuminator for a bit different purpose. In my case the built in IR lights are surprisingly bright but since it is outdoors it attracts bugs and reflects off any little particle in the air.
Yea, my other V3 that is in the front of the house is outdoors, The built in IR lights work fine out there. And if an intruder come by at night, the motion detection flood lights kick in and the camera then has all the light in the world it needs. I just needed a separate light for the back camera, because if you window mount it, you can’t use the internal IR lights. Your camera will simply just record a real bright white blob reflecting off the glass of the window. And I really didn’t want to leave the porch light on all night.
On a side note… Sam’s club has the GE Cync WIFI/App programmable ac plugs on mega-sale. It’s a 2-pack. 1 indoor plug and 1 outdoor plug with 2 outlets. App controlled, via your home wifi, program times, day, dusk/dawn, etc… anything you can imagine. The 2-pack is normally $29.99. They had it $19.10 off. I got it for $10.58. I’m using the outdoor one for the IR Illuminator I mentioned. This way it doesn’t have to stay powered on 24/7. And I’m using the indoor one for a normal lamp that was on an old style mechanical timer.
For $10; go figure. It’s also convenient when I go out in case I want to manually over-ride the schedule and turn either one off or on. Or check the status to make sure it came on or went off. Or make any changes to the schedule. Even if the power or wifi goes out, when it is restored, all programming is still in place. Basically set it once and forget it.
I know Wyze has similar products. But the outdoor plug is $16-$18 (Depending on sale) and the indoor is $25 for a 2-pack. So basically, priced individually, it’s the same $30 sam’s club was charging. But getting it for $10 is a better deal. I’m sure I can’t integrate it with Wyze, even though the indoor looks identical to Wyze. But just like Roku cameras are built by Wyze, they can’t just integrate into the Wyze app. But with light plug/outlets… it’s usually a set it once and forget it forever thing. So I doubt I really care or need for it to integrate with anything. And for the few times I might want to manually power it on or off when I’m not there, then I have the app. But I doubt that will happen often. Anyway… if you’re interested, don’t want to spend $30-$35, and you have a Sam’s Club membership. it might be an option. You can also order online if you don’t have a store nearby.
