Hey everybody, I just got a Wyze Cam v2 yesterday, I set it up and the quality is great and the app is good, it was super easy to set up. I have it pointing out my front window (no screen) capturing the front porch, front yard, driveway, mailbox, and the road in front of my house. I live in a somewhat undeveloped area so there are no houses across the street or on either side of me, but a few houses down the road. It’s not a high traffic area though several people drive by daily.
I’m using an SD card and I set the camera to only record on motion events with the sound off. I did not set up a detection zone. I left the motion detection sensitivity at default (50) and the camera picks up some events but completely misses others. It’s sensitive enough to pick up a rabbit on the lawn early in the morning, it picked up a few vehicles driving past during the day, and it picked up me going out to get the mail. However, it did not pick up the mail carrier bringing the mail, nor did it pick up my own car when I left or came home. Both of which were events well in view of the camera and lasted much longer than a neighbor driving by without stopping.
Am I doing something wrong? The camera is in the same room as the WiFi router, but even if it were to drop WiFi (I don’t see how being only 15 feet away) I assume it should still keep recording events to the SD card. None of the events that it missed were anywhere near any other events so if there is a cool down period that wouldn’t have affected it. Is there even a cool down when using an SD card?
I searched the forum for people with similar issues looking for resolutions but didn’t find any. Well, I found some similar issues, but no resolutions. If anyone has any idea what I can do to correct this issue, I’d really like to hear it, otherwise the Wyze cam will sadly have to go back, as it’s job is to watch for someone tampering with the mail and packages.
My WOC missed the Amazon guy today walking about 30’ on my sidewalk, but picking up the movement of a branch on a bush all afternoon.
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Is it possible the times you left or came home, or the mail carrier stopped by was within the cool down period between other motion events?
The events that it missed were during several hours that had no other events.
Perhaps up the sensitivity some?
I thought about that… but it caught a 6 inch tall rabbit about 40 feet away, and it catches cars driving by at maybe 30mph so I presume it’s sensitive enough. No idea why it didn’t catch a large SUV stopping at the mailbox, or my car backing out of the driveway, stopping, and then driving out of the frame.
I would definitely suggest playing around with the settings/sensitivity and adjusting the motion zones.
You could also turn on continuous recording instead of event recording in the case that there’s a connectivity issue at any time in the future (not saying that’s the case in this example you gave) you’d still have video for any missed periods of time.
I’ll try increasing sensitivity, but I don’t want it going off when the trees across the street sway in the breeze. Does the app still give you green spots in the timeline where motion is detected when you do continuous recording?
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I don’t think so, but I don’t pay much attention to that, admittedly. I can check next time I review my footage.
I increased the sensitivity and it seems to catch more things… but it caught me walking out to get the mail then stopped right before I got to the mailbox and didn’t resume until I was walking back up the driveway. Distance shouldn’t be an issue though because it catches cars that drive past at that distance, and it caught a rabbit at the same distance. It’s almost as if it knows that the mailbox is important to me and is ignoring it to spite me.
Normally Camera’s are more accurate when something is passing across its view. If you are moving in the direction the camera is facing, the motion may not be caught or may be delayed some. I have a Camera point down my driveway and picks up everything crossing in front of my house or crossing its path. But if I walk down the driveway it takes longer for it to pick me up. I tested this once by zig zagging down the driveway and the camera picked my up sooner. Distance does not seem to be an issue with mine, but it is outside. So maybe being behind the glass is part of the issue.
On a side note, and I might have missed it so apologies if I did, if you did not connect the Camera to CamPlus then it will only record 12 seconds to the cloud, but the SD Card will continue to record. as @towelkingdom indicated, turning on continuous recording may be work for you. It is not supposed to fill the card as it will simply start recording from the bginning when it gets close to full. I personally don’t do the continuous on my V2, I do it based on motion and it records until the motion stops.
you could try things like:
- Angle the Camera some and see if that helps
- Not sure if window opens, but put the Camera Outside to see if that changes things.
- Maybe move it to a different location pointing in the same direction to see if that helps.
If you opt to put it outside, there are a number of enclosures which you can get for it which protects it from the elements. Although not supported by Wyze, I have had these outside at my in-laws for years without issues.
Just a few things to try.
Hey, thanks for the info! I was actually walking sideways across the frame when the camera stopped picking me up because I had walked to the side of the yard to pick up some trash before heading to the mailbox. I was walking along where the driveway meets the road. But that might make sense as to why the camera didn’t pick me up until I was almost all the way back to the house. I turned the motion sensitivity up some more to see if that helps.
I would put the camera outside, but then I’m afraid it would get stolen and I don’t have anywhere that I can put it high enough so it would be out of reach and still have a view of the areas that I want (and still get power). I don’t think the glass is affecting it though because it’s motion detection by using the image sensor and comparing frames, not using radar, lidar or anything like that.
I haven’t connected the camera to CamPlus and I don’t want to use the cloud recording at all. With the small amount of activity on my street, a 32gb SD card should be able to easily go a couple months before the old videos get written over. In the two days that it’s been up it’s used a bit less than 0.5gb. As long as it will record each event until there’s no more motion, that’s absolutely ideal.
Just curious, what motion detection sensitivity do you all have your cameras set to?
Sounds like you have tried most everything. 
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My V2 Motion Setting is set to 90, But I do have CamPlus associated to it. I do have an SD Card in this Camera. It is in my garage. The V3 in the next bullet is outside pointing down the driveway.
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My V3 is set to 95 (This Camera is similarly positioned as yours, except it is outdoors. I also have CamPlus hooked up to it as it does not have an SD card in it either.
I am also testing the Beta releases of Firmware and Apps.
- The V2 Firmware is 4.9.6.241
- The V3 Firmware is 4.36.1.4
Here is what My Garage Cam can see. When the Garage is open, it will pick us up walking down the driveway, just beyond the SUV in the next image.
Here is what My Driveway Cam can see. It picks us up now all the way to the mailbox and individuals to the far left and far right. As you can see it is picking up the SUV in the street
Looks like 85 is a good spot for mine, and doesn’t pick up windy trees, which is good. Still weird how at lower settings it can pick up one event, but ignore an identical event. Thanks for the advice.
