Nest Cameras Review

Google Nest^* helped usher in the age of security cameras with smart motion detection. Its Nest Cam IQ series offered a unique approach to spotting people, vehicles, animals, and familiar faces. The competition took notice—smart detection is practically a standard feature on today’s security cameras.

This spirit is still alive in Google Nest's latest cameras, like the Nest Cam (Battery), which offers smart detection for a lower price. It's also the first Google Nest camera without a power cord—it runs on a rechargeable battery.

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Google Nest cameras play various roles around the house, so there's likely one to fit your needs in the family room, at the front door, or in the backyard. Here are a few similarities and differences that make Nest cams stand out.

• Video quality: All Nest cameras record HD resolution up to 30 frames per second (fps). This results in smooth videos with lots of detail, though they don't match the 2K resolution of competitors like Reolink and Arlo. The new Nest Cam also uses HDR to produce videos with better color and contrast.
• Night vision: Nest security cameras come with infrared night vision, which works in complete darkness to light up subjects. This results in black and white videos, unlike the color night vision from Reolink, Arlo and Wyze cameras.
• Although the color video is nice, we think the infrared is just as good for capturing detail.
• Two-way audio: You can talk to people through the mobile app and a speaker on your camera. This is convenient for scaring off intruders or telling the kids to come in for dinner.

Google is transitioning its Nest devices away from the Nest app into the Google Home app. The latest Nest cameras are the first to skip the Nest app altogether. This means you'll need to set up your Nest camera in Google Home instead. For older cameras, you need to use the Nest app for setup—but all Nest cameras (old and new) are compatible with Google Home.

Understandably, legacy users might prefer the Nest app, but it doesn't offer the flexibility to control third-party smart devices like Google Home does. But Google told us that it's easy to link older cameras to the Google Home app to control them all in one place.

Regardless of the app you use, you can set up your camera, customize notifications, adjust settings, use two-way audio, and watch live and recorded videos without too much trouble. We like that setup is easy and the cameras work out of the box in minutes.

The Nest Aware subscription adds tons of features to your Nest Cam, like extra cloud video storage, emergency calls, and enhanced detection of sound and familiar faces.

• Event-based recording: Instead of recording 24/7, the Nest Cam will record only when it detects an event such as people or pets moving. This helps save battery life and internet bandwidth.
• Familiar face detection: The latest Nest cameras learn to recognize family and friends. This allows them to send notifications that say who's around the house—convenient for greeting a guest you're expecting or spotting when a stranger shows up. Familiar face detection isn't available on the Nest Cam Indoor.
• Sound detection: Indoor Nest cameras can recognize sirens from smoke and carbon monoxide alarms so you know when there's trouble. You won't find this on Nest cameras before 2021, but it's still great for keeping your home safe even while you're away.
• E911 emergency calling: This allows Nest to connect emergency calls to the closest response center to your home. So if you're out of town and an emergency happens, help is on the way faster.

Get the full details on the Nest Aware plans from Google's Support Center.

• Without a plan: Nest Cam users could always watch live videos and get basic notifications without paying a monthly fee, but the free plan got a big boost in 2021. Google added three hours of cloud storage and made most of its smart detection tools free to use. We love this change because more folks can use some of Nest Cam's best features.
• Nest Aware: The basic Nest Aware plan starts at $6 a month, which is more affordable than similar plans from Ring and Arlo. You get up to 30 days of event video history on every Nest camera in your home. But we also like the added sound detection and e911 emergency calling.
• Nest Aware Plus: There's not a huge difference between this and the regular Nest Aware plan, but you double your event-based storage to 60 days while adding 10 days of continuous recording. The continuous recording works only on wired Nest cameras (except the Nest Doorbell)—it's not worth the upgrade if you use only battery-powered models.

For a company that thrives on harvesting information, Google puts a lot of effort into securing Nest cams to protect your privacy. The latest Nest cameras have on-device AI that enables smart detection without an internet connection. There's a privacy center in your Google Account that gives you clear information and access to various settings in one place.

We love that Nest now requires two-factor authentication (also called 2FA) when you log in. Rather than signing into your Nest account with a single password and username, 2FA sends a verification code to your email or phone too. If an unverified user tries to get in, you'll know quickly. While it's a bit tedious to go through 2FA each time you log in, it’s worth it.

It took four years for Google Nest to release new security cameras, but there are relatively few differences between the old and new models. But even though the differences are minor, they have a big effect on how the cameras work.

The biggest change on new Nest cameras is smart detection (motion zones, people, animals, vehicles, and packages) as a built-in feature. Each camera examines video footage using on-device processing that doesn't require an internet connection. Older Nest cameras, like the Nest Cam Indoor and Nest Cam IQ Indoor, rely on a cloud server (and a subscription fee) to identify the same activities.

We love this move to on-device smart detection because it's more accessible to folks without a cloud plan and helps improve privacy by keeping your data off the internet. One of the coolest features is that you can create activity zones specific to different types of movement. This could mean you receive a notification when someone walks in the door but still get a cute clip (without a notification) of your cat watching the birds outside.

The newest Nest cams introduce local storage, a first in the brand's history. It doesn't work like standard local storage but acts as a backup when the power and internet go out. Google says cameras like the Nest Cam (Battery) can store up to one hour of video footage (roughly a week of video event clips).

This isn't much storage compared to cameras that support microSD cards like Reolink, Eufy, and Wyze. Still, we like that it gives you some leeway when Nest Aware isn't available. After the internet and power return, local clips go straight to the cloud—you can't access them otherwise.

It's also easy to install with a simple magnetic mounting stand. It comes with excellent 1080p HDR video—the same as Nest’s older cameras. We love how the clear picture is in daytime and nighttime conditions, making it easy to watch over your home anytime.

Overall, we think the Nest Cam (Battery) is the best option for folks wanting the brains of Google in an outdoor camera. Its competitive price and features hold up well to rivals like Ring, Reolink, and Arlo.

The main downside is it only works when it's plugged in, so you'll have to place it near an outlet. But it comes with a wall mount to make setup a little easier.

Overall, the Google Nest Cam Indoor is one of the most affordable Nest cameras. Still, it's starting to show its age and is pricier than other indoor security cameras. That said, its sharp picture and easy setup make it worth the extra coin—at least until the Nest Cam (Wired) comes out.

Overall, the Nest Doorbell (Battery) is an excellent option for guarding your porch, but it might not be as good for watching over your entire front yard as video doorbells from Ring and Arlo.

Overall, we like that the Nest Hub Max isn't just a Google Home hub for watching YouTube in the kitchen but an extra way to boost your home security. The limited placement options aren't ideal for capturing the best view of a room, but having a smart security camera with other skills is always a bonus.

Google Nest's quest for brainy security cameras results in fantastic products with some of the best smart detection features available. This feature is at its peak in the latest cameras, which analyze everything without an internet connection. If you're willing to spend extra compared to other brands, then Nest Cams are an excellent way to protect what matters most.

Nest Cam (Battery): a battery-powered camera with outstanding smart detection that you can install almost anywhere

Nest Cam Indoor: an affordable starting point for folks looking to kit out a Google smart home with cameras

Nest Doorbell (Battery): a wire-free video doorbell that's easy to install with portrait-style video for a better view of your porch

Nest Hub Max: a smart display with a built-in home security camera that's nearly as capable as other Nest cams

We looked at the price, video quality, storage, user experience, and customer support resources to see if they're worth buying. We also scoured customer reviews and asked Google for more information as tested. Learn more about how we test and review products in our full methodology.

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