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In principle, there are four different recording types for a security camera:
- Continuous recording (24/7).
- The recording is started by a motion detector.
- Start recording according to schedule.
- The recording is started manually.
Different storage media can be used depending on the type of storage and recording mode used. Modern security cameras store their videos either on a local SD card or on the vendor’s cloud.
So the answer to the question of whether security cameras record all the time is usually yes, but you can also set it to record video only at certain events or on a schedule.
The rest of the article deals in detail with the different recording types and storage media and in the end we present the current best security cameras and how they record and store their videos.
Table of Contents
The Different Recording Types of Security Cameras
Continuous Recording (24/7)
Most modern security cameras can continuously record video.
In Continuous Video Recording (CVR) mode, the camera runs 24 hours a day and records videos. The recordings are then stored either on an SD card that sits locally in the security camera or on the provider’s cloud for a specified time.
If you choose the SD card variant, the total period of time that can be stored on the card depends of course on its size. But you don’t have to worry that no more videos will be recorded when the card is full because only the oldest videos will be overwritten as soon as there is no more disk space available. It’s similar on a cloud: most vendors give you a certain amount of time to store your videos. Usually, these are 7 or 30 days. If a video is longer than this time on the cloud, it will be deleted to make room for new videos.
No matter which storage type you choose, you won’t be able to look back indefinitely into the past with a continuous recording. But this is usually not even necessary, because in case of a burglary or other event, you always immediately look into the recorded videos to collect evidence or search for something suspicious. But still, you have the possibility to save your videos on a hard disk forever. With an SD card, you just have to remove it and copy the files and with the cloud version you can download it at any time.
Normally, security cameras also offer a notification system that allows them to notify you immediately if something happens. So it is not necessary to constantly rummage through the countless gigabytes of data to find the right video. With the modern Smart Home security cameras that we will introduce later, there is an event monitor where you can watch events, such as the triggering of a motion sensor, and find directly the video of it.
Related article: How to Choose a Smart Security Camera?
The Recording is Started by Motion Detection
Almost all modern security cameras have motion detectors or even face recognition. This allows you to program them so that they either start recording only when they detect a movement or a face or notify you only after a continuous recording.
Related article: The Best Security Cameras with Face Detection
For me, the best setting is still the continuous recording but paired with a notification of movement. This mode is especially useful for cameras that are left running during your absence (e.g. on vacation).
But if, for example, you have a holiday apartment or some other place that you rarely visit and there is no Internet connection for a cloud service there, activating the recording using a motion detector would actually be a good idea. Then your built-in SD card wouldn’t be full immediately and you can see what happened when you go there again.
With most security cameras of the newer generations, the motion detectors can also be set individually. This has the advantage that you can hide areas in the field of view of the camera where movements occur more frequently anyway but are no cause for concern. This would apply as an example to the sidewalk or street in front of your house. If you hide these areas, the camera would only notify you or record a video when someone is at your front door or in your front yard.
Start Recording According to a Schedule or Manually
There is not much to say about the manual recording start. You start and stop the recording at the touch of a button. This is, of course, the most complicated form of recording and has little to do with Smart Home or automation.
The situation is different from the recording according to a schedule. This is similar in principle to continuous recording, but with the difference that the recording does not run 24 hours a day but only for a certain period of time.
This would be particularly suitable for security cameras that are supposed to monitor something at night. For example the entrance area of your house or your garden. This way you prevent unnecessary videos from being made of your home, yourself and your family members on the one hand and on the other hand you limit the video recordings to the times when most break-ins happen.
Micro SD Card vs. Cloud Storage
The big advantage of storing your videos on a cloud is that you don’t have to worry about anything. This way you don’t run the risk of the memory space running out at some point. The only thing that happens is that the videos are deleted after a certain time, usually after 7 or 30 days.
But that shouldn’t be a problem, because you already know about it and you either watched, downloaded or ignored the video because nothing happened. The disadvantage of cloud storage is that it usually costs a monthly fee and privacy is not always 100% guaranteed. I doubt that anyone from the cloud management would be interested in the footage from your garden at night, but still, sometimes it’s not so nice when you think that someone else could access it. Nevertheless, from a security point of view, cloud services are impeccable. All videos in the cloud are complexly encrypted and cannot be read by hackers.
With an SD card inserted directly into the security camera, you have the advantage of being the only one who can access the data. Of course, in extreme cases, a criminal could of course take the entire camera with him and thus also the video material…
The disadvantage of an SD card is probably the limited storage space. Micro SD cards are now up to 1 TB in size* and can store several days and sometimes weeks of HD recordings. Still, you’re a little limited here. You should also make sure that the security camera stops recording when the memory is full or overwrites only the oldest videos. The latter is definitely to be preferred, as you can actually relax and only have to download or copy the videos if something actually happened.
If nothing has happened, you don’t have anything to do with it, you don’t have to do anything. It is also important to keep in mind that using an SD card does not mean that you have to constantly remove the SD card to access the videos. You can access your videos from anywhere in the world at any time using the associated security camera app.
For my part, I’ve opted for the Micro SD card because it’s cheaper in the long run and I have full control over my videos.
Recording Modes of the Most Popular Smart Security Cameras
Best Security Camera with Motion Tracking
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By default, the Ezviz C6T Wifi Camera* only records video when its motion detectors are activated. You can also set the 24/7 mode in the settings within the app.
You can insert a micro SD card into the camera to save the recorded video locally or you can use the cloud service. With the paid cloud subscription, the videos are stored for 7 or 30 days (depending on the subscription).
Motion tracking means that the camera detects and follows movements independently. With its 360° freedom of movement, it can follow the movement anywhere as long as it is not covered by obstacles. The advantage of such cameras is that you can use a single camera to cover an area where you would normally need several cameras.
Related article: The Best Security Cameras with Motion Tracking
Best Security Cameras with Face Recognition
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The Netatmo Welcome* is currently the best security camera with face recognition for indoor use. For outdoor use it is the Netatmo Presence*.
These smart security cameras do not record videos all the time, but only when they detect a movement or a face. Although you can access the Livestream via the app at any time, no video is recorded permanently. So if you’re looking for recorded videos within the app, you can be sure that each of these videos contains a movement or a face.
The facial recognition of these cameras is also very reliable. They can even learn faces and recognize them. So you can let it inform you that someone has come home or that the mailman is at your door.
Related article: The Best Security Cameras with Face Detection
Best Outdoor Security Camera
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The best outdoor security camera is the Blink XT2*. It is particularly suitable for wet and cold weather.
It can withstand weeks of extreme cold or heavy rain with ease and still shoots sharp videos in 1080p HD! Even at night, this smart security camera takes pictures in Full HD thanks to its built-in infrared LEDs.
However, the recording mode of the Blink XT2 differs from that of other security cameras. It doesn’t record a video until it detects a movement. By default it always makes 60 seconds long videos and then waits a few seconds to see if it detects a new movement or not. Only then will it extend the video by another 60 seconds. Of course, you can still access the live feed here at any time.
Related articles: The Best Smart Security Camera for Cold Weather
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