Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
T3
T3
Technology
Carrie Marshall

This smart security camera gives you 4K video without cables or contracts

Reolink Argus PT Ultra security camera

The best security camera options tend to deliver 1080p video with 2-way audio, night vision and a host of smart features – but they often put some of their features behind a subscription. Reolink has an alternative: a camera that ups the resolution to an impressive 4K and doesn't require a monthly subscription.

The new Argus PT Ultra has a RRP of £199.99, and in addition to its 4K resolution it delivers 360-degree views, works on dual-band Wi-Fi instead of just the congested 2.4GHz band and has person and vehicle detection too. It can also tell the difference between pets and people, although that feature is currently in beta and may be a little buggy.

Argus PT Ultra security camera: key specifications

The Argus PT Ultra has built-in LED spotlights and a customisable siren to warn off unwelcome visitors, and it's designed for both indoor and outdoor use. There's an optional solar panel to keep its battery topped up without any intervention from you, and the app has a nifty time lapse mode that you can use to see the day's events without taking all day about it. There's also Google Assistant compatibility built-in so you can stream to a Nest Hub or Chromecast-enabled TV.

One of my bugbears with some security cameras is the lack of local storage, so it's good to see that you can store video here on a microSD card of up to 128GB, although there's also a paid cloud storage option if you'd rather use that. That's currently free for a single camera.

At £199 this camera is up against the likes of our current best buy, the Arlo Pro 4, which is currently a little cheaper but has 2K rather than 4K, and it's quite a lot more expensive than another of our favourites, the Blink Outdoor wireless camera, our pick for the best cheap wireless camera. That's a 1080p camera. However neither of those cameras are motorised like the Argus PT Ultra is and both are limited to the 2.4GHz frequency range, so the Argus is likely to deliver better and smoother video streaming. We'll know for sure when we get to put it through its paces shortly.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.