At the launch of the new IMOU Bullet 3 the smart home camera company made great play of their improved on-camera AI and for good reason; it is probably the most important part of the long-term experience with any smart home security camera.
If the camera is able to decide for itself that the movements of tree leaves in the wind, or a bug flying past, do not count as the kind of motion worth disturbing someone for then it'll stop crying wolf. This, in turn, will make them more useful and – ultimately – more of a deterrent.
The "AI IMOU SENSE" technology is added in two modestly priced new outdoor offerings – 2K and 3K variants of the new IMOU Bullet 3, in of itself an update to the traditional bullet-shaped external camera. The brand clam "up to a 50% increase in accuracy compared to rival products" though they stop short of specifying which rivals they're comparing themselves against.
It also boasts LED spotlights for color night vision – the mode that turns the light on to illuminate any suspicious subject (people or cars detected by the AI) and so capture color images rather than the typical nighttime infrared which it can see most of the time (infrared is illuminated using effectively invisible lights which also use less power).
The other greatest bugbear of folk installing wi-fi cameras, very much in my experience (my house is made of old-fashioned London brick), is the problems with the signal. In a nod to this, the new devices are Wi-Fi 6 compatible which – though I've yet to test this – offers better wall penetration. The cameras also support PoE cable connection.
Other features of the Bullet 3 series are two-way talk using the built-in speaker and an integrated siren which can be triggered automatically or remotely. Customizable detection zones are on offer too.
Video storage is in clips of events, and they can be recorded to the cloud, to a SD card, or to an NVR if you have one.
If you'd like a more thorough survey of the market, check our guide to the best outdoor security cameras.
