Should I switch to HSV?

Question/Help

Starting off, I’m not interested in homelink or Starling. I’ve been using 2 gen 1 Nest outdoor cameras for maybe 6 years or so. I’m still using the nest app for them. They work fine and I don’t really have any complaints other than they’re not compatible with apples ecosystem.

I just got an email from nest that my nest aware subscription is about to renew. I’m considering buying new cameras that integrate with Home secure video so I can avoid the subscription fee of nest.

My question, does anyone have experience switching from gen 1 nest cams to the Logitech circle view cameras?

in HomeKitby TheMrMcSwagger

80%

24d

dp917

24d

I switched from gen 1 nest to circle 2s (and then added circle views later) when HSV first came out. I switched when Nest recorded everything, not just events like HSV is. That was the biggest "loss," but I think Nest switched to only recording events so it's a even swap. I do still prefer the way the Nest app worked for viewing recordings being a vertical scroll vs horizontal with HSV. The Nest cams might have had a better quality picture, but the Circle View's have a lot wider viewing angle.

The biggest negative with circle view's you'll see people complain about is disconnects, but mine have been pretty solid. I think the issue is really WIFI networks and range. I have eero WIFI with APs within a good range of the cameras. If your Nest cams worked fine then the Circle Views should too.

TheMrMcSwagger

24d

Thanks, this is exactly what I was after. I just reworked my home network so I could place my router in the center of my living space and ditch the mesh pod I was using. WiFi seems a lot more stable now. My biggest concern was drop outs and video quality loss so thanks for addressing those. Since it seems like it’s a 1:1 trade for the most part, I gotta figure out if it’s worth the labor lmao.

SiXX5150

24d

Had first gen nest outdoor cams (worked great), but got tired of paying the sub fee for them when I already have the 2tb iCloud plan. Swapped them out for three Circle View outdoor cams and a Circle View doorbell. If you read about them on Reddit you’d think they’re spawned from the devil, but my experience has been positive overall. I do miss the 24/7 recording of the Nests, and I’m not sure I fully trust the Logitech’s night time motion capture, but saving $200/yr is worth it for me.

Dknight33

24d

I've found circleview and hksv is hit or miss. I've set it to record all motion, but it'll capture right before a car accident and afterwards right in front of it.. but will often miss the actual event. I wouldn't rely on it.

SiXX5150

24d

I can rely on it during the day… I’ve found it to be great. Only at night do I find it to be questionable.

TheMrMcSwagger

24d

I’ve had similar incidents with nest. Thankfully at the time I had 24/7 recording so I was still able to see the event. Now I’m down to just event recording and it does miss things every now and then. Like the raccoon that climbed into my trash can that sits in front of the camera lol

TheMrMcSwagger

24d

That’s why I made a post about it, I’m happy enough with the best cams I’d be kicking myself in the ass for a while if I swapped them out and the Logitech’s were trash. Good to know about the night time motion capture. Thanks!

GreatLab9320

24d

They are trash for me, the Chime stops working randomly and I have to hard reset. I’ve missed packages as a result. It just started getting warm and they’ve already frozen up twice in a week and I’m on the latest firmware that should have addressed the heating issues supposedly.

_takeshi_

24d

Starting off, I’m not interested in homelink or Starling.

Homebridge. Homelink is those garage door opener buttons in some cars.

TheMrMcSwagger

24d

Yep 😂

ADHDK

24d

HKSV feels pretty long in the tooth at this point. I’ve got a logo circle view and doorbell, and while they don’t really have huge issues these days after the many firmware updates, they’re bloody old and I wouldn’t buy them new today.

The ecosystem specs and capabilities need a refresh to encourage new devices.

TheMrMcSwagger

24d

I was just telling my wife that the cameras are pretty old and as soon as we buy in they will probably release a refresh. We’ve decided to renew our nest aware for another year and wait for a refresh

ADHDK

24d

I’ve got Unifi now for my networking, so I’ll probably go Connect next and then run a scrypted bridge to HKSV.

TheMrMcSwagger

24d

I’ve given some thought to using some kind of bridge and honestly I just don’t want to want to mess with it. If something goes wrong I want to be able to just write an email and not spend 3-5 hours troubleshooting. I’m also curious if it slows down alerts, it should add a couple ms to any event trigger notifications but my luck I’d have hang ups and some wouldn’t even come through.

ADHDK

24d

Some already don’t come through and I’ve got HKSV

Euphoric_Attention97

24d

I went with Eufy cams that support HKSV. For 24/7 recording, I use SD cards and use the eufy app when I really need to see the 24/7 timeline. Problem is that I’m using interior cams to record outdoor views through windows. I didn’t like their 2c and 2 Pro line of battery outdoor cams, but they are an option. But I don’t have to use Homebridge. I’m waiting for Aqara to come up with outdoor cams and possibly switch to all Aqara cams and doorbell.

TheMrMcSwagger

24d

Eufy freaks me out because of there data scandal several months back and that bums me out because I’ve seen nothing but good things about their hardware.

Euphoric_Attention97

24d

That event with Eufy also did a number on my view of their company. But the response has been technically sound as you are now warned about what features send data out to the cloud before you turn them on. So I basically turned off all thumbnail previews and that's that! Wyze had a similar event, but their response was basically "the security hole is not patchable with software, so...... you're welcome?" Aqara seems to be on-board with HKSV compatibility accross all their devices, but their firmware and app are not without bugs. Although their support team has been responsive and has patched many issues where I now rely on their sensors, locks and one camera. If they come out with a good outdoor cam, I may just dump Eufy. I do not like to buy strictly Homekit cams like Eve or Logitech Circle so I am not 100% locked into any one ecosystem.

TheMrMcSwagger

24d

True, I soft locked myself into googles platform with nest products and now all I have left is the cameras.

floatflyer

24d

Had same challenge. I went with Aqara cams for a few reasons.

1) works with HKSV 2) can support large micro SD cards for onboard recording

I loved the continuous loop video of nest. HKSV doesn’t support that yet. It’s just event based. With Aqara fans I have them native to HomeKit and all the benefits that come with that like using them to trigger motion based automations. If something didn’t trigger recording in HKSV I can go back into the Aqara app and scroll through time and see everything. I have 512gb cards in them and that gives me about 7 days worth of continuous recording.

Aqara does now offer premium services for cloud recording but you can easily work around that.

work_blocked_destiny

24d

I was in the same boat and switched to aqara. IMO the experience is so much better. My Aqara cams load up almost instantly whereas my blink camera took I’m not even kidding 15 seconds to pull a live feed. The only camera I have that is not aqara is my doorbell and it fucking blows (belkin wemo). I’ll be switching that to aqara eventually as well. Idk what it is but they work so much better and they appear way more clear

work_blocked_destiny

24d

I lied. I also have an eve cam in my driveway and that cam is also really good.

TheMrMcSwagger

23d

I’m seeing a lot of mention of Aqara, I’ll have to look into some of their products

TheMrMcSwagger

23d

Well, they don’t currently have an outdoor camera, I read that there is one in development though

work_blocked_destiny

23d

I use eve as my outdoor camera. Replaces the light in my driveway. Works very well.