Really impressed with this camera. The clarity and optical zoom is really nice. PTZ is awesome and auto tracking works pretty well. The only thing I could nitpick is I wish the auto focus was a little faster.

It does the job . I’m happy with the night vision features and overall it worth it in investing in this camera.

The concept of tracking objects is great, however in our case we have a busy highway across the top of the field of view. We have masked that area out but once it starts tracking an object it'll watch it and start moving around. When it moves up at all the highway becomes unmasked and it'll start tracking cars. It would be nice to do a max-track time or if the mask logic could be applied when it moves around. It's currently fixed and zoomed in on the main driveway of our entrance and it works well for seeing people and cars but the tracking would have been nice. Also another slight annoyance is it does not change zoom/focus when tracking. It would be nice to actually zoom into the object in full screen and remain in full screen as they get closer. In our case we're at like 12x and if they walk closer you end up getting a blurry shirt.

Built like a brick, auto focus kills everything good about this camera. Each setpoint takes a good 5 seconds to focus, if it focuses at all. There is no auto-focus button so the only way to get the camera to try and focus again is to move the zoom or pan/tilt. Patrol is pointless if each setpoint isn't visible for more than half of the pause between patrols. Object tracking is a novelty at best, does a decent job for about 30 seconds before leaving the camera zoomed in and immobile on nothing. Mobile app camera view frequently freezes video and functions requiring app to be forced closed and restarted. For a consumer PTZ I wasn't expecting the best, but for $300 this is extremely disappointing. UPDATE: Now my NVR beeps continuously when using any ptz function - seems the Reolink NVR doesn’t supply the Reolink camera with enough power. UPDATED: After a few months of giving it a shot, I changed my review to 1 star. Yesterday, the preset points were pointing to incorrect areas and the function was overall delayed. Today, the camera has moved to a new position on its own, all attempts to select presets only zooms in and out on the current (wrong) area looking at sky. Left, Right, Up and Down have stopped working. Restarting the camera allows only manual movement. The presets still all go to only one 'sky' position and attempts to change only zoom with zero pan and tilt. Extremely disappointed as my 16 other Reolink products have been fairly uneventful and reliable. This PTZ is a heavily constructed piece of crap. Any future security cameras will have to be compatible, because I'm done with Reolink.

Amazing! quiet when its moving outside, still noisy recording... (maybe add an external microphone?) Otherwise works great! Even when it was 0 degrees out. The 16x zoom is crazy. Wish the phone app and the windows app did the 3d zoom, I haven't gotten it to work. Wired straight to the NVR and have heard using a POE switch fixes this?

Pros 1) POE works great. 2) build quality seems on point 3) lots of great features. 4) zoom is awesome. Cons 1) the core functionality of the main advertised features is very much lacking. A) sentry mode has no scheduling feature. It's either running 24/7 in sentry mode or not at all. Kiss those PTZ motors good bye. B) while in sentry mode, it cannot also do object tracking... So what's the point of sentry mode? C) object tracking has no object prioritization. It will track the original object, like a car, and will not disengage to track a new object, like a person. In my opinion, this is a gimmick and you still need additional fixed position cameras to have reliable coverage. Reolink, quit following the software trend of releasing bare minimum functionality to get to market. People don't want to buy a product and hope you one day release the software you originally promised. You cannot rely on product sales to justify investment into the software. Be better.

I want to express my gratitude to Reolink for their assistance with my RLC 832S2 camera. When I encountered an issue, they promptly sent me a new camera and also covered the delivery cost for the faulty unit. I highly recommend their service.

I received this product through the Amazon Vine program. The Reolink RLC-823S2 is a high end camera with high end performance. It is not your basic lightweight cheap camera. This is a full featured device with human, pet and vehicle detection, a powerful spotlight and excellent night vision. The tracking is smooth, quiet and totally legible. The zoom is incredibly sharp and the colour balance is very accurate. I checked for optical defects and found absolutely no flaws. They used very high quality optics when making this camera. The field of view distortion at the widest angle is almost non-existent., meaning the camera is recording almost a human eye perspective. I have had some Reolink products before this, but this camera has a much heavier build than those ones. It is also very large and will be noticed based on it's size alone. Despite this, the physical install is very easy and only takes a few minutes. The Reolink app adds the camera very quickly and you can use their Home Hub system as the network and storage system. This gives you very secure storage and saves having to use a micro sd card in the camera itself. The control and use of the RLC-823S2 is initially very simple and easy to learn, but you have access to a lot of features as you dive deeper into the menus. The only thing I would change is that it had wifi instead of an ethernet connection as I had to purchase a CDN$30 POE adapter to connect the device. I could go on and on about my 2 month experience with this product, but it has been an enjoyable time. It is difficult to go back to the cheap cameras that require subscriptions for full functionality and whose performance is actually very poor. I think Reolink has made a great product with the RLC-823S2 and can highly recommend it.

Ordered this for backyard camera, puppy/dog camera. We have just over 1/2 an acre size back yard and this camera covers every inch of it. I mostly use it for live view. I have the app installed on my laptop and on my phone and have the camera connected to my google home hub. I prefer the desktop version of the app as the picture is quite small on my phone and the controls for the camera are a bit cumbersome. I had no trouble setting up the camera for one person, but did struggle a bit when connecting my husband's device. Solution was to delete the camera (it was showing up, but he couldn't access it), then set it up again with QR code. When viewing on the google hub, you can only see where you have set the camera with the app. The picture is very clear and even when zooming shows amazing detail. There is a focus delay when zooming. The controls for moving the camera are a bit of of pain, requiring short repeated presses to get it into position. And the camera moving sound is very loud and annoying in the app. The camera though has a wonderfully wide viewing range, and for me that makes up for the annoyances. Even at night the picture is outstanding, and with the spotlight on, it can be viewed in colour. The mic works well, though there is a delay. I am very pleased with the camera build, quality and mount. I did have some trouble setting it up with my network, and had to do some googling to figure it all out. The unit is weatherproof, but the included power adaptor isn't, and it's cord is very short making it difficult to use it. So we opted to use power over ethernet, meaning plugging the ethernet cable into a POE switch (which is connected to the router) provided the power. That took some planning as we had to measure for cable length, plan the route through the house, drills some holes. We had to purchase the switch and cable separately as the included one was not long enough. Once all that was done though, things worked beautifully. Camera has been installed for 2 months and has had no issues. One firmware and one software update have been done in that time. An exceptional camera, but planning for installations costs and path are required. Set up is a bit frustrating, particularly adding access to a 2nd person. Wish it integrated with google home better.

The Reolink RLC-823S2 Smart 4K/8MP UHD PTZ Dome Security Camera redefines home and business security with its advanced features and exceptional image clarity. Offering a range of cutting-edge capabilities, this camera ensures comprehensive surveillance and peace of mind for users seeking top-tier security solutions. Equipped with a powerful 16X 3D optical zoom, this PTZ (Pan-Tilt-Zoom) camera allows you to zoom in on specific areas without sacrificing image quality. The smooth and precise zooming capability, combined with the camera's 360-degree panning and 90-degree tilting, ensures complete coverage and eliminates blind spots. This flexibility is ideal for large areas or critical points that require close monitoring. One of the most impressive features is the color night vision. Unlike traditional security cameras that only provide black-and-white images in low light, the RLC-823S2 delivers full-color video even in the dark. This enhanced night vision capability ensures you have clear, vivid footage regardless of lighting conditions, adding an extra layer of security during nighttime hours. The smart detection technology is another highlight of this camera. It can accurately detect and differentiate between people, vehicles, and animals, reducing false alarms and ensuring you are alerted only to relevant activities. This intelligent detection system makes it easier to monitor specific events and enhances overall security efficiency. The two-way audio feature is a valuable addition, allowing you to communicate directly through the camera. Whether you're greeting visitors, issuing warnings to potential intruders, or communicating with family members, the built-in microphone and speaker provide clear and reliable audio. For those seeking continuous surveillance, the RLC-823S2 supports 24/7 recording. With a reliable storage solution and the option for remote access via the Reolink app, you can review footage anytime, anywhere, ensuring you never miss a moment. The camera's robust construction and weatherproof design make it suitable for both indoor and outdoor use, offering versatility and durability in various environments.

If I start a time-lapse it will sometimes work and sometimes not work and if the time-lapse is starting early when it's still dark going into sunrise the subject will be slightly out of focus enough to ruin the time-lapse.