Swann Xtreem4K wireless security camera review

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It simply doesn’t make sense in today’s world to look at a home security camera setup that doesn’t offer 4K video.

I’ve had the Swann Xtreem4K 4K wire-free security camera set up for a while now, and it has absolutely convinced me that you can get 4K quality at a reasonable price point.

Easy to set up and control and just $299.95 for a single camera, there’s no real issues on the image quality side. The Swann security app is a bit too slow and clunky for my liking, though, which is something I noted in my SwannBuddy 4K video doorbell review.

That said, the fact you can set up a network of Swann 4K cameras and get most functionality without having to pay a subscription is a big win here.

What is the Swann Xtreem4K offering?

Swann is promising to take the difficulty out of home security without sacrificing video quality.

The Xtreem4K doesn’t require any hard-wiring, with a simple mounting bracket connected to your wall or awning by two (included screws). Swann says the internal battery will last you up to four months between charges, though I’ve only been testing the camera for a couple of months, so I can’t verify it will last that long.

The camera offers 4K video quality and a wide 120-degree viewing angle, with motion sensing and Swann’s True Detect Heat/Motion sensing combo.

Rated IP65 for dust and water resistance, the camera is comfortable in the outdoors, and will connect to your home network exclusively on the 2.4GHz spectrum (with a range of about 20 metres).

Like most security cameras, it offers night vision, LED lighting and 2-way audio, with both a microphone and a speaker in the unit itself. There’s also an alarm function, if you need to scare off intruders (or just want to prank your kids).

The camera will save clips locally on an included 32 GB MicroSD card, and there’s 1 day cloud backup included for no extra charge.

What does the Swann Xtreem4K do well?

Setting up the Xtreem4K is incredibly easy. It’s literally two screws in the mounting bracket to connect it to a wall or fence, and you are good to go.

Actually, that’s not quite true. Once installed, you need to pair it to the Swann Security app and connect it to your home’s Wi-Fi network. There will probably be a few firmware updates to get going, but I found the entire process nice and easy.

Once you’ve gotten through the installation process, the camera captures good 4K video, though only at a 15 fps frame rate.

In good light, it’s usually easy to make the details of people walking by (or breaking into) your property. Occasionally, the lens does catch the sunlight in a way that creates a lens flare effect strong enough to be in a J. J. Abrams film.

The Xtreem4K has a night vision mode, which shows a high-contrast black and white video until the LED lights kick in, and it switches to colour. The picture is pretty good for a nighttime recording, though the slower frame rate does make it a little blurrier with movement.

I also appreciated that all the camera’s recordings automatically saved to the MicroSD card inside the camera.

Swann offer’s 1-day cloud backup, which probably isn’t enough if the camera gets pinched, and you don’t realise straight away. But that’s what the upsell to the Secure+ cloud storage plan is for.

What could the Swann Xtreem4K improve?

While I found the 4K video quality pretty good, the audio left a lot to be desired.

The camera’s microphone was decent enough, so listening to someone talk through the camera sounded fine.

But the camera’s speaker was average at best. It wasn’t overly loud, and even at maximum volume, the audio sounded muddy and distorted.

That’s not the end of the world, though. I can tell you’ve I’ve spoken through my other home security cameras a grand total of zero times, so I don’t think this is a dealbreaker.

Perhaps more important is the motion detection and alert system itself. Like the SwannBuddy 4K video doorbell, alerts for notifications are slow to be delivered.

I waited about 10 seconds from when the red light on the camera indicated it had seen me to receive the motion alert.

But that was when I was 3–4 metres from the camera. I had progressively walked closer to the camera, wildly waving my arms from about 12 metres away, and it was only in the last 3–4 metres it noticed me.

That was with motion detection turned up to 100%. Swann’s specs say its heat detection range is up to 8 metres, so I found the 3–4 metres quite disappointing.

Verdict

The Swann Xtreem4K is a solid entry-level home security camera, that can be expanded to support more devices at your leisure.

You get on-device storage and high-quality images, though the app is slow and a bit buggy, and the on-board speaker is sub-par.

But with its easy installation and months of battery life, this is a decent product to offer peace of mind for your home’s security.

Buy the Swann Xtreem4K wireless home security camera online

Swann Xtreem4K wireless

It's incredibly easy to setup and nicely affordable, but you could get better performance eslewhere.

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