This new, $80 Blink Indoor camera system is the indoor counterpart to Blink’s new weatherproof outdoor camera. It shares a similar design with the outdoor model, minus the weather-resistant housing, as well as the same set up, features and performance. That makes it a fine option, particularly if you want the mobility of a battery-powered indoor camera. But the Amazon company’s decision to ditch its excellent free cloud storage plan for the new Blink Subscription Plan is disappointing.
Like
- The $80 one-camera kit is pretty affordable.
Don’t Like
- Blink now charges for cloud video storage.
I’m an advocate for free cloud storage in general, despite many companies (like Nest and Ring) never offering it, but it’s even worse when a company offers it and then gets rid of it later.
As I mentioned in the Blink Outdoor review, Blink is offering a free trial of its cloud service through 2020. After that, you’ll have to pay for cloud storage, starting at $3 per month. Blink also said existing customers with accounts created on or before April 15, 2020 will continue to receive free cloud storage on Blink Indoor, Outdoor and Mini cameras.
The Blink Indoor camera system comes with one Blink Indoor camera, one Blink Sync Module 2 and all the necessary batteries, adapters and mounting hardware to install and use the kit. If you already have a Blink module from a previous purchase, the new Blink Indoor camera is backward-compatible. Standalone Blink Indoor cameras cost $70, but you do need a Blink module for it to work.
The benefit to buying the $80 kit with the new Sync Module 2 is its USB port, which allows for local storage (you’ll have to buy a USB flash drive separately). At least this way, customers who aren’t interested in signing up and paying for a Blink Subscription Plan can opt for local storage instead.
Setting up the Blink Indoor is identical to the Blink Outdoor. Log in to the Blink app or create an account, hit the plus sign on the top-right corner of the home screen and follow the instructions to add your new device. Since I had already installed a Blink Sync Module 2 when I tested the Blink Outdoor camera, this setup process was even faster — only about five minutes total. (Each Sync Module 2 can connect to up to 10 Blink cameras.)
After that, I tested the camera’s performance. Like the outdoor model, the Blink Indoor has a delay of about five seconds between motion activity taking place and being recorded. That’s because the camera remains in “low-power mode” until motion is detected to conserve battery life, so you’ll have to weigh the benefits of having a battery-powered camera with the downside of potentially missing some motion activity. Otherwise, the camera worked well, sending me quick motion alerts, saving the clips in the app and working well with Alexa voice commands on an Echo Show 8. I specifically asked Alexa to “show me the Blink Indoor,” and it promptly pulled up the camera’s live feed.
Overall, the Blink Indoor is a good camera that’s versatile due to its battery-powered design — and doesn’t cost a ton of money. That said, if you don’t need a battery-powered indoor camera, take a look at the Wyze Cam Indoor; it only costs $20 and it has two weeks of free cloud storage.
