Reolink has brought the two-camera tracking idea from its wired model to a wire-free camera: the OMVI 2i Ultra. UK creator Simon of Byte of Geek reviewed it after several weeks outdoors, and his video is embedded in this post. Reolink supplied the camera and, he says, had no editorial input. Everything below comes from his review, and we have not handled the camera ourselves.
What it is
- Two cameras stacked. The upper one is fixed with a single 4K lens and a 110 degree horizontal view. The lower one is a 5 megapixel pan and tilt camera that turns through 355 degrees and follows movement.
- Both record at up to 15 frames per second, with infrared night vision and a spotlight for colour at night. It is rated IP65.
- A removable 10,000 mAh battery, which Reolink says can last up to six months depending on use, plus a 6W solar panel. The panel can sit on top of the camera or away from it on the supplied 3 m extension cable.
- Dual-band Wi-Fi 6, a microSD slot up to 512 GB, two-way audio, a siren, and person, vehicle and animal detection.
- Price: £199.99.
It is not simply a battery version of the wired 3i. That model uses two upper lenses for a 180 degree panorama, and its tracking camera is 8 megapixel. Here the overview is narrower, so someone approaching from the side may not appear until they are close.
How it did
Image quality was good, but both cameras lost detail in harsh sun, and fast movement at night got softer. The reviewer thought the colour night view was good for a battery camera. Motion detection matched other battery cameras he has tested. Notifications arrive after recording starts, which is normal for a camera that sleeps to save power. He would like pre-recording, which this one lacks.
Tracking was mostly good, but fast movement close to the camera could lose it, even after he raised the tracking speed to maximum. He has sent Reolink footage and says he will update the video description.
On solar, across a mostly cloudy, rainy ten days, the battery sat around 95 percent with normal use. In his words, “the solar panel has done a good job of keeping the battery topped up.” The dips came on days of heavy test recording. Deep winter is not covered yet.
What it means for an installed system
Home Assistant. It connects through the Reolink integration with no Reolink home hub. The reviewer saw motion, person, pet and vehicle sensors, plus controls for the spotlight, siren, pan and tilt, and auto tracking, along with battery information. Both camera feeds are off by default because of the battery. Once enabled, they showed a live picture that refreshed every couple of seconds rather than streaming smoothly. He did not test every control, and neither can we, so test the detection sensors before you base an automation on them.
Local storage. The microSD card keeps recordings off a cloud subscription, which suits anyone who wants local control.
No Matter, no PoE. The review does not mention Matter. If you can run a PoE cable, the wired 3i gives you the wider view and the higher resolution tracking camera. This model is for spots where cabling is impractical, such as a shed or garage corner.
Your network. It is a Wi-Fi device, and Wi-Fi shares the 2.4 GHz band with Zigbee. If you run a Zigbee coordinator, keep its channel away from your camera’s Wi-Fi channel. Our Zigbee notes suggest channels 15, 20 or 25, and changing channels can mean re-pairing devices. Since the camera is dual band, putting it on 5 GHz where the signal allows would also keep it out of that crowd.
Buy or wait?
If you have a hard-to-wire spot with decent sun, it looks promising. Our one caution is climate. This test ran through a British autumn, and a Canadian winter has shorter days and snow that can bury a panel. Mount the panel somewhere you can reach and clear. If winter charging matters to you, wait for the reviewer’s follow-up, and for Reolink’s reply on the tracking issue.