I used Reolink's 360-degree outdoor camera for over four months, and it has everything I need in a security camera — it is a huge upgrade over my Nest Cam Outdoor, and it doesn't have a monthly fee

Reolink TrackFlex Floodlight WiFi review
(Image credit: Apoorva Bhardwaj / Android Central)

I talked about how Reolink is now my go-to security camera brand, and I finally switched over from UniFi and Nest cameras over to Reolink last year. I used the Elite Floodlight for well over six months now, and while it does a great job as an outdoor camera thanks to tis dual lenses and ability to connect to my NVR, it doesn't have 360-degree coverage.

Reolink is addressing that with the introduction of the TrackFlex Floodlight WiFi. The security camera has dual sensors, and it's mounted on a base that pans and tilts, giving you full 360-degree coverage. As with everything these days, the camera uses AI to track motion, and having used it for the better part of four months, I will say that it does a better job in this regard than other Reolink cameras I used.

Reolink TrackFlex Floodlight WiFi review

(Image credit: Apoorva Bhardwaj / Android Central)

Just like the Elite Floodlight, the TrackFlex Floodlight WiFi has two mounted floodlights that can be configured to illuminate its surroundings at night, or when it detects motion. The lighting gets incredibly bright, and you can easily adjust the color balance. It comes with a built-in speaker and mic, and the dual lenses do a great job recording footage, and each has a different focal length, so you get the ability to zoom in on any detected subject.

You can choose to record 24/7 footage or just motion-triggered events, and what I like is that the camera connects via an AC power cord, so you can plug it into the mains and not have to worry about charging it. Setting it up is about as easy as it gets, and it took under five minutes. The camera also gets dual-band Wi-Fi 6 connectivity, and I didn't see a single instance where it didn't stay connected to my home network.

If anything, the only issue I have with the camera is that there's no PoE version — that would have made it easier to integrate into my NVR as it draws just 10W of power. Even then, I had no problems pulling the RTSP stream and adding it to my network video recorder, so if you don't want to buy Reolink's Home Hub and have an existing recorder, you can use the camera without any hassle.

The camera has an SD card slot, and it accommodates up to 512GB SD cards, giving you plenty of local storage. In my usage, I found that a 512GB card is more than adequate to store three months of footage, and seeing as how I'm also recording the data to a home NVR, I have no problems in this area.

Reolink does a good job with Alexa and Google Home integration, and if you're eyeing this camera, there's a good chance that you use Home Assistant, which also lets you add it with relative ease. The IP66 dust and water resistance means it has no issues in outdoor use, and I haven't run into any issues in this regard.

Reolink TrackFlex Floodlight WiFi review

(Image credit: Apoorva Bhardwaj / Android Central)

Reolink has a few AI-assisted video search features, and while their usability is dubious — it didn't quite pull up what I was looking for in a few scenarios — it's there if you need it. Otherwise, Reolink's mobile app is straightforward to use, and you can get the camera stream on Google Home devices or any other smart platform.

The TrackFlex Floodlight WiFi is my fourth Reolink camera, and there's no doubt that it is the best yet from the brand. It's also the costliest, and even at $219, it has a premium over its siblings. That said, you're getting a better feature-set, and the dual lenses along with the ability to auto-track subjects and 360-degree field-of-view gives it a distinct advantage.

Harish Jonnalagadda
Senior Editor - Mobile

Harish Jonnalagadda is Android Central's Senior Editor overseeing mobile coverage. In his current role, he leads the site's coverage of Chinese phone brands, networking products, and AV gear. He has been testing phones for over a decade, and has extensive experience in mobile hardware and the global semiconductor industry. Contact him on Twitter at @chunkynerd.

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