Best Wired Security Cameras

It’s easy to get overwhelmed by Lorex’s many camera models. If you’re in the market for wired cameras, though, we recommend the Nocturnal series. They’re both durable and packed with features, which makes them perfect for protecting outdoor areas around your home. What kinds of features are we talking about?

We set up two Nocturnal cameras – one to keep an eye on the front of the house, and another to keep an eye on the backyard. 4K resolution, eight times optical zoom, and night vision up to 150 feet meant two cameras were enough for the job. Nothing wrong with saving money. And we still saw it all, including a family of possums trotting through our front yard one night at two am.

We’re a little obsessive, so we set our cameras to record continuously, a nice bonus feature of Lorex cameras. Don’t worry, though – we didn’t have to review all that footage. Lorex cameras also include motion sensors, and the system can use motion to tag footage. That made it simple to go back and skim through recordings. Turns out, we had enough possum clips to create our own Instagram channel.

We should point out that Lorex’s Nocturnal cameras aren’t cheap. After all, you’re not going to get features like these for free. Individual cameras start at around $299, and even if you bundle four, you’re still looking at just under $1200. Lorex runs quite a few sales throughout the year, though, so you can often get these cameras for much less than retail. Right now the company is running a clearance sale on older model cameras, and it offers a Deal of the Day every day.

The thing is, with such a large inventory, Lorex has cameras to suit every budget. Trust us – this company manufactures a lot of cameras. So if the Nocturnal series is out of reach, just keep looking. The company’s Fusion line, for instance, is less than $150 a camera, and these cameras combine both wired and wireless features in a single system. That makes them particularly useful for homeowners looking for a mix of indoor and outdoor cameras. Put the wired cameras outside where wireless models might be prone to interference and set the wireless devices up inside.

Get even more information about more Lorex models in our complete review of Lorex cameras.

Ring doesn’t offer quite the selection of Lorex, but there are enough Ring indoor/outdoor wired cameras to ensure you can find the one you need. We’re fans of Ring’s Floodlight Cams, which can illuminate an entire yard. No matter which model you choose, though, Ring cameras always include standard features like wide-angle lenses, 1080p HD video resolution, built-in speakers, and integrated sirens.

Ring cameras also come packed with powerful software that gave us enormous control over their features. The Ring app provided real-alerts whether we were at home or at work, and when alerts showed up, the push of a button let us see everything happening. In fact, since Ring works with both Alexa and Google Home, we were able to pull up footage using just our voices, perfect for when a package arrived while we were making dinner.

What will you pay for all this security and convenience? Not as much as you might think. Ring’s top-of-the-line offerings cost about $300. More affordable options run about $60, though. Here’s a breakdown of some of their hardwired models and prices:

• Spotlight Cam Plus: $199.99
• Spotlight Cam Pro: $249.99
• Floodlight Cam Pro: $249.99

Think these prices are out of your budget? Ring offers zero percent financing for customers who qualify, and you can finance equipment for up to 12 months. There are other ways to save as well. Ring offers multi-camera bundles, for example, at discounted prices, so the more you buy, the more you save. Find out more in our Ring Cam review for the full scoop!

You can also save money by self-monitoring your Ring cameras. True self-monitoring is free and you still get real-time alerts and the ability to check live video footage on all your cameras. If you want to store video, you’ll need to purchase a Ring Protect Plan – $5 a month for a single camera or $10 a month for as many cameras as you own. We always recommend professional monitoring, though, and Ring offers one of the cheaper deals in the industry. For $20 a month – $18 if you’re willing to sign up for a full year – someone else will keep an eye on your property for you and let you know any time there’s a problem.

ADT was already an industry leader when it decided to partner up with Google Nest. Whether you’re interested in wired or wireless, indoor or outdoor, you’re just not going to find more feature-rich cameras than the ones ADT offers. It’s worth noting as well that ADT is the only company on this list that offers wired indoor, outdoor, and doorbell cameras.

All three models come with 1080p HD video resolution, two-way audio, and person detection. All three are made to withstand harsh environments. They’re rated IP65, for instance, which means they are impervious to dust and capable of withstanding water from low-level jets. Heck, they even contain on-board heaters that allow them to function in temperatures as low as 40 degrees below zero, Fahrenheit. We hope never to see temperatures like that where we live, but if you happen to live in the land of ice and snow, it’s nice to know you’ll be secure even in the midst of a blizzard.

These cameras’ most important feature, though? They come as part of an entire ADT home security system. The downside is that you can’t buy just one ADT camera and be done. You need a hub and some entry sensors, and that means your total equipment bill is going to be a bit higher. There’s an awful lot of upside, though. ADT systems are the best you can get, at the very top of our list of best home security systems. ADT doesn’t just offer top-tier cameras. All of its equipment is hardy and reliable, from motion detectors to smoke alarms. When all of these components work together, you are exponentially more safe.

Be sure to check out our latest ADT pricing page to learn more about these systems and the costs associated.

We found both of Nest’s wired cameras to be packed with tons of features. They can tell the difference between people and other types of moving objects, for instance. That’s a good thing since the wind sometimes blows the trees outside our apartment hard enough to fool other security systems. Fewer false alerts made us pay more attention when real alerts came through.

We were particularly excited by the Floodlight Cam’s custom lighting routines. We set ours to stay off in the early hours of the evening when we were still up. We still got alerts any time the camera picked up questionable motion, but we made sure not to wake our neighbors. Once we went to bed, we set it to blast a powerful light at anyone who wandered onto our property. We figure our neighbors would appreciate that kind of heads-up as well.

Person detection is so last year, though. Google’s cameras, including the Nest Cam Floodlight, now include Familiar Face. This is a version of facial recognition AI, something few cameras on the market have right now. It told us when a new mail carrier filled in for our usual carrier since the camera didn’t recognize their face. There’s a catch to this feature, though. You have to activate a Nest Aware subscription to get it. Eight dollars a month($80 if you sign up for a full year) was worth it to get alerts that told us in detail who was on our doorstep.

Other than the fact that Google Nest doesn’t offer an indoor wired camera, we can think of only one drawback to the Nest Cam Floodlight: price. You’ll pay $189.99 for this camera, and that’s not cheap. It’s $80 cheaper than Ring’s Floodlight Cam, though, and it comes with more features, so if you can swing it, this wired camera is great value for the money.

Arlo’s change in home security approach has led to a change in how you buy its home security cameras. Gone are the days when you could simply purchase a camera or two and set them up. Arlo is a system now, and you can’t be a camera without also purchasing a hub to operate it. That’s an extra cost, but the hub connects all your devices and allows your cameras and other system components to communicate with the outside world. The hub is what sends instant alerts to your mobile device app, and if you have professional monitoring, it’s what allows the system to let agents know when there’s a problem at your home.

The hub is handy for another reason as well – it makes Arlo cameras incredibly easy to install. Arlo was built for the digital age, and the company has put a great deal of thought and planning into its DIY installation process. Each camera comes individually boxed and includes a complete kit and instructions. During our Arlo camera tests, we managed to get two cameras up and working in about fifteen minutes. The hardest part of the whole thing was routing camera communication wires to the Arlo hub.

And while the hub does add to your bottom line, it won’t exactly break the bank. It costs just $39.99, well below the industry average. Ultimately, even figuring it in, you still wind ahead of most systems. And this isn’t some stripped-down camera. It works smoothly with Alexa and Google Home, which means you can operate it with just your voice. IFTTT compatibility means you can connect cameras to other smart devices in your home and create routines to simplify your life. We like our system to go into standby mode when we get home and turn on the lights. That was easy enough to set up.

When you’re not at home, you can control everything through the Arlo app. In addition, the app sends you mobile alerts any time the cameras activate. You can view live footage or – if you’ve invested in cloud storage – video clips. And you’ll find Arlo’s storage plans are as reasonably priced as their cameras – one camera will cost you $4.17 a month. Or you can log footage from up to ten cameras for $10.83 per month.

Swann manufactures and sells a wide variety of wired and wireless cameras at just about every price point. Because the company produces its own devices, it can pass along savings to customers. Wired cameras can be had for as little as $49.99, and even 4K thermal-sensing models can be had for just $199.99.

Keep in mind that all of Swann’s wired cameras connect to an NVR for video storage. That comes with some great advantages. For one thing, you don’t have to worry about monthly fees for recording. For another,  you can record as much footage as you like, and it’s always on-site, so you have direct access. Of course, you have to pay an additional fee for the NVR equipment, and Swann offers no professional monitoring, so you’re on your own when it comes to responding to alerts. One NVR can handle up to 16 camera feeds, though, making this a great setup for larger homes. We didn’t need nearly that many to cover our apartment. In fact, with a single Master Series 4K Dome Camera that swivels, we managed to capture everything in our home.