Blink Cameras Review: Indoor, Outdoor, Mini, and Doorbell

Blink’s little (and we mean little) home security cameras offer straightforward video surveillance at a price nearly anyone can afford.

We weren’t particularly blown away by these home security cameras, but we don’t have any major complaints about them either. They offer industry-standard features such as 1080p video quality, two-way talk, and night vision. Plus, the app is very user-friendly.

Best of all, these tiny Blink cameras can be placed just about anywhere. If you’re looking for less obvious home security, the Outdoor, Indoor, and Mini cameras are a good choice.

• 1080p image resolution: We found the video footage clear and colorful.
• 110° field of view: The view is narrow but good enough for small yards or the porch.
• Battery-powered: We love the portability and the two-year battery life.
• Two-way audio: Sounded great, but does pick up background noises like crickets or cars passing by.
• Operating temperatures: It works in areas that get between -4 to 113° F.
• Night vision: The black-and-white footage is pretty clear. In complete darkness, it was hard to see faces.

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All of the Blink cameras come with some pretty standard features:

• 1080p image resolution
• 110° field of view (135º on the Video Doorbell)
• Night vision
• Two-way audio
• Built-in Amazon Alexa integration

All of the Blink cameras are super tiny and fit in the palm of your hand. They are very discreet if you want to, say, hide the Blink Outdoor camera to peek out from behind a plant to catch footage of the neighbor who’s been walking their dog in your yard.

These pocket-size wonders are super easy to install. You just follow the on-screen instructions, and within around 10 minutes, you’re connected to Wi-Fi and the app.

One thing we didn’t like is that the Blink app doesn’t walk you through the steps of physically installing the camera. The little booklet that comes with the cameras doesn’t explain it either.

The newest Blink camera, the Blink Video Doorbell, has a bit of a reputation in early reviews for being hard to mount.

There is another similarity we didn’t particularly like. The Outdoor, Mini, and Indoor cameras come with a 110° field of view, which is narrower than other smart home security cameras, like the Arlo Pro 4 or a Google Nest Cam.

The industry standard falls around 140° to 160°, so we wish Blink would have given these cameras a wider view for more yard or room coverage. But at least the new Blink Video Doorbell has a 135º field of view, which helps it keep up with the wide-angle cameras on most doorbell camera rivals.

You can get around the narrow field of view by using Blink's new Mini Pan-Tilt Mount, which turns the Blink Mini into a movable camera with 360º coverage. Watch our review below.

When you purchase a Blink security camera, you get a free 30-day trial of the Blink Subscription Plan. After the trial, the basic plan costs $3 per month or $30 per year, per camera. If you have more than one camera, you can get the Plus plan for $10 per month or $100 per year.

We think that the subscription plan is worth it. At only $3 per month, you get the following:

• Unlimited cloud storage for up to 60 days
• Automatic recording when motion is detected
• Video sharing
• Photo capture (You can take photos of whatever the camera is seeing.)

Without a plan, you can still view live streams and get motion notifications through the app. And, if you want to save footage, you can do it locally by adding a Blink Sync Module 2 for an extra $34.99 if you get the Mini or the Outdoor. It comes with the Indoor camera for free.

The Sync will save footage for up to 10 cameras, and there aren't any monthly storage fees. It’s also tiny (notice a theme for Blink cameras?). So it doesn't take up a lot of space like local storage DVR or NVR boxes that come with security cameras like Swann.

The Blink app is simple to use and has a lot of features. Here are just a few:

• Customizable activity zones (down to the inch)
• Adjustable volume for the camera’s two-way talk
• Adjustable video brightness
• Temperature detection so you can see the temperature where each camera is placed
• Adjustable motion sensor sensitivity to lessen notifications

That’s it for the similarities. Differences? The clue is in the names. The Outdoor camera is weather resistant, so it can be used both indoors and outdoors. The Indoors and Mini cameras are for indoor use only.

Another big difference is their power sources. Both the Blink Outdoor camera and the Blink Indoor camera use batteries. The Blink Mini camera has a cord. This means you need to place the Blink Mini near an outlet, but at least you don’t have to change its batteries. The Blink Video Doorbell works similar to other Blink cameras but has two power options: battery or wired.

Blink home security cameras offer an affordable option that delivers reliable motion detection and good image and audio quality. Blink cameras aren’t the fanciest out there, but they do a respectable job at a fantastic price.

• Blink Outdoor is a versatile camera for indoor and outdoor surveillance.
• Blink Indoor is a good choice for dorms, home offices and other small rooms.
• Blink Mini is a tiny corded wonder that can fit just about anywhere.
• Blink Video Doorbell is an affordable way to view your porch on a smartphone.

Contributing writers: Rebecca Edwards, John Carlsen

We had multiple testers give the Blink cameras a try to help us identify what we like and where they fall short. Here’s a peek at how we put Blink through its paces:

• We tested in various light conditions—natural, artificial, and under cover of darkness. We also used the cameras indoors and outside.
• We enlisted a 13-pound cat named Leary and her cohorts to see how sensitive the motion sensors are.
• We used the cameras’ IFTTT features to see how easy it was to set up routines and put the motion sensors on alert when we left the house.
• We added voice control with an Amazon Echo.
• The Blink Video Doorbell released after our first round of tests and we haven't been able to get hands-on with it yet.

In addition to our in-home tests, we also conducted research and compared Blink to other wireless security cameras. Factors we considered include price (check out our security camera price guide), overall value, customer experience, smart home compatibility, features, and ease of setup and cameras use.

For the full dish on how we test and review products, check out our full methodology.

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