The Reolink Altas PT Ultra ($209.99) first caught our attention at the IFA trade show in Berlin, and has further impressed us in real-world testing. This wireless 4K outdoor home security camera is loaded with features such as 24/7 recording support, mechanical pan and tilt maneuverability, above-average color night vision, and auto-tracking that follows moving objects. It’s battery-powered and very easy to install, and it should last more than a year before needing to be recharged. Throw in bright spotlights, a reasonably loud siren, dual-band Wi-Fi support, 10-second pre-recordings, and optional solar charging, and you’ve got our new Editors’ Choice winner for outdoor security cameras.
Design and Features: More Versatile Than Most Outdoor Cameras
The Altas PT Ultra uses an IP65 enclosure that measures 5.9 by 4.0 by 7.0 inches (HWD). The round camera assembly sits in a motorized cradle that provides 90 degrees of vertical tilt and is attached to the base using a motorized swivel mechanism that provides 355 degrees of horizontal panning maneuverability. A single adjustable Wi-Fi antenna sits on the right side of the camera, and there’s a speaker on the bottom along with a USB-C power port and a power button, both of which are protected by a rubber cover.
The camera assembly holds six small white LED spotlights, a passive infrared (PIR) motion sensor with a 100-degree horizontal detection range, an ambient light sensor, a microphone, and a status LED that shines solid blue when the camera is connected via Wi-Fi, blinks blue while in standby mode, and is solid red when the Wi-Fi connection has failed. Behind a rubber cover is a microSD card slot.
The Altas PT Ultra captures 4K video at 15fps with a 90-degree field of view, and it uses Reolink’s ColorX Night Vision large aperture technology to show color footage at night without the need for additional lighting. It supports intelligent motion alerts (person, vehicle, animal), offers continuous and triggered recording options, and includes a pre-recording feature that captures the 10 seconds of action preceding a triggered event. Continuous video recording is a rare feature among battery-powered security cameras.
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All video is stored on a microSD card (cloud storage is not an option for this camera). It’ll accommodate media with a storage capacity of up to 512GB, but you’ll have to supply your own card, as one is not included.
In the box with the camera, you get a mounting bracket, template, and screws, plus a mounting strap for securing the camera around a post or tree trunk, a USB-C charging cable, and an operational guide.
The camera has a Bluetooth radio for pairing with your mobile device and a dual-band Wi-Fi 6 radio that allows you to connect to your router’s 2.4GHz or 5GHz network. Power comes from a massive 20,000mAh rechargeable battery that is rated to last up to 16 months when the camera is set to triggered recording mode or up to 96 hours when set to continuous recording mode.
You can optionally pair it with the 6W Solar Panel 2, which promises to provide continuous power in triggered recording mode with just 10 minutes of direct sunlight a day, based on 300 seconds of recording per day. The solar panel requires five hours of direct daily sunlight for reliable pre-recordings. Reolink offers the Altas PT Ultra bundled with the solar panel for $229.99.
If you don’t require continuous recording or mechanical pan and tilt capabilities, the TP-Link Tapo Wire-Free MagCam offers sharp 2K video, ample third-party device support, and close to a year of battery life on a charge, plus optional solar charging support at a much lower price than the Altas PT Ultra. It retails for $119.99, but can frequently be found for less if you shop around. The $199.99 Eufy SoloCam S340 is a strong alternative with integrated solar charging and pan and tilt controls, but it also doesn't allow for 24/7 recording.
The Altas PT Ultra supports the Alexa and Google home automation platforms but doesn’t work with Apple HomeKit or IFTTT applets that provide third-party smart home device interoperability. It uses the same Reolink mobile app for Android and iOS devices as other cameras from the brand. It gets its own panel on the camera screen, where you can view the latest captured image and the battery status. Tap the image to launch a live stream, which can be viewed in landscape mode by turning your phone sideways. Below the video panel are buttons for pausing the video stream, taking a snapshot, manually recording a video clip, selecting a video quality setting (low or high), and toggling between portrait and landscape modes.
At the very bottom of the screen, you'll see Playback, PTZ, and Talk buttons. Tapping the Playback button opens a screen with thumbnails of recorded events by date, and you can tap any thumbnail to play or download the video. The PTZ button launches an on-screen four-way dial for pan and tilt control, and the Talk button initiates two-way conversation between the app and the camera's speaker and microphone.
In the upper right corner are icons for sounding the siren, lighting the spotlights, and viewing a four-screen window (for use with multiple cameras). Here, you can also access the settings menu to view the camera's remaining battery life, connect to Wi-Fi, configure display and motion alert settings, and enable the spotlight’s auto mode, which adjusts the brightness based on ambient light. Other settings allow you to configure smart alerts (person, vehicle, animal) and notifications (email, FTP, push), enable auto-tracking, create detection zones, and set recording schedules.
Installation and Performance: Flawless 4K Day and Night
You have to download the Reolink app to set up Altas PT Ultra, but the whole process is quick and easy. With the camera's battery fully charged, I tapped the plus icon in the upper right corner of the app's camera screen and used my phone to scan the QR code on the back of the device. I selected Configure Wi-Fi via Bluetooth, pressed and held the power button for five seconds, confirmed that I heard the voice prompt, and entered my Wi-Fi credentials. After a few seconds, the camera was added to my network. I gave it a name and took it outside, where I attached it to a deck post using the included mounting bracket and screws.
The Altas PT Ultra performed wonderfully in testing. The camera delivered detailed 4K video with rich color during the day, while nighttime video showed better-than-average color saturation. Mechanical pan and tilt were smooth and effortless using the app’s four-way controller, and motion tracking worked as intended.
Motion alerts arrived instantly and were correctly identified. The camera had no trouble streaming video to an Amazon Echo Show smart display, and my Alexa routine to have a Wyze BR30 bulb turn red when the camera detected motion worked perfectly. Additionally, two-way talk came through loud and clear.
Verdict: Stellar, Subscription-Free Outdoor Surveillance
At $209.99, the Reolink Altas PT Ultra is an excellent value for an outdoor camera that offers so many features, including sharp 4K video, mechanical pan and tilt, vibrant color night vision, and local video storage with the option for continuous recording. It also gives you the option for solar power, and even without the panel, it provides up to one year of battery life before requiring a charge. Though it doesn’t support HomeKit or IFTTT, the Altas PT Ultra works well with Alexa and Google Assistant voice control. The Altas PT Ultra earns our Editors’ Choice award for outdoor security cameras thanks to its robust feature set, excellent performance, and reasonable price.
The Reolink Altas PT Ultra is a battery-powered outdoor security camera that offers 4K video with mechanical pan and tilt to provide a sweeping view of your property, with options for solar charging and continuous recording.
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About John R. Delaney
Contributing Editor
