Key Takeaways
- The SwitchBot 3K Pan/Tilt Cam Plus is basic and unexciting in a saturated market of indoor security cameras.
- Priced at $70, it offers expected features like app control but fails to stand out.
- Poor audio quality, a clunky app, & a pushy subscription model make this camera forgettable.
SwitchBot’s newest Pan/Tilt Cam Plus 3K is another unremarkable entry in a market flush with unremarkable indoor security cameras. It’s black and white. It can be mounted on the ceiling or onto a flat surface. It has app control and motion detection. All the features you’d expect these days from an indoor security camera. But overall, it’s about as sexy as a smoke detector.
SwitchBot Pan/Tilt Cam Plus 3K
SwitchBot’s Pan/Tilt Cam Plus 3K is an upgraded version of the company’s previous Cam Plus 2K. It offers better resolution than its predecessor, as well as a handful of standard indoor security camera features. Boasting 360 degree horizontal rotation, motion detection, IR LED night vision, and a new Patrol mode this security camera touts itself as more advanced than other iterations. However, it’s hard to distinguish it from other indoor security camera offerings currently on the market.
- 3K resolution is crisp during daytime operation.
- Small form factor is unobtrusive.
- Black and white night vision is exceptionally sharp.
- SwitchBot app constantly pesters to subscribe to cloud services.
- Camera audio quality is atrocious.
- Video syncing issues.
- More expensive than other brands.
Price and Availability
The Pan/Tilt Cam Plus 3K retails for $70. It’s available exclusively through Amazon, and SwitchBot’s website even directs you to its Amazon store.
How Can a Design Be This Boring?
Despite SwitchBot ratcheting up the resolution from the previous model, the Pan/Tilt Cam Plus 3K still somehow manages to get lost in the sea of other cheap pan/tilt/zoom (PTZ) camera offerings. Even the device’s name is a massive mouthful of yawn.
At 3.1 × 3.1 × 4.2 inches, the Cam Plus 3K is a fairly utilitarian unit. It’s physically small enough to fit on a windowsill, and yet offers a full 360 degrees of horizontal pan and 115 degrees of vertical tilt. The viewing angle is 107 degrees diagonally by 81 degrees horizontally, by 43 degrees vertically. The weight of the unit is 6.9oz or 197g.
The security camera is powered via a 5V, 2A USB-A to USB-C connection and does not have an internal battery. That means you’ll need to stick it in a place with an available outlet somewhere close by. The stock connection cable is also just a hair over 6.5ft (2m), which falls a bit short for the 10ft ceilings in my living area.
Currently, SwitchBot’s website lists the resolution for this camera at 2K; however, it seems that might just be a typographical error on the company’s part. On the box, the camera is listed as a 3K unit. There’s also a bit of a discrepancy between the diagonal viewing angle listed in the owner’s manual and the information on SwitchBot’s website.
In addition to the high resolution daytime images, the Cam Plus 3K offers both black and white and color night vision. The black and white night vision is powered by a 940nm infrared LED. SwitchBot indicates that this IR LED is useful for capturing clear images in the dark while minimizing ambient light generated from the unit.
The Pan/Tilt Cam Plus 3K will also connect to a SwitchBot hub if you’re using other devices within SwitchBot’s ecosystem. Alexa and Google Home are supported as well, but HomeKit support isn’t on the menu. You also won’t find Real Time Signal Processing (RTSP) capability or 5GHz network capability in this unit.
For me, the design of this camera lacks all fun and sophistication. It’s similar in form and feature to almost every other PTZ security camera on sites like Amazon. Additionally, the stark white body and the gloss black “eyeball” are the only colors available. That makes this security camera about as exciting as a bowl of cold oatmeal. But if low-key utilitarian is your vibe, then maybe this squat unit is just what the doctor ordered.
The Crispiest Camera but Unforgivable Audio Issues
The main standout feature of this camera is the 3K resolution. And the Cam Plus 3K image is really nice. It offers both vivid color in the daytime, and pin-sharp details even in black and white night mode. Color night vision is rather gimmicky, though. When enabled, I found images took on a surprisingly warm tone with high levels of image noise.
However, the camera does what a security camera is supposed to do: it gives me a general idea of what is going on in a certain area of my home. Stills are also captured every few seconds as the camera detects movement, and if you have a SwitchBot subscription, you can save stills and video in the cloud (more on the subscription in a moment).
Alternatively, the camera will accept a micro SD card if you’d like to record videos and store them locally. I’d recommend this option as micro SD cards are fairly cheap and will likely cost less than a subscription over the life of this unit.
The audio performance, however, is horrendous, making visitors sound like they’re speaking through mud. I’ve added a video of this performance below. In it, you’ll notice that even when only a couple of feet away, clarity issues and poor syncing plague the Cam Plus 3K. If you’re looking for an indoor security camera that will give you sparkling audio detail, this unit isn’t going to get the job done.
Subscription-Based Software Nonsense
Moreover, the Achilles’ heel of the Pan/Tilt Cam Plus 3K is the SwitchBot app. Its design is serviceable for basic functions such as adjusting tilt and pan, recording, and even turning on features like motion detection. But the software is clunky at best, and every time you view your camera you’re subjected to an ad that asks you to subscribe to SwitchBot’s cloud storage service. It also misidentified my cat as a human about 15 times, and sometimes ignored attempts to save video.
There’s also an unusual flow to the way key features are organized. For example, the Features tab on the main camera screen allows access to Privacy Mode, Sound Alarm, Night Vision, Motion Detection, and Motion Tracking. But to find the Cam Plus’ new Patrols and Preset Point features, you’ll need to do a little digging into the settings screen. These two features are key contenders for adding to the Features tab of the SwitchBot app in future updates.
The list of key features here is also blasé. Privacy mode turns the camera off. Sound Alarm allows you to enable the camera’s built-in siren. Night Vision, Motion Tracking, and Motion Detection do exactly what you’d expect. Then there’s the Patrols feature, which lets you set up to five schedules, at which time the camera will enable motion detection and record a 360-degree video of its surroundings. Finally, the Preset Point monitors specific areas whenever motion is detected.
In my testing, the constant nagging of the app to purchase a SwitchBot subscription made me want to chuck the entire unit in the trash. Any time I tried to view a stored video or still, I was harangued by a pop-up begging for my money. For reference, the basic Switchbot Cloud Storage plan is $4 per month for a single device. If you have multiple devices, you can support two for $7 per month or ten devices for $11 per month. Those refusing to sign up can ultimately enjoy being accosted for the life of the product.
If the idea of an app holding your videos hostage for another subscription fee has you feeling a bit miffed, you’re in good company. Despite it only being a few bucks, it’s obnoxious to be coerced into paying a fee if you only have a single device. Though, if you’re already entangled in the SwitchBot ecosystem, then it could be worth it for you.
Other Cameras to Consider
The 5MP Smart PTZ Wi-Fi Indoor Camera from Reolink is a top contender here as it offers most of the same features, plus 5GHz network support, all for a few bucks less. If that’s too rich for you, the 4MP Reolink E1 Pro is also a great pick as it’s still decently high-res, still supports 5GHz, and yet only costs about half of what the SwitchBot does.
Should You Buy the Pan/Tilt Cam Plus 3K?
Overall, the SwitchBot Pan/Tilt Cam Plus 3K is only worth considering if you’re already part of the SwitchBot family. But it’s hard to recommend it as the perfect entry point into the indoor camera world. And considering the annoyances of the app, this unit isn’t high on the list of great security camera picks.
The biggest shortcoming of the 3K is it doesn’t distinguish itself from the vast array of similar PTZ cameras on the market. Which makes it really hard to rationalize choosing it over cheaper options. Instead, it’s a single, unremarkable drop in the giant bucket of copycat smart home tech companies hoping to ensnare you in their subscription-based camera ecosystems. If you’re okay with that, then the Pan/Tilt Cam Plus 3K might just be the indoor cam for you. For me, however, I’ll be passing on this unit for something that is either less costly, or maybe just a bit more exciting.
SwitchBot Pan/Tilt Cam Plus 3K
SwitchBot’s Pan/Tilt Cam Plus 3K is an upgraded version of the company’s previous Cam Plus 2K. It offers better resolution than its predecessor, as well as a handful of standard indoor security camera features. Boasting 360 degree horizontal rotation, motion detection, IR LED night vision, and a new Patrol mode this security camera touts itself as more advanced than other iterations. However, it’s hard to distinguish it from other indoor security camera offerings currently on the market.
