Review: This clever 2-in-1 security camera tracks movement and never needs charging (aff)
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With dual cameras, AI tracking and solar power, this Tapo security cam offers a smart, low-maintenance way to monitor your home
This is Tapo's new flagship outdoor security camera, the C645D. And it might just be all the camera you ever need.
That's because it's two cameras in one. There's a large 2K wide-angle camera fixed to the mounting, and then a powered 2K tracking camera just below it.
As soon as the main camera picks up any motion, it triggers its little sidekick to follow the motion. It could be a pet, a visitor or, perish the thought, a burglar. You'll know about it because you'll get an alert, and the live feed will track every move they make.
This automatic pan and tilt system isn't unusual, but it is something you'd normally only see on premium kit. But the Tapo C645D doesn't exactly have a premium price. If you can catch a deal on the Tapo website, you'll get one for £129.99 - and that's a seriously good price for a high-quality camera with all the clever kit it comes with.
Speaking of which, this being one of Tapo's latest outdoor cameras, it comes with a solar panel as part of the £129.99 package. This means there's no wiring and no charging. Even just one hour of sunlight per day is enough to keep the battery topped up.
I've found in day-to-day use, even in the darker months, keeping it in a brightly-lit spot has been good enough. I don't get direct sunshine on my north-facing drive, but a bright day will completely replenish the battery, and even dull days give it a healthy trickle.
How fast the battery depletes will depend on what modes you run it in, what resolution you're using, and how often you open up the live view. But it's a 10,000mAh battery, so it's going to last very well.
And the nice thing about Tapo is there's no need for a subscription. You can pay for cloud storage, but if you insert a memory card there's no need.
The views from the dual cameras are piped to the excellent Tapo app in a dual-view format, and from here you can manually pan and tilt the lower camera, alter all the settings, or cycle back through recorded footage.
Other clever features include AI human detection, sound and light alarms, and colour night vision.
It's actually hard to pick fault with the C645D. Tapo offers much cheaper pan and tilt cameras, but this really does offer so much in one package.