D-Link Outdoor Spotlight Camera (DCS-8630LH) Review - PCMag
Outdoor security cameras are ideal for keeping tabs on activity in your yard, driveway, or any area outside of your home. In addition to recording events, the $149.99 D-Link Outdoor Spotlight Camera (DCS-8630LH) helps you scare off unwelcome visitors with its bright LED spotlight and loud warning siren. This rugged camera also supports voice control, works with a large assortment of D-Link and third-party devices, and offers local and cloud video storage options. Although it was relatively easy to install and produced colorful 1080p video in our tests, the Arlo Pro 4 Spotlight Camera ($199.99) remains our Editors' Choice winner because it delivers better (2K) video quality and runs on battery power, which makes it even easier to use.
Flexible Storage, Zigbee Support
The DCS-8630LH's white enclosure sports an IP65 weather-resistance rating that protects the camera from dust and rain. Including the swivel mount, the device measures 3.2 by 2.2 by 4.7 inches (HWD). A microSD card slot and a reset button hide behind a rubber cover on the bottom of the camera. A speaker for the siren also sits next to the cover. The camera ships with a 23-foot power cable.
The enclosure houses a camera lens, a passive infrared (PIR) motion sensor, two infrared LEDs for black-and-white night vision, a microphone for two-way audio, and a 400-lumen LED spotlight that enables full-color night video and wards off intruders. The camera can send an alert when the microphone detects the sound of glass breaking. A 150-degree field of view captures wide-angle photos and video at 1080p (video is at 30fps). A 2.4GHz Wi-Fi radio and a 100dB siren are also under the hood.
You can store video recordings locally on a microSD card (up to 256GB), but you have to supply your own. Alternately, you can set up the camera to store video in the cloud; you get one day of video history for one camera for free. For $2.49 per month, the Basic plan gets you seven days of video history for up to three cameras. The $4.99-per-month Premium plan comes with 14 days of video history for up to five cameras. Finally, the $9.99-per-month Pro plan gives you 30 days of history for up to 10 cameras.
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The DCS-8630LH supports Alexa and Google Assistant voice commands, plus works with lots of third-party smart devices via IFTTT. The camera also has an embedded Zigbee radio that allows it to pair with other D-Link devices such as door and window sensors, motion sensors, other cameras, smart plugs, and water sensors. However, it doesn't integrate with Apple's HomeKit platform.
You can create rules that govern the camera's behavior when it is trigged by something. For example, the camera can be set to begin recording and send a push alert when it detects any sound or motion, or any disturbance from a person. Additionally, you can configure these events to trigger the camera's siren and spotlight. Other D-Link devices can trigger the camera, siren, and spotlight, too.
D-Link App Experience
The DCS-8630LH uses the same mobile app (available for Android and iOS) as other D-Link devices such as the DCH-S1621KT Water Sensor Kit and the DSP-W320 Smart Plug. It appears on the home screen under Cameras in a panel that displays the last still capture and has a View button that launches a live stream. Along the bottom of the live stream screen are buttons for muting the speaker, taking a snapshot, manually recording video, initiating two-way talk, activating the siren, toggling video quality (1080p or 720p), and turning on the spotlight. To view event recordings, tap either the microSD card icon or the cloud icon.
Tap the gear icon in the upper right corner of the screen to access the Device Settings screen. Here, you can enable Privacy mode, set motion and person detection zones, enable color or black-and-white night vision, set spotlight and siren timeouts, toggle the microphone, and configure anti-flicker and Wi-Fi settings.
Tap the overflow menu in the upper left corner of the home screen to create scenes that enable you to control multiple devices with one touch, set up automations for the camera to work with other D-Link devices, create Privacy mode schedules, add new devices, and configure Alexa and Google Assistant settings.
A Mostly Seamless Setup
Installing the DCS-8630LH is easy, but if you don't have an outdoor-rated GFCI outlet near your desired install location, you need to snake the power cord into your house to power it. That could be a deal breaker for some.
To start, I downloaded the mydlink app, created an account, and tapped Add Device when a prompt appeared (the app uses Bluetooth to automatically identify the camera). I scanned the QR code from the setup guide and followed the instructions to connect the camera to my home Wi-Fi network. After a few seconds, I had to give the camera a name before it automatically showed up in the app and on my Alexa device list. At this point, you can also add a designated phone number to call with the tap of a button if something triggers the camera.
With the app setup complete, I installed the device on a deck post in my backyard with the included mounting screws and plugged it into a GFCI outlet.
The DCS-8630LH delivered relatively sharp 1080p video in testing, though you can get much sharper video from the Arlo Pro 4 Spotlight Camera (2K) or the Reolink E1 (2,560 by 1,920). In any case, colors from the D-Link camera appear bright and saturated, without any evidence of barrel or pincushion distortion. Color night video looks well-lit, with reasonably good color quality. Black-and-white night videos are sharp and well-lit, with good contrast. Conversations over the two-way system sound sufficiently loud and free of distortion.
Motion alerts arrived quickly in testing, with very few false triggers. The camera successfully identified motion events involving people and adhered to my Privacy mode schedule without issue. The siren was loud and the spotlight did a good job of illuminating the area directly in front of the camera. I created a rule for the DHC-S163 water sensor to trigger the spotlight and siren when it detected water, and the automation worked flawlessly. Additionally, the camera responded instantly to an Alexa voice command to display live video on an Amazon Echo Show device.
A Strong Contender
The D-Link DCS-8630LH outdoor security camera offers a boatload of features for the price. You get color night vision, free (but limited) cloud storage, person alerts, and a warning system complete with a spotlight and siren. It provided clear 1080p video recordings and crisp two-way audio communications in testing, too. Our main complaint is that it doesn't support Apple HomeKit. For a bit more money, we still recommend the Arlo Pro 4 Spotlight Camera more highly; it records stunning 2K video, supports lots of third-party platforms (including HomeKit), and installs more easily because of its internal battery.
The reasonably priced D-Link DCS-8630LH outdoor security camera offers a generous selection of features including a spotlight and a siren, local and cloud storage options, and color night vision.
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