Reolink Altas PT Ultra tested: amazing 4K home security camera with insane battery life
This 360-degree camera has full colour night vision and 4K continuous recording with no need for cloud storage fees
I was excited to test out the Reolink Altas PT Ultra home security camera after it was launched at the IFA tech show in Berlin this September.
The firm promised ultra-high-definition footage, 360-degree coverage and an incredible 20,000mAh battery to ensure continuous recording for days on end. The camera is battery-powered and is not meant to work with a power connection.
That battery, thankfully, is large enough to provide four days of continuous recording in 4K resolution (or eight days if you capture just 12 hours from 7pm to 7am, for example).
The camera battery is also rated to work for up to 500 days if you use it in trigger mode. This means the camera sends live footage to your phone in real-time, but only records motion that is triggered by detection of subjects of your choosing (for people, animals, vehicles, others).
The camera uses Smart Detection Auto Tracking and upon the detection of any motion it promptly rotates its lens toward the movement.
Reolink ships to Ireland from Germany, so there are no customs issues and there are no delivery charges.
Reolink Altas PT Ultra set-up
Wherever you are using the camera, set-up is simple and quick. It’s a heavy camera at 853g and it comes with a ceiling mount that can be used indoors or outdoors. It takes less than half an hour and all the tools you need to permanently mount it are in the box. My review unit was white in colour.
I reviewed the Solar Power bundle which includes an equally easy-to-install 6W black solar panel in the box. Just ten minutes of solar charging can extend battery life for 24 hours.
Pairing the camera to your smartphone is easy. You just download the iPhone or Android app for Reolink, scan a QR code and connect to your WiFi network.
Reolink Altas PT Ultra key features
The 8MP camera has a large 1/1.8in CMOS sensor and a wide f/1.0 aperture and it sends a continuous stream of high quality 4K footage to your smartphone. The smart detection and auto-tracking features work impressively, accurately detecting and tracking moving people, animals and vehicles.
You can fully control the camera from the Reolink smartphone app. You can snap a still image of any moment using the camera icon in the app or tap the camcorder icon to record a video clip at up to 15 frames per second. You can also schedule timed recordings or enable motion recording or continuous recording. You can shoot timelapse videos too.
Reolink Altas PT Ultra can be set up through the app to capture 10 seconds of footage before a motion event is triggered, which is a really handy feature to have. The firm said the camera does this by caching video footage before writing it into the recording once the motion sensor is activated.
An intuitive PTZ (pan tilt zoom) control in the app allows you to move the camera head’s focus view around in real-time. You can adjust the speed you want the camera head to move too.
You can activate a loud siren on the camera or use the Talk button to communicate using the camera’s built-in speaker and microphone. You can also trigger a set of six ultra-bright LED lights on the camera by pressing the flashlight icon in the app.
Video footage is bright, crisp and colourful with incredible detail. Night vision footage is impressive, superior to a lot of security cameras I’ve tested thanks to what the company calls ColorX tech. All the footage is time and date stamped.
There is an option to subscribe to cloud storage for your footage, but you can also use a micro-SD card to which you can save your clips. The device supports cards up to 512GB capacity. However, bear in mind the camera would need to be out of reach of any would-be thief so that a) they don’t steal the camera with the micro-SD card inside or b) they don’t open the easily accessible flap and take out the micro-SD card.
Reolink Altas PT Ultra other features
Reolink Altas PT Ultra uses dual-band Wi-Fi 6, offering 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz options. The latter is recommended for improved range and less interference, with 2.4Ghz as a welcome backup.
The camera also has Bluetooth 5.0 and is IP65-rated for dust and water resistance and is compatible with smart home systems.
Reolink Altas PT Ultra verdict
There are many positives with Reolink Altas PT Ultra including its dual-band WiFi connectivity, its incredible battery life and its ease of use.
But it’s the superb top quality video footage which makes this 4K camera so easy to recommend.
Reolink Altas PT Ultra pricing and availability
Reolink Altas PT Ultra costs €229.99 from Reolink.com. You can buy the Solar Panel bundle for an extra €20. It costs €249.99 from Reolink.com. You need to buy a micro-SD card separately.
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