Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Short Version: For my money, this Reolink 5MP security system is the absolute best in its class. Installation and setup are quick and easy, and the image quality is crisp and sharp day or night. But it's the outstanding phone and tablet apps that separate this system from the rest of the field. Reolink clearly put a lot of thought into app functionality, and it pays off. Long Version: This was actually the second 5MP security system I bought to replace my aging Q-See 720P system. Unfortunately, the first system I bought (ZOSI) was crippled by a really poor phone app. Since I usually live-view or playback when I'm away from home, the app is a crucial component. After returning the ZOSI system, I did a lot more homework, including watching a number of YouTube videos. The Reolink app looked to have the best functionality and ease of use, so that's the system I chose. Installation was straightforward. This is a PoE (Power over Ethernet) system, so I used my existing BNC cables to pull the new CAT5 cables. I made up a plywood drill guide to accurately drill the screw and cable holes in my soffits. This is one improvement I could suggest: I wish Reolink would provide a molded plastic drill template, as this would make camera mounting easier. With the cameras installed and the CAT5 cables in place, all that's left is to hook up the NVR. Initial programming could hardly be easier - far more user-friendly than my old Q-See system. Last step was installing the apps on my phone and tablet, and this too was a snap, with a QR scan taking care of most of the process. There's also a Windows client that lets me view and control the system from my laptop. The phone app is excellent. On opening the app, it automatically goes to your most recent view. This is great, as I most often check the camera at my front door to look for packages when I'm away, or to see who's at the door before deciding whether to answer. To save bandwidth, the phone app view is medium-res, but there's a cool feature called "Clip" that gives you a high-res closeup you can drag and zoom around the overall view. Rotate your phone, and the view instantly switches to full-screen. The playback feature is also excellent. It's quick and easy to navigate to the time period you want to replay. Simply tap the date and then select the time block (the recordings are saved in roughly 1-hour blocks). Drag the slider to find the exact period you want to replay, then tap the camera icon for a still photo or the movie icon to start recording video. I do wish there was a 30 second skip forward/back option, as this would make finding the exact moment of interest a little easier. Photos and videos are saved to local storage, but you can also set up a cloud account and have them upload automatically. The app also supports remote control PTZ (pan/tilt/zoom) cameras if you decide to add one or more to your system. The system comes with 4 cameras, but the NVR supports up to 8, so you have room to upgrade. The system also supports push alerts to your phone. You can choose which cameras to send alerts and choose the portions of their fields of view to ignore so as to reduce false alarms. The motion detection is very sensitive, so I'd recommend selecting only the key ares, like your front steps and mailbox lid. Alerts are almost instantaneous. Finally some comments on the Windows Client: This too is a useful tool, as when working from home I can keep it running in the background and quickly see who's at the door. Because my laptop is on the same router as the NVR, live view is much sharper than on my phone. The client also supports closeup "Clips" for getting a sharper view of some object of interest. I would add that Reolink's website is excellent, with regularly updated setup how-tos and support FAQs, and their tech support staff are fast and efficient in replying to questions. All in all, this security system has met or exceeded nearly all my wishes and expectations.