A few weeks ago, I reviewed the Wyze Battery Cam Pro, a notification camera that runs on a replaceable lithium-ion battery. One item I covered in the review was the camera’s USB-C port that can be used for plugging in external power sources including solar panels.
In my latest video, we take a look and see if Wyze’s solar panel can provide enough juice to allow the camera to continually record 24/7 and keep its battery topped off during the daylight hours.
The Wyze solar panel is reasonably priced and is rated at 2.5 watts when it gets full sunlight. The panel comes with a long USB Type-C cable, allowing you to plug other devices into it, although they won’t charge quickly at only 2.5 watts.
A common mistake is placing these panels in areas with shade, which reduces their generation capacity. In my testing I placed it on top of my wife’s garden that gets full sunlight throughout the morning and afternoon.
Since I started using the panel about a month ago, I’ve noticed that the battery stays at 100% all the time when not continuously recording, even with many events triggering the camera throughout the day. This is because the camera doesn’t consume much power, and its built in battery provides enough energy to get through the night. With the solar panel attached, you shouldn’t have to swap out the battery, even though it’s super simple to do so.
But continuous recording is another story. Starting out at around noon on a beautifully sunny day, I was able to continuously record for almost exactly 24 hours – far exceeding the 10 hours Wyze says the battery can handle when continuously recording without the solar panel. I think I would have seen more longevity had the following morning been as sunny as the previous afternoon, but unfortunately it was a dark and rainy day that was not good for solar generation.
In the end, while the Wyze solar panel does a good job of keeping the battery charged, it falls short of enabling continuous recording on the Battery Cam Pro. On Amazon there are a number of low cost 10 watt panels with USB-C outputs that can charge the battery more quickly during the day and perhaps capture more solar radiation on cloudy days to allow for longer recording. We will find out!
Disclosure: Wyze provided the camera and solar panel to the channel free of charge. They did not review or approve this post before it was uploaded and all opinions are my own.