Do you sit up at night wondering why you can’t turn your front porch into a well-monitored police state? Well, Eufy has heard your aspirations and answered with an impressive line of home security cameras. While there are quite a bit more than four products in their lineup of cameras, these are some of the best you will find and offer a good amount of variety.
We will be comparing four Eufy products that range quite a bit in price and features, so it really depends on what you are looking for. You could go for a cheaper, more hands-off camera like the E40 at a sub-$150 price tag, though it lacks some of the better features that the 2C Pro does come with. Or you can shop alternative cameras like the ceiling-mountable L20 or S40 with its built-in solar panel.
This article will go over the quality of the video and audio that these cameras offer and their accompanying features. We will also discuss how long their battery is estimated to last and how they tolerate the elements and poor weather. For those who want a brief summary of all of these different categories – we offer a pretty succinct quick comparison below!
~~~ Check Price: Eufy SoloCam S40 ~~~
~~~ Check Price: Eufy SoloCam E40 ~~~
~~~ Check Price: Eufy SoloCam L20 ~~~
~~~ Check Price: Eufy 2C Pro ~~~
Quick Comparison
To get a list of features and specs without having to skim through a few thousand words, scroll no further! Whether you are looking for the best budget camera (the L20) or simply want the best product regardless of price (the 2C Pro) – we will discuss each camera and who it is designed for!
Eufy S40
If you want the best Eufy camera that doesn’t cost over 300 dollars, the S40 is your best bet. Sitting at less than $200 MSRP, the S40 offers night vision, 2k resolution, solid audio, weather protection, a spotlight, simplistic installation, and a solar panel that could potentially provide an indefinite charge. It is compatible with your home assistant, requires no monthly fees, and offers everything the other products do outside of cloud storage.
Lacking cloud storage can prove to be too big of a loss for some. The higher resolution of the S40 requires a lot of storage space, which the S40 does not have. At eight gigabytes you won’t have a lot of footage you can save, though it will at least save over the oldest recording when you are at capacity.
The Eufy S40 is strongly recommended for consumers who don’t care about a lot of additional storage and/or cloud storage.
Eufy E40
The E40 is the slightly more rudimentary sibling of the S40 coming in at just over half the price. It offers an impressive 2k resolution which is worthwhile at its lowered price. Unfortunately, the spotlight of the S40 would have been a better investment. It offers incredible weather protection, great visuals, solid audio, simplistic installation, and up to eight gigabytes of storage space.
The E40 is a solid camera for someone who has a motion-activated spotlight or requires a small space to be monitored. The lack of lighting at night can limit the visibility range quite a bit, making it hard to observe large, open areas as effectively as something like the L20. Another drawback is the limited storage space means you have to pick and choose what footage you save. If lighting is already taken care of or you require little storage space, this is an ideal camera at a very cheap price.
The Eufy E40 is strongly recommended for thrifty consumers that have their own motion-activated light or do not require a large amount of nighttime visibility.
Eufy L20
The L20 may fall behind in a few categories, but the positive aspects of this product and its reasonable price tag make it hard not to recommend. It sits a bit lower in price than most products (below $150 at full MSRP), though it is deceptively competitive despite its specs. This product offers no cloud storage, can only film in 1080p, and lacks the solar panel that the 2C Pro and S40 come with.
With that said, the 1080p resolution picks up everything fairly well and unless you are looking at a side-by-side comparison – the difference is hard to notice. The nighttime spotlight is essential for maintaining visibility if the motion detector does pick up activity. For those looking for the budget option that offers the most – this author would argue the spotlight of the L20 makes it far more universal than that of the E40.
The Eufy L20 is strongly recommended for thrifty consumers looking for the most universal package at a more agreeable price.
Eufy 2C Pro
It should come as no big surprise to anyone knowledgeable about Eufy cameras that the 2C Pro is superior to the other products. At a notable cost which exceeds $300 at MSRP, the 2C Pro all but has to guarantee its superiority to justify such a high price tag. It does so quite successfully by adding Homebase 2 – the included cloud storage system that offers up to 3 months of recording space – while also including a second camera.
It also ties all the appealing features of the other products into one exceptional package. You get the Solar panel that aids the already impressive battery life, 2k resolution video, weather protection, 135-degree FOV, and a device that allows for multiple products on one network. The biggest downside to this product is going to be its installation, which is a bit more complex due to the additional features offered by the 2C Pro.
The Eufy 2C Pro is strongly recommended for smart home enthusiasts with a big budget looking to further secure their property.
Installation
Everyone has fallen victim to the initial excitement of unboxing a new product only to find instructions that would be more easily understood in Sanskrit. Because of the centuries-old feud between man and user manuals, let’s take a closer look at the installation process of these cameras. We will also be discussing warranties, should you decide to give up on the camera altogether!
All installations will require a drill and corresponding drill bit of either ¼” or 15/64” drill bits.
Eufy Solocam S40
Starting off this daunting list of products is the Eufy Solocam S40. The S40 looks like the home version of a standard CCTV camera you would find on a streetlight. Despite this, its installation is fairly straightforward outside of a few additional tools. To get a better idea of just how to set these Eufy products up, let’s go through the installation process.
The S40 is installed via a mount that can be placed onto your wall. It is typically recommended to place the mount around seven to ten feet above the ground so you can get a reliable view of the area you plan to monitor. Additionally, you should also avoid areas where the sun will be routinely obstructed to allow your solar panel to charge.
Overall, this product will require a drill with a ¼” drill bit, the product, and all contents within if you are mounting the camera on a denser surface like brick or concrete. With this said, if you have the tools required and a bit of experience being handy – the installation will take a little less than twenty to thirty minutes overall, including pairing the Eufy app. To do so, you simply need to scan the QR code on your app with the S40 camera and it will begin to sync up. If this fairly straightforward process proves far too enraging, the camera comes with a one-year limited warranty.
Eufy Solocam E40
This budget-friendly option maintains a similar appearance to the S40, and the installation is equally familiar. For the sake of those skimming, we will be going over the setup for this product – if you are familiar with the S40, you can likely skip the installation information for the E40. The first thing you will need to do when installing the E40 is find a spot seven to ten feet high in or around your home.
If you plan to add a separate solar panel to the product later, make sure when locating a spot that it is given an adequate amount of attention by the mid-day sun so your camera can stay charged without constantly using a USB. Outside of these conditions, the setup process is little more than four somewhat in-depth steps and a few minutes of the consumer’s time.
The biggest hurdle to overcome is simply setting up the mounting bracket, then connecting it to your E40 camera. It should be said that it is worth taking your time when deciding on a mounting option – you don’t want to find a better position after you complete the installation process. Keeping with tradition, the Eufy E40 offers a one-year warranty if something is missing or comes broken.
Eufy Solocam L20
The Bite-sized and Bright-eyed Eufy Solocam L20 comes at a price that is hard to compete with and a design that is not only functional but also efficient. While the installation feels familiar – the options you are offered with the L20 are different. Unlike the other models previously mentioned, you have the ability to mount this device on ceilings as well as walls.
Like most Eufy models, this one comes with a mounting bracket that can be placed on a wall or ceiling. This should be placed about seven to ten feet high, though due to a lack of solar panels the location is a bit more flexible. The tools required are a drill, a 15/64 inch drill bit, the contents of the product, and the corresponding mobile app.
While the installation process is roughly the same as the previous two products, it is nice to be allowed more flexibility in where you can install this camera. That does come with the downside of not being able to utilize the solar power functions of something like the S40. Whether or not solar power is a requirement comes down to the needs, geography, and desires of the person purchasing the cameras.
Eufy 2C Pro
While the 2C Pro does offer more in the way of features, this makes the installation process a bit more tedious than the other Eufy cameras. While previous products required little more than pairing up with the app and a breezy mounting process, the 2C will take up a few more minutes of your time. To understand exactly why the installation on the 2C is so much more in-depth, let’s go over the installation process.
Eufy 2C comes with Homebase 2, which will need to be installed first before anything else. To do this you will need to plug in your Homebase to a power outlet then use the ethernet cable provided to connect the Homebase to your router. Once you have done this, it will take about sixty seconds for the Homebase 2 to be ready for further installation. During this time, it is beneficial to fill out your Eufy security account, it will be required in the following steps.
Because of the additional features this product comes with, it will require a working wifi connection. This can be done by going to Camera Settings > Mounting Guide on the Eufy security app. The security app allows you to use your camera to determine the best spot for signal strength. if you find that there isn’t a good wifi connection in your ideal spot – try plugging in your Homebase 2 as close to the desired location as possible.
After the process of connecting your Homebase 2 and finding an appropriate location, you will have to start hooking up the mounting bracket. As usual, this should be located seven to ten feet above the ground to get a good view of the surrounding area. The drill bits required to mount the bracket are 15/64” – the mount may require anchors if the surface is a resilient material.
Overall, the process isn’t terribly excessive compared to the other products – though it will take a good bit longer.
Verdict – The installation process for all four Eufy products is fairly straightforward, though the 2C is a bit too tedious to be considered. As for the other three, the installation process is roughly the same throughout.
Features
Home security is going the way of the vehicle with incredible technological strides being made in the industry over the last decade. Because of this, there are a number of features, accessories, and additional options.
Whatever you want to call them, Eufy cameras are no strangers to innovation, and to better understand which suits your home – let’s discuss what each camera offers and how the features work.
None of these products come with a monthly fee and should only be a one-time purchase.
Night Vision & Spotlight
The Eufy E40 does not come with a spotlight though it does provide night vision.
To the surprise of no one unfortunate enough to get surprised by the 600 lumen spotlight, these Eufy cameras offer very competent nighttime features. Not only are you offered night vision but you also get the added benefit of some amount of color with it. With night vision switched on, you should be able to pick up movement eight meters away. Finally, if the camera detects movement at night it can be programmed to switch on the built-in light.
Advanced Motion Detection
All products come with advanced motion detection that can turn on and alert you to any possible dangers in or around your home. This technology has gotten smarter over the years and now each camera is reportedly able to differentiate between the owner of the home and the family of raccoons that squat in the trash.
This makes alerts more purposeful and important, as the camera discards any video footage of stray animals. All four Eufy cameras offer smart alerts that only show the most pertinent alerts like human movement instead of wandering outdoor cats. Eufy also markets this motion detection as being able to detect faces, though we have seen nothing to take advantage of this feature.
Compatible with Alexa & Google Assistant
If you were worried about these products not being able to pair up with the rest of your smart home products, at least breathe easy when it comes to virtual assistants. Whether you are using the cheapest or most expensive Eufy product in this list – all work seamlessly with both Amazon and Google products. This allows you to view the live stream of your camera from the comfort of your mobile phone!
2.4 GHz Wi-fi Connection
If you are hoping for 5.0 GHz compatibility – you are going to be sorely disappointed. Regardless of the Eufy products, as of the time of this article, all products are limited to 2.4 GHz Wifi connections. This means that you are able to use a wider range for your camera at the cost of speed and overall performance.
IP Rating
For those who are not familiar, an Ingress Protection rating essentially determines how good a product is at stopping alien liquids and particles from entering the device. With a strong rating like IP65+, your device will be safe from any passing dust or dirt as well as rain or jets of water. Being that this is the lowest IP rating on the list, all cameras should work fairly reliably regardless of weather conditions. The S40, L20, and 2C Pro are all IP67, while the E40 is IP65.
Field of View
Explaining why a wide Field of view is essential feels a bit silly. If you want to monitor a backyard or front porch, you want a camera that is going to be able to cover the entire area.
Now for the E40, S40, and L20, you are going to be given a 130-degree wide-angle. This is widely considered above and beyond the standard for home security devices. The 2C offers a slight improvement on this at 135 degrees, keeping the trend of it edging its Eufy stablemates.
While the 2C Pro is obviously the superior product when it comes to FOV – anything above 110 degrees is more than competent for most consumers.
Battery Life & Solar Power
While the E40 is compatible with the Eufy solar panel, the solar panel is not included with the product unless otherwise specified.
While a good portion of these products (E40, S40, 2C Pro) include or offer solar power in addition to the battery, the batteries still offer a good amount of longevity. If you go with the E40 and S40s, you can expect a 4-month battery life in addition to solar power – while the L20 offers four months without solar. The 2C Pro separates itself with a six-month estimated battery life with a solar panel as well.
Storage Space
Due to the heavy storage requirements of high-definition video, it’s important to make sure that your camera has enough space. Unlike the 2C Pro, the other three devices are restricted exclusively to local storage and don’t offer any cloud features.
With that being said, you can shave a lot off the top financially if you can settle for fewer options in storage space. To give a better idea of what each offers, let’s discuss their storage space in relation to the video quality each camera offers.
If any of the four cameras find their storage space full, they will overwrite the oldest footage to make room for newer alerts and video.
The S40 and E40 offer eight gigabytes of storage and both film in a 2k resolution. Estimates can be fairly unreliable, though one minute of 2k footage on Eufy cameras amounts to about 40 megabytes when tested on other Eufy products. This amounts to about 2.5 gigabytes per hour, though it can vary a great deal.
The L20 also offers 8 gigabytes of storage space, though it films in 1080p. This comes with the benefit of being able to utilize more memory with a less demanding resolution at the cost of visual clarity. That being said, the difference is largely minimal in visual quality so the lesser resolution may be preferable.
The addition of the Homebase 2 in the 2C Pro really puts this device in a league of its own. On top of a cloud feature that allows you to store footage digitally – the 2C also offers 16 gigabytes of local storage. You also get the added option of NAS or network-attached storage through the Homebase 2. While it is undoubtedly the most expensive option on the list – the overwhelming storage capabilities make the 2C hard not to recommend.
Verdict – The Eufy 2C Pro justifies its higher price tag with better storage capabilities, a better field of view, and extended battery life in addition to solar power. With that said, all products offer an extensive list of features that are all worth considering.
Video & Audio
It would be very regrettable to get an intruder on camera breaking into your home only to realize that it was filmed in a resolution so grainy The Entertainer should be playing alongside it. Nowadays video comes in detail that feels so vivid it is indistinguishable from what we perceive with our naked eye.
Equally important is the audio that your camera is able to pick up — if you can’t discern the sounds being recorded then it’s a useless addition. While we can’t expect studio-quality audio from lower-end home security systems, it isn’t too much to ask to understand what people are saying.
All four products offer footage of varying resolutions that come with working audio – how well that video and audio comes in is an entirely different beast.
Eufy S40 & Eufy E40
These two devices are so similar in quality that it felt redundant to go over both separately.
The S40 and E40 come in 2k resolution and the video is clear and easy to distinguish. Despite this, I did notice a slight preference in image quality when it came to the S40 over the E40. In good lighting, you will be able to make out fine details such as license plates of passing cars or even clothing logos.
The night vision is good but the spotlight undoubtedly offers the most visibility for any camera when the sun goes down. This can be a bit of a setback for the E40, as it does not possess color night vision or a spotlight.
Both allow for a good bit of local storage as well so you can keep track of important footage without having to worry about internal space. When comparing both cameras on their picture quality the resolution felt identical though the S40 seemed to come in a bit sharper while the E40 felt a bit bright and softer on playback. This difference is only really observable when looking at the same footage side-by-side, though for those that care – there you go!
When trying to make out faces, it was pretty easy to distinguish features of people as far as thirty feet out in the daytime for both cameras. This could be made harder if they are walking through a shady spot or if visibility diminishes due to rain or fog. S40 films in color at night and has a built-in spotlight while the E40 only possesses black and white night vision unless it is used with a separate motion light.
If you plan to buy the E40 the night vision works pretty well up to about ten to fifteen feet. Past that, you can still see figures passing but they get harder to make out besides shape, clothes, and approximate height.
The S40 performs much stronger at night with clear full-color night vision that is made easier to see with its built-in spotlight. With the spotlight on you can clearly make out most objects at twenty feet or less. Past that, you can still at least make out basic shapes and see what’s around the area. There is hardly a comparison between the two, the S40 is a much better camera at night.
When pausing, moving objects will still give very clear, visible images unless they are traveling at a high rate of speed. This is especially true of the S40, which (at least to my untrained eye) offered a slightly clearer and crisper image quality for moving objects. All recordings are filmed at fifteen frames per second on both cameras, which is slightly choppy.
The E40 & S40 do a good job of picking up audio from close-up, though the farther away the audio is the more it sounds like it’s at the opposite end of a tunnel. Thankfully, audio still can be clearly understood and easily heard from as far as twenty-five feet away. This could change drastically depending on how heavy the wind and weather are on any given day.
Eufy L20
The L20 has a bit of a disadvantage when compared to the other three devices in terms of video quality. Due to this, while you can still make out a good bit of detail from people as far away as thirty feet – it will be slightly harder to identify them.
Thankfully, objects in motion are still fairly easy to make out when paused and the image quality is pretty sharp from frame to frame. The fifteen frames per second video playback can make the viewing experience a bit jumpy though nothing worthy of real concern.
Unlike the other three devices, the L20 films in 1080p resolution. While this is a step back from the other devices and a notable step down in quality – when comparing the four, it still performed fairly well and made a good showing of itself. Its spotlight is exceptional and really aids the inferior video quality by brightening the immediate area to help make out the object of interest.
If you like this product but wish it had a 2k resolution, check out the Eufy L40.
It comes with a night vision mode which helps let you know if people are creeping around your domicile past daybreak. But outside of people you know or recognize – strangers will be hard to make out past fifteen feet. Contrarily, even in an area with almost no light, you will easily be able to pick up motion and activity.
It also has a color night vision that works proficiently with the built-in spotlight. This creates a device that offers full visibility 24 hours a day. Even in 1080p, you can still make out most features of people, animals, and objects up to twenty feet. This also comes with the added benefit of popping on whenever it detects motion, making it easy for you to always know when the raccoons are back in town.
The audio quality of the camera feels surprisingly smooth considering its budget value. While the 2C Pro and the S40 seemed to pick up sound better, audio came in much smoother and with less compression on the L20. On a calm day with little wind, you could reliably hear sound from twenty-five feet out. Closer up, the audio comes in audibly though does feel very canned.
Eufy 2C Pro
The 2C Pro films in 2K at fifteen frames per second and offers an increased FOV of 135 degrees (the other models offer 130). The addition of the Homebase 2 makes the 2C Pro a bit more appealing as the cumbersome storage requirements of 2K video are easier to accommodate. Though when comparing it exclusively on visual quality, it looks comparable to the S40 and E40.
When idle or detecting motion, the Eufy 2C Pro can accurately pause an image and clearly make out most details for anything up to thirty feet out in the daytime. In fact, you will more than likely have little issue seeing anything clearly when it comes to any daytime recordings. The biggest issue you may have comes from visual obstructions due to weather or unforeseen foliage.
At nighttime, you are going to have a bit more difficulty spotting people at night, though only from a good distance out. When testing out the night vision capabilities of the 2C Pro it was hard to notice any difference between its night vision and that of the other Eufy products. It is in black and white and works well to detect motion in low light environments but also makes it harder to distinguish who is on the recording.
Like the S40 and L20, the 2C Pro comes with a built-in spotlight that makes nighttime footage a lot easier to make out visually. Speaking of visibility – anything past fifteen to twenty feet is going to be visible but hard to see in focus. This is about the same result throughout all the spotlight comparisons. With that said, the spotlight is very important for anyone who wants to keep track of motion past midnight.
The 2C Pro is excellent at picking up all audio around you – all of it. Is there a bird issuing melodic threats to potential rivals? You will hear it. Lawnmower? Almost certainly. Do you sing in the shower? You can finally hear which notes you were flat on.
Because of this, it might be worthwhile to make sure the camera is in a position that won’t have too much audio interference. With that said, it does a good job of making sure all the audio comes in clearly and concisely. From the video footage sampled there was little to no compression and the audio could be heard smoothly from thirty feet out.
Verdict – While the 2C Pro offers more storage space, based strictly on visuals we would recommend the 2C Pro or S40. They both offer 2k film, a spotlight, and night vision should you need it.
While the L20 does offer a spotlight, it lacks the higher resolution of the other products. The E40 comes with 2k resolution footage but lacks the spotlight needed to offer a higher visibility range.
Conclusion
All four cameras are absolutely worthwhile depending on the situation you are looking to manage. For those on a tight spending budget who don’t mind a lack of lighting – the E40 is exceptional. If you need a bit more lighting at the cost of a few pixels, the L20 is a bit more expensive but well worth the cost.
The S40 is the best camera on this list that doesn’t offer cloud storage and outside of a limited storage capability is very reliable and long-lasting. The Eufy 2C Pro can be a bit difficult to set up, though if you can stomach a painful installation this product is easily the most advanced (and expensive) camera on the list.
~~~ Check Price: Eufy SoloCam S40 ~~~
~~~ Check Price: Eufy SoloCam E40 ~~~
