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WIRED TIRED Resolution Angle View PTZ Capabilities Image type Storage Audio Furbo Mini 360° Compact and affordable; 360 degree vision; treat dispensing Treat dispensing noise is jarring; needs subscription service to access most features 1080p HD 360 degrees Yes Color, color night vision Extra storage with paid plan Two-Way Petcube Cam 360 Ability to pan up and down; affordable price Need paid care plan for the best features 1080p HD 360 degrees Yes Color, night vision Only live feed; storage with paid Care plan Two-way Imilab C30 Dual Security Camera Dual lens (wide and telephoto); supports local storage; can track people Limited frame rate; app is a little confusing 3K (5MP) high definition resolution 360 degrees Yes (top camera) Color, color and infrared night vision Cloud and/or MicroSD memory card (up to 256 GB, not included) Two-way Tkenpro 2K Pet Camera Treat Dispenser 355 degree pan rotation; treat storage and dispensing; can be used with cloud or memory card No ability to pan up and down 2K high definition 355 degrees Yes Color, night vision Cloud and/or memory card (up to 128 GB, not included) Two-way Furbo 360 Dog Camera Can pan 360 degrees and dispense treats Paid subscription service needed for many of the features 1080p HD 360 degrees Yes Color, color night vision Extra storage with paid plan Two-way SiiPet PawTrack AI Camera No subscription required (although Care+ add-on is optional); uses Pet ID to track specific pets individually Auto-tracking feature can be chaotic; doesn't always categorize pets or activities correctly; ships only in the US 8MP 360 degrees horizontal; 270 degrees vertical Yes Color, color night vision 32 GB included; extra storage with paid plan Two-way Enabot Rola Mini Has 2K video resolution, battery lasts up to 25 days, has pet entertainment features Manual charging via additional cord 2K 137 degrees No, the whole machine moves Color; black-and-white night vision Built-in 32GB microSD card (supports up to 256MB memory) Two-way Petlibro Scout Smart Camera AI built-in to differentiate between and track pets; can recognize and organize videos of up to five pets; has 360-degree pan-and-tilt and two-way audio features; works with 2.5- and 5-GHz Wi-Fi Camera disconnected with weak Wi-Fi and had to be manually replugged to reconnect; pricier than similar options on the market; need subscription plan to access most of the AI features; privacy concerns with cloud-stored footage being used to train AI 1080p HD 360 degrees Yes Color, black-and-white and color night vision Paid subscription plan Two-way Enabot Ebo SE FamilyBot Traverses bumps, obstacles, and various terrain easily; heads back to convenient charging dock when battery is low Video feed can lag; can't see higher-up view (because it drives on the floor) 1080p 118 degrees No, the whole machine moves Color; black-and-white night vision Built-in 16GB SD card Two-way Petcube Play 2 Includes interactive laser toy Laser doesn't always auto-engage, and sometimes short play time 1080p HD 160 degrees No Color, night vision Only live feed; storage with paid Care plan Two-way
Others Tested
Photograph: Molly Higgins
Enabot Ebo Air 2 for $199: This model from Enabot is an improved interactive robot toy and camera on wheels from the brand's lineup. It's got a 2K HD camera, two-way audio, and a laser toy, and you control the robot's movements from your phone's app. It's lightweight and compact, and can easily maneuver around objects. While acting as a pet camera, the robot also entertains (or scares or confuses) your pet by making various animal noises, doing tricks like spinning and zigzagging, and displaying various “emotions” via its front screen. It also has a built-in laser toy that my cats actually played with, along with key features like 24/7 video recording with smart playback, motion detection, and activity alerts.
Photograph: Molly Higgins
Furbo Mini for $40: I love this super-affordable, 360-degree-rotating, basic pet camera. Furbo's app is easy to use, the 1080 HD feed is clear, it can be mounted on a wall, and it has two-way audio. It’s connected to power via USB, but it only works with 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi , so beware. As is the case with most other pet cameras, to access the full features—like smart detection, alerts, and access to historical video footage—you’ll need Furbo Nanny, the paid subscription service. Luckily, Furbo gives you a 14-day free trial to see if the service is a good fit.
Photograph: Molly Higgins
Petcube Bites 2 Lite for $125: This food-dispensing camera from Petcube has HD 1080p live streaming video, night vision up to 30 feet, the ability to zoom up to 8X, and two-way audio to talk to and hear your pets. There's also an easily detachable plastic treat dispenser that holds up to 1.5 pounds of kibble, and you can toss treats remotely from the app, where you can also control the amount and distance. With the subscription service, the app alerts you when the device detects motion or sound, and logs it with playback video. I like the customization capabilities and clear video feed, but—like with other Petcube devices—you sort of need the extra Care plan to unlock all of the best features.
Photograph: Molly Higgins
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