Ajax IndoorCam – smart Wi-Fi security camera with IR motion sensor and AI
We recently got acquainted with Ajax DoorBell – a smart video doorbell that can recognize people, animals and cars thanks to AI, and also integrates with Ajax Systems security systems. However, the company’s portfolio includes a similar device – IndoorCam Wi-Fi video surveillance camera, which is intended for indoor use. What interesting things it has to offer and how well it performs as a security system sensor, we will tell in this review.
Package contents
The Ajax IndoorCam box contains everything you need: the camera itself, a power supply (12 V adapter), a mounting kit with a mounting plate, screws and dowels, and documentation.
Design and features
The camera is made in a minimalist design and has a matte plastic body - such a device will easily fit into the interior of an apartment or office. At the same time, the manufacturer offers two color options: black (RAL 9005) and white (RAL 9003). In both versions, the front panel remains black.
The IndoorCam body is mounted on a hinged leg, which allows you to rotate and tilt the camera to choose the optimal viewing angle. The camera is quite compact (dimensions 128×74×76 mm, weight – 235 grams) and can simply stand on a shelf or be mounted on a wall or ceiling using the included bracket.
The front panel of the camera has an LED status indicator, a lens, an IR motion sensor lens (PIR sensor), a microphone, and an ambient light sensor. On the back is a power connector and a connection button. IndoorCam is intended for indoor use only (housing protection degree IP20), the operating temperature range corresponds to room conditions.
The camera is equipped with a 4-megapixel sensor (resolution up to 2688×1520 pixels) with support for wide dynamic range (HDR) for high-quality images in difficult lighting conditions. The viewing angle is 110° horizontally and 60° vertically – this is enough to cover most of the room, although for very spacious rooms, several cameras may be needed. For shooting in the dark, infrared illumination with a range of up to 8 m is provided - at night the camera automatically switches to black and white mode and illuminates the scene with invisible IR light, providing a fairly clear image within the room. There is a PIR sensor above the lens that detects movement at a distance of up to 4 m. The combination of video analysis and an IR sensor helps reduce false alarms: the camera "feels" the thermal movement of people or animals, even if the frame is dark or the object is not moving clearly enough for conventional video analysis.
For two-way audio communication, IndoorCam has a built-in microphone and speaker. In practice, the speaker volume was sufficient to hear the voice from the camera in the next room, and the microphone is quite sensitive to indoor sounds, but without significant echo. However, it is worth understanding that this is not a specialized means of communication and the quality of voice transmission is not the main thing here, but for quick communication with people in the room it is enough.
Ajax IndoorCam connects to the network via Wi-Fi (2.4 GHz band). A wired Ethernet connection is not provided, but for a surveillance camera that may need to be installed in a location without a cable, wireless communication is a common solution.
It is worth noting the possibility of integrating IndoorCam with the Ajax hub. The camera can be added to an existing security system as a new device: a backup communication channel is supported via the proprietary Jeweller and Wings radio protocols. If the Wi-Fi connection is unstable or disappears, IndoorCam is able to continue transmitting notifications, alarms and photos via the secure Jeweller/Wings channels at a distance of up to 1700 m to the hub. That is, even in a large house or office, the camera will remain connected using the autonomous Ajax radio network.
It is important to note that in the backup communication mode, streaming video is not transmitted – only events and images, but this is enough for notification. The camera is powered by the mains (12 V, 1 A). There is no built-in battery, unlike the DoorBell, so it will turn off in the absence of current. If continuous operation is required during a power outage, a backup power supply should be provided.
Functionality, settings and usage
The Ajax application interface for cameras is very user-friendly. The program has a separate "Video Wall" tab, which allows you to simultaneously view video from several cameras on one screen. In the case of one camera, there are two quick ways to access the broadcast: you can either select IndoorCam from the list of devices (in the "Devices" tab), or go to the "Video Wall" tab, where the camera will be displayed as a tile in real time. In both cases, the image appears with less than a second of delay. The broadcast quality is quite high: even in Auto mode, the picture is generally clear and smooth, the resolution is adjusted to the network speed. If necessary, you can quickly switch to higher quality (HQ) or vice versa to lower (LQ). The maximum resolution of IndoorCam is 2688×1520 pixels at a frequency of up to 25 fps.
While viewing in real time, the camera interface has some useful features. First, the "Talk" button allows you to enable two-way communication - by pressing it, you can speak to the person in the room through the camera's speaker and hear their response through your smartphone.
Secondly, if you have an archive connected, a timeline with event tags appears under the video. To save video from the camera, there are two options: connect an Ajax NVR network video recorder or subscribe to Ajax Cloud cloud storage. Everything works the same as in the case of Ajax DoorBell. When connecting cloud storage, the camera records video and audio every time a motion sensor is triggered or another specified event occurs.
In the settings, you can choose the recording mode: constantly, by motion (or other alarm) and even only when the security is activated - the latter option is convenient so that the camera does not record your relatives during the day, but starts recording when an unauthorized intrusion occurs. The maximum duration of one fragment can be 30, 60, 90 or 120 seconds. On the timeline, events are displayed with different icons – pressing the record button, movement, person, etc., and you can quickly rewind the video to the desired moment.
Archive viewing is well implemented: there is a convenient calendar for selecting a date and an event filter by type. For example, you can filter only for human triggers, or only for sensor alarms. There is also the option to download the desired fragment to your smartphone (MP4 video up to 15 minutes long) or take a snapshot from the camera. The latter is saved in the smartphone gallery – for example, if you see something interesting in the frame, you can take a picture with one click.
As for the IndoorCam settings in the application, it has actually transferred many of the features from its professional video surveillance cameras to the home camera. In particular, you can flexibly configure which events will trigger notifications from the camera.
Available modes: react to any movement or only to people, only to animals or only to vehicles. The latter is not very relevant for a home camera, but can be useful if you decide to place it, for example, in a garage. The system works thanks to the built-in AI, which analyzes the image in real time and determines what exactly has hit the lens. I observed this in the application: when I entered the room, a green inscription "Human" appeared at the top of the video stream with a percentage of probability (mostly 95-99%). When our dog ran in the frame, the camera identified it as "Animal" (mostly 85%).
In a week of use, I didn't have a single false positive: the camera never confused, say, a shadow from a curtain with a person, and it didn't react to a pet when I set the alert to only people. Compared to regular cameras, which often send notifications for every movement, this is quite convenient.
Motion detection zones are configured separately. In the application, you can open the camera view and select areas in which you want or don't want to track motion. Another useful feature is "hidden zones". It allows you to cover part of the image with black rectangles, effectively masking certain areas of the frame. This option came to IndoorCam from professional Ajax outdoor cameras and will come in handy if you don't want to record video where it is undesirable. For example, you can hide the area where the Ajax keypad is located (so that the camera doesn't spy on your alarm code) or, say, a part of the room that concerns the private area of your relatives or tenants.
It is important that IndoorCam is deeply integrated with the Ajax security system. The camera can not only send its own notifications, but also work according to scenarios together with other sensors. For example, you can configure IndoorCam to automatically record video for 1 minute and save it to the cloud if the Ajax MotionProtect motion sensor is triggered in security mode. You can also configure recording on door opening alarms, fire detectors, etc. If desired, you can also manually turn on recording from the camera at any time.
In terms of privacy and access, the Ajax system is built so that the video stream is controlled by the owner. In the "Privacy" section of the application, you can quickly add and remove users, as well as determine who has access to view live video, access to the archive, or cannot access the camera at all. By default, after adding a new camera, only the system administrator (account owner) can see it. This means that even the installation engineer or security company that installed IndoorCam will not have access to it unless you provide it yourself. Ajax also emphasizes that IndoorCam is designed with privacy in mind: all data is encrypted during storage and transmission, and video archives are located on servers in the European Union, in accordance with GDPR requirements.
The lack of a memory card may be perceived as a drawback, but from a security perspective it makes sense, because if an attacker physically steals the camera, they will not get any video. However, the ability to record will require additional costs, either for connecting to the Ajax cloud, or through the purchase of a compatible NVR and organizing your own video storage.
It is worth adding that IndoorCam can also work autonomously, without an Ajax hub - all you need is Wi-Fi and a smartphone with the manufacturer's proprietary application. In this case, it will simply act as a smart camera: you will still receive notifications, be able to watch live video and even use cloud recording. But IndoorCam makes the most sense precisely in the Ajax ecosystem, as it combines the functionality of a smart camera and, in addition, a security system sensor. It also provides a backup communication channel via the hub.