Wyze adds detection of people using AI to its $ 20 Wyze camera line

Wyze is catching up slowly but surely with the major manufacturers of intelligent security cameras. Today, the Seattle – based startup has added full functionality to its product line: People Detection. Using artificial intelligence software from the nearby company Xnor.ai, Wyze says he is now able to identify people through the video stream of his existing cameras, making it possible through an upgrade. live firmware day.

Previously, Wyze products could not tell you what was happening on camera, except motion detection. But it was not possible to tell the difference between a pet and a person, and it was far from the robust features of artificial intelligence of mid-range and high-end competing options.

This feature is available today for the Wyze Cam V2 and Wyze Cam Pan, priced at $ 20 and $ 30 respectively. This is the real news: Wyze is neither Amazon nor Google, but you can buy five to ten for the price of an Amazon Cloud Cam or Nest Cam IQ camera. Now, these cameras can perform a key artificial intelligence feature that differentiates these big players from smart homes.

The fact that Wyze can continually add features that were once thought to be the hallmarks of multi-price cameras is testament to the company's success in the smart home, a market brimming with products of identical appearance that are all trying to charge a few hundred dollars for slightly smarter versions of gadgets you may not need or have. Wyze's approach is different. It sells absurdly cheap products, starting with cameras, and encourages consumers to create this ecosystem with similar products, such as the Wyze Sense security kit ($ 20) and the new Wyze Bulb ($ 8).

Inexplicably, Wyze products do not seem to compromise quality, even if some of the essential features escape you when you use Wyze on more expensive options, such as continuous cloud recording (Wyze can only record when it is available). continuously on a local microSD), display by browser, and so on. facial recognition. That said, for the price, it's hard to ignore the Wyze range, and it's getting harder now that features like artificial intelligence detection are added for free.