Compare our selections Others tested Photography: Molly Higgins Enabot Ebo Air 2 for $199: This Enabot model is an improved interactive toy robot and camera on wheels from the brand’s line. It has a 2K HD camera, two-way audio, and a laser toy, and you control the robot’s movements from the app on your phone.
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Photography: Molly Higgins
Enabot Ebo Air 2 for $199: This Enabot model is an improved interactive toy robot and camera on wheels from the brand’s line. It has a 2K HD camera, two-way audio, and a laser toy, and you control the robot’s movements from the app on your phone. It is 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 weaving, and displaying various “emotions” through its front screen. It also has a built-in laser toy that my cats really played with, along with key features like 24/7 video recording with smart playback, motion detection, and activity alerts.
Photography: Molly Higgins
Petcube Play 2 for $60: This Petcube attempts to combine popular laser toys that cats love with a pet security camera, with mixed results. Like many other cameras in the brand’s lineup, the Play 2 has crisp color and night vision, an extra-wide view, and two-way audio. The laser toy is supposed to activate automatically when motion is detected, but this didn’t happen often when I tested the camera. When the laser worked and got my cats attention, the function quickly turned off. Additionally, because the camera needed to be placed high on a shelf to see the area, the laser was often too high for the cats to try to pick it up. You can manually play with the cat with the laser through the app, although it often has delays and my cats ended up becoming more perplexed than playful when the laser was on. It’s a solid camera, but the toy look falls a bit flat.
Photography: Molly Higgins
Furbo Mini for $17: I love this basic, super affordable, 360-degree rotating pet camera. The Furbo app is easy to use, the 1080 HD stream is clear, it can be mounted on a wall, and it has two-way audio. It is connected to power via USB, but it only works with 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi, so be careful. As is the case with most other pet cameras, to access all the features, such as smart detection, alerts, and access to historical video footage, you will need Furbo Nanny, the paid subscription service. Luckily, Furbo offers you a 14-day free trial to see if the service is a good fit.
Photography: Molly Higgins
Petcube bites 2 Lite for $70: This Petcube food dispensing camera has 1080p HD live video streaming, night vision up to 30 feet, up to 8X zoom capability, 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 launch 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 records it with video playback. I like the customization capabilities and clear video streaming, but as with other Petcube devices, you need the additional Care plan to unlock the best features.
Photography: Molly Higgins
Enabot Rola PetPal Robot Pet Companion for $200 (treat dispensing): This wheeled pet camera has the best of intentions, but the sometimes glitchy app makes the combination of pet camera, toy, and feeder a little hit and miss. Through the app, you can watch your pets on the security camera and drive the robot, pressing buttons to do tricks and hand out treats. You can view the live camera feed from the app, but you can also schedule recordings, which can be viewed via cloud playback, and compiles a 30-second “day in the life” compilation. The robot is also supposed to detect abnormal movements or sounds, such as barking or breaking glass, and send a smart alert to the owner with a time stamp while they are away from home. Through AI-powered pet recognition, the robot can also take a photo of your pet, but the AI features were unreliable when I tested them.
Photography: Molly Higgins
Petcube Camera for $32: This simple, compact camera doesn’t have all the bells and whistles of more advanced models, but it’s a great price for a basic, reliable pet camera. Like others in the Petcube line, it has a 1080p HD camera, night vision, and two-way audio. It sits on hinges and can tilt up and down, with the option to flip the video feed in the app if you want to position it horizontally. You’ll need the brand’s subscription Care plan to get features beyond live streaming. You can set a “motion zone” to receive notifications only in a specific area and connect your phone’s location to the app, so you receive alerts more frequently when you’re away. You can also share the camera feed with others so they can watch remotely and specify the footage you want to share. This camera is basic, but it has a high-quality camera feed and advanced extras that make it a bargain at this price.
Photography: Molly Higgins
Catit Pixi Smart Mouse Camera for $56: This cutie looks like a miniature mouse with oversized magnetic legs that attach to a metal stand and the mouse legs articulate so you can adjust the height and camera angle. While adorable, it’s expensive for what it is: the lens doesn’t move and requires a microSD to get video footage beyond a live stream. With the SD card, you can scroll through the video to see what happened in days gone by, record live footage, and save photos and videos to your smartphone’s camera roll. However, even with the SD card, it was difficult to determine exactly which moment you’re looking at when reviewing the footage. The live video stream may have delays and on some occasions there were connectivity issues. It’s a bit expensive at this price for its (lack of) capabilities.
Photography: Molly Higgins
Closer Pets TreatView with Pet Camera for $100: This solid pet camera features an HD camera, two-way communication, motion detection, a built-in memory card, and cup storage for kibble or treats, which you can schedule or dispense randomly. The video stream was always clear, although the sound was a bit slow and difficult to hear well. The treat portions were huge and dispensed a heaping handful of kibble even on the lowest setting. The alert sound when dispensing was very jarring and my pets got scared; there was no way to silence it. Due to the location of the kibble dispensing hole, the camera is at a low angle, making it difficult to see the area I wanted. This is a solid pet camera, but its extra features become a burden rather than an advantage.
Not recommended
Photography: Molly Higgins
Enabot EBO Max FamilyBot for $510: I’m generally a big fan of Enabot’s pet tech, especially when it comes to Enabot’s line of pet cameras, which are generally affordable and perform consistently well without needing an additional expensive cloud storage system. This camera is touted as an AI family companion that can recognize pets and household members, remember routines and preferences, and come when called. Plus, it has the features expected from a wheeled pet camera, such as two-way audio and video, night vision, and 4K images. My camera hasn’t worked properly since setup, and the robot constantly can’t connect or recharge while in the dock. I’m chatting to the support team so I’m hoping to find a solution and I’ll update the review once I’ve figured out if it can be fixed or it’s just a failed product.
To find the best pet cameras to try, I first looked for security cameras that had additional pet-specific features. I set up each camera individually, noting any difficulties or issues with the initial setup, setup with Wi-Fi, and the speed and reliability of the camera’s transmission. I tested each camera for at least a week (most, much longer) in various locations around my home and rigorously tested the additional features available on most cameras, such as scheduled feeding, food dispensing, play time, and scheduled recordings, and noted any issues I experienced. During the months of testing, I went out of town several times and completely relied on these cameras to keep an eye on my two children, i.e. the cats.
So is there Actually What is the difference between security cameras and pet cameras? type of
Security cameras let you keep an eye on your home (and your pet) while you’re away, but pet cameras often have some more pet-specific features, like the ability to dispense treats and interact with your furry friend via a two-way speaker. These cameras with special features can help alleviate common pet problems such as separation anxiety or boredom. The Pet Companion Enabot Rola PetPal robot, for example, has accessories so you can give your pet a treat remotely or engage in “play time.”
That’s not to say you can’t use a security camera as a pet camera, but like any other smart home device that connects to Wi-Fi, there’s a chance it could be hacked and compromise your privacy. Make sure your Wi-Fi password is strong and set up two-factor authentication with your camera app; It’s not a bad idea to keep it off when you’re home, as an extra precaution.
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