Netatmo Welcome Uses Facial Recognition To Monitor Your Home

What makes a smart camera?

Most of the home security cameras today can immediately notify you if someone is at home. Although this sounds very helpful, you’ll still need to access your camera to verify if it is really an intruder or not. Netatmo wants to make things a lot more convenient for you as it now offers Welcome. It’s a home security camera built with facial recognition technology.

• Netatmo Welcome is a cylindrical device which stands at 6 inches tall. It’s exterior is made up of anodized aluminum and you can only purchase it in one color which is the champagne gold.
• It has a microUSD slot at the back and each Welcome comes with an 8Gb microSD. If you want a bigger storage size, up to 32GB, you can simply change it.
  • You should note, however, that changing the SD card will restart your device and most of the information it has learned will be wiped out.
• Welcome is powered through the microUSB port you can find on its back. In case you want to get the device wired, you can use the Ethernet port.

Setting up Netatmo is very easy. In fact, it only takes around a couple of minutes to get it up and running.

1. You have to plug your Netatmo Welcome to a power supply. You can use either the Ethernet cable or the power cord. It does not have battery back up so you need to find a good spot for it near your front door.
2. Through your computer, you need to access Netatmo and create your own account using your Wi-Fi and password.
3. After the account, you need to flip your Netatmo Welcome upside down.
4. You should wait for the blue indicator to light up before you can proceed with the next steps.
5. Once it turns blue, you can select the network you want to pair it with.
6. After making the right selections, you can flip the device again and you are good to go.

As for features, Netatmo Welcome is filled with amusing capabilities. It has a good camera, storage options and interesting features.

• Camera
  • Netatmo Welcome can record in HD, around 1080p. However, this resolution can vary depending on your internet speed.
  • Welcome has a 4MP video sensor.
  • It can give you a 130 degree view of your target area.
  • It also has night vision capabilities so you can see who sneaks it at night.
  • Netatmo Welcome can recognize faces.
    • For one, you can stare at the device for a few seconds to help it map your face. It should learn to discern you from strangers. However, Welcome is not expected to master your face right away. The more frequent it sees you, the more it learns your features.
    • Everytime Netatmo see an unfamiliar face, it would send you a notification, with a face and a question mark.
    • You actually have three options to respond. You can identify, tell Welcome to forget or declare that it’s not a face.
    • If you know the person, you can long press the image and create a profile so Welcome can know it’s not a stranger.
    • The more image your device has of your family members, the easier it can recognize you. There’s a strength meter on each profile to help you determine how well Netatmo knows each person in the house.
    • It is also important to take note of where you place your Netatmo Welcome. Too much backlight can prevent it from making an accurate facial recognition.
    • You should also keep your Netatmo away from your television set to avoid picking up images from your favorite TV show.
    • Be patient with your Netatmo Welcome. It may take some time before it can fully learn you and your family members’ facial features.

• Sensor
  • Netatmo Welcome has motion sensors, as well. The device will start recording the moment it senses something out of the ordinary at home.
  • Unfortunately, it doesn’t have sound sensors or two way talk feature.

• Storage
  • Netatmo Welcome sends recordings to your local storage. It’s actually safer since you’ll have no worries against hackers and security breaches.
  • As mentioned, Welcome arrives with a 8GB microSD. You can fill it with around 100 clips before the previous recordings get deleted.
  • It also has a Cloud storage although screenshots of your videos and screenshots of recognized faces are the only ones getting stored there.
  • Because of this, Netatmo won’t charge you of any registration or subscription fees.

• Notifications
  • You have the option to select only the people you want to get notified of.
  • You can set Netatmo to record and notify you whenever your child arrives home from school.On such note, you can choose not to get notified of your husband’s arrival.

• App
  • Netatmo Welcome has its own app which you can download via Google Play (Android 4.3 and up) and the App store (iOS 8 and up).
  • It gives you access to free online streaming of your camera and you can also use it to playback video.
  • Aside from the app, there’s also a web interface where you can control Welcome. However, training your device about facial recognition is best done with the app.
  • The Welcome app, other than the live streaming, can provide you with a log of all the detected activities at home.

If you want to keep track of your doors and windows, you can purchase the Welcome Tags.

• These tags sense vibrations and alert you right away in case any of your doors or windows, provided they have Tags installed on them, are suspiciously opened.
• You can place the Tags at around 100m from the Welcome Camera.
• They are waterproof which means you can set up Tags even in the outdoors.

Netatmo has been quite popular because of its interesting Weather Station and Thermostats. However, although Welcome and these devices come from the same company, Welcome remains an independent device. This means that your Welcome app will not work with the other Netatmo device. You have to download separate apps.

Netatmo Welcome is currently available in the UK, but you can purchase or make any inquiry regarding its availability at Netatmo’s website. The Welcome Camera is priced at around $200. The Tags are sold separate from the camera.