Xiaomi takes on Tapo with AI-powered budget security camera – and it's only £50!

If you’ve been putting off getting a security camera because you’re worried about the costs, look no further than the new Xiaomi smart camera. Proving that you can protect your home on a budget, the Xiaomi Smart Camera C701 has AI-powered detection and monitoring features – and it’s only £50!

Xiaomi has recently announced a fleet of new appliances and smart home products, including a smart washing machine which can do three loads at once. But its new security camera could give Tapo a run for its money – and it’s not hard to see where Xiaomi got its design inspiration from.

The new Xiaomi Smart Camera C701 measures just 79mm x 79mm x 119mm and weighs roughly 297g. It looks similar to Tapo’s new baby camera and it can act as a pet and baby monitor if needed – it can even recognise the sound of crying and will notify you.

The camera’s AI detection can track and recognise humans and pets, and automatically starts recording when it detects any kind of breach, and sends real-time image alerts to your phone. Aside from recognising your baby crying, the Xiaomi Smart Camera C701 also has loud noise detection and captures footage if it hears anything unusual.

The Xiaomi Smart Camera C701 is powered by the 1T AI chip so it responds extremely quickly and accurately if it spots anything suspicious. Despite its small size, it offers 360° horizontal and 109° vertical viewing angles, and has a wide-angle lens which captures images zoomed in in complete clarity.

Speaking of clarity, the Xiaomi Smart Camera C701 has 4K Ultra HD video, full colour night vision up to 10 metres, and infrared night vision. It also has an 8MP sensor with a 6-element optical lens which can shoot sharp video when zoomed in and far away.

With privacy in mind, the Xiaomi Smart Camera C701 has a lens shield which you can control manually or automatically, and even on a timer. It also supports dual-band Wi-Fi 6, Google Assistant and Alexa voice commands, and can store your video footage locally.

The Xiaomi Smart Camera C701 is available to buy now for £49.99 at Xiaomi. US pricing and availability hasn’t been announced yet. At such a low price, it does make me wonder about the quality of the Xiaomi Smart Camera C701, but it’ll be interesting to see how users get on with it when it hits the market.