Lorex 2K Wired WiFi Smart Video Doorbell

I am updating the review of this doorbell camera because it turns out that the problems I was having was a T-Mobil problem and not a Lorex problem. I am now getting relatively fast notifications on both my home’s wi-fi and cellular. I have the camera set to person notification only and it works reliably with only occasional false alarms when a large vehicle drives by but that’s rare. I did have a problem where the first unit stopped working after only a few months but Lorex customer support was easy to work with and they did a cross-shipping warranty exchange so I wouldn’t be without my doorbell for two weeks so kudos for that. I also have the Amcrest version of this camera and while the hardware seems to be the same the Lorex app works much faster when connected to cellular. I also like that you can snooze the Lorex camera if you are working outside and within detection range so that you don’t get flooded with notifications, the Amcrest app does not have that feature. One really big advantage of the Amcrest is that you can make camera adjustments using their computer app, I really, really wish Lorex would provide something similar. While not relevant to everyone I also wish I could set a fixed IP address on the Lorex like I can on the Amcrest. All-in-all, I’m very satisfied now that the doorbell is working properly on my phone and would not hesitate to recommend this camera.

ORIGINAL REVIEW: First let me say that the image quality on this camera is very nice for a doorbell camera. Also the firmware does a good job at correcting most of the wide-angle distortion. I like the LED light on the bottom and have it set to flash when it detects motion so that people will look at the camera. The night color mode works pretty good with my porch light on (which it is all night) and the IR night mode works well too. There is only one HDR setting but it does a good job. Now for the bad parts. The Android app is a complete disaster. This is supposed to be a security camera, hence, it should notify you when it detects motion, or a person if that’s how you have it setup. The problem is that the notifications can often take several seconds to several minutes. What good is that? I am using a brand new mesh dual band router and a brand new 5G phone. The signal strength is at max bars for both the camera’s Wi-Fi and the phone’s 5G, so it’s not a signal issue. I also tried replacing the 24VAC 40VA transformer I was using on my old doorbell camera with a 2 pound industrial 24VAC 50VA transformer, so it’s not a power problem.

The app is slow to load and when I click on the camera icon I get a message that says “Loading live view” for over half a minute before getting the message “uh-oh, something went wrong”. It might take several tries before I can get a picture on my phone. The same thing happens when I try to view a recorded video. The only way I can get a picture on my phone within a reasonable amount of time is if I am sitting at home and turn on the Wi-Fi on my phone, then I can usually get to the camera. I even tried turning off every battery saving feature I could find on my phone, but the notifications still take way too long. There have been times when I’m not really thinking about the camera after leaving the house and several minutes I’ll get a notification while I’m driving. Turns out the notification was me leaving the house. The “person” detection is also good at detecting cats if you’re trying to keep an eye out for kitty.

Unbelievably there is no web interface for adjusting the camera, like getting rid of the huge LOREX logo that no one wants, or repositioning the date/time to where it works for you. There are no adjustments for brightness, contrast, saturation, white balance, HDR level, etc. This is a lot of money to pay for a camera that you can not adjust to suit your needs. Another head-scratcher is that the camera is not ONVIF compliant. I guess Lorex wants you to buy into their new Fusion system because this camera won’t even work with their slightly older non-Fusion NVRs. How’s that for ticking-off loyal Lorex customers?

Despite its shortcomings, this could be such a nice camera if the app actually worked, but after spending weeks of trouble-shooting, researching the Internet and trying every setting possible on the camera, my phone, and the app, I’m afraid this camera will not work on an Android 11 device.

Update review: I downgraded this camera to one star. In addition to my previous review below it turned out that my wife and I are getting sometimes notifications the other one doesn’t get. Example: I just had UPS drop off a package, my wife got the notification alarm I got nothing. All that while we were both sitting in our living room only a few feet apart. This doorbell does not work as advertised or expected, buy something else!
Previous review: Easy to install and setup, great for detecting movement in front of the door BUT horrible when somebody rings the doorbell.
First, after installing the doorbell camera my normal doorbell in the house does not ring anymore I only get a ring tone on my phone. I not only get the ringtone once, my phone keeps ringing until I stop it – extremely annoying. The picture from the camera does not come up as one would expect. I first have to unlock my phone and then open the Lorex app. This is arsenide. I expect that when somebody rings the doorbell, my phone rings only as often as the person rings just like a normal doorbell and then I expect the picture to show up immediately on my phone. To have to unlock the phone and then have to open the app to see who’s there completely defeats the reason for having a doorbell camera. If it wouldn’t be for the ease with which it detects our cat wanting to come in I would return the camera. So, for anybody who wants to use this just as a doorbell camera I cannot recommend this Lorex 2K Wifi doorbell camera.