Motion Detection and PIR Effective Area

The Motion Detection and PIR Effective Area features work together to identify movement in a specific area. Have a Wyze Cam Outdoor pointed at your driveway? These features help detect people or vehicles that move in view of the camera. 

Motion Detection

Wyze Cam Outdoor uses a PIR sensor to detect heat, which triggers the pixel comparison algorithm that compares key frames from the stream, and looks for differences between frames.

Sensitivity

The sensitivity you have Motion Detection set to determine whether a big movement (low sensitivity) or a small movement (high sensitivity) is needed to trigger an alert.

If you only want a motion alert if a person-sized or car-sized figure moves into the frame, lower the sensitivity. If your camera is monitoring a small area, like a tabletop garden, increase the sensitivity.

To change the Sensitivity setting:

1. In the Wyze app, tap Home then your Wyze Cam Outdoor.
2. Tap the Settings  icon on the top right, then Detection Settings.
3. Move the slider left or right to lower or increase the sensitivity.
4. Your change will save automatically.

Is Sensitivity different from Wyze Cam v2 and Pan?

Yes. Sensitivity for the Wyze Cam Outdoor involves an integrated Passive Infrared Light (PIR) sensor, which detects heat. Learn more about PIR below.

Recording Cooldown

When a 12-second event video is recorded, there's an adjustable interval which serves as a cooldown between when recordings can be triggered.  Intervals can be set between 1, 3, 5 minutes.

With a Cam Plus license, intervals can be set from 15 seconds to 5 minutes depending on preference, and can be adjusted at any time through the Settings. You can also adjust the maximum recording length of motion events to capture the entire events with a Cam Plus license.

To change the Recording Cooldown setting:

1. In the Wyze app, tap Home then your Wyze Cam Outdoor.
2. Tap the Settings gear  on the top right.
3. Tap Event Recording.
4. Under Recording Settings, tap Recording Cooldown.
5. Choose the cooldown interval you prefer, then tap Save.

The Recording Cooldown is offered as a way of preventing the camera from recording back-to-back events since this can quickly drain the battery.

Motion Detection Zone

Your Wyze Cam Outdoor may be positioned to view a large space (like a barn), but you might only want to detect motion in a specific area (the entrance). You can specify the motion detection zone right where you adjust the Sensitivity.

Wyze Cam Outdoor still uses a passive infrared light (PIR) sensor to detect anything that emits heat. With Motion Detection Zone, Wyze Cam Outdoor uses a pixel comparison algorithm to determine if the motion happens within the zone to reduce false events and save the battery.

To adjust the Motion Detection Effective Area:

1. In the Wyze app, tap on your Wyze Cam Outdoor.
2. Tap the Settings gear  on the top right, then Detection Settings > Detection Zone.
3. Toggle Detection Zone on.
4. Select the grids so that the target area is within the motion detection zone.

Passive Infrared Light (PIR)

The PIR sensor in your Wyze Cam Outdoor is part of what sets it apart from other Wyze Cam devices. This sensor detects anything that emits heat, like warm-blooded people and animals. It can also help detect vehicles if the engine is warm.

Note: With the positioning of the PIR sensor, left-to-right and right-to-left motion is most likely to trigger the sensor. Movement from the top down, and moving directly towards the camera, are less likely to trigger the sensor to detect motion.

Combined with a PIR sensor, and a defined Motion Detection pixel comparison, Wyze Cam Outdoor is really good at detecting the things you want to see most. 

To get the most out of the PIR sensor, place the camera in direct view of the effective area and away from constant heat sources. Avoid placing the camera in direct sunlight, pointed towards moving tree branches or general traffic.