Best Deals on Smart Home Devices

The Arlo Pro 5S is one of the company’s higher-end security cameras. It’s weatherproof and battery-powered, allowing you to place it just about anywhere on your property within WiFi range. It offers decent video quality and features color night vision, a built-in siren, and two-way audio. Additional features like AI object detection and activity zones require an Arlo Secure subscription.

This three-pack was $200 for the holidays, but considering a two-pack is $5 more right now, we still think it’s a worthwhile discount if you want something now and this fits your needs.

The TP-Link Tapo C420S2 performs well across the board in our tests for video quality, response time, data security, and smart features. This two-camera kit’s features include color night vision, person detection, pet detection, vehicle detection, a built-in siren, and free local video storage on up to a 256GB microSD card. Cloud video storage is also available with a subscription.

The TP-Link Tapo MagCam C425, now $10 more than during the last sale, is a compact, battery-powered security camera that performs well in our tests. It offers local storage with up to a 512-gigabyte microSD card (sold separately) and features person detection, pet detection, vehicle detection, monitoring zones, and more. Best of all, you don’t need a subscription to use any of these features. TP-Link also sells a $40 solar panel that can be connected to the camera to keep its battery charged. This TP-Link security camera is still at its best price.

The Aqara Camera E1 is a strong performer, especially for video quality and response time of alerts. It can store footage on a microSD card (up to 512 gigabytes; sold separately) and offers plenty of features, including  person detection, motorized pan-and-tilt so you can remotely change the camera’s view, and a privacy mode that will point the camera at a wall or ceiling.

Google’s newest smart thermostat, the Nest Learning Thermostat 4th gen, came out just a few months ago, but it’s already on sale at a modest discount. The model comes with a remote temperature sensor that you can place in another room to balance heating and cooling. It’s also one of just a few Matter-compatible smart thermostats on the market, meaning it works with any major smart home system, including Apple Home.

The Ecobee Smart Thermostat Premium offers advanced features such as a radar-based occupancy sensor, an indoor air quality sensor, built-in voice control with either Amazon Alexa or Apple Siri (which requires an Apple HomePod to work), and music streaming to its speaker via Spotify or Bluetooth (yes, really). In our lab tests, it also receives strong scores for its manual controls and automation of heating and cooling. The slightly less advanced Ecobee Smart Thermostat Enhanced is on sale, too, priced at $173.

The Google Nest Video Doorbell (Battery) offers impressive data security, speedy response times, and decent video quality in our lab tests. It’s also one of few video doorbells to give you monitoring zones, object recognition (of people, packages, animals, and vehicles), and 3 free hours of cloud video storage without a monthly subscription. Cloud video storage and additional features (such as facial recognition) require a Google Nest Aware subscription.

In addition to two cameras (one aimed out at visitors, the other down at packages), the Eufy Video Doorbell E340 packs a ton of features, including color night vision (thanks to built-in spotlights), person detection, package detection, and 8 gigabytes of memory to store video locally. Eufy also offers cloud video storage subscriptions. The model can be powered with the rechargeable battery pack or low-voltage doorbell wiring. The Eufy S330 is also on sale, in both the wired ($124.99) and battery-powered ($154.99) configuration.

One of the best (and least expensive!) doorbell cameras you can buy, the TP-Link Tapo D130 offers a bunch of features—even without a subscription. They include 24/7 recording with local video storage on a microSD card (up to 512 gigabytes, sold separately), AI object recognition (for people, vehicles, packages, and pets), activity zones, and color night vision. The model needs low-voltage doorbell wiring for power. Cloud video storage is available via subscription. This doorbell is 25 percent off its list price, and it’s such a great product that any discount is worth taking.

The Arlo Video Doorbell 2K is one of the best video doorbells you can buy. It provides the flexibility to install it wherever you need it. You can run it using the rechargeable battery or hardwire it to a home’s doorbell wiring for continuous power. Features include geofencing and voice/app control via Amazon Alexa and Google Home/Assistant. Cloud video storage and additional features (such as alerts for people, packages, animals, and vehicles) require an Arlo Secure subscription. The price has fallen $20 below the previous best price.

The Floodlight Cam E340 is one of Eufy’s dual-camera models, meaning it has a 3K wide-angle camera and a 2K telephoto camera that work together to give you up to 8x zoom. It’s also one of the few motorized pan-and-tilt floodlight cameras available today, allowing you to easily check the camera’s surroundings. It receives top scores for video quality and response time in our tests. Its laundry list of features includes local video storage with up to a 128-gigabyte microSD card (sold separately), motion tracking to follow subjects as they move around your home, and 24/7 video recording (not just recording when motion is detected). This floodlight cam is a good price right now, but it was $20 less for Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

The Google Nest Cam with Floodlight offers impeccable video quality, strong data security, and speedy response times. Its features include activity zones to control what areas in front of the camera trigger recording, app/voice control (via Amazon Alexa, Google Home/Assistant, and Samsung SmartThings), and free object detection for people, animals, and vehicles. That last feature is a big deal because most competitors charge you a subscription for it. Cloud video storage and additional features require a Nest Aware subscription. This camera was $190 for Cyber Monday, so you’re not saving quite as much, but this is the only major retailer with a discount now.

Interested in a smart lock but don’t like hubs and dongles? The August WiFi Smart Lock connects directly to WiFi, no hub needed. It’s also a retrofit model, meaning it replaces only the interior side of your deadbolt so you can keep your existing keys. It performs quite well in our tests, including those for ease of remote access and convenience. Features include auto-locking and unlocking, access logs, electronic keys, and a door sensor.

The Schlage Encode Plus supports Apple Home Key, which lets you unlock your door with a tap from an Apple Watch or iPhone (similar to Apple Pay). The Encode Plus performs well in our brute-force tests for kick-ins and drilling, but it’s somewhat susceptible to lock-picking. Features include an access log, auto-locking, electronic keys, a tamper alarm, and compatibility with voice assistants and smart home apps, including Amazon Alexa, Apple Home/Siri, and Google Home/Assistant. This is $10 more than its best price.

As the name suggests, the Yale Assure Lock 2 is the successor to the Yale Assure Lock SL. This keyless model performs well in our tests, holding up against kick-ins and attacks from a cordless drill. It’s very easy to set up, connect to WiFi, and control remotely when you’re not home. With the included Yale WiFi Smart Module (an $80 value) it also supports Amazon Alexa, Apple Home/Siri, Google Home/Assistant, and Samsung SmartThings.

The average price is closer to $220, so you’re really only saving about $18.

The Eve Water Guard is a great leak detector, but it only works for Apple Home users at this time. When it detects water, it triggers a siren and sends you a smartphone alert. The device plugs into an outlet for continuous power and comes with a 6.5-foot water-sensing cable that you can run from the detector along floors and around pipes. To increase the reach, you can add a 6.5-foot cable extension for $20.

If you want to monitor a handful of trouble spots in your home, the X-Sense Wi-Fi Water Leak Detector SWS54 provides the best bang for your buck. You get a hub with a siren and three wireless sensors you can place throughout your home. The sensors are unique in that they can detect water on the ground and water that drips on them from, say, exposed pipes. Each sensor has a siren, too, allowing you to easily identify the source of an alert without checking the X-Sense app. This is $5 more than the best price.

The Meross MSG100 is the best smart garage door opener controller from our at-home evaluation. It’s relatively easy to set up and install, and works flawlessly with all of the major smart-home systems (Amazon Alexa, Apple Home/Siri, Google Home/Assistant, and Samsung SmartThings). It’s $5 more than its best price.

The Airthings View Plus 2960 is a top performer in our tests. It’s very quick to set up, and you can easily view real-time readings through a smartphone app or a built-in display. The app also logs historical data from the monitor’s sensors. Unlike many other monitors, the Airthings claims to detect radon, a colorless, odorless, radioactive gas that can seep from the ground into a home. (CR hasn’t tested this function.) This air quality monitor is at its best price right now.