D-Link Omna 180 Cam HD.
D-Link Omna 180 Cam HD.
D-Link is no stranger to home security cameras, but its Omna 180 is quite a bit different from the rest.
One of two HomeKit cameras con rmed to date, it’s the only one that has actually shipped.
A quick scan of the HomeKit code was all I did to pair the Omna 180 with my iPhone and get it onto my network.
The camera then appeared in the Apple Home app on my iPhone, and all my other iOS devices signed into the same iCloud account.
While D-Link’s own Omna app can view the live stream too, I used it more for advanced settings not found in Apple’s Home app, such as updating the camera’s firmware, playing back the videos recorded to the camera’s microSD card, or changing motion detection parameters.
Since the camera is HomeKit enabled, I could do a lot of Apple-y stuff with it too, such as asking Siri to check on the camera’s status (this would bring up the live feed), and configure simple automation recipes in the Home app. For example, I’ve created a rule that will turn on a light when motion is detected.
The Omna 180’s picture quality is good, but not great.
Its 180-degree field of view works best for end-toend room coverage; and even though there’s a bit of distortion at both ends, I never found it to be a problem. Night vision also worked well in my tests, as long as the subject wasn’t over 3 meters away from the camera. Push alerts came in timely, too.
My biggest gripe is that there’s no zoom function, not even digital zoom. The camera also doesn’t support sound detection. For $319, the Omna 180 is a tad light on features. Personally, I’m okay with saving the video clips to a microSD card, but I can understand that for security reasons others may prefer a network or cloud storage option.
If you use an iPhone or iPad and are looking for a secure and an easy to use home surveillance camera, the Omna 180 is a decent choice. Unlike other IP cameras, it has the potential to get better, though that rests a lot on what Apple has planned for HomeKit.
