The best facial recognition cameras

Lynx Pro

Cnet rating: 3 stars out of 5 (best feature range)

The good: The Lynx Pro has free seven-day event-based cloud video storage (like the Lynx Indoor), built-in local storage, a weatherproof exterior, battery backup and integration with Alexa and Google Assistant. The bad: The camera didn’t do particularly well at recognizing the faces we added in the app — or even at picking up on faces at all. The cost: $150 The bottom line: Tend Secure’s Lynx Pro needs some work before we can recommend it as a fully functional facial recognition camera, but its other features are great.

Lynx Indoor

Cnet rating: 3.5 stars out of 5 (best value) The good: Tend Secure’s Lynx Indoor has 1080p HD live streaming, free seven-day event-based cloud storage and solid facial-recognition software.

The bad: The Lynx doesn’t have any smart home partnerships, audio playback is garbled and its base doesn’t hold the camera in place very well. The cost: $60 The bottom line: If you can get past the wobbly base, this has a lot to offer at a truly exceptional value.

Nest Cam IQ Indoor

Cnet rating: 3.5 stars out of 5 (best smart home support)

The good: This has an 8-megapixel, 4K image sensor and improved 12x digital zoom for access to new livestreaming security features. A hardware upgrade improves the audio quality of the two-way talk function. The bad: You still have to pay at least $10 per month for continuous cloud video storage. The price doesn’t quite match up with the features added. The cost: $299 The bottom line: The Nest Cam IQ is a solid camera that costs a little too much for most home security do-it-yourselfers.

Nest Hello

Cnet rating: 4 stars out of 5 (best overall) The good: The video doorbell looks great and works consistently well. Its optional facial recognition feature and advanced integrations with the Nest Cam IQ Indoor and Google Home speakers set it above the rest.

The bad: A seemingly unnecessary “chime connector” accessory comes with your purchase and is a required part of the installation for “power management” purposes whether you have a manual or a digital doorbell chime. There’s no free video clip storage. The cost: $229 The bottom line: This is a really solid choice for anyone — but it’s especially appealing if you’re sold on a broader Google/Nest smart home.