Nest Labs Drop Case IP66 Enclosure Black

NOTE: This is an original indoor NestCam purchased in 2016 with a outdoor enclosure placed around it. This has survived the last 7 years in rain, freezing snow , hot summers. Still working to this day in 2023. Why they discontinued this is a mystery. I see other reviews complaining about the power cable but I have proof the unit I purchased in 2016 is still working to this day in 2023.Update 04/26/2023Still works , still records stuff. Been outside in the mountains for 7 years. It's better than the official nestcam outdoor version because the power cord is routed through the gooseneck , so no exposed power cable at all. Great design. NEST/GOOGLE should have used this design for their outdoor version. The only downside now is Google aggressively suggests you switch to their NestAware version of the camera since google now owns Nest. I'm still under the legacy Nest account though at $50 a year with 5 days recordings.update 06/09/2020Still going strong to this day. Too bad they discontinued it. I've had ZERO issues with mine. It's been outside since 2016. The only negative about NestCam is the $100 yearly subscription fee, but the convenience is worth it. I can see when the pizza guy comes , when our neighbor drivers over our lawn , when the mail person delivers a package , etc.So far so good ,installed under our roof overhang (about 15 feet high) just above the garage door using 3 inch deck screws (lowes or home depot) and ran a 20 foot outdoor extension cable through the attic to a standard wall plug in our attic .Holds up well to wind and mountain rain , no movement of the goose-neck at all under windy conditions.The unit comes with a standard 2 prong plug connected to USB that can be hooked up to any outdoor extension cord. (just like iPhone/Android wall chargers)I will note it's very easy to cross thread the casing , so a little care must be taken to not cross thread the unit .I would also suggest to write down the serial number and 6 letter code on the back of the (actual camera itself) and keep it in a safe place in case you buy a new router and/or change the password. You can reset the PW through bluetooth with a cell phone near the camera using the unique serial number and 6 letter code found on the back of the camera. It's a lot easier (in my instance) than climbing back up a 20 foot ladder , unscrewing the unit and looking at the code.For added security , you could glue the casing shut and remove the serial number. I didn't feel the need to do that since the camera sits about 15-20 feet above the ground and nestcam records to the cloud servers. By the time anyone thinks about stealing it they're already on record in nestcam's cloud servers and/or your cell phone.Overall super easy to install , I did it in about 20 minutes and turns an otherwise "indoor only" designed camera into a "outdoor optional" camera. You'll obviously lose the speaker/audio feature because the unit completely encases the camera in a weather proof housing and super thick heat shield.Also keep in mind this camera was designed for indoor use only so this 3rd party case adds and otherwise unavailable feature to this camera that adds value to your purchase.I'll update in winter to see how this holds up to colder conditions , snow , sleet etc.

With Night Vision ON I would lose a minute or two of video every now and then. Me thinks the Infrared was causing the camera to temporarily shut down or cycle due to heat build up. No problem during the day when Night Vision was automatically OFF. Interesting that with some street lighting close by I get better video with Night Vision OFF. Had a bird decide to perch on the camera on one occasion and it DIDN'T alter the positioning of the camera; the gooseneck is sturdy enough. Kudos to Customer Service. Lens had a slight imperfection that caused a bit of blurriness in a corner of the video. Once I brought it to the attention of Customer Service, not only did they replace the lens, they sent me a whole new kit.

The concept is great and had high expectations. However, the cable is non-functional. The cable is also built-in and cannot be replaced. That is, a replacement cable cannot be routed through the gooseneck as both ends are fixed. I was never able to configure my new Nestcam using the supplied cable (after mounting the fixture).The exterior end of the cable is not sufficiently sturdy for exterior applications. In addition to being insufficiently sturdy, the exterior cable end is a micro USB connection supplied with a female micro-USB to male USB A adapter. This is insanely silly to configure the cable with yet another failure point if/when exposed to the elements. Even if the cable had worked, I expect that I would have had a connection failure after a brief time in the elements. This is an EXTERIOR mount, after all.The wall mount is sturdy and similar to the Nestcam mount in size and three-hole configuration. It mounts directly to the surface and does not use a magnet as does the Nestcam/Dropcam product.The camera end of the fixture appears to be weatherproof, but as the cable did not work, I cannot provide results of its "weatherproofness" or of the adequacy of the heat sink.I strongly suggest staying away from this product due to the inadequacy of the cabling. If you do buy this item, I suggest testing your ability to configure your Nestcam/Dropcam BEFORE you mount the gooseneck enclosure.

I've had the case for a few weeks now, running it outdoor in mild Southern California weather. The product looks like it's pretty sturdy. I like the flexible goose neck for it's versatility in positioning the camera. I do have a few issues which hopefully justify the rating I gave the product. First and foremost, the cable routed through the mount is its obvious kink in the chain. It's a thin cable with micro-USB ports on both ends so you're given an adapter to go to the standard USB port (which then plugs into the USB power adapter). If this cable goes or you received a unit with a DOA cable, then the whole unit is worthless. Reason I say that is when you remove the plates on either end of the goose neck it becomes clear the cable ports can't fit through the openings on either end of the plates, nor the goose neck I suspect. Also, on the end where the camera is mounted, the design of the port is specific to this case (see picture). Again, if this cable malfunctions the whole thing becomes a paper weight. Last thing, the weather has been pretty mild (mid-70s to mid-80s). Touching the back of the camera after having taken it out of the case I noticed how hot it was running. The heat sink seems to be doing its job. I just didn't want to take a chance, and then have to explain to Nest support why I was placing a support call. I likely will continue to use the case, and hopefully the case / cable goes first before the camera cooks itself. Like many out there I'm waiting on Nest to release a version of the Nest Cam specifically for outdoor use.