Lorex 4K Dual-Lens Wi-Fi Security Camera (W891UAD-E)

The Lorex 4K Dual-Lens Wi-Fi Security Camera W891UAD-E ($249.99) is a weatherproof outdoor camera that uses two high-resolution lenses to provide a 180-degree panoramic view of your yard, driveway, and street. It’s wired but relatively easy to install, and it offers a number of features including dual-band Wi-Fi support, free local video storage, smart motion alerts, and Alexa and Google voice control capabilities. For $199.99, the wireless, dual-lens Eufy SoloCam S340 adds mechanical pan and tilt controls as well as solar charging, remaining our Editors' Choice winner, but the W891UAD-E is an excellent alternative for its 4K video and even wider field of view.

Dual Lenses for a Wider View

The W891UAD-E uses a rather large 3.1-by-3.9-by-4.0-inch (HWD) IP66 weatherproof enclosure to accommodate its two cameras. A metal mounting arm attached to a round base adds another 2.7 inches to the overall depth. There’s a speaker on the bottom along with a reset button and a microSD card slot, both of which are protected by a waterproof cover. Under the hood, there's a dual-band (2.4GHz and 5GHz) Wi-Fi radio and a siren.

The camera's glossy black face contains two lenses that capture 4K (4,096 by 1,856 pixels) video at 15fps. It uses image stitching technology to fuse the two images together and deliver a wide 180-degree horizontal field of view with a 20:9 aspect ratio. The Eufy SoloCam S340 has lower-resolution 2K and 3K lenses and no image stitching, but it allows for 360 degrees of horizontal panning and 70 degrees of vertical tilt, whereas the W891UAD-E is stationary.

(Credit: John R. Delaney)

Beneath each lens are two LEDs. The outer LEDs are white deterrent spotlights that can be activated by motion or from within the app, and the inner LEDS provide infrared light for black and white night vision. A third infrared LED is positioned at the bottom of the camera face, and there’s a microphone embedded near the top. The camera will capture color night video when there is enough available ambient light or when the spotlights are activated.

Nestled between the two cameras is a Smart Security LED light band that by default glows green when the camera is operating correctly, flashes green while connecting to Wi-Fi, flashes red when the connection has failed, and shines solid red when you perform a factory reset. It also has a party mode setting that randomly changes color, and a panic mode setting that flashes orange. You can change the colors or disable the light band altogether.

(Credit: Lorex)

The W891UAD-E records video when it detects motion or sound, or when you activate the manual record button. It stores recorded footage locally on a 32GB microSD card, which is included. If you require more storage capacity, the slot supports media up to 256GB. The camera supports smart motion alerts that can differentiate between people, vehicles, and animals, and it provides package detection and package removal alerts. Other features include Auto-Framing (motion tracking), Quick Responses (such as "how can I help you" and "no thank you"), Continuous Recording, and Object Bounding Box (when enabled, the detected object is highlighted with a bounding box).

Plenty of Smarts

The W891UAD-E uses the same Lorex Home app (available for Android and iOS) as the Lorex 4K Indoor/Outdoor Wi-Fi 6 Security Camera and appears on the Devices screen in its own panel. The panel displays the name of the camera alongside a Privacy Mode button and a play arrow. Tap the arrow to open a live stream that you can view in full-screen (landscape) mode by turning your phone sideways.

Along the bottom of the video screen are buttons for pausing the stream, selecting a resolution setting (4K, 2K, 1080p, SD, or Auto), muting the sound, taking a snapshot, initiating two-way talk, manually recording a video, activating the light and siren, initiating a Quick Response, and enabling Privacy Mode. Additional buttons on this screen let you view a timeline of event recordings and thumbnails of each event.

(Credit: Lorex)

Tap the gear icon in the upper right corner of the Device screen to access the camera’s settings. Here you can adjust motion and sound detection sensitivity, create notification schedules, change the video quality, format the SD card, change Smart Security Light settings, and enable motion tracking. Other settings allow you to create your own custom Quick Responses, enable the Object Bounding Box feature, and configure Wi-Fi.

The camera works with Alexa and Google voice commands and will stream video to Google Nest Hub and Amazon Echo Show smart displays, but it doesn't support Apple HomeKit or work with IFTTT applets that provide third-party integrations. If you want better support for third-party devices, consider our top 2K wireless pick for outdoor security cameras, the Arlo Pro 4 Spotlight ($199.99), which also has a wide field of view at 160 degrees.

Sharp Panoramic Surveillance

Installing the W891UAD-E is relatively easy. I powered up the camera, opened the app, and tapped the plus icon to add the device. I selected Wi-Fi Camera from the list and used my phone to scan the QR code on the bottom of the camera. The app immediately found the device, so I tapped Next to put the camera into Hotspot mode, created a password, and followed the on-screen instructions to connect the camera to my home Wi-Fi. After a few seconds, the camera connected so I gave it a name and adjusted the time zone setting to complete the app setup.

I unplugged the camera and took it outside, where I attached it to a desk post in my backyard using the included mounting screws. I plugged the camera into a GFCI outlet and the installation was complete.

(Credit: Lorex)

The W891UAD-E is a stellar performer. The dual lenses delivered a sharp panoramic view of my yard with no noticeable distortion. Daytime video showed excellent detail and saturated colors, and color night video appeared sharp, but the colors weren't as vivid as during the day. Black-and-white night video was also sharp and well lit.

The camera did a fine job of identifying the source of motion, and package detection and package removal alerts worked as intended. The Auto-Framing and Quick Response features also worked without issue, as did my Alexa voice commands to stream video to an Amazon Echo Show 8. Two-way talk came through cleanly and was adequately loud.

Two Cameras Acting as One

The Lorex 4K Dual-Lens Wi-Fi Security Camera (W891UAD-E) is a single camera that does the job of two. Using dual 4K lenses and image stitching, this unique wired camera delivers a wide 180-degree panoramic view of your property, and it's loaded with features like local video storage, color night vision, dual-band Wi-Fi, and Alexa and Google Assistant voice control support. Most importantly, it captures sharp 4K video and provides accurate motion alerts. At $249.99, the W891UAD-E comes in near the top of the price range for outdoor security cameras, but it offers a wider, sharper view than most other models out there. That said, if 4K resolution isn't a must, you can get pan and tilt controls, solar charging, and save $50 with the Eufy SoloCam S340, our Editors' Choice for dual-lens outdoor security cameras.