Pros

• Highly adjustable and bright LED panels
• 2K resolution
• Several light modes
• Free object detection
• Alexa and Google Assistant support
• Local storage included

A floodlight cam has many jobs, but the most important is illuminating a large, dark space. Lorex’s cam makes this easier than any other cam we’ve reviewed, thanks to its fully customizable LED panels. You can adjust the brightness and color temperature of the lights to get the perfect shade or find the brightness that your neighbors can live with, as well as adjust the angle of the panels to help spread or focus the light where you want it most. Then you have the option to pick between modes like motion-activated, scheduled lighting and other choices to tweak the lights. These can be set to your preference whether your lights are more permanent or security-oriented. We haven’t found another floodlight model with quite so many options.

Beyond the lighting, Lorex’s cam offers several other desirable features including color night vision, a 2K resolution and free object detection to cut down on false alerts. Lorex also favors local storage so you can stay off the cloud and away from subscription fees, although the camera does support Alexa and Google Assistant.

Google Nest's floodlight camera is one of the brand's most expensive models, but you really do get what you pay for. In this case, that includes a Nest camera that you can detach and use elsewhere with a compatible base, giving you more options.

I also like Google's AI detection capabilities: There's no Gemini for Home expanded features for this cam, but for free you still get the ability to spot things like packages and people, with alerts you can tailor based on what you want to know about. There's no local storage, but Google does offer 3 hours of free cloud storage for your videos, which is typically enough time to view them and download if necessary.

Those features make this a versatile camera that offers plenty without extra fees, and of course it comes with excellent Google Home app compatibility.

Spotlights are designed to shine a bright light in a smaller space, like an entryway or particularly dark zone that benefits from direct illumination. Ring's latest battery model is one of the better spotlights I've found, with bright LEDs that handily back up the color night vision, letting the camera see clearly in any conditions. Ring's latest 2K Retinal video also helps pick up the details.

The HD cam is compact enough with its built-in LED panels that it won’t take up too much space in a corner, and Ring’s highly customizable motion detection helps you conserve battery life, although you do need to pay a subscription fee (starting at $5) for object detection. The camera also includes two-way audio and a siren for audio action. Since Ring is an Amazon brand, voice assistant compatibility is limited to Alexa.

There's a 4K, wired version of this camera as well, but I prefer the options that the battery model provides. Just keep in mind if the spotlight goes off all the time, it will affect battery life.

Floodlights and spotlights are primarily designed for outdoor spaces. If you’re interested in a smaller, more nimble lighting option, the Blink Mini 2K Plus fits easily in your palm. That doesn't stop it from offering a mini spotlight, two-way audio and the latest 2K resolution Blink has added to the cam.

At this size, the cam is a good fit for an entryway table or small patio where you want to keep watch and occasionally light the space up for a much better look (it greatly improves the night vision, too). The smooth operation of the Blink app makes those steps easy even for new users, and if you add the outside cable, you can post Blink's camera outdoors (as long as there's a nearby outlet).

Blink isn't just upgrading its camera design. The company now has a tier of AI plans that add abilities like AI-generated summaries for your video alerts to help save time. Blink's plans, which include cloud storage too, range from $4 to $7 per month for one device.

A wireless floodlight cam is a risky bid for outdoor protection since large LED panels -- even as energy-efficient as they are -- can still drain battery life when used frequently. We walked away from our Arlo Pro 3 Floodlight testing deeply impressed with its battery and all-around usability. The 2K resolution with HDR is great, motion detection with activity zones is accurate and the pivoting mount makes it easy to angle the camera however you want.

Arlo’s cams ditch limitations to embrace a do-everything design and this particular model even works with Apple HomeKit if you purchase an additional Arlo hub. The brand does lock quite a few features, including object detection and video storage, behind a subscription fee starting at $8 per month.

Eufy's innovative approach to a security camera with a light has two benefits. First, its decorative look makes it easy to install without seeming like a threat or intrusion on privacy, with the light providing helpful illumination that's ideal for highlighting patio steps, deck edges and other safety features.

Another advantage of this cam is its built-in solar panel. which means you can install it nearly anywhere (especially a wall that gets a lot of sunlight) and won't have to worry much about keeping the battery charged.

Eufy's camera also has security benefits, including object detection, two-way audio and built-in video storage, making it a complete package in a compact, pleasing form.

Lumens are a way to measure the brightness of light. There are different types of lumen measurements, but the most common and most useful here are light source lumens. One lumen is about equal to one candela of brightness cast across a squared radian, which essentially means it’s a tiny bit of brightness visible to the human eye. More lumens equals more brightness. Don’t try to compare watts and lumens directly, especially with LED lights, which use much less power.

It can certainly help. Motion detection lights can both light up intruders and let them see that they are being recorded by a camera. Burglaries tend to be crimes of opportunity. Unless you are in a very, very affluent neighborhood, burglars will just ignore any home that shows signs of a security system.

Usually. Cameras differ in their ability to adjust features like brightness, color and color temperature (how cool or warm a light source looks). Most modern LED floodlights at least allow you to control brightness. Almost all the security cams with spotlights we’ve tested also let you control brightness, but spotlight features tend to be slightly more limited.

Several things can help. First, look in the app to see if you can set motion or privacy zones to focus on what the camera’s sensors are watching. Second, look for motion detection sensitivity settings, which you can often decrease to avoid frequent triggers. Third, look for ways to increase the mandatory pause before triggers so the same thing doesn’t trigger the camera multiple times. Finally, see if there is a way you can get or improve object detection so the cam ignores vehicles and other types of movements.

Not usually. Video doorbells typically come with night vision, but their lower positioning makes them a poor choice for lighting, and porches tend to have additional sources of lighting anyway.