[eufy cam] Motion Detection Zones aka "Activity Zones" - Issues

Dear eufyianics!

Late but finally we got something like what is listed at the TO-DO +++ GENERAL eufycam TODO-LIST +++ currently at point #1:

Adding ACTIVITY DETECTION ZONES for the cams, if possible.

If you call it Motion Detection Zones or Activity Zones, means the same. Thanks to eufy for listening and bringing us this requested and very important feature! The rollout (app update) for this feature should have reached all customers these days.

And i know it is still “beta”, but from beginning their are fundamental issues, which shows (in my personal oppinion) that someone again hasn’t used his brain while including, thinking about and planing this feature as it is ill-conceived. Correct me if i am wrong.


The “Activity Zones” Issues

First of all and the main reason why i say it is ill-conceived i will show you here:

What the …?! This makes no sense at all for a “Motion Detection Zone” … :astonished:

Sense and purpose of a security cams ACTIVITY ZONE is, that ONLY if motion is detected in the defined activity zone, the cam should do ANYTHING (which is set and defined in the settings, like notifications, recording, …) !!!

So regarding 1. above, the correct description and work of service should be:
If someone enters the defined activity zone(s) - you can set up max 3 zones per cam -, the system will do exactly what you have defined in the security modus tab of your app.

So regarding 2. above, the correct description and work of service should be:
If no motion is detected in the defined activity zone(s) for a cam, nothing will happen!


The Second Issue is the possibility to define Activity Zones:

Serious?! … The eufy world consists only rectangles? wow … my world is a little more complex, which i will show you now with an following example. I, of course, only want recording or notifications or whatever i set in the modes to happen, when someone is entering my activity zones, means motion detected in my zones, which defines my property!

Now check this case:

With two rectangles i also cover an area i DO NOT WANT motion to be detected and my eufy cam doing anything:

And even if i use the max possible three detection zones and make them smaller, i will LOSE AREA WHICH I WANT TO BE MOTION DETECTED at my property:

So as you can see @AnkerTechnical @AnkerSupport @AnkerOfficial … this is very unsatisfactory and not realistically for the real world outside of rectangles. So my question is:

Why not making it right from the beginning? Someone who invested already tons of hours to code this feature and test it, should have noticed himself, that a freely definable zone is the only way to be able to set “motion detection zones” for all customers needs!

If you don’t know how to make 100% freely defined zones, you could at least implement zones with 4 vertices, like now with the rectangles, but which can be all freely and independently of each other be placed on the camview. This would make every customer possible to set a zone or multiple zones to cover the area he wants motion to be detected. :thumbsup:

Saying this i would appreciate a fix of this feature in both points mentioned and explained above.

5 Likes

Good point @yamyam, hope to see free form motion detection zones which will resolve most issues…

2 Likes

I agree the rectangles are not ideal. But, I don’t think free form is just an extra few lines of code. They probably wanted to get the feature out so its out. I don’t agree with it, but that’s how it usually goes.

Hopefully, it gets improved on soon.

:thumbsup:

OK … but to be honest:
Rather NONE motion detection zones than useless and ill-conceived ones!

My opinion.

It’s like the most beautiful cars in the world …
… if they would be only driveable with pure gold, it’s useless for me, so i don’t need them … :laughing:

1 Like

I was like well I don’t see that description on the iOS app then I realized that pic is from a page.

I would test it once I get Horne.

Yamyam, your testing and suggestions Anker should pay you. Always great feedback for their business and on point with what people generally want/think.

1 Like

I agree with your assessment of the zones shapes/quantity, etc.

However, I think the first issue you bring up is the way it is because Eufy is using IR motion detection to wake the (battery-operated, remember) cameras up. This means they are going to wake up whenever they are triggered, and then the HomeBase is going to process the video to see if the action is in the activity zone. I suppose Eufy could delete the files that are recorded during events not in the activity zone, but at this iteration, they have decided just to suspend notification. So this doesn’t bother me too much.

Just my opinion :slight_smile:

2 Likes

YOU ARE MY MAN! :hearts: :thumbsup: :clap:

Thank you very, very much for that acknowledgement! :bangbang:
Very much appreciated … and your are hell damn right :grin: … eufy should pay me for all the lifetime and love and passion i invest and sacrifice since over a year since the kickstarter campaign. But i still hope they know what they have about/with me and i still hope they will ship me some eufy cam solar panels and eufy cam range extenders for free as a sign of appreciation :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye: Leastways as soon as they will at all exist! :laughing:

@AnkerOfficial @AnkerSupport

:wink:

Thanks a lot for your kind words @Ads_Eufy :kissing_heart:
This shows me that all i do here isn’t just wasting time.


Yes, could be … but they could let the USER / CUSTOMER decide which of these two “ways” he would like to use and offer it as OPTION … so everyone can use the activity zones as he likes and wants it to work.

Not quite right. It IS from the app (using the quite new help icon at the top right, which looks like a headphone). But maybe iOS/Android versions are different … i am using Android.

Thanks,

I think this is 100% possible with this type of cameras if not look at the Blink cams they do have motion detection zones by squares.

And they don’t record if not on the activity zone.

So I think in a few updates they would be even better

1 Like

At first: thank you @AnkerOfficial for this feature, this is a long awaited one.
But, I agree to @yamyam: we should have the possibility to NOT record (or at least to not save) the videos if they’re not in the activity zones.
In Europe, it’s forbidden to record public areas with your security cams

Next to that, the rectangles are a bit clumsy as stated above.
As a programmer, I know this is not as easy to program, but a solution to this would be to just have the possibility to turn the rectangles. The rectangles will overlap, but I don’t think that’s a problem in this case :grin:

2 Likes

I think eufy will consider this and make changes to the recording settings very soon and let the user decide whether to record when out of the zone or not.

It’s a pain though playing with these rectangles on the phone to stretch and adjust them to my requirements.

1 Like

1 Like

Pleasure YamYam, have to call out where credit is due. From what you’ve written and all the testing, I think you’d be an asset to them. I’m just learning about all of this stuff, your comments and suggestions etc are easy to understand. I noticed my base station was updated the other night, but not sure what the update was for.

@Ads_Eufy Thanks for your kind words, very much appreciated :hearts:
(but normally expected by eufy/anker and not (only) other customers)

That eufy isn’t running a centralized and detailed and gapless changelog for all updates, no matter if app or firmware for the cam or homebase, is one of plenty things i criticize and admonish since months!

It would be so easy and not costing much worktime to set up a (moderated - so onl eufy can post) thread in this forum where every update is posted and detailed all changes are logged so every customer can see and check what has changed, fixed, added!

I guess that they are just afraid of that we can check the changes and then see that they have fixed one bug while adding three others :laughing:


Wanna see an example how perfect centralized changelogs are looking like?!
Here you go: https://playoverwatch.com/en-us/news/patch-notes/pc

@AnkerOfficial, @AnkerSupport, @AnkerTechnical, @ndalby, @TechnicallyWell

No answer, feedback or reaction yet, even after nearly a month?! :unamused:

Hello! @yamyam Thanks so much for your valuable feedback and suggestion to the ‘activity zones’ settings. Yes, the considerations you mentioned are all very to the point. We’ve forwarded your ideas to our engineer team and they are now further considering the availability. As a to-be perfect product, eufyCam do need your voice and assistance to shape the future product. Sincerely thank you for your patience and valuable time!

1 Like

@AnkerSupport Thanks a lot and you are welcome!
As long as my work and lifetime i invest in all this is paying off, i am happy!

Can’t wait to see an update incoming which brings us the updated and “perfect” activity zones (like already available for another eufy product) which only records video when motion is detected in the defined activity zone(s)! :+1:

I hope it will not take too long, as a perfect activity zones feature will save me (and probably some other too) a lot of SD-card space and also and much more important: BATTERY LIFETIME!

So please keep us informed, no matter if small or big news.

1 Like

@yamyam, have you heard anything from @AnkerTechnical or @AnkerOfficial in regards to a full rollout that works?

1 Like

@Ads_Eufy Not yet, sadly … except the post from @AnkerSupport yesterday above.

I am … we are … waiting every day for news about the rollout/firmware update to come! I really need working and perfect activity/detection zones as described above. The current version is totaly useless for me and not doing what it should and the most users expect from doing/working.

1 Like

@yamyam, completely understand your frustrations with it not working properly. Sorry, we are a day ahead down this side of the world. Our day is your tomorrow.

1 Like