Fortunately, in the smart home age, it no longer costs a fortune to make your home more secure with the right accessories. One popular manufacturer of suitable gadgets is Reolink. The company not only offers smart doorbells, but also cameras. The Reolink Home Hub is a new gadget for true fans of the manufacturer that not only makes managing up to 8 Reolink-branded devices child’s play. It also enables extensive local video storage and offers a high level of data protection thanks to AES-128 encryption. In the Reolink Home Hub test, we took a closer look at the smart home gadget.
Technical data
| Model | Reolink Home Hub |
| Device management | – Up to 8 cameras – Compatible with all Reolink Wi-Fi/PoE cameras (battery-powered cameras require firmware upgrade) |
| Speaker | Yes, max. 115 dB |
| Storage space | 2x microSD slots (max. 512 GB each) |
| Data protection | Encryption according to AES-128 |
| Live view | Reolink app or PC client |
| WLAN | – IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax（Wi-Fi 6） – 2.4/5 GHz – WPA/WPA2/WPA3 |
| Voice assistants | Google Assistant |
| Size and weight | 95 x 95 x 161.8 mm and 441 g |
| Price | Reolink Home Hub: € 89.99 *; Reolink Home Hub with 2x 2K cameras: € 229.99 *; Reolink Home Hub with 2x 4K cameras: € 209.99 *; Reolink Home Hub with Video Doorbell: € 229.99 * |
Scope of delivery
- Reolink Home Hub
- Power supply
- LAN cable
- Reset tool
- microSD (64 GB)
- Quick Start Guide
Reolink Home Hub test: design and workmanship
If you take a look at the Reolink Home Hub, you quickly notice visual similarities with the competition. The matt white housing with the circular LED on the front and the monolith-like design reminds me of the Eufy HomeBase S380 (Review | € 139.00 *). However, it is not only in a different league in terms of price, but also in terms of features. More on this later.
I particularly like the fact that the Home Hub, measuring 95 x 95 x 161.8 mm, is pleasingly compact. This means it can be embedded extremely unobtrusively in the living environment. But even if it were larger, it would hardly be unpleasantly conspicuous. This is thanks to its modern look and high-quality workmanship. However, if you want to place the Home Hub anywhere in the room, you should be aware that there are cables involved.
In addition to the mains cable, a LAN cable must also be connected to the hub. This is the only way to operate it. The corresponding connections are located on the back. This is also where Reolink places two slots for microSD cards, the reset button and the speaker, which is used when the alarm siren sounds at up to 115 dB. With its stylish appearance and high build quality, the Home Hub makes a very good impression at first glance.
Reolink Home Hub test: 1 TB and AES-128 encryption
As already mentioned, the Reolink Home Hub is to a certain extent the equivalent of the Eufy HomeBase S380 – only for the Reolink ecosystem. The smart home gadget works as a cost-saving replacement for a subscription to Reolink’s cloud. Instead of having to pay monthly or annually to use the online storage, you can simply use the hub to store your recordings locally.
The two microSD card slots on the back of the device are available for this purpose. You can insert an SD card of up to 512 GB in each slot, giving you a maximum storage capacity of over 1 TB. The HomeBase is clearly ahead in this respect. It offers a whopping 16 TB of storage space. If the memory of the standard version is not enough for you, you can also opt for the Reolink Home Hub Pro (€ 239.99 *). This offers 2 TB ex works and can be expanded to up to 16 TB.
- Looking for suitable accessories? Click here to test the Reolink Video Doorbell (€ 110.49 *).
Incidentally, Reolink includes a 64 GB SD card with the standard model ex works. But the Home Hub not only lets you save money by not having a cloud subscription. The manufacturer also promises maximum data security. A look at the technical data underlines this promise. The data of all Reolink cameras in the Home Hub network is secured with strong AES 128 encryption.
Another major advantage is offline storage. Anyone who owns smart home gadgets knows that a simple internet outage can put many devices out of action. Not with the Home Hub. It saves recordings from your cameras even if there is a network failure. So you can be sure that you won’t miss anything. This is made possible by the Home Hub creating its own local Wi-Fi network that the cameras can access.
Reolink Home Hub test: Maximum of 8 cameras possible
The Home Hub also makes it easy to manage your camera arsenal. The clearly structured Reolink app is used for this. You can manage a maximum of eight cameras, which is not exactly a lot. Only Reolink cameras can be added to the system. If you have other brands at home, you cannot manage them with the hub. However, not all Reolink models work here either.
Compatibility exists with all Reolink cameras that rely on Power over Ethernet (PoE) as well as all models that connect wirelessly to your network via WiFi. But even with the latter, you have to exclude a few. The best way to check the compatibility of your cameras is via the Reolink website. For our test, the manufacturer provided us with the Argus 4 Pro (Review | € 199.99 *). Incidentally, if you want to add more than eight cameras to the hub system, it is advisable to take another look at the Home Hub Pro.
With a total of 24 cameras, three times as many devices can be added to the system. And that’s not all the differences to the Pro model. This also has a USB port. This can be used to upload video clips to an external device. There is also an HDMI port on the back of the Pro model. This can be used to play video clips on the TV, for example.
Reolink Home Hub test: Intelligent alarm system
The Reolink Home Hub not only promises more data security, local video storage and simplified management. The small smart home gadget also aims to be an enrichment in terms of alarm systems. If one of the cameras connected to the Home Hub catches sight of something suspicious, the hub’s intelligent alarm system reacts. What is the consequence? That depends on what settings you have made in this regard. On the one hand, the Home Hub can act as an unmistakable alarm siren thanks to its built-in loudspeaker.
Here you can choose between different ringtones and assign an individual sound to each camera. You can also have a notification sent to your smartphone. You can then use the Reolink app to see directly why the camera has triggered an alarm. However, the Home Hub not only protects you, but also itself. Customized algorithms ensure that the system detects attempted theft and notifies you and up to ten other users immediately. You can also control the Home Hub using voice control via the Google Assistant.
Reolink Home Hub test: Quick commissioning via app
A good smart home gadget should offer a high level of user convenience. And that starts with the setup. With the Home Hub, commissioning is not only child’s play. It is also quick and easy. Two steps are the most important. You need to connect the hub to a power socket using a mains cable and to your router using a LAN cable. Once the hub is supplied with power and is connected to the network, the next step is to take out your smartphone and open the Reolink app.
Here you can add the Home Hub as a new device. Now follow the step-by-step instructions in the app and the hub will be in your device list. If the Reolink Home Hub is part of your device list, you can assign cameras to it. Compatible cameras that are already in your system can easily be added to the hub’s device group. Alternatively, you can also scan the QR code on the camera and add the camera as a new device this way.
The Reolink app scores again with the Home Hub with its good overview. Despite the many setting options, even newcomers to the smart home sector should not lose track. In addition to settings for storage and data protection, you can also manage users and switch between different monitoring modes. The option to display all recordings from the connected cameras simultaneously in a grid is really cool.
Reolink Home Hub test: Practical test
In practice, the Reolink Home Hub scores above all with one thing: ease of use. Especially when using multiple cameras, the hub is a helpful control center that allows you to keep an eye on everything at all times. I also really liked the statistics. You can easily monitor which cameras are busiest. However, as a user, you hardly notice the biggest advantages in practice. For me, it’s the local storage option and the high data protection standard that stand out positively in the application.
Conclusion
The Reolink Home Hub not only makes controlling your Reolink cameras more convenient. It also gives you the opportunity to build up a local storage of up to 1 TB – with modern and secure encryption according to the reliable AES-128 standard. The Home Hub also offers an intelligent alarm system that not only notifies you via your smartphone in the event of an emergency, but also via the loud speaker if required. But the Home Hub also has its drawbacks.
For some people, the maximum storage capacity of 1 TB might be a little low. The limitation to a maximum of eight cameras is also certainly a no-go for some. However, those who want these features will also find what they are looking for in the Reolink cosmos. Namely with the Home Hub Pro. One problem that both devices share, however, is the restriction to cameras from Reolink. Anyone using cameras from different manufacturers should keep this in mind.
PRO
CONTRA
The Reolink Home Hub is the almost perfect control center for owners of several, but not too many, of the manufacturer's current surveillance cameras.
Reolink Home Hub
Design and processing
Hardware
Performance
Price-performance ratio
91/100
