A Wi-Fi camera connects over your existing wireless network, so the only cable it may need is power. That removes the network cabling run that makes wired systems expensive to retrofit, and it is why most home installations now start here.

The trade-off is that the camera depends on your network. Signal strength at the mounting point decides whether the live view is smooth or stuttering, and a camera at the far end of a property will often be the first device to drop.

Check the band before buying. A large number of cameras connect only on 2.4GHz, which reaches further through walls but is the busier band. If your router hides both bands behind one name, pairing can fail for no obvious reason until the 2.4GHz band is exposed separately.