Do Google Home cameras have offline storage options?

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Home security is not something to be taken lightly. Equipping your home with indoor and outdoor cameras and sensors can be a completely DIY process, and smart ecosystems like Google Home make it easy to monitor and control all your surveillance technology. Most cameras even offer cloud storage for motion-triggered event recordings, including Google’s entire Nest line. Unfortunately, there is a monthly subscription tied to cloud backup, and plans start at $10 per month (for Google Home Premium). Also, we hate to break the news, but there isn’t a single Nest-branded camera or video doorbell that supports offline storage.

When it comes to personal security, our goal is to invest in a specific brand of equipment and services. But sometimes when you try to keep things under the umbrella of one owner, you end up paying more and missing out on features that are important to you; and not having local storage can be a big setback for a family who doesn’t want to transfer their data to Big Tech, even if it’s encrypted. Fortunately, there are just as many third-party security cameras on the market that a.) offer local storage – whether via a microSD slot or a network-connected storage hub – and b.) are compatible with Google Home.

There are also other advantages to keeping things from third parties; depending on the brand, you might end up paying a lower upfront cost for the cameras themselves. You can also avoid losing features that another company might lock behind a membership paywall (for example, smart alerts or 24/7 monitoring). It’s your money and your security; you might as well get exactly what you want or need.

There are several reliable manufacturers that produce Google Home compatible security devices. Brands like Eufy (Anker’s smart home sub-label) offer a number of cameras with local storage, like the Eufy Security 4K E30 indoor camera. You can buy a single camera for $70 or a combo for $130, and both SKUs support two offline storage options: microSD or local transfers to a HomeBase S380 (sold separately). The latter is particularly attractive, as Eufy’s internal NAS offers up to 16TB of storage; This is potentially enough data for both cameras to record continuously for three to four months.

We’d also like to recommend the Reolink E1 Pro, another motion tracking camera that includes a microSD slot (supports up to 512GB). The E1 Pro can also be interfaced with Reolink NVR, Home Hub or Home Hub Pro and FTP or NAS transfers. After setting up the Eufy and Reolink systems, you will also be able to add them to Google Home. Keep in mind that when it comes to prompts, you’ll need to use a smart speaker or the Google Home app to issue voice commands (camera microphones are only used for two-way audio).

Offline storage can make a DIY monitoring project seem even more DIY; no one has their mitts on your images, and you and yours alone (and anyone else you grant access to) are the only people who can see them. Keeping things close is the way to go, and local storage is the way to go.