Reolink E331 Review

Reolink E331 Review: Introduction

Reolink, the brand I’ve left for all my Nest cameras, has made a name for itself over the past few years for packing features into its cameras without locking the goodies behind a paywall, and the E331 might be its strongest budget play yet.

At less than $55 in the US, it beats cameras like the TP-Link Tapo C220 and Wyze Cam v4, both of which top out at 2K. If you want to go up to 4K, something like the Eufy Indoor Cam E30 will cost you more.

The E331 sits neatly in the middle. You get a 5MP sensor, a fast F1.6 lens, full pan and tilt motion, and extras like automatic tracking and ring detection, all wrapped up in a compact indoor design.

Reolink positions it as a pet camera and baby monitor, but in everyday use, it works as a general-purpose home security camera.

I’ve been using it to keep an eye on my home office setup, tracking the daily movements and occasional chaos.

Read my full Reolink E331 review to find out how well it performed.

Design and installation

• It is powered by USB-C
• microSD card slot
• Bookshelf or ceiling mount options

The E331 keeps things simple, and that works in its favor.

It’s compact, lightweight at just 171g, and has a round design that feels modern without trying too hard. It’s not as flashy as other Aqara cameras, but it’s small enough to disappear on a shelf or desk without being a recipe.

The camera sits on a motorized base that handles both pan and tilt, giving you almost complete room coverage. You can rotate it almost fully horizontally and tilt it to cover different vertical angles, making it much easier than fixed cameras in this price range.

Tilt the lens up and you’ll reveal the microSD slot and reset button. It’s a neat solution, but there’s no real security there, so the card can be removed if someone has physical access.

Power comes via USB-C, with a 2-meter cable and adapter included. The hole sits on the back, next to the QR code used during setup.

Most people will place it on a flat surface and be done in seconds, but there is also a ceiling mounting option included if you want a permanent installation. If you go that route, you’ll need to flip the image in the app.

Setup follows the usual Reolink flow. Plug it in, wait for a voice prompt, scan the QR code, and you’re ready to go in minutes.

Another interesting change here is that the app actually prompts you to insert the microSD card during setup, which isn’t something you usually see with other Reolink cameras… unless they’ve recently updated the onboarding process.

Like many of Reolink’s latest systems, it supports both 2.4GHz and 5GHz Wi-Fi, as well as Wi-Fi 6, so you can take advantage of a fast, stable connection if your network allows it.

You don’t need to create an account to get started either. That only comes into play if you want cloud storage, smart assistant integration, or deep integration like Home Assistant, at which point you’ll also need to set a device password.

Features and application

• Adoption of people and pets
• Movement planning
• Automatic tracking

The E331 runs on the Reolink operating system, and there’s a lot to dig into here.

You get a rare level of control at this price point. Alerts can be filtered for people, pets, or general movement, and there’s even cry detection if you’re using it as a baby monitor. You can fine-tune sensitivity, create detection zones, and set schedules when different alerts should be triggered.

If you enable motion alerts right out of the box, expect notification discounts. The real value comes from dialing things down, for example, setting alerts for people and pets during the day but limited to people only at night.

It’s powerful, but not exactly beginner-friendly. There are a lot of options here, and it can feel overwhelming until you spend time with it.

Automatic tracking is one of the outstanding features. Once enabled, the camera will follow movement in the room, keeping subjects in frame as they move. Whether it’s a wandering pet or a child moving from one side of the room to the other, we do a solid job of maintaining visibility.

You can also define tracking limits, set presets, and select a default “home” view that the camera returns to after motion stops.

The recording options are flexible. You can stick with motion-sung clips, set up a scheduled recording, or go all-in with continuous recording if you have enough storage.

And storage is where Reolink continues to differentiate. Everything works locally via microSD, with no registration required. You can also expand with NVR, FTP, NAS, or Reolink Home Hub.

Cloud storage is available, but optional and much cheaper (from $3.49 per month) than many of our competitors. Importantly, no key features are locked behind a paywall.

Playback is managed through a timeline interface with icons and event filters, making it easy to find specific clips. One thing to watch is the download quality. By default, it saves low-quality “clear” clips, so you’ll want to switch to “clear” to get the full 3K resolution.

There’s also two-way audio, a built-in alarm, and support for Alexa and Google Assistant if you want to view your feed on a smart display.

Privacy Mode is a nice touch as well. With one tap, the camera turns off and disables recording, which is more reliable than simply muting it in software.

Working

• A sharp video
• Strong IR performance

For the price, the E331 delivers where it counts.

The 5MP sensor records at 2880 x 1616 at 20fps, and daytime photos look sharp and detailed. Colors are accurate, and there’s enough clarity to pick out faces and small details without a problem.

The F1.6 aperture helps here too, pulling in more light than typical budget cameras, making a noticeable difference in low-light indoor environments.

Motion handling is solid as well, with little blurring during normal motion.

The pan and tilt functionality is a huge plus. Being able to cover an entire room with one device makes it more versatile than fixed cameras, and when paired with automatic tracking, it greatly reduces blind spots.

At night, it relies on infrared instead of full-color night vision, but performance is still strong. The quoted width of 40 feet is good enough for most indoor spaces.

The ring detection feature actually works better than expected. Even without an actual child to test it, it managed to simulate crying reliably enough to feel like a real utility rather than just a box-ticking feature.

The sound is serviceable but not outstanding. Two-way talk works well, but the speaker sounds thin and lacks punch.

Final thoughts

The Reolink E331 is probably the easiest recommendation available in this category.

It’s affordable, easy to set up, and packed with features you rarely see at this price. The combination of solid video quality, full-room coverage, and subscription-free local storage make it a standout in a crowded market.

The app takes a bit of getting used to, and the microSD slot is a bit fiddly, but those are minor issues.

If you’re looking for a home camera budget that doesn’t break your monthly budget, this is one of the strongest options right now.

How do we test

When we publish our reviews, you can be sure that they are the result of “life” and long-term testing.

Smart security cameras often live within an ecosystem, or a range of products – so-called – that all work in harmony. Therefore, it is impossible to use a security camera for a week and bring a decision.

Because we test smart home kit all day, every day, we know what’s important and how a particular camera compares to others you might consider.

Our reviews are comprehensive, objective and fair and, of course, we are never directly paid to review a device.

Read our guide to our smart security camera review process to learn more.

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