How do I extend the battery life of my MERCUSYS Camera/Doorbell?

The actual battery life may vary depending on the camera’s configuration, usage scenario, and environmental factors. Some customers may feel the camera’s battery life does not last as expected, and here we will introduce how to extend the battery life of cameras.

Part 1. How does the battery-powered camera consume power?

For the sake of power saving, the camera is usually in a sleep state (low power consumption). However, if the camera is woken up frequently and maintains the ON state for a long time, the camera consumes power quickly.

You may refer to What is the Wake-up Sensitivity of my battery camera? to know how the camera wakes up.

Part 2. The typical usage scenarios that cause fast battery consumption

When the camera is installed in an environment with frequent changes, such as monitoring streets or roads where moving vehicles, people, or heat sources often trigger motion detection, the camera may wake up frequently and stay the ON state for a long time. As a result, the camera will consume the battery power more quickly under these conditions.

Part 3. How to extend the battery life of the camera

1. Launch the MERCUSYS App > Tap Manage button of your battery-powered camera model card to enter the Live View page > Tap the icon at the top right corner to enter the Camera Settings > Detection > Wake-up Sensitivity to adjust the sensitivity accordingly.

Higher sensitivity results in easier wake-up and more recordings, which will reduce battery life.

Locate the Wake-up Sensitivity option in Detection page. Modify the Wake-up Sensitivity.

2. Adjust the installation position of your camera/doorbell so it will not be woken up frequently. The following instructions will help you when installing your camera/doorbell:

a. Avoid pointing the camera directly at swaying trees, busy streets, streetlights or sunlight.

Illustration of the wrong installation positions (e.g., swaying trees, busy streets or sunlight).

b. Keep the motion sensor lens level for best results.

Illustration of the motion sensor lens position.

c. Install the camera 7-10 ft above the ground and tilt downwards at a suggested angle in the QIG or App. For example, for MERCUSYS MC410, it is recommended to tilt it downward at an angle of about 20°.

The recommended installation height and tilt of of the camera.

3. You can also adjust other settings to save your battery.

a. Go to Camera Settings > Video & Display > Video Quality to set the video quality to a lower resolution.

b. Go to Night Mode Settings on the Video & Display page to reduce the viewing distance of night vision.

c. Go to Camera Settings > Storage & Recording > Clips Settings to increase the retrigger intervals between recorded events, and reduce the record buffer and maximum clip length.

d. Go to Camera Settings > Battery Status > Working Mode > select Power Saving mode to reduce power use.

4. MERCUSYS battery-powered cameras or doorbells can operate properly within the temperature of -20℃ - 45℃(-4°F - 113 °F). The battery life may get shorter if the temperature is too low.

Part 4. Frequently Asked Questions

Q. Why does my camera consume power quickly even when there are not many detection video clips?

A. The number of recorded video clips doesn’t always reflect how many times the camera has been woken up.

Various heat sources (e.g., sunlight, people, vehicles, moving objects) can trigger the camera to wake up frequently and cause faster battery consumption. However, due to detection settings or other configurations, the camera may not always record clips after waking up.

You can refer to What is the Wake-up Sensitivity of my battery camera? to know how the camera wakes up.

Get to know more details of each function and configuration please go to Support Center to download the manual of your product.