Canary devices are not designed to detect motion through glass. Placing your Canary in a window may result in sub-optimal performance, resulting in false alarms or missed activity.
Canary Pro and View
Night vision
When your Canary device uses night vision, it illuminates the area with infrared LEDs. If you place your Canary close to or directly facing a window or pane of glass, the LEDs will be reflected back at your camera, causing considerable glare and impeding Canary's ability to detect motion.
Motion detection
The Canary Pro is only intended to be used indoors and isn't designed to detect motion through glass. Though it is possible for Canary to record through a window, a number of factors can prevent optimal performance, including but not limited to the following:
- The amount and angle of light shining through the window.
- The difference between interior and exterior lighting conditions.
- Reflections on the glass that may interfere with motion detection.
If there is a reflection on the window, Canary may use that as the focal point, preventing it from focusing on what is outside the window. Motion detected outside the window may be out of focus, and may not properly register as activity, and therefore may not be posted to your timeline.
Canary Flex
When operating unplugged, Canary Flex devices are not intended for use behind glass. Glass is not as transparent to infrared light as it is to visible light. Therefore when using PIR the Flex will be unable to detect motion if placed behind a window.
When plugged in, you may encounter a glare that will blind the view of the Canary Flex when night vision is activated.
If you wish to monitor an outdoor environment, we recommend using the Canary Flex outside which is specifically designed for outdoor usage.
Note: To learn more about Canary Flex, visit this article.