Blink Mini 2K+ Manages to Cram Clear Video and Practical Features into an Affordable Tiny Camera

Blink Mini 2K+, priced at $16.99 today (was $40), measures just two inches on each side and weighs about 65 grams, small enough to rest on a shelf or mount discreetly without drawing attention. Video streams at 2560 by 1440 resolution and up to 24 frames per second, delivering enough detail that a four times digital zoom on a phone still shows readable faces or package labels.

A wide 138-degree diagonal field of view allows you to see a large portion of a room or doorway from a single location. The provided stand is useful for tilting and swiveling the camera, but you can also permanently mount it to the wall or ceiling and store the screws in the packing. When night falls, the camera automatically switches to infrared black and white, which performs admirably even in low-light conditions. If there is still some ambient light, you can use the built-in flashlight to capture color film. It’s a fairly cool option because it allows you to capture some usable night footage without the camera flash giving you away.

BTwo-way talk is also available, and noise cancelation is built in, so conversing with someone in the room remains crystal clear even when there is a lot of background noise present. With a built-in siren that can be triggered from the app, you can deter any unwelcome guests. You’ll receive motion alerts on your phone, and if you upgrade to a Blink subscription, you’ll also get person and vehicle detection, allowing you to narrow down your notifications to only the most important ones. Of course, as an Alexa user, you can simply ask Alexa to show the feed on a display linked to your account.

Plug-and-play is the rule of the day here, with a USB-C cable and indoor converter included in the box, and setup takes about 5 minutes as long as an outlet is available. If you wish to take it outside, you’ll need to use a separate weather-resistant power adapter with an IP65 classification. You have two options for keeping those recorded clips: either in the cloud with a subscription plan, or locally with a Sync Module and hard drive.

Overall, the Blink Mini 2K+ is ideal for households that want clear usable video, an easy setup process, and basic notifications without breaking the budget. For those who want to get more out of it, there are always optional premium features available.