Logitech Circle 2 vs. Nest Cam: Which should you buy?

Both cameras offer great solutions for keeping an eye on your castle. While the Nest Cam has several different options to choose from, the Circle 2 is a much better all-in-one package.

What's the same

Both the Circle Cam 2 from Logitech and the Nest Cam from Nest and Google (Google purchased Nest a few years ago) do essentially the same thing: they monitor your home to watch for predators or to make sure those in the house are safe. They each have quite a few similar features that make them compelling options for anyone looking to add some home security.

To have a successful home monitoring system, you need a camera or cameras that can mount indoors or outdoors; they need to be able to see a large area with a high-quality image; they need to be able to store footage to review later. Thankfully, both of these cameras do all of those things well. Each of them is able to be installed anywhere inside or outside of your home, the cameras record in 1080p to ensure that you always have a clear image, and both companies offer storage options for the footage. If that's all you need, either of these products is a win.

What's different

While the service they provide may be the same, each company has a different way of going about it.

Logitech went with an all-in-one approach. The Circle Cam 2 is a single camera that's weatherproof so it can be mounted inside or out — you can even mount it on a window with the optional window mount accessory. This allows for limitless flexibility, so you don't have to worry about getting the right camera for the right place in your home. It also included compatibility with Alexa, Siri, and Google Assistant so no matter how you control your smart home, your Circle Cam will work.

Google, on the other hand, offers four different Nest cameras: the Nest Indoor, Nest Indoor IQ, Nest Outdoor, and Nest Outdoor IQ. While options are great, sometimes having too many can be difficult. If you go with Nest, you have to make sure you look at exactly what your needs are and make sure you get the exact camera setup you need. Because it's owned by Google, Nest will only work with Google Assistant and while the Indoor IQ camera has Google Assistant integrated directly into the camera, not being able to connect to Siri or Alexa may be a dealbreaker for some.

Having a clear image is important for security cameras but so is how much you can see. The Field of View (FOV) is the term for how much the camera can see in through the lens and here Logitech has done a little better. It offers a 180-degree FOV whereas Nest only has 130 degrees on its (base model) indoor camera. Being able to capture more things in one image can make quite a difference in home security.

Storage is gonna cost you

Both have storage options but again, go about it in different ways. Logitech offers 24 hours of video storage for free with 14-day and 31-day options available for a subscription. The 31-day subscription option also allows you to set person detection and Motion Zones in your house to alert you when movement happens inside those zones.

The only free storage option from Nest is three hours of motion snapshots and audio, so no video storage for free. Thankfully, each of its subscription options includes all of the premium features. You don't need the highest tier to get any extra features — the only difference is storage length. You can choose between 5-, 10-, and 30-day options.

Anything else?

There are a couple more features worth noting. The Circle Cam 2 has an available wireless option if you wanted to go portable. The wireless has a 130-degree FOV and motion based fixed length recording of 10, 30, and 60. HomeKit does not yet support power saving mode for the Circle Cam 2 but Logitech and Apple are working on a fix. Also, battery life is rated from "a few days to as long as three months" depending on usage.

The Nest Cam offers a feature called Supersight which will zoom in and track a person if any motion is detected within an Activity Zone, which we think is handy.

Verdict

For me, the clear winner is the Logitech Circle Cam 2. It offers an all-in-one package that is cheaper than the Nest with free 24-hour video storage. With a larger FOV and the ability to work with whichever automation system I want, it's hard to turn away from it. If you're all in on Google Assistant and you know exactly what camera you need for your home then Nest is a great option for you. For everyone else, Logitech is the better buy.