Amazon is ending support for its Cloud Cam security camera and is offering owners a free Blink Mini to replace it. MacRumors noticed the change late last week, and The edge receive a copy of an email sent to customers announcing the change. Cloud Cam owners can use their cameras and download video until December 2 of this year, after which all recordings will be deleted and the hardware will stop working. Customers with the Cloud Cam Key Edition will also lose the ability to connect to smart locks, though they can get a free fourth-generation Echo to replace the functionality.
“As the number of Alexa smart home devices continues to grow, we’re focusing our efforts on Ring, Blink and other technologies that make your home smarter and simplify your daily routines. That’s why we’ve decided to discontinue support for Amazon Cloud Cam and its apps,” Amazon said in its email. posted on redditâ€
In a statement to MacRumorsAmazon added that “we will continue to offer our customers innovative smart home security solutions through Amazon’s Ring and Blink brands.” It also specified that it will give Blink Mini cameras to users who “still actively use their Cloud Cam”, although it’s not clear if that’s a formal criterion for getting the free replacement.
Cloud Cam owners will receive instructions by email before the December 2 deadline to redeem their free Blink Mini and (for Key Edition owners) Echo. The Blink Mini comes with a one-year subscription to Blink Subscription Plus, which typically costs $10 per month or $100 per year. A subscription to Plus or the basic $3 per month plan for one camera is required for: many Blink features, including quick access to videos and motion-triggered recording. Cloud Cam also required a paid subscription for advanced features, although it some free options offered that must be paid on the Blink Mini.
The Cloud Cam range launched in 2017 and phased out at the end of 2019 after Amazon acquired security camera makers Blink and Ring. Now Amazon is following an established pattern of companies bricking up smart home hardware because they no longer want to support the ecosystem. Thanks to the replacement, customers won’t be completely without recourse, but they’ll still end up with some useless hardware that they may have bought only a few years ago.