Vivint Camera Recording Without Wi-Fi: What Is Saved

Do Vivint Cameras Record Without Wi-Fi?

Yes, with Playback DVR: Vivint states that cameras record to local storage during Wi-Fi outages and Smart Deter keeps working on the camera itself; without Playback, cameras record nothing until Wi-Fi returns, because cloud clips need the connection.

Alarms are not affected: door, window, motion, and glass break sensors talk to the hub over their own radio, and the hub reports over cellular. The Wi-Fi and cellular guide explains the split.

What Playback DVR Saves

Playback stores up to 10 days of 24/7 video locally from up to 12 cameras, keeps recording through a Wi-Fi or internet outage, and lets you scroll back through it in the app once the connection returns; it costs $399.99 or $6.67/mo over 60 months with a 90-day free trial.

You cannot watch the stored footage remotely during the outage; it syncs when the panel reconnects. Vivint lists panel firmware 3.23.0 or newer as a requirement.

What Happens to Cloud Clips

Cloud clips stop during an outage because each clip uploads as it is recorded; after the connection returns, new events record normally, and the gap is permanent unless Playback DVR was recording locally.

Keeping Cameras Online

4 things keep cameras recording: a router on a battery backup, at least 2 Mbps of upload speed per camera, the panel connected over Wi-Fi rather than a weak extender, and Playback DVR for the hours the internet is down anyway.

The camera offline guide gives the 7 fixes when a camera drops.