Is Your Geeni Motion Detection Too Sensitive?
Geeni smart cameras are fantastic for keeping an eye on your home, but a flood of constant, unnecessary notifications can quickly become annoying. If you're getting alerts every time a car drives by, a tree branch sways, or a shadow moves, your motion detection sensitivity is likely set too high.
This constant barrage of false alerts not only clutters your phone's notifications but can also cause you to ignore a genuine security event. This guide will show you how to easily fine-tune your Geeni camera's settings to ensure you only get alerts for the things that truly matter.
Common Triggers for False Motion Alerts
Understanding what causes these false alarms is the first step. Your Geeni camera detects motion by analysing changes in pixels within its view. This means it can be triggered by:
- Environmental Movement: Swaying trees, bushes, or flags moving in the wind.
- Changing Light: Moving shadows as the sun changes position, or clouds passing overhead.
- Headlights: The lights from passing vehicles, especially at night.
- Insects or Animals: A spider crawling across the lens or a neighbourhood cat wandering past.
- Weather: Raindrops or snowflakes falling in front of the camera lens.
How to Reduce False Alerts on Your Geeni Camera
The solution lies within the Geeni app. By adjusting a few key settings, you can make your motion detection smarter and more accurate.
1. Adjust the Motion Detection Sensitivity Level
This is the most impactful setting you can change. A 'High' sensitivity setting is designed to pick up every little movement, which is often not practical for outdoor environments.
- Open the Geeni app on your smartphone.
- Select the camera you want to adjust from your device list.
- Tap the three dots in the top-right corner to open the Settings menu.
- Select "Motion Detection Settings" (or a similar option like "Detection").
- You will see a "Sensitivity Level" slider or options like 'Low', 'Medium', and 'High'.
- Lower the sensitivity to 'Medium' or 'Low'. We recommend starting with 'Low' and increasing it only if you find it's missing important events.
2. Set Up an Activity Zone
This is an incredibly useful feature that lets you tell your camera exactly where to look for motion. For example, you can draw a zone around your walkway and porch, telling the camera to completely ignore the movement of cars on the street.
- In the same "Motion Detection Settings" menu, look for an option called "Activity Zone" or "Motion Detection Zone".
- Tap to open it. You will see your camera's live view with a grid overlay.
- Draw a zone that covers only the area you want to monitor. Deselect the squares that cover areas with irrelevant motion (like the street or your neighbour's garden).
- Save the zone. Now, your camera will only trigger an alert if motion occurs inside this specific area.
3. Use Notification Scheduling
If you only need to be alerted of motion at certain times (for example, overnight or when you're not at home), you can set a schedule. This won't reduce the number of recordings, but it will stop your phone from buzzing all day.
- In the camera's settings, look for a "Notification Schedule" option.
- Set the times you wish to receive alerts. You can have different schedules for different days of the week.
By combining these adjustments, you can transform your Geeni camera from a source of annoyance into a precise and reliable security tool, ensuring you're alerted to what's important and can ignore what isn't.