How to Fix Poor Video Quality from a Unifi Camera
While Unifi Protect cameras are capable of producing crisp, high-definition video, you may sometimes find that the image quality is blurry, pixelated, grainy, or generally disappointing. These issues can usually be resolved by adjusting camera settings, optimising the network, or addressing physical factors. This is distinct from a video stream that is freezing or stuttering; here, the stream is stable, but the quality itself is poor.
This guide will help you identify the cause of your Unifi camera's poor video quality and provide effective solutions to improve it.
Key Factors That Determine Video Quality
Several variables contribute to the final image you see. Understanding them is key to diagnosing the problem.
- Bitrate Settings: This is the most direct control you have over image quality. The bitrate determines how much data is used to represent each second of video. A low bitrate results in high compression, which creates blocky, pixelated images. A higher bitrate results in a clearer, more detailed picture.
- Network Health: Even with a high bitrate setting, if the network connection between the camera and the NVR is poor, packets can be lost. This can force the camera to reduce quality or result in corrupted frames that look like digital artifacts or pixelation.
- Physical Lens and Sensor Issues: The simplest cause is often overlooked. A dirty, smudged, or moisture-affected lens will make any image look blurry and unfocused. In some cases, a hardware fault with the image sensor can also degrade quality.
- Lighting and IR Performance: In low-light conditions, the camera's sensor has to work harder, which can introduce digital "noise" or grain. At night, improper placement can cause the camera's own infrared (IR) light to reflect back into the lens, washing out the image.
Step-by-Step Guide to a Clearer Picture
Follow these steps to systematically improve your camera's video quality.
- Clean the Camera Lens: Before you touch any software settings, physically inspect the camera.
- Use a clean, soft microfibre cloth to gently wipe the camera's lens dome or cover. Remove any dust, fingerprints, smudges, or water spots.
- Check for fine spiderwebs directly in front of the lens, as these can cause focus issues and trigger false motion alerts.
- Adjust Image Quality Settings in Unifi Protect:
- Open your Unifi Protect dashboard.
- Select the camera you want to adjust and go to its 'Recording' or 'Settings' menu.
- You will see sliders or options for Frames Per Second (FPS) and Bitrate (sometimes labelled 'Image Quality').
- Increase the Bitrate: This is the most important step. Slide the quality setting higher. For a 1080p camera, a bitrate of 4,000 to 6,000 Kbps is a good starting point. For a 4K camera, you will want it to be significantly higher.
- Note: Increasing the bitrate will increase network bandwidth usage and consume more storage space for recordings.
- Optimise for Low-Light and Night Vision:
- Reduce Grain: In the camera's 'Image' settings, you may find options for Noise Reduction. Increasing this can help reduce graininess in low-light shots.
- Check for IR Reflection: View the camera's live feed at night. If the image looks washed out or has a bright halo, check for nearby surfaces (like a wall, ceiling soffit, or even the camera's sun shield) that the IR light could be bouncing off. If you find one, you may need to reposition the camera slightly or adjust its viewing angle.
- Verify Network Stability:
- For WiFi Cameras: Check the camera's signal strength in the UniFi Network Application. A weak, unstable signal can lead to packet loss and degraded quality.
- For Wired Cameras: Use a known-good, high-quality Ethernet cable. Check the switch port statistics for any reported errors. A faulty cable or port can corrupt the video data stream.
- Focus and Hardware Check:
- Some Unifi cameras have a manual focus ring. If your image is consistently blurry, check if your model requires manual focusing and adjust it as needed.
- If you have tried all of the above and the image is still poor (e.g., has a permanent colour cast or dead pixels), and other identical cameras look fine, you may have a hardware issue with the image sensor. In this case, you should contact Ubiquiti support or your reseller.
By carefully tuning the camera's settings and ensuring a clean lens and stable network, you can maximise the video quality of your Unifi Protect system.