Canary's Security Cameras Suddenly Became Less Attractive

There's no such thing as a free lunch, they always say, so when someone does offer you one, you can be certain there will be strings attached. In most cases, it usually means "free but limited". But there are some that do suspiciously offer more at no cost, only to suddenly change the rules. That seems to be the case with Canary, maker of somewhat popular connected security camera products, who has incited an angry mob by hiding once free and somewhat critical features behind a $9.99 monthly fee at the very least.

Most security cameras actually come with paid subscriptions for almost all features, especially those that involve storing in the cloud or sending notifications 24/7. That is why some products try to stand apart from the crowd by either not requiring cloud storage, for example, or by offering those basic services for free.

Canary was one of the latter. Emphasis on "was". In the past, it had very enticing features available for free, including Night Mode, which schedules the security camera to monitor while you sleep in peace. Canary also previously recorded and stored videos for free, which, admittedly, should have already raised some flags.

Those two features are still there, but, unless you sign up for a Canary Membership, you can't get them. Canary will throw you a bone, by letting you record 10-second "video previews" for free, nothing more. Canary informed its users about its changes September 28, and those changes took effect October 3. Unsurprisingly, users were not amused.

While Canary does have the right to charge for the use of its services or to change them, it could have done so more gracefully. One week's notice is hardly enough time for customers to mull over their options and make preparations. Perhaps Canary was worried anything longer would give their users time to migrate to other cameras and services. And now they definitely will.

VIA: The Verge