TP-Link's Tapo brand has launched the C550WS, an outdoor pan/tilt camera with a 4K sensor. It was announced on 28 October 2026 and is listed in the Tapo UK store at £84.99, with shipping from mid-November. Amazon UK lists it at £89.99 with a release date of 20 November.

Hardware

  • Image: 1/2.7-inch 4K (8 MP, 3840 x 2160) Starlight sensor, 4 mm f/1.6 lens, up to 20 fps, H.264
  • Movement: 355° mechanical pan for full 360° coverage, 130° tilt coverage, 18x digital zoom
  • Night: two 850 nm infrared LEDs with a 30 m range and two white LEDs for colour night video
  • Deterrence: red and blue flashing lights and a 110 dB siren, triggered by detection
  • Network: Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) and a 10/100 Ethernet port, plus a 868 MHz radio for linking to a Tapo hub
  • Build: IP66, -20 to 50 °C, 12 V DC adapter, 3 W typical and 10.4 W maximum draw

On-device AI detects people (up to 30 m), vehicles (up to 33 m) and pets (up to 12 m), along with line crossing and tampering. TP-Link says these alerts are free, though snapshots in AI notifications need a Tapo Care subscription. The lens can also be physically hidden in the housing for privacy mode.

Local recording and integration

Footage goes to a microSD card of up to 512 GB, which TP-Link says holds about 16 days of 4K video, or to a Tapo H500 hub with up to 16 TB. Cloud recording through Tapo Care is optional.

For anyone running their own NVR or Home Assistant, the useful line in the spec sheet is RTSP and ONVIF Profile S support. That means the stream can be pulled into Frigate, an existing NVR or a Home Assistant camera entity without going through the Tapo cloud, and the Ethernet port lets you skip Wi-Fi altogether. Official assistant integrations are Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant and Samsung SmartThings. There is no Matter support, and Apple Home is not listed.

One thing to check before buying: TP-Link's own pages disagree on Wi-Fi bands. The UK product spec lists 2.4 GHz only, while the store listing says 2.4 and 5 GHz. If the camera is going at the edge of your coverage, a cable is the safer choice.