Nobody likes dealing with technology when it isn’t working. Nowhere is this more true than for security equipment. This isn’t just a minor hassle, but a safety concern for you and your family. In the case of the Blink security camera, it will sometimes have a blinking red light, indicating it isn’t working properly.
The main reason why your Blink camera is blinking red is because it isn’t properly connected to the Wi-Fi network you have it set up on. This means your devices won’t receive a video feed from the camera, rendering it pretty much useless. However, red lights could come from motion detection or a faulty battery as well.
In this short article, we’ll discuss the reasons that your Blink camera has a blinking red light, the steps you can take to fix the issues associated with this blinking, and other information about troubleshooting your Blink camera’s internet connection, batteries, or other problems.
Why is Your Blink Camera Blinking Red:
Wi-Fi
The most common reason that the Blink security camera’s red light is blinking constantly is because of a lack of a strong (or any) internet connection. When first set up, the Blink camera will flash its red light four times (longer blinks) followed by a constant quicker blinking. This means it is trying to establish an internet connection. If the blinking continues, it means it can’t find one.
This could mean that either your Blink camera isn’t connecting to your home Wi-Fi properly, or your home Wi-Fi itself is either off or weak.
If your home Wi-Fi is off, try resetting your router. This is usually a pretty surefire way to reset the Wi-Fi in your home. Simply find the reset button (it is usually very small in the back of the router) and hold it for around 10 seconds. Then wait around 30 seconds, and press the button again.
If your Wi-Fi signal is weak, your Blink camera could have trouble connecting to it. It needs your Wi-Fi to have an upload speed of at least 2mbps in order to properly transfer live video to your smartphone or other connected devices. If you think this could be the case, try moving your Wi-Fi router closer to where your Blink camera is installed.
If none of these are the case and your Blink camera still won’t connect to the Wi-Fi, try shutting off the camera itself and turning it back on. Alternatively, you can also go into the camera settings using the Blink Home Monitor mobile app, and make sure you have the correct Wi-Fi selected.
Make sure your Blink app is up to date, and if it isn’t, tap the “update” button in the settings section. This can improve your signal strength as well.
If none of these solutions work, try contacting Blink customer support. You can find the number on the Blink website.
Motion capture
Sometimes, the red light you’re seeing on your Blink camera is not a problem at all and is actually an indicator that your camera is working as intended.
Your Blink camera flashes a red light during motion detection. If you are seeing a red blinking light that happens infrequently at staggered points throughout the day, it might mean that it is detecting motion, and is working as designed. If your camera seems to be working perfectly fine, and the red light is only happening once in a while, this is most likely the case.
In this case, don’t do anything! Again, your Blink camera is working as intended, so don’t worry about a red light that is for motion detection.
Battery
Another reason you might be seeing a blinking red light on your Blink camera is that it is running out of battery, or is completely out of power. This mostly occurs after the blue recording light goes out. The blue LED light will go out, followed by 5 or 6 slow blinks.
If you are seeing this blink (along with your camera having reduced or little to no functionality), it probably means that it needs new batteries.
Make sure you are using double A lithium non-rechargeable batteries in your Blink camera. These are the batteries the camera was designed to use and will result in the most consistent powering of your Blink camera.
If you have fresh batteries in your Blink camera and it still isn’t working properly (and still flashing that red light), you might have a bigger issue. Try contacting customer support on the Blink for Home website linked above.
Hard Reset
Before contacting customer support, you can do a hard reset. A hard reset will reset the camera to the factory settings, meaning it will be exactly as you got it out of the box (provided no physical damage has come to it). This can be especially useful when you aren’t sure what the problem is.
First, find the reset button. It is on the right-hand side of the camera. It should be close to the USB port. You won’t be able to touch it with your finger, so find a very thin object like a tac or a paper clip.
Poke the object you’ve chosen in and hold the button down until you see a solid red light. Make sure it isn’t blinking, but solid. This should take around 30 seconds. After the red light is on, your Blink camera has gone into a full reboot.
After this, wait a little bit for the light to shut off, and then proceed to set it up exactly the way you did when you got it.
This method is a little time-consuming, but it is a surefire way to fix a ton of issues.
If the issue persists even through a hard reset, contact customer support.
Final Thoughts
So, there are a number of reasons your Blink camera could have a blinking red light on it. Firstly, it could be due to motion detection. In this case, do nothing it all, as your camera is working as intended.
It could also be because of a lack of Wi-Fi connection, or faulty or used up batteries. These issues have their own solutions. If none of these is the problem, a hard reset could help fix the issue!
In any case, make sure to get your Blink home security up and running as soon as possible in order to protect you and your family!
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