GardePro X66 Pro Cellular Trail Camera Review: Keep an Eye on Wildlife Where Wi-Fi Doesn’t Reach

I live on 12 wooded acres in southern Indiana and enjoy spotting wildlife such as deer, turkeys, possums, raccoons, coyotes, and even a bobcat, which my American bobtail cat, Ozzy, once chased away. I use several trail cameras, but my property is too spread out for every camera to reach home WiFi. The GardePro X66 Pro cellular trail camera solves that problem: it doesn’t need WiFi, only access to a supported cellular network.

GardePro sent me the X66 Pro to test, and I used it for a few weeks to see how it handled motion detection, image quality, video quality, app connectivity, and battery charging with the optional solar panel. Spoiler alert: I came away impressed.

What Is It?

The GardePro X66 Pro is a cellular trail camera designed to keep an eye on wildlife, property, remote entrances, outbuildings, or any other location where Wi-Fi either doesn’t reach or isn’t available.

Instead of relying on your home network, the GardePro X66 Pro uses cellular service. It includes a pre-installed SIM card and can connect through a cellular carrier such as T-Mobile, Verizon, or AT&T, depending on which network has the best coverage where you install it. That means you can place it farther out on your property without worrying about running a long-range Wi-Fi connection back to your house.

Once the camera is activated and connected, you can use the GardePro Mobile app to view the pictures and video previews it captures. You can also check a live view whenever you want.

For someone like me, with trail cameras placed around a wooded property, that is a huge convenience. Instead of walking through the woods to retrieve an SD card, I can check what has been visiting from my iPhone. Of course, you will still want to visit the camera occasionally for maintenance or to access full-resolution files from the SD card, but cellular connectivity makes day-to-day monitoring much easier.

The X66 Pro can capture photos, videos, or both when it detects motion. In my testing, it captured wildlife activity day and night, and the results looked good.

What’s in the Box?

The GardePro X66 Pro comes with a fairly complete bundle, so you can charge, activate, and install it without immediately buying a bunch of accessories.

• The GardePro X66 Pro cellular trail camera
• Instruction manual
• Lithium-ion battery pack manual
• 64GB SD card
• USB-C to USB-A adapter
• Cellular antenna
• USB-C to USB-C charging cable
• Mounting strap

I was happy to see that GardePro includes a 64GB SD card. That is one less thing you have to hunt down before getting started. There is also a removable lithium-ion battery pack inside the camera, and it can be charged through USB-C.

The optional solar panel package includes:

• SP1000 solar panel
• Adjustable mounting bracket
• Tree strap
• Mounting hardware and screws
• Instruction manual

The solar panel is not tiny. It measures roughly 14 inches diagonally, about 10.75 inches wide, and about 9.5 inches tall. It includes an adjustable bracket that lets you angle it up or down so you can position it for better sunlight exposure.

Tech Specs

• Camera: GardePro R3 Pro Cellular Trail Camera
• Cellular Connectivity: Auto-select based on location for Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile
• Video Resolution: 1296P HD
• Video Length: 3sec – 5min
• Photo resolution: Configurable up to 48MP
• Detection Distance: 90ft
• Night vision: 940nm no-glow infrared
• Storage: Included 64GB SD card
• Battery: 7,800mAh rechargeable lithium battery
• Charging: USB-C
• Solar options: Optional 3.5W or 10W solar panel

Design and Features

The GardePro X66 Pro has the familiar camouflaged look of a trail camera, and it is designed to be mounted outdoors and left there. The front features the main lens, infrared components, and PIR motion-detection lenses. The antenna screws into the top, and the solar-panel connection is located on the exterior.

A side latch opens the camera so you can access the internal controls, SD card slot, and removable battery pack. The battery is easy to remove, charge, and reinstall. That matters if you decide not to use the solar panel or if your installation location doesn’t get enough sunlight to keep the battery topped off.

Setting up the camera was straightforward. After charging the battery and inserting the SD card, I turned on the camera. The display instructed me to press OK to show a QR code, which I then scanned using the GardePro Mobile app.

The app walks you through selecting the camera type, confirming that the SIM card, SD card, battery, and antenna are installed, and activating the device. I set up the camera in my basement, and it still connected to 4G with four bars of signal. The screen also displayed useful information including the time, date, temperature, resolution setting, and cellular signal strength.

From the camera’s onboard menu, you can adjust settings such as:

• Photo mode, video mode, or photo and video mode
• Photo quality
• Photo burst settings
• Video quality
• Video duration for daytime and nighttime
• Audio recording
• File format
• Detection delay
• False-trigger options
• Side motion sensors
• Motion test options
• Recording schedules

For my testing, I selected photo and video capture, 32MP photos, 1296p video, MP4 format, and 30-second videos during both the day and night. I wanted the camera to capture enough footage to show what the animal was doing rather than only grabbing a quick 10-second clip.

One thing I noticed immediately when unboxing my review unit was that the PIR lenses looked scratched, even though there had been a protective film over them. That concerned me because I wondered whether the scratches might affect motion detection or image quality.

I contacted GardePro, and the company responded quickly. They said they were implementing quality-control steps to prevent that issue from happening again. They also said that minor scratches on those lenses should not affect motion detection or photo and video quality.

After using the camera for a few weeks, I did not see evidence that the scratches affected performance. The camera detected movement and captured usable footage day and night. Still, it’s worth inspecting if you buy one, because nobody wants to unbox a new camera and immediately see what looks like cosmetic damage.

Setup and Installation

The included strap is the easiest way to attach the camera to a tree, fence post, or similar object. It slides through the camera’s mounting points and has a locking mechanism to hold it securely in place.

The camera also has threaded mounting sockets if you would rather install it on a pole mount or another optional mounting accessory. It also includes an antenna attachment point and a connection for the solar panel.

Data Plan Subscription Details

The X66 Pro requires a cellular data plan, which makes sense because it has to send content back to the app through a cellular network. At the time of my setup, GardePro offered monthly and annual plans.

The annual options shown in the app were:

• Premium: Unlimited photos or unlimited video previews for $144 per year
• Standard: 1,500 photos or 15,000 video previews for $96 per year
• Basic: 500 photos or 5,000 video previews for $67.20 per year

Monthly pricing was also available, with the Premium plan shown at $15 per month, Standard at $10 per month, and Basic at $7 per month. Paying annually costs less over the course of a year.

You get your first month free, which helps because it gives you time to see whether the camera works well in your location before committing to a longer plan.

See It in Action

I installed the X66 Pro on a post underneath a shed roof. The camera had a good view of an area where wildlife travels through the property, and the solar panel had access to enough light to do its job.

After nearly two weeks of use, the solar panel has kept the internal battery at 100%. It didn’t drop even one percentage point.

That is probably one of my favorite features of this setup. If you place trail cameras in the woods or in remote parts of your property, charging batteries can quickly become a chore. You have to walk out to the camera, take the battery or camera back inside, charge it, return it to the installation location, and set it back up. With a solar panel that gets enough sunlight, you can eliminate much of that hassle.

Of course, your experience will depend on where you install it. If the panel is constantly shaded by trees, pointed in the wrong direction, or installed in an area that doesn’t get much sunlight, it will not perform as well. But in my setup, it worked exactly as I hoped.

As for motion detection and image quality, I was pleased with the results. The camera captured wildlife activity in different lighting conditions, and the footage looked good during both the day and night. The photos were clear, and I enjoyed checking the recorded video clips to see what had wandered through the area.

GardePro Mobile App

The app is what makes the cellular camera experience especially useful. I can check in from my phone instead of physically retrieving the SD card every time I want to see what the camera caught. If you are monitoring a distant part of your property, a hunting location, a shed, a gate, or an area without Wi-Fi coverage, that convenience is hard to beat.

The live-view option is another nice feature. Being able to open the app and see what the camera sees adds another layer of usefulness beyond simply waiting for a motion-triggered photo or video.

Final Thoughts

Over the last 6 months, I’ve used several GardePro long-range wireless trail cameras, and the GardePro X66 Pro is the first cellular model I have used from the company. After a few weeks of testing, I think it does what it is supposed to do.

The camera was easy to set up; it connected through cellular service without needing my home Wi-Fi, and it captured good photos and video of wildlife in daytime and nighttime conditions. The GardePro Mobile app makes it much more convenient to check on activity without taking a trip out to the camera every few days.

The optional solar panel also performed well in my testing. With the panel positioned where it could receive sunlight, it kept the internal battery at 100%. That is a big deal if you want to set up a camera and avoid frequent battery-charging trips.

The scratched PIR lenses on my review unit were not ideal, and I am glad I contacted GardePro about them. The company said it was taking steps to improve quality control, and I did not see any performance problems caused by the scratches during my testing. Still, I would like to see it eliminated going forward.

If you need a trail camera for an area that does not have access to your home Wi-Fi, a cellular camera is a smart solution. It lets you keep tabs on wildlife or property activity from wherever you are, as long as the camera has cellular coverage.

The GardePro X66 Pro gave me the image quality, video quality, motion detection, solar charging performance, and remote access I was looking for. For that reason, I give it a thumbs up.

The GardePro X66 Pro Trail Camera (1 camera) retails for $85.899; it is available directly from the manufacturer and other retailers, including Amazon.

Source: Manufacturer-supplied review sample.

What I Like: Cellular connectivity means the camera does not need to be within range of home Wi-Fi; Easy setup; Automatic cell carrier choice; A 64GB SD card is included; Live remote viewing; Photo, video, and combined capture modes offer flexibility; The optional solar panel kept the battery at 100% during my testing

What Needs Improvement: My review unit arrived with visible scratches on the PIR lenses; A paid cellular plan is required after the included first free month;