6 Best Cellular Trail Cameras for Hunting, Wildlife & Night Pictures

Are you looking for the best trail camera out there?

Trail cameras or game cameras as they are called, are tools used by hunters to see patterns in wildlife and animal movement. Many trail camera manufacturers target a very specific market and have been able to do so successfully.

There are a number of brands that compete to make the best trail camera, which delivers high quality at an excellent price. Another important use for trail cameras is in home security. These cameras can be placed in a strategic spot within your property and capture shots of unwelcome trespassers – whether human or animals – at nighttime.

If you have never used a trail camera before, then you will do well to read this buying guide carefully. We have listed the best-rated cellular trail cameras; we explain their features, specs and tell you what makes them special.

 

Types of Trail Cameras

There are essentially three types of train cameras – flash trail cameras, infrared cameras, wireless or cellular trail cameras. Each of these types has their own specific advantages. Let’s discuss what makes them so special.

(1) Flash Trail Cameras

Flash trail cameras consist of an incandescent bulb and a motion sensor which triggers the camera. Once triggered, the camera starts taking snaps and recording. It takes color photos during the day and black and white photos at night. These cameras have a short battery life and can scare the animal.

(2) Infrared Trail Cameras

Infrared trail cameras function by detecting the heat emitted by the wild animal. The flashlight is delivered by an LED panel when triggered by a motion sensor. These cameras snap photos without scaring the animal and have a decent battery life.

(3) Cellular Trail Cameras

Wireless or cellular trail cameras make use of a SIM card or WiFi connection to send the snapped photographs of the wild animals in real time to a smartphone. You can also use this type of trail cameras to see who is trespassing on your property.

Best cameras for shooting high-quality YouTube Videos

 

What to Look for in the Best Trail Cameras

#1: How much does the trail camera cost? It doesn’t make sense to buy a game camera that is too expensive. You should choose one that provides good value for money, gets the job done and is an investment that will last you for years to come.

 #2: How durable is the camera? The camera should last you for as long as possible. It should be reliable and should be able to serve you well in any condition. Read the user reviews and testimonials and find out what actual buyers have to say about the camera. If there are too many customer complaints, look elsewhere.

#3: What about the trigger speed?  Another important factor to be considered is the camera trigger speed. The camera has to be quite fast to capture certain movements, such as deer moving quickly through the area, or an action such as a buck chasing a doe. If the trigger speed is too slow, you might miss out on a lot of the action.

 #4: The recovery time – The recovery time is the amount of time it takes for the camera to take another shot following the first photo. Generally, with the best trail cameras, this is between 1 – 5 seconds. But if the trail camera has a particularly slow recovery time, then you could miss out too many great photographs.

#5: Battery life – The battery life is one of the most important things to consider. A trail camera with good battery life is worth its weight in gold. A camera with good battery life can capture over a thousand images on the go.

#6: Do you need a flash? Which is better – Regular flash, infrared flash or no-flash, as you get with the best cellular trail cameras? That’s a hard one to tell. Cellular cameras come with WiFi functionality, SC card and send pictures to your phone in real time remotely. Wireless trail cameras don’t spook the wildlife, take great night pictures and are affordable too. Infrared cameras make a good choice too. There are many low-cost infrared cameras out there in the market.

 

Here’s a Look at the Best Trail Cameras…

(1) Bushnell Trophy Cam HD Aggressor 14MP Wireless Trail Camera

The Bushnell Trophy Cam HD Aggressor 14MP Wireless Trail Camera is affordable and comes with many features. The camera has user-friendly controls and captures pictures at 110 feet. It is ideally suited to taking pictures of the wildlife at nighttime and is really effective on moonless nights.

The device is equipped with a field scan functionality, which makes it possible for you to set the camera in the time-lapse mode. It captures pictures without having to be triggered. There is much to like about this trail camera, such as the fact that it is solidly constructed, well designed and considered ideal for game hunters.

 

(2) Browning STRIKE FORCE PRO Micro Trail Camera (18MP) with 16GB Memory Card

The Browning STRIKE FORCE PRO Micro Trail Camera (18MP) with 16GB Memory Card is a low-cost game camera. This camera is very effective at capturing nature at its purest and most unspoiled form. You can take reasonably sharp pictures or shoot videos with this device.

The videos are of an HD quality with great sound. The videos run for anything from 5 seconds to 2 minutes. You can expect to get a 100-foot flash range with these cameras and a 10MP picture quality.

This camera is considered ideal for taking nighttime pictures of the wildlife and comes with an infrared flash. The second trigger time is only 0.67 seconds, which makes it a very fast camera. The battery life is very good and the camera runs on 8 AA batteries. It is equipped with a time-lapse viewer software.

The Browning STRIKE FORCE PRO is well camouflaged and cannot be detected by the wildlife. It has a rugged built and is quite compact. It has come in for a lot of appreciation from deer hunters across the United States and from other countries as well.

 

(3) Stealth Cam G42 No-Glo Trail Game Camera STC-G42NG

The Stealth Cam G42 No-Glo Trail Game Camera STC-G42NG is much to like about this camera such as the fact that it delivers an excellent performance at the low light during nighttime.  It takes pictures at a 100 feet range and has a very fast reflex trigger of not more than 0.5 seconds.

This device comes with an intuitive backlit menu programming and has a unique burst mode that is capable of taking up to 9 images when triggered. This camera allows you to shoot pictures manually as well. The camera comes with a 32 GB SD slot. A lot of attention has been given to its security with a proprietary Secure Lock password protection.

 

(4) XIKEZAN No Glow HD Trail & Game Camera 1080P 12MP Motion Activated Wildlife

The XIKEZAN No Glow HD Trail & Game Camera comes with a 1-year warranty and is ideal for wildlife hunting. This is an infrared trail camera and comes with a 2.0” LCD Screen and takes pictures at 12 MP, with a resolution of 1080P.

This trail camera is capable of taking pretty sharp pictures and shoots videos with clear audio. It can take colored pictures at daytime and black and white images at nighttime. The video time is between 5 seconds to 90 seconds and the trigger speed is 0.6 to 1 second.

This camera captures pictures in 5 different modes – photo mode, video mode, time lapse mode, hybrid mode and motion detection mode. It is perfect for outdoor use and is ideally suited for home security purposes.

 

(5) Crenova Game and Trail Camera 12MP 1080P HD With Time Lapse 65ft 120° Wide Angle Infrared Night Vision 42pcs IR LEDs 2.4” LCD Screen Scouting Camera Deer Camera

The Crenova Game and Trail Camera is capable of capturing amazing shots of the wildlife at nighttime. It takes outstanding 1080P color images with high-quality videos and great sound.

It comes equipped with a 12MP resolution and is noted for its high trigger speed of 0.6 seconds. It captures pictures from a range of 65 feet and at an angle of 120°.

This camera is easy to operate supports a multi-shot functionality with the time switching, intervals and time lapse. It can be connected to a solar panel or an AC adapter and comes with a one year warranty.

 

(6) TEC.BEAN 12MP 1080P HD Game & Trail Hunting Camera No Glow Infrared Scouting Camera Night Vision up to 75ft with 36pcs 940nm IR LEDs and Waterproof IP66

The TEC.BEAN 12MP 1080P HD Game & Trail Hunting Camera may not be the best trail camera out there and comes with many useful features. It captures pictures at a high resolution of 12 MP and captures up to 1 to 9 pictures with a single trigger. The trigger speed is very good, at 0.6 to 0.8 seconds. Underwater Cameras

The camera shoots HD videos at 1920*1080P and captures full-color photos in daytime and black and white photos at night time. It captures pictures at a range of 75 feet or 23 meters. It is waterproof and does not get affected by changes in the weather such as rain, moisture or the wind. It is resistant to corrosion, sand, and dust.

 

Conclusion

We have looked at the “best trail cameras” out there, which give you all the features that you are looking for in these types of cameras, but at a low cost. None of the products listed here are expensive. These trail cameras give you full value for your money and you couldn’t go wrong with any of them whether for big game hunting or for your home security.