Unifi G6 Bullet vs AI Pro – Which is Better?

If you’re in the market for a high-quality bullet camera, you’ve probably come across both the Unifi G6 Bullet and the AI Pro. Both cameras come from Ubiquiti, a trusted name in networking and surveillance, but with a significant price difference: the G6 Bullet retails at $199 USD, (currently $229 on Amazon USA) while the AI Pro is priced at $499. Are these two cameras really that different? Or is the G6 Bullet simply a more affordable alternative that delivers comparable performance? Let’s dive in and find out. Don’t forget to follow his Channel for future updates.

Unboxing and First Impressions

The G6 Bullet arrives in a sleek package, typical of bullet cameras, and inside you’ll find the camera itself—a 4K model equipped with an RJ45 Ethernet port, a tool for tightening the mount, several mounting options including a new type of mount that can work as both a wall or pole mount, and multiple rubber grommets to accommodate different cable thicknesses.

One interesting update with the G6 Bullet is its new grommet system that uses a hexagonal hole and a funnel-like plastic contraption to provide a tight, weatherproof seal around the cable. This design aims to prevent dust, water, and even insects from entering the camera housing. The packaging also includes screws and a pipe clamp for pole mounting, making installation flexible and straightforward.

Installation Process

Installing the G6 Bullet is simple and intuitive. After deciding on the mounting method—pole or wall—the rubber grommet is fitted around the cable, which is then pushed through the funnel system to ensure a secure, weatherproof fit. The camera is attached to the mount, and the included tightening tool makes securing the camera stable and hassle-free.

For testing purposes, the G6 Bullet was installed right next to the AI Pro camera, with the goal of comparing their performance side-by-side under identical conditions. To keep the comparison fair, the AI Pro’s Enhancer accessory was removed, as it can significantly improve image quality and would have given the AI Pro an unfair advantage.

Specs and Feature Comparison: G6 Bullet vs AI Pro

On paper, the G6 Bullet and AI Pro share a lot of similarities, which makes the price difference all the more intriguing. Here’s a quick comparison:

• Dimensions: The G6 Bullet is smaller (82mm diameter, 88.8mm length) compared to the AI Pro (almost the same diameter but 112mm long). The AI Pro’s extra length accommodates its 3x optical zoom lens, which the G6 Bullet lacks.
• Night Vision: The G6 Bullet offers 30 meters of night vision, slightly better than the AI Pro’s 25 meters.
• AI Features: Both support face recognition, license plate recognition, and smart detections for animals, people, and vehicles.
• Field of View: Nearly identical, with the AI Pro having a slight edge due to zoom capabilities.
• Audio: The G6 Bullet includes a microphone but lacks two-way audio; the AI Pro supports two-way audio and comes with a loudspeaker if you add the Enhancer.
• Ingress Protection: The G6 Bullet has an IP66 rating, meaning it’s slightly more dust and water-resistant than the AI Pro’s IP64 rating.
• Network Interface: G6 Bullet uses 100 Mbps Ethernet, while the AI Pro supports gigabit Ethernet. However, gigabit speeds aren’t necessary for 4K streaming.
• Processor: Both cameras run on the same ARM Cortex A53 chipset.

Overall, the main hardware difference boils down to the AI Pro’s optical zoom and two-way audio capabilities. Otherwise, they share the same sensor, processing power, and core features.

Exploring the G6 Bullet Features

The G6 Bullet’s interface will feel familiar to anyone who has used UniFi cameras before. It offers comprehensive status information, including connection health, device version, and alarms. Out of the box, fifteen different alarms are enabled, covering a wide range of detection scenarios.

In terms of recording, the camera supports continuous recording, motion events, and AI events. While motion events can sometimes be triggered by irrelevant movements (like swaying trees), enabling both motion and AI events can provide more comprehensive coverage.

The camera’s AI capabilities include detection of animals, people, vehicles, faces, and license plates. The audio detection suite is impressive, with alerts for sounds such as baby crying, barking, car alarms, glass breakage, sirens, and smoke alarms.

Recording quality and compression settings are flexible, with options for auto or custom frame rates and compression levels. The G6 Bullet supports both H.264 and H.265 encoding standards, which maximize compression efficiency and video quality depending on your setup.

Users can customize overlays on the video feed, choosing to display timestamps and camera names instead of the UniFi logo, which is more practical for surveillance purposes. Additionally, motion zones, smart zones, crossing lines, and blackout areas can be configured to tailor detection to specific areas of interest.

Image Quality and Real-World Performance

When comparing live footage, the AI Pro generally produces a slightly cleaner image with less grain, whereas the G6 Bullet’s image can have a subtle white noise overlay. However, this can be improved by turning off HDR in the G6 Bullet’s settings, which makes the image clearer and more pleasing.

Both cameras perform excellently in person and face detection. In fact, during the test, the G6 Bullet successfully recognized a face that the AI Pro missed, highlighting its strong AI capabilities.

License Plate Recognition

License plate recognition (LPR) is a critical feature for many surveillance setups, particularly in driveways or parking lots. Both cameras performed flawlessly in detecting and reading license plates on approaching vehicles. The AI Pro and G6 Bullet correctly identified plates from cars driving up the driveway, including vehicle type and color, with high confidence levels.

Nighttime Footage and Infrared Performance

Night vision is another important factor, especially for outdoor cameras. The G6 Bullet offers a 30-meter IR range, slightly better than the AI Pro’s 25 meters. Both cameras use adaptive infrared technology that adjusts IR intensity based on the distance of objects to avoid overexposure and ‘bleaching’ of closer objects.

In tests conducted with all other IR sources turned off, both cameras provided clear and usable nighttime images. The G6 Bullet showed a slightly clearer image with less washed-out lighting on distant objects, such as trees used as benchmarks in the test. However, neither camera could perform license plate recognition at night when vehicle headlights caused reflective glare on the plates. For reliable nighttime LPR, a dedicated AI LPR camera is recommended.

Which Camera Should You Choose?

After extensive testing and comparison, the G6 Bullet and AI Pro cameras are remarkably similar in terms of core features, image quality, and AI capabilities. The AI Pro’s standout features are its 3x optical zoom and two-way audio support, especially when paired with the Enhancer accessory. However, these features come at a much higher price point.

If you don’t require optical zoom or two-way audio, the G6 Bullet offers incredible value. It shares the same powerful image sensor, AI detections, and processing power as the AI Pro, but at less than half the price. For most users, the G6 Bullet will be the better choice.

That said, the AI Pro remains a solid and reliable camera, especially for those who need zoom functionality or enhanced audio features. If the AI Pro were priced closer to $299 instead of $499, the decision might be more nuanced.

Ultimately, the G6 Bullet stands out as an excellent bargain and has quickly become a favorite bullet camera, especially given its price-performance ratio.

Final Thoughts

The Unifi G6 Bullet proves to be a fantastic camera that punches well above its weight. With its robust build, advanced AI features, and excellent image quality, it delivers everything most users need for outdoor surveillance. Its weatherproof design (IP66 rating) and ease of installation only add to its appeal.

For anyone considering upgrading or installing new bullet cameras, the G6 Bullet should be at the top of the list, especially if budget is a concern.

What do you think? Have you used either the G6 Bullet or the AI Pro? Do you have any unique insights or experiences to share? Feel free to leave your thoughts and questions in the comments below.

Thanks for reading, and happy securing!