Android Authority Test: Old Pixel 3 XL Beats TV Box Role as On-Demand Security Camera
Android Authority tested a Pixel 3 XL as a security camera and TV box. The camera worked for temporary monitoring; the TV box role required workarounds.
For the security camera test, Android Authority used the Pixel 3 XL as the camera node and a Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 as the viewer, connecting them through AlfredCamera. According to the report, setup was straightforward: the Pixel was configured as the camera, and the Z Fold 6 was automatically recognized as the viewer after logging in. The publication said the setup had near-zero latency, better than most conventional security cameras, and the app offered motion detection, power-saving mode, two-way audio and other adjustable settings. Image quality was not great in bright or low-light conditions but sufficient to see what was happening.
The trade-offs included compressed video for bandwidth and storage, a fixed field of view much narrower than conventional surveillance cameras, and high power consumption. Android Authority wrote that constant charging risks overheating, battery swelling and app freezes, and that Android phones are not designed to stay plugged in all day. The article said the simplicity of the setup led to the idea of using the Pixel as a mobile surveillance camera rather than a fixed-position one. The publication suggested it could be carried almost anywhere with a phone and sometimes a tripod and placed in front of a small area for temporary monitoring, such as watching pets during a picnic, sleeping children in a bedroom or belongings while briefly leaving a cafe. It also cited time-lapse, rendering jobs, 3D prints or a B-cam angle for content creators and DIYers. To address the risks, the article mentioned using a smart plug to control charging times and a clip-on wide-angle lens for a wider field of view. Android Authority concluded that using an old phone as a dedicated security camera still felt forced, but that a portable, on-demand surveillance setup in a bag was useful as a backup for temporary monitoring.
The media player experiment was less straightforward. Android Authority described a complicated hardware arrangement: the Pixel as the media player, a Bluetooth mouse and keyboard, a 32-inch 2K Samsung Odyssey G5 external display, a Marshall Acton II speaker and a laptop. The writer chose the SquareHome launcher for a mouse-friendly leanback interface with quick access to media apps such as YouTube, SmartTube and Spotify. According to the article, mirroring the Pixel screen to an external display through a laptop was the most effortless and cost-effective method, assuming a laptop and display were already available. The Pixel 3 XL does not support native USB-C video output, making a direct wired connection impossible, while a DisplayLink adapter felt like a luxury for the project, the publication said. The writer connected a laptop, an NEC Nextreme Infinity, to the Samsung Odyssey monitor via HDMI and the Pixel via USB-C, then cast the Pixel screen to the Odyssey using scrcpy. To address the different aspect ratios of the Pixel at 18.5:9 and the Odyssey at 16:9, the article described a workaround using the command adb shell wm size 1440×2560 to change the Pixel's display resolution and enabling the “Corner cutout” display option in Developer Options to avoid another layer of pillarboxing caused by the notch.