Introduction to Reolink AI Video Search

This article introduces Reolink AI Video Search — a powerful feature that allows you to efficiently locate key events from recorded alarm videos using intelligent, text-based searches. You’ll learn

1. What is Reolink AI Video Search
2. Which devices support Reolink AI Video Search
3. How to use Reolink AI Video Search on Reolink software

What is Reolink AI Video Search

Reolink’s AI Video Search enables intelligent, text-based searches to retrieve and review surveillance footage more efficiently.

Unlike conventional AI, which only detects single objects (e.g., a person, vehicle, or animal), Reolink’s advanced large-scale AI model simultaneously understands text, images, and video, and returns highly relevant results based on local alarm-triggered recordings.

Reolink AI Video Search conducts on-device local searches specifically within recordings triggered by AI alarm events, ensuring both speed and privacy. Whether you're trying to identify a person, vehicle, animal, or other object, AI Video Search enables smarter, faster footage review with just a few keywords.

This capability significantly enhances search efficiency and improves your ability to respond quickly to security incidents, all while ensuring data privacy through on-device processing and without incurring additional costs.

How It Works

The AI system automatically tags each recording with multiple labels based on the detected content. Currently, up to five commonly used object categories are available as filter buttons next to the search bar for you to select manually:

Person / Motor Vehicles / Non-Motor Vehicles / Animals / Packages
(Note: Available options may vary depending on the supported features of your device.)

To search, simply select a category and enter a description. For example, if you select Person and enter "a person carrying a package", the system will search within recordings labeled "Person" and quickly identify and display clips featuring someone carrying a package.

Suggested Search Inputs

Currently, Reolink AI Video Search does not support searching by abstract or time-related concepts such as “yesterday,” “this week,” “morning,” or “afternoon.”
Please use clear, affirmative sentences describing visible elements. In general, we recommend searching using noun phrases formed with a subject + its attributes. Avoid using abstract terms, questions, or negations. Here are some useful examples to get you started:

• A person wearing white clothes
• A deliveryman
• A person riding a motorcycle
• A black pickup truck
• A yellow dog
• A person carrying an umbrella
• A person using a phone
• A deer in the yard

Compatible Devices

Note: This feature requires Reolink App version 4.55 or higher.

Currently, supported models include:

How to Use AI Video Search on Reolink Software

• Via Reolink App

  Step 1: Access AI Video Search

  Log in to your camera via the Reolink App and enter the live view page. Tap the "Playback" button at the bottom to enter the playback page. Then tap the magnifying glass icon in the upper-right corner to access AI Video Search.

  

  For Reolink NVR users, you can also access the AI Video Search interface through the following methods:

  1. Go to the NVR settings page and tap AI Video Search directly.

  2. Or enter the Event History page and tap the magnifying glass icon in the upper-right corner.

  

  Step 2: Select Object Type

  Tap the category button to select the object type you want to filter, such as Person, Vehicle, Animal, etc. (The available types may differ slightly depending on your device.)

   

  Step 3: Set Search Timeframe

  Tap the calendar icon on the right to enter the time range selection page. Tap the start date, then the end date to define your search timeframe.

  

  Step 4: Filter by Channel (For Reolink NVR Users Only)

  Swipe left on the timeline to reveal the Channel tab, where you can filter and select the specific camera you want to search recordings from.

  

  Step 5: Enter Search Keywords

  Enter a specific description (e.g., woman with white clothing) in the search bar, then tap the magnifying glass icon to initiate the search.

  

  Step 6: Sort Search Results

  You can adjust the search results sorting method as needed. Search results can be sorted by relevance or recording time, with relevance as the default.

  • Sort by Relevance: Videos are ranked by relevance, with the most relevant ones shown first.
  • Sort by time: Videos are ranked by recording time, with the most recent ones shown first.

  

  Step 7: Preview and Download Videos

  Tap a video to preview it. Tap the download icon in the top-right corner to save the video to your device (it will appear in your device’s photo gallery).

  

• Via Reolink NVR (Monitor)

  Applies to: RLN8-410 (Hardware version NVR_NNT3NA78P), RLN16-410 (Hardware version NVR_NNT4NA716P)

  Note: See How to Find out System Information via Reolink NVRs (New UI) for how to check your NVR’s hardware version.

  Step 1: Access AI Video Search

  Right click to pop up the Settings bar, click "AI Video Search" to enter the AI Video Search interface.

  

  Step 2: Start Your AI Video Search

  Method 1: Search by category or keyword on the AI Video Search page.

  The following section explains each button on the interface, in the order shown on the screen.

  

  1. Date Selection: Choose the specific time range you want to search for recorded videos. You can also select from preset ranges such as "Last 3 Days" or "Last Week."

  2. Channel: Select the channel (camera) you want to search in, or choose All to search across all connected cameras. Note: Only event recordings generated by cameras that support AI Video Search are searchable.

  3. Category: You can filter videos by category. Available options typically include Person, Motor Vehicle, Non-motor Vehicle, Animal, and Package.

  4. Enter Search Keyword: Input keywords related to what you're looking for and click Search to find relevant recordings. You can enter text using the on-screen virtual keyboard or an external keyboard. The results are primarily based on the entered keywords. For example: searching “person holding a cat” will return videos tagged with both “person” and “cat.” Note: Currently, only English keywords are supported.
  Search Tips:

  • Category-Only Search: If you select a category without entering keywords, the NVR will show all videos under the selected channel(s) that are tagged with that category.
    Example: Select "Vehicle" to view all videos containing vehicle tags.
  • Category + Keyword Search: If you select a category (e.g., “Person”) and enter a keyword (e.g., “white dog”), the NVR will search within all “Person”-tagged videos and filter those that are also relevant to the keywords “white” and “dog.” Results will be sorted by relevance.
  • No Matching Results: If no relevant videos are found under the selected channels, the NVR will display “No Events.”

  5. Search Records: Previously entered keywords are saved at the bottom of the input box for quick access in future searches. You can also bookmark frequently used search terms for convenience.

  6. Trash Icon: Click the trash icon to delete unwanted search terms from your history.

  Method 2: Use AI Advanced Search for quick tag-based filtering

  Alternately, you can click AI Advanced Search to quickly select and combine options into a search term. You'll also need to set the date range and channel for filtering.
  Note: The date and channel settings here are separate from those in the AI Video Search interface and do not affect each other.
  

  The example below shows how to search for videos from all cameras on July 6, 2025, featuring a young woman wearing a blue top and purple bottoms.

  

  Step 3: Playback and Export

  Click Search to filter relevant videos. Select a video to play it directly.

  

  1. Export: Click Export to save the video to a USB drive. (Make sure the USB is connected to the NVR's USB port.)

  2. Relevance: Adjust the Relevance value as needed. The default is 43, which represents a low threshold. If the results seem less accurate, try increasing the value. A setting of 68 or above is considered a high threshold and will return more relevant videos.

  3. Sort by Relevance/Time: Adjust the search results sorting method as needed. Search results can be sorted by relevance or recording time, with relevance as the default.

  • Sort by Relevance: Videos are ranked by relevance, with the most relevant ones shown first. 
  • Sort by time: Videos are ranked by recording time, with the most recent ones shown first.

Reolink’s AI Video Search allows you to search through recordings using natural language. This feature greatly ensures you find what matters faster and smarter. Should you have any inquiries or require further assistance, please click on "Submit a Request" below to contact the Reolink Support team.