The following table provides estimated maximum recording durations for the Tapo camera based on the average video bitrate measured in the laboratory.  When purchasing a Tapo camera and microSD card, you can refer to this table for guidance on maximum recording durations.

Please Note:
    1. Actual recording durations may vary due to factors such as scene complexity, the proportion of dynamic scenes, frame rate settings, and the specific resolution supported by the camera model.

    2. Typically, with Loop Recording enabled on the Tapo app > camera's Device Settings > Storage & Recording > Local Storage page, the microSD card will automatically overwrite the oldest recordings once it becomes full.

What can I do if my Tapo camera's microSD card fills up faster than expected? 

You may find that the time it takes to fill up the microSD card is significantly shorter than indicated in the table. In such cases, you can troubleshoot by considering the following aspects:

1. Check Frame Rate settings

    a. You can go to the Tapo app > camera' Device Settings > Video & Display > Frame Rate page to change the Frame Rate settings. 

If there is no Frame Rate option on the Video & Display page, please go to our official website, search for your Tapo camera model, go to its Support page, select the hardware version, and click on Datasheet to find its frame rate.

    b. The data in the table is based on testing with a frame rate set to 15fps. If your Tapo camera is set to a different frame rate, the maximum recording duration of the microSD card will change accordingly. For example, if your frame rate is set to 30 fps, the maximum recording duration will be halved.

2. Check the resolution of video recordings stored on the microSD card

    a. On the Tapo app > camera' Device Settings > Video & Display > Video Quality page, you can select different video quality (resolution) options. However, be aware that this selected video quality may not match the resolution of the recordings saved on the microSD card, since some Tapo cameras default to recording at the highest resolution.

    b. You can refer to the following instructions to download a video recording from the microSD card to your phone, then check its resolution to determine if the maximum recording duration of the microSD card is consistent with reality.
Seamless Video Control: Download and Clip Camera SD Card Videos in Tapo App!

3. Consider scene complexity and the proportion of dynamic scenes

If the video recordings feature complex scenes or a high proportion of dynamic scenes, this may also lead to the microSD card filling up faster than anticipated.

By following these troubleshooting steps, you can better understand and manage the recording capacity of your Tapo camera's microSD card.

More Articles:

How can I store the Tapo camera video recordings on a microSD card
Frequently Asked Questions about Tapo Care
How to configure the Spotlight Settings of the Tapo cameras