Ubiquiti News
Ubiquiti has released UniFi Protect 7.3, an update aimed squarely at the thing that quietly limits most video security deployments once they grow past a handful of cameras: storage. Rather than asking sites to keep buying disks, UniFi Protect 7.3 changes how footage is kept and how remote cameras are brought into an existing system.
The headline changes are tiered retention, wider use of Super Encoding, a new Teleport capability for cameras at sites without their own console, and Time Machine review built into the Video Wall. There is also a native Shopify app for retailers.
None of this requires new hardware, which makes it one of the more immediately useful Protect releases for sites already running cameras on a UniFi Cloud Gateway or NVR.
Instead of a single quality setting applied for the life of a recording, administrators can now nominate how long footage is kept at full quality, after which older material is automatically retained at a lower quality. The result is a longer usable history from the same disks.
Super Encoding can be applied across every camera in the system, which Ubiquiti positions as a further way to extend history without adding capacity. The two mechanisms are meant to be used together.
Teleport lets supported cameras at a remote location record back to a central UniFi Cloud Gateway or NVR, with no UniFi console needed at the camera site. Ubiquiti describes the connection as plug-and-play.
For multi-site operators that is a genuine cost change. A second shed, a remote yard or a small branch no longer needs its own recording appliance just to get a couple of cameras under management.
Time Machine review is now reachable directly from the dashboard, so a Video Wall can be used to scrub back through past activity rather than only showing live feeds. Operators can move between live and historical views without leaving the wall.
The release also includes a redesigned Sensor Manager for faster review of sensor activity, and reworked identification management with drag-and-drop assignment of identified people. Separately, a native Shopify platform app connects UniFi into retail store operations.
Tiered retention is the part we expect Australian installers to notice first. Plenty of sites we see are sized around a retention figure written into a policy or an insurance requirement, and the usual fix has been more disk. Being able to keep thirty days sharp and the rest of the history at reduced quality is a far cheaper way to hit the same number.
For prosumers and small offices, this mostly means your existing console lasts longer before you start deleting footage you would rather keep. It is a software win on hardware you already own, which is the best kind.
Teleport is the more strategic change. Multi-site SMB work — a workshop plus a storage yard, a cafe with a second shopfront — has always carried the overhead of a recorder at every address. Removing that for supported cameras shifts the economics of small satellite sites, provided the WAN link at each end is sensible. We would still plan the upstream connection carefully before promising a client it will just work.
Integrators should treat the Video Wall Time Machine change as an operational improvement rather than a feature to sell. It shortens the gap between an incident being noticed on a monitor and someone actually reviewing it, which matters in reception areas and small control rooms where nobody wants to open a second application.
The Shopify app is narrower in scope, but if you specify for retail clients it is worth a look. Most Australian stores running UniFi cameras are also running cabling, switching and door access from the same platform, so one more native integration reduces the number of systems staff have to learn.
Overall this is a solid, practical release rather than a dramatic one. It follows the pattern we noted in UniFi Network 10.6, where Ubiquiti keeps extracting more value from installed hardware through software. Check camera and console compatibility for Teleport and Super Encoding before you promise anything on an existing site.
Read the full announcement at blog.ui.com.
UniFi Protect 7.3 introduces tiered retention that keeps recent footage at high quality and automatically retains older footage at lower quality, plus Super Encoding across every camera. It also adds Teleport for remote cameras, Time Machine review from the Video Wall, a redesigned Sensor Manager, improved identification management and a native Shopify platform app.
UniFi Protect 7.3 lets you choose how long footage is kept at high quality, after which older recordings are automatically retained at a lower quality to extend the overall history. Super Encoding can be applied across every camera as a further way to increase recording history without adding storage. Ubiquiti has not published specific percentage figures for the savings.
Teleport in UniFi Protect 7.3 allows supported cameras at a remote location to record back to a central UniFi Cloud Gateway or NVR without needing a UniFi console at that location. Ubiquiti describes the connection as plug-and-play and positions it as a way to expand deployments with lower infrastructure cost. Check camera compatibility before relying on it for a specific site.
Yes. UniFi Protect 7.3 brings Time Machine capabilities directly to the dashboard, so past activity can be reviewed across Video Walls. Operators can navigate recorded events and move between live and historical monitoring without switching to a separate view.
Ubiquiti distributes UniFi Protect as application software for its consoles and NVRs, and no licence fee or charge was stated for UniFi Protect 7.3 in the announcement. If you have specific concerns about subscription or licensing for a feature, confirm with Ubiquiti's current documentation.
UniFi Protect 7.3 includes a native Shopify platform app intended to make it easier to integrate UniFi into retail environments. The goal is to connect security with store operations so retailers can work across both in a more unified way. Ubiquiti has not detailed the full feature set beyond that.
UniFi Protect 7.3 is a software release for UniFi consoles and NVRs, so no new hardware purchase was announced alongside it. However, features such as Teleport apply to supported cameras, so compatibility should be confirmed for your specific models before planning a deployment around them.
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