Trail Cameras We’d Actually Hang for Deer Season

We’ve hung enough cellular cameras in dead zones to know the truth: the best trail cam is the one that sends pictures where your phone already works. Everything else—megapixels, solar panels, two-for-one bundles—is gravy.

Academy ran strong savings on scouting gear heading into late spring and early fall prep. Below are five picks our editors would shop for whitetail season, pulled from that promo cycle, with straight talk on who each SKU fits and where we’d pass.

Affiliate disclosure: If you buy through the Academy links on this page, The Inside Spread may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Prices and hot-deal windows change—always confirm the live listing before checkout.

Moultrie Edge 2 cellular two-pack (Brown)

Two cameras matter when you’re running two stories on the same farm—a pinch funnel and a staging plot, or early velvet routes versus rut staging—and you’re tired of swapping one unit every weekend. The Edge 2 line’s built-in memory and Moultrie Mobile app workflow mean you’re not babysitting SD cards in the rain; pair that with onX Hunt integration if you already live in those maps.

What we’ve learned in the field: Edge-class triggers and daytime photos usually impress first; night photos and cell uploads are where cheap mounts and weak signal show their teeth. Run lithium AAs if you’re lazy about visits—we are too.

Shop: Moultrie Edge 2 cellular two-pack — Brown

Moultrie Edge single with solar (Mossy Oak Bottomland)

This is the set-it-and-hope-you-forget-it play for open lanes and southern setups where the panel sees sun. Solar doesn’t fix zero bars—it stretches time between battery swaps when the camera can actually talk to the tower.

Skip it if: your best spots sit under a canopy ceiling half the day. You’ll still be swapping packs or visiting more than you planned.

Shop: Moultrie Edge single with solar — Mossy Oak Bottomland

Wildgame Innovations 360° cellular two-pack

If you’re covering a wide food plot or sendero and want fewer blind spots than a straight cone of view, a 360-style layout can reduce “where did he step out?” frustration—at the cost of learning another app and plan rhythm. Compare night photo quality and subscription fine print on the live PDP before you commit.

Shop: Wildgame Innovations 360° cellular game camera two-pack

Moultrie Mobile Edge 2 cellular — single (Brown)

One camera, one killer spot—the scrape line that never lies, or the fence gap every buck uses. Cheaper entry to cellular than buying pairs you won’t deploy. Same cell reality as the two-pack: verify signal before you promise yourself opening-week intel.

Shop: Moultrie Mobile Edge 2 cellular — single Brown

Moultrie Edge 2 + solar panel kit (Brown)

Already sold on Edge 2 but hate climbing for batteries before every cold snap? The kit bundles panel logic with the camera line you’re standardizing on—power help, not a magic signal booster.

Shop: Moultrie Edge 2 + solar panel kit — Brown

Quick verdict

• Budget one hot spot: Edge 2 single Brown.
• Cover two movement stories: two-pack.
• Sun and open sky: integrated solar single or add-on kit.
• Plot width / different brand: Wildgame 360 two-pack.

Whatever you buy, scout cell coverage with your phone in the tree or on the same ridge before you trust opening weekend to an app notification.