Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)I was pleasantly surprised with the quality of this camera. There are all kinds of cameras out there but very few that are designed and hardened to outdoor use. This camera is much larger than I expected, it's bigger around than a soda can and about 50% longer than a soda can too. It looks very robust. It has a lot of features and configurations so that you can set it up the way you want it.
One thing I've found in dealing with IP cameras is that the software is terrible. The software for this one actually looks decent though I don't use it. I only use the software that came with it to do the initial configuration. I use a program called "Blue Iris" for my installations and I can highly recommend it. The nice thing about Blue Iris is that it will work with many different cameras, from $10 web-cams to top end IP cameras. This allows you to add "views" to the system as you can afford it and as you find bargains on cameras. It's very nice to not have to spend more on a camera than you need to and can integrate it into your system with minimal hassle. Blue Iris controls all the motion detecting, provides web access, etc. This is very important if you have a real firewall with limited node access to the WAN. Instead of 10 cameras (which would be nodes...) using up licenses there's only the one on the machine that's actually controlling everything. If you're creating a surveillance system it's well worth the $50 bucks for the program.
The focus and infrared on this camera are absolutely fine. I have the one I just bought watching my garage door on the alley behind my building. No problems so far with wireless networking. I did upgrade the firmware as soon as I got the camera, before deploying it. If you're not comfortable with things like upgrading firmware I suggest you buy a pre-configured wired system and have all that fun pulling wires 'cause you're not going to have any fun at all with building your own system.
I can't speak to other people's experience with this camera but from my perspective it's a great camera. The only reason I bothered to write this review is that I didn't think it was getting a fair evaluation from the previous review. If you're into this kind of thing, this is a great device and I'll be buying more of them for exterior views.
Oh, one thing I should mention. You're not going to get the same kind of studio quality HD picture from a surveillance camera in this price range as you would from a $1000+ camera, it's just not going to happen and it's unrealistic to expect that. This camera gives a picture and records video that is more than ample for checking on "things that go bump in the night" or for giving a video to the cops to identify the bad guy(s). I want my surveillance system to allow me to see what's happening without sticking my head out the door and to give me evidence if I need it. This camera is more than suited for those purposes. It's a very fine camera and the quality is excellent.
UPDATE: I posted some snapshots pulled from video frames shot by this camera so people could judge for themselves. I don't know when Amazon will put them on the page but I did upload them so if they're not visable check back in a day or two.
For the price I can find no fault in this camera at all. Time will tell how long it lasts, how durable it is, etc. For right now I'm very happy with it and it gives me a 24 hour view where running a wire is just not possible.
UPDATE: Five months of service on this camera and it still works as good as it did out of the box. Considering the price I have no complaints about this camera at all and have just ordered another one to replace an older wireless pair of non-IP cameras on one side of my residence. I plan on buying at least two more over the next year to phase out some cameras that don't have infrared. There are motion detector lights that make those cameras serviceable but the infrared is much better and much more stealthy. So far I have provided evidence to the police twice and prevented vandalism and theft on my property several times with this camera.
I'm not saying this camera is the equivalent to far more expensive equipment, I'm saying that this camera does a fine job for the use it's put to. I'm very happy with this camera and after using it for a while I have no problem recommending it. It does a great job for what it costs. If you want HD TV cameras go out and spend the money on them, if you want to see what's going on and to be able to record for evidence, this is a great camera.
A note about the color situation that others have mentioned. I don't give a flying fig if the burglar's green shirt looks purple or his black tennis shoes look yellow or any of the rest of that. I want clear pictures of a face and enough of a shot of the clothing to provide a decent description so he can be arrested. If he's wearing a football jersey and the lettering and numbers are legible the colors don't matter. I want to see what they're doing, not make comments on their fashion sense and the color-coordination of their clothes.
Again, I can't recommend the Blue Iris surveillance program strongly enough. The software that comes with any camera in this range is garbage. Blue Iris is only $50 and it makes a world of difference. I can log onto ALL of my cameras from anywhere I can get an internet connection. I have Blue Iris set to send text messages to my cell phone when armed. I have a burglar alarm that uses motion detection and it calls my cell phone too. If I get calls from multiple interior cameras in an alarm state AND the burgler alarm call there's no doubt about an intruder and I can (if internet is available) log onto my system and look to see what's going on while I tell the police which room the bad guy(s) is in, what he's carrying and what he's doing. This camera makes a good and indispensable component in a very good, fairly cheap security system.
Sure, there are better cameras to be had but if you'd rather have 5 cameras with 5 views instead of one expensive camera with one view, well you see where I'm going with that...
Click Here to see more reviews about: Outdoor Waterproof Wireless/wired Ip Camera with Night Vision and Motion Detection Alarm, Apple Mac and Windows compatible, Silver.
