StanLee2066

A friend of mine purchased 4 Foscam cameras a while ago for $100 each - so $400 total. At the same time, I got myself an Axis for $800. To date, only one of his Foscams are working, and the image is crap. Mine still works great. It has a gorgeous picture HD and includes a 3 year warranty. My advice? Get the best single camera you can afford. You can get decent NVR software for about $50 for your PC that should meet your needs. When you can afford it, get a second camera ... then a 3rd. Just don't get a bunch of cheap cameras all at once - you'll regret it. There are many camera choices for under $500 that you'd be very happy with.

I was looking for white LED lights to brighten up my installation and noticed these items. This site also has an incredible selection/prices for LEDs btw. http://dx.com/c/car-accessories-799/car-alarm-security-709/car-dvrs-735 p.s. there is also a section for really cheap IP/CCTV cameras

Your soffit must look like Swiss cheese with all those different camera installations!

That's an interesting perspective. Perhaps some neighbors feel safer thinking the neighborhood is being 'watched' with your cameras. I live in a very safe neighborhood too with no break-ins/car thefts I'm aware of for the 10 years I've lived there (just some kids sneaking into cars to steal change etc.). However the reaction I get from locals is "OMG, did you have a break-in...vandalism?". The reaction was that they were needed due to problems I've been having - so I can only imagine what potential homebuyers in the area might think too.

I agree with you very much about the deterrent aspect. Although thieves look for these things and would very likely notice the camera anyways. One real problem with having very visible cameras is the perception you create that they're needed due to real concerns in the neighborhood. This can potentially affect home sales as some potential home buyers become suspicious as to the need.

I've thought of doing the exact same to my p33 series Axis cameras. Bright white cameras under a dark brown soffit If the cameras you wish to paint are kept dry, and most importantly not exposed to direct sunlight the paint should hold for a very long time. Otherwise, be prepared to see the paint fade/peel. A contractor once told me, "once you paint something that is exposed to the elements, be prepared to eventually re-paint it again and again" It's also very difficult to get a quality paint that will adhere well to plastic.

The Axis p33 series cameras have an on-board microphone. It works. However I just bought a microphone to use with the microphone line-in of the camera. It doesn't work. Axis has very little information on the specs of this input which is very disappointing. I've seen some gereral info on other Axis cameras that seems to indicate the output does provide 1 to 3v of power to microphone. Here is my theory. The microphone I purchased has the 'stereo' jack input. Not really stereo since there is actually just one mic, but there is a contact for the audio signal, power and ground. What I need is to get a microphone with a mono jack - I suppose the power and audio signal are combined. Here is a link to the one I'm considering... http://www.olympus.co.uk/site/en/a/audio_accessories/accessories_professional_dictation/microphones/me_52w_2/index.html Can anyone in this forum using an external microphone on an Axis camera confirm that they are indeed using such a mic - with a mono jack and not 'stereo' jack style? Thanks!

Thank you very much to both blakem and buellwinkle for your replies. I think blakem hit the nail on the head on this one. The Axis camera offers two choices in the audio Input settings in a drop down menu - Microphone or Line input. The Microphone setting clearly implies using the on-board microphone and worked fine. I assumed you needed to select Line input when installing a regular external mic but it ever worked. Anyways, what I tried was leaving it on Microphone input in the menu when physically installing the external mic ... bingo it worked. It seems that plugging in the external mic hardware disabled the internal mic and enabled the newly installed external mic. I feel a little silly now, but feel this is counter intuitive to what a user would expect. It seems as if (although not proved by me in this camera at this point), that the Line in is indeed reserved for some type of pre-amplified signal. This is not explained in any user documentation. Thanks again...

OK, so I found this document which lists the specs for Axis's own microphone - AXIS T8353A. It specifically states that the power requirements are 3-5 V DC, which is "the power provided by the P- series Axis products". It also has a picture of the mic using the standard 'stereo' jack. So maybe I got a dud microphone. I'll keep trying. http://www.use-ip.co.uk/datasheets/1530/axis_t8353a_microphone_35mm_5032531.pdf

I'm in the process of wiring 3 new camera installations. I've never used external IR illuminators, but would like to plan for the possibility. My question is about the technique typically used to power these.... Are they normally powered 24/7? Only dawn to dusk using a light sensor? Does anyone bother to trigger them from I/O output from an IR motion sensor... or I/O output from the camera itself? Thanks for any input!

I've seen these LED Cree bulbs at HomeDepot too (not sure what you mean by 'IR'). They also have both white (cool) and warm light available. They're pushing them aggresively, and this brand seems to be bringing the prices down. What's nice about them is that their light intensity is instant. The CFL bulbs can take a few minutes to reach full brightness - you can really notice when you live in a cold climate. I'll be soon be replacing my two CFL over the garage, and single at the entrance with these. I have run 16AWG cable to each camera. The outdoor kind used for 12v landscape lighting. This will easily power my IR motion sensor and a couple of 12v IR illuminators - dusk to dawn, OR 12v white LED illuminators that will powered with activity detection from the IR motion sensor. I'll experiment with both.

OK thanks. Good post you made. I can see by your last comment that it's standard for IR illiminators to incorporate light sensors in order to auto switch on/off. I think I do prefer the idea of white LED light, but I just want to give the IR a shot for comparison. Thanks

It would be interesting to get your final impressions when they're all setup.

Lightning storm, that's hilarious! Actually, all the PIR motion sense manufacturers claim that moving trees, bright car headlights and such can in fact still trigger them. That is why many are specifically designed for outdoor use. Many even use dual technology and incorporate microwave. I've seen the false triggers happen on the cheaper units for indoor use, but good quality outdoor models should not give you any problems. I prefer a separate unit rather than an integrated one like Mobotix has. This gives my the option to change/upgrade and flexibility in positioning, longer range etc. Unfortunately it will require a separate 12v power source.... Since I live in a cold area where it often get's to -20C .... and even -25C or -30C in the wintertime, finding the most qualified PIR was more difficult, but I'm going to be ordering the PIR you see in the link below (~$100). BOSCH and Optex also make good units that have been recommended by users in this forum. http://www.dsc.com/index.php?n=products&o=view&id=1346

its client software ??? it runs on PC From Axis "While a laptop or PC is required for initial setup, the AXIS Camera Companion solution runs entirely inside the camera or encoder, and then only needs the free software client to monitor and record video". So yes, mostly a client to monitor/record video from PC (if you choose - not required), but there is a component that is installed in-camera. I guess it should have been more clear in the discussion above that the motion detect method that alows for a complicated shape window is actually AXIS Video Motion Detection 2.1, which is a separate (optional) motion detect application that can downloaded from Axis and installed in the camera. This is the what I was refering to when I said ACC, sorry for the confusion.

In my opinion video motion detection is only useful in very stable indoor environments, where even the lighting is consistent. The ACC is a neat idea, but completely useless outdoors because as you mentioned there are no controls. The window option is much more flexible, but still tricky to set even in indoor home settings. I had an Axis camera set indoors and it kept triggering with my Xmas light activity, clouds suddenly covering the sun and even from the TV lighting when changing scenes! It's doable, but outdoors forget about it. You will quickly turn to PIR before you go completely nuts. All my cameras are m1114 series which I've recently sold on eBay to get a few p3364/67. Reason was the m114 series has no I/O input for PIR and I gave up trying to get video motion detect to work outdoors. I was able to temporarily borrow an Axis with I/O and PIR worked great! If I recall in my own testing, the top border is indeed included as part of the motion detection area when using the window motion detect. I've created up to 10 different streams. Each one tweaked for any situation that may come up. Mostly different resolutions/frame rates to meet specific needs when viewing remotely. For instance, if I'm viewing video at the local coffee shop on my phone, I'll select the 320x240 stream. At my work I may select the 800x600 stream. I have a 4mbps upload bandwidth at home, so the streams I've created are to ensure max 1-2mbps (when viewing remotely). My 1280x768 stream is at 5-10 fps max, but 320x240 is an easy 30fps. Keep in mind when it's dark the video gets noisy and the mbps will increase. When viewing inside my network on various devices it's 1280x768 @ 30fps no problem. For recordings I also go with 1280x768 @ 30fps compression at 20 max. I've got the space, so why not get the best quality available - is that not why I paid so much for a quality camera? Since all my recordings are set to activity it's not an issue for me. I believe I typically get about 10g a day. I set to delete after a week.

There is no Axis specific app that I'm aware of. Search for 'ip camera' in the store and you should find plenty of apps that are compatible with Axis cameras for viewing live video. I'm on Windows Phone, but I'm pretty sure it's the same for iPhone.

He has them set for DHCP reservation (at the router), which does in fact give them a static address. I do this for all my multiple home PCs, that way the IP address for each PC is permanent even if I completely format and re-install a new OS. However for my multiple printers, NAS and cameras etc I prefer to set the static address on the device itself. If you have DHCP reservation for this device set at the router AND there is also a default static address set at the camera itself ... could this be causing a conflict? Ensure you have one or the other.

Except the obvious of trying another power injector to remove the switch from the picture, you could try disconnecting one of the cameras to see if the lower power requirments make a difference. I can't imagine what would cause this on the network side except for possibly IP address conflicts?

Seems to be a power issue. How long are your cables? Anything else plugged into the other available PoE ports?

What I've done in the past is to go to Live View, then set the browser to zoom to 150%, 200% or even 400%.

The Parallax is popular too - mini size and only 3-6v. Might give that a try ... http://www.parallax.com/tabid/768/productid/83/default.aspx

The Optex and Bosch look great, but unfortunately look like they will require a separate power source. My Axis has PoE - but with 3Vdc out to power another device such as PIR. It would be nice to take advantage of this. What is interesting is that some Optex are battery operated and in fact work on 3Vdc. I could always use the batts, or remove the batts and run wire from the Axis power out to the Optex since they'll work on the 3Vdc. Has anyone tried this or is aware of any models with 3Vdc power requirements?

The datasheet does specify "Designed and manufactured in Canada". Unfortunately it doesn't mention motion detect technology - or at the very least an I/O connector to install my own PIR (which I prefer). Also rated for indoors only it seems. I'll give them a try when they come out with new models that are outdoor rated with I/O connectors.

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