Another Bandwidth Question

[3RDIGLBL 0]

I just got off the phone with Bell Canada (my ISP) and bandwidth is limited to 60GB per month total. It would cost me $5 more per month to add another 40GB and they will allow me to do this upgrade 3 time per month so I could add an additional 120GB for $15 extra per month.

 

I just started up my ACTi ACM-4200 at home and I'm recording it back at my office. I have the resolution set to 1.3MP (1280x1024) the frame rate is currently at 1 and I dropped the bitrate down to 500. I'm no math wiz that's for sure but if the camera is running 24hrs/day 7 days/week how much usage could I see my self using per month? Oh ya it is streaming Mpeg4 but it would be great if there was a calc where I can simply change it to H.264 or MJPEG and see the bandwidth differences on the fly.

 

Is there an online calc someplace that allows you to put this detail in there where it will spit me out an answer?

 

OH YA! I would like my cake and eat it too!

[bpzle 0]

http://www.acti.com/project_planner/WEBSITE/storage.html

[bpzle 0]

What is your ISP limiting? Your upload or download? And where? Your office or your house?

[ak357 0]

I just got off the phone with Bell Canada (my ISP) and bandwidth is limited to 60GB per month total. It would cost me $5 more per month to add another 40GB and they will allow me to do this upgrade 3 time per month so I could add an additional 120GB for $15 extra per month.

 

I just started up my ACTi ACM-4200 at home and I'm recording it back at my office. I have the resolution set to 1.3MP (1280x1024) the frame rate is currently at 1 and I dropped the bitrate down to 500. I'm no math wiz that's for sure but if the camera is running 24hrs/day 7 days/week how much usage could I see my self using per month? Oh ya it is streaming Mpeg4 but it would be great if there was a calc where I can simply change it to H.264 or MJPEG and see the bandwidth differences on the fly.

 

Is there an online calc someplace that allows you to put this detail in there where it will spit me out an answer?

 

OH YA! I would like my cake and eat it too!

 

Ton's of bandwidth monitoring software with build in stopwatch counters

to keep track of total data coming in and lots of other network related info

I remember i give one while ago

[3RDIGLBL 0]

What is your ISP limiting? Your upload or download? And where? Your office or your house?

 

 

Thanks for the link, I guess I'll have to trim way back on quality and resolution cause I'm going to use it all up in no time. Really stinks being limited on bandwidth. Max I can get from them is 180GB total bandwidth. Guess I won't be able to do this. ARGH

 

They are limiting the total bandwidth useage per month. I am allowed 60GB of total usage per month (upload + download = total). I can purchase, what they called it (bandwidth insurance), additional bandwidth at 40GB for $5 additional per month. The limit is at my home. My office is in the states so I have no limit from my ISP there.

[bpzle 0]

Time for a new ISP! That's BS. Anything else available? Can you get a LOS to your office? If you know what I mean...

[3RDIGLBL 0]

Time for a new ISP! That's BS. Anything else available? Can you get a LOS to your office? If you know what I mean...

 

You're right it is BS but I hear my ISP is not the only one who have caps in Canada. No wonder Canada is always behind in technology, the cell phone plans are nuts here also so thankfully I have my business cell with nationwide plus canada!

 

I unfortunately am stuck with what I have. I'm lucky to have DSL. Trust me I thought of LOS but being a 15 mile drive to the office I doubt I can make it there through the hilly terrain here even if LOS is shorter than the drive.

 

I have no other ISP to pick from over here. I even called tonight to see if I can get a faster package but I have the best they can offer in my location 7Mbps down and they said up to 1Mbps up.

[Soundy 1]

Do keep in mind, that you won't be using that full 500kbit constantly - with any form of B-frame compression, unless you're aiming at a scene that's constantly changing, it will use far less than that on a regular basis. Even without in-camera motion detection, a static scene will generate very, very little traffic. Use a camera that DOES have built-in motion detection, that can use that to trigger the data stream, and you cut the data usage down even more.

 

I'd say fire the thing up and monitor the bandwidth locally for a couple weeks, see how much it uses *real-world*, before giving up on the idea. Simplest way to do it is to plug the camera into any spare Windows PC (even Win98 should do), and run any sort of basic freeware/open-source traffic tool. Heck, even Windows Task Manager will show you the Bytes Sent/Bytes Received data.

[Soundy 1]

Found this that might be helpful: http://www.nonags.com/freeware-shaplus-bandwidth-meter_3521.html

 

"ShaPlus Bandwidth Meter remains in tray and displays the approximate bandwidth consumed for the session, day and month. This will be useful for people with limited bandwidth allotted per month."

[jhonovich 0]

Is recording the camera at your office out of the question? That way you could go as high as you want on frame rate and resolution and only consume bandwidth when you watch live or access recorded video.

 

I am sure you have considered this so just curious . . .

[3RDIGLBL 0]

Found this that might be helpful: http://www.nonags.com/freeware-shaplus-bandwidth-meter_3521.html

 

"ShaPlus Bandwidth Meter remains in tray and displays the approximate bandwidth consumed for the session, day and month. This will be useful for people with limited bandwidth allotted per month."

 

Thanks Soundy. Great idea, I will have to fire up my Windows based PC at home LOL! I'll monitor it locally to see what it is sending.

 

I thought of using the built in motion on the ACM-4200 but I truelly was not sure how much this would limit through put as I thought the live video would still be going to the NVR and thus still using bandwidth. If the data stream would completely halt so a live stream is not going to the NVR until the motion is triggered then that would work. Not much action where I have the camera.

[3RDIGLBL 0]

Is recording the camera at your office out of the question? That way you could go as high as you want on frame rate and resolution and only consume bandwidth when you watch live or access recorded video.

 

I am sure you have considered this so just curious . . .

 

Not sure I understand the question. The camera is located at my residence in Canada but it is being recorded on my NUUO NVR back at my office in the U.S.

[Soundy 1]

Is recording the camera at your office out of the question? That way you could go as high as you want on frame rate and resolution and only consume bandwidth when you watch live or access recorded video.

 

I am sure you have considered this so just curious . . .

 

Not sure I understand the question. The camera is located at my residence in Canada but it is being recorded on my NUUO NVR back at my office in the U.S.

 

He's asking why you can't record it locally (at your residence) and then just playback the video from remote when you need to.

[3RDIGLBL 0]

Is recording the camera at your office out of the question? That way you could go as high as you want on frame rate and resolution and only consume bandwidth when you watch live or access recorded video.

 

I am sure you have considered this so just curious . . .

 

Not sure I understand the question. The camera is located at my residence in Canada but it is being recorded on my NUUO NVR back at my office in the U.S.

 

He's asking why you can't record it locally (at your residence) and then just playback the video from remote when you need to.

 

Oh, is that what's being asked? I still don't get that question from the way it is phrased. Maybe it's me but anyhow here is the response

 

I don't record from home because all my equipment is at my office in the U.S. and getting equipment back and fourth through customs is a daunting task. I know the NVR is really software and I can put it on a PC I already have at home but... the NVR is a demo system and I was just trying to show a remote recording can be done using an IP camera offsite someplace.

[3RDIGLBL 0]

Well I'm using up about 2.1G per day in bandwidth with the camera set to 640x480 and 1FPS.

 

You know being limited on bandwidth really stinks. You would think paying over $120 for the phone and internet service that I would be happy....noooooooooooooo, download should be about 7Mbps and I'm lucky if I get 2 and upload is supposed to be up to 1Mbps but it's all useless if I'm limited with the services I pay for.

 

Leave it to Canada technology to hold back the public again from doing what most of the world can do. Even cell phone plan are horrible here so my plan is from the states where I get more minutes and can sign a contract for less than a 3 year term and all for about half the price! MAN!

 

Looks like I'll stop my remote recording otherwise they want me to spend even more on my plan to increase it another 40G. ARGH

[bpzle 0]

sucks bud... I'd be seriously looking into building a mast and running a point to point wireless bridge. sell access to your neighbors... I bet you could have a hellulva ISP biz setup in no time. lol

[rory 0]

 

Leave it to Canada technology to hold back the public again from doing what most of the world can do. Even cell phone plan are horrible here so my plan is from the states where I get more minutes and can sign a contract for less than a 3 year term and all for about half the price! MAN!

Trust me, it is much worse elsewhere

[bpzle 0]

so why do you stay? all we hear is complaints... heat, slow business, expensive shipping and customs, crime... what IS good down there? lol

[rory 0]

so why do you stay? all we hear is complaints... heat, slow business, expensive shipping and customs, crime... what IS good down there? lol

Why? Nowhere else to go.

What is? Rum is cheap if you drink ..

[bpzle 0]

true. visited the Caribbean last year... rum was cheaper than gas. maybe that's why the atmosphere is so relaxed... "too expensive to go somewhere, let's just drink."

[rory 0]

Yeah gas is pretty bad, $4.30 a gallon of the crappy gas and we sit in traffic inhaling horrid emissions due to no emission regulations, burning up all that gas, as some little shacks have but 1 single room for a family of 20 and no running water but can afford 10 cars!