Recommendations for residential IP camera setup

[AVInstaller 0]

Firstly, I would like to thank a few forum members (buellwinkle), and (the wire guys) for giving some pointers thru PM's and emails.

 

I am trying to setup an IP camera system for my home. I will be piecing this system together as I go along, so that I can afford nicer equipment bit by bit. I will have 2-4 cameras outside depending on the range of view of camera(s) used, and 2 cameras indoors (one of them that does not need to record, just HQ picture as a baby-cam that can also stream to my father at another house. Second indoor camera needs to record but I will try to put in a location that can view multiple entry points (i have a contemporary house with 22' ceilings.

Outdoors in the front, I would like to view cars at the bottom of my driveway (about 100' long on a hill) as well as see faces on my doorstep.....in the rear, I have a swingset about 80 feet from the house that I would like to monitor, as well as many wild animals that wander around in the back.........

I would like to at least record HQ video to an NAS or NVR based on a trigger of motion or sound etc, or even possibly record video at all times that just loops once the HD is full and records over old video. I would also like to be able to access live streams with Iphone or Android phone from remote locations, and possibly even recorded footage, but not completely necessary. I dont know if that means the cameras must be capable of multiple streams so that one can be megapixel to record, and other can me lower quality to stream to phone etc.....

I have pondered over Mobotix (due to internal memory card, or even recording directly to NAS if needed, as well as some cameras including day and night lenses as well as wide angle viewing) as well as recommendations from others such as ACTI, Axis etc as a few ACTI cameras have included both day and night as well as IR illuminators. I will end up spending money on my setup, but do not have deep pockets......I have a lot of experience with multiple wiring schemes and installation, but have not had much experience with IP camera setups....

NAS, NVR, internal storage, network bandwith, remote viewing.....There are two many options and technology seems to change constantly....

Any advice will be much appreciated, there are a bunch of great guys here.

[neostorm 0]

No responses? Im interested as well (C=

I like Mobotix as well, but man it looks so obvious outside.

I also looked at ACTi 7411, but heard it was not good at nights.

I normally dont have the lights on outdoors, so that may have to change unless there are IP cameras that dont need external lights.

I am also looking for 5 camera setup. Garage/driveway, Front door, Back door, Front lawn and Back lawn and maybe one on the side yard (where it is very dark as well). So maybe I need 6 cameras. Or maybe I cna get one of those dual mobotic cameras. Anyone know if the Dual Dome D12 is any good/ Also, compaired to the dual night M12, whats the difference? Is the dualnight m12 have different cameras the only difference? DOes the DUalDOme D12 have 2 separate cameras that is equally the same so I can simply place one at the corner and point each camera at a 90 degree angle?

Thanks,

calvin

[danielsan2222 0]

All cameras need at least some light so unless there is illumination from other sources(i.e. street lights) they are not going to be very useful. Some can get a decent shot in very low light but that usually involves having a long shutter time which is useless for surceillance purposes as anyone that walks by will be a blur. You may want some motion activated lights or you could consider IR illuminators.

 

No responses? Im interested as well (C=

I like Mobotix as well, but man it looks so obvious outside.

I also looked at ACTi 7411, but heard it was not good at nights.

I normally dont have the lights on outdoors, so that may have to change unless there are IP cameras that dont need external lights.

I am also looking for 5 camera setup. Garage/driveway, Front door, Back door, Front lawn and Back lawn and maybe one on the side yard (where it is very dark as well). So maybe I need 6 cameras. Or maybe I cna get one of those dual mobotic cameras. Anyone know if the Dual Dome D12 is any good/ Also, compaired to the dual night M12, whats the difference? Is the dualnight m12 have different cameras the only difference? DOes the DUalDOme D12 have 2 separate cameras that is equally the same so I can simply place one at the corner and point each camera at a 90 degree angle?

Thanks,

calvin

[Sawbones 0]

I have a number of Mobotix cameras on my home... and they're perfectly accessible via my Droid phone.

 

I have a few analog cams (mostly coverts) attached to an Axis 241Q server... and there's an application called "TinyDVR" for Android that takes the streams from that server, and displays them on your Droid.

 

Acti cams are not accessible by the Droid.

[rory 0]

Just an FYI for the OP, higher the resolution a CCTV camera is, the less sensitive it is under low light. Also you should not be slowing the shutter to see in low light, either the camera sees or it doesnt, just add light if it is not a low light camera. As mentioned slow shutter gives slow next to useless video under low light, in most cases grainy.

[AVInstaller 0]

I guess the exterior lighting is less of my issue, I have (2) 90 watt floods in the front of my house, 2(90's) on the left, 2(90's) on the right that are all activated from dusk to dawn, and a (500watt halogen) in the rear (switched only).....these lights are out of the reach of normal people, but how I look at it, purps/burglars arent normal people and may simply smash the lights with a stick/pipe etc......

 

Sawbones, have you tried IP Camera viewer for Droid with the mobotix?.....there is a free, and a paid app, and I have had better luck with a (Foscam) on the IP Cam viewer including audio....mobotix is listed as supported as well, but not audio I believe.....

[thewireguys 3]

Dont need a app for the Mobotix cameras to work on andriod phones

[AVInstaller 0]

Dont need a app for the Mobotix cameras to work on andriod phones

 

does it just use the regular android browser to view live camera streams? Does audio work as well?

[Sawbones 0]

Dont need a app for the Mobotix cameras to work on andriod phones

 

does it just use the regular android browser to view live camera streams? Does audio work as well?

 

It uses the regular Android browser... have never tried audio. I suspect, however, that it would NOT work on Android, since the audio seems to require an Active X control.

[thewireguys 3]

audio only works with IE

[Sawbones 0]

audio only works with IE

 

Yep... that was a major disappointment.

[cglaeser 0]

It uses the regular Android browser.

 

Can't speak to other NVR remote solutions, but Exacq Vision supports both regular browsers (no ActiveX required) and the Exacq Mobile iPhone application (soon to be ported to other platforms), and there is no comparison between using a browser and application. Some have complained on iTunes about the $49 cost for Exacq Mobile and said they would continue to use the Safari browser, but for me, the speed, utility, and ease of use justify the cost. Exacq is aware they need to improve event searches, and once that is developed and released, this app with rock.

 

So, while it's certainly nice to be able to walk into any hotel lobby or internet cafe and use a vanilla browser without any ActiveX, etc, there are also advantages to a well-designed mobile app that is specifically designed for a task. IMO, a quality NVR should have both.

 

Best,

Christopher

[AVInstaller 0]

It uses the regular Android browser.

 

Exacq is aware they need to improve event searches, and once that is developed and released, this app with rock.

 

Chris, do you mean accessing "events" such as a trigger (pir, sound) and being able to view those recorded events from your mobile with Exacq?.....is Exacq the only software currently out there that would enable viewing previously recorded events from your mobile?

[thewireguys 3]

It uses the regular Android browser.

 

Exacq is aware they need to improve event searches, and once that is developed and released, this app with rock.

 

Chris, do you mean accessing "events" such as a trigger (pir, sound) and being able to view those recorded events from your mobile with Exacq?.....is Exacq the only software currently out there that would enable viewing previously recorded events from your mobile?

 

You can't trigger events with the browser what he is talking about it reviewing recorded video. I have the the Ipad app and the Android App for demo. I think the Apple app is better then the Andriod app at this point but I normally use the web browser on my EVO. You can search on the browser but it is basic. The best part is you don't have to use IE or Active X you can log on to any computer Windows, Linux or Mac and view your system.

[cglaeser 0]

Chris, do you mean accessing "events" such as a trigger (pir, sound) and being able to view those recorded events from your mobile with Exacq?

 

In the current implementation of Exacq Mobile, you can play back any recorded segment up to 10 minutes in duration, but you have to specify the time you want to play back. For example, you can play back 3:15 am for 10 minutes. But what if nothing happened or recorded all night until 6 am when the paperboy delivered the paper. Currently, there is no way to know when any video was recorded. Exacq plans to implement a feature so that you can review a timeline of events, and then review those events.

 

is Exacq the only software currently out there that would enable viewing previously recorded events from your mobile?

 

Well, Exacq Mobile works with the Exacq server. Other NVRs have their own mobile solutions. Some use web browsers, some use apps, and some use both. I was essentially making the observation that there are benefits to having both. Exacq Mobile not only supports multiple cameras, but multiple cameras on multiple servers. All the domain names and passwords are stored in the app, and starting the app and switching among cameras is extremely fast. You can watch one camera, multiple cameras, zoom, rotate, switch cameras, etc, very quickly. You can also use it for installs. With the exception of event searches, this app is done really well.

 

Best,

Christopher

[cglaeser 0]

On the subject of browsers, there's one more attribute that is extremely useful. That is, the ability to use any browser with no ActiveX, or plugins, etc. It's nice to be able to use any mobile phone or ipad or borrow any laptop or computer and review your cameras without having to install or activate anything. The Exacq web server is one such example. Perhaps someone can list the other NVRs that provide the same easy-of-use.

 

Best,

Christopher

[AVInstaller 0]

Thanks for the explanation.....what I also meant by "accessing a triggered event" would be if your network camera was setup to notify your mobile phone if a P.I.R. was "triggered" on your network camera, or possibly a sound trigger on your camera notified you on your mobile, so that you could immediately access what actually caused the trigger (i.e. broken window, or infrared detection etc).....I can see how it would be difficult to notice some vandalism at your house, and then have to go thru hours of video (10 minutes at a time) on your mobile to try and identify what happened etc.....

[Sawbones 0]

On the subject of browsers, there's one more attribute that is extremely useful. That is, the ability to use any browser with no ActiveX, or plugins, etc. It's nice to be able to use any mobile phone or ipad or borrow any laptop or computer and review your cameras without having to install or activate anything. The Exacq web server is one such example. Perhaps someone can list the other NVRs that provide the same easy-of-use.

 

Best,

Christopher

 

That's a definite strength... and being a Linux guy, my hat is off to them for taking the time and effort to make their system browser-and-platform agnostic.

 

That's one of the reasons why I sometimes recommend Axis over Acti; you can use Java in other browsers to view the cameras and aren't stuck with Internet Explorer (IE is anything but fast and lightweight). Mobotix is also viewable with other browsers.

 

Exacq even worked on my Windows Mobile-6 phone (which sucked out loud, and has since been relegated to the scrap heap).

[cglaeser 0]

Thanks for the explanation.....what I also meant by "accessing a triggered event" would be if your network camera was setup to notify your mobile phone if a P.I.R. was "triggered" on your network camera,

 

Understood. If the NVR sends a message to your phone, then yes, you would know the time to search.

 

Best,

Christopher

[thewireguys 3]

Thanks for the explanation.....what I also meant by "accessing a triggered event" would be if your network camera was setup to notify your mobile phone if a P.I.R. was "triggered" on your network camera, or possibly a sound trigger on your camera notified you on your mobile, so that you could immediately access what actually caused the trigger (i.e. broken window, or infrared detection etc).....I can see how it would be difficult to notice some vandalism at your house, and then have to go thru hours of video (10 minutes at a time) on your mobile to try and identify what happened etc.....

 

 

You could have Exacq email you on a event with the link for the web browser. Very easy to do.

[rory 0]

On the subject of browsers, there's one more attribute that is extremely useful. That is, the ability to use any browser with no ActiveX, or plugins, etc. It's nice to be able to use any mobile phone or ipad or borrow any laptop or computer and review your cameras without having to install or activate anything. The Exacq web server is one such example. Perhaps someone can list the other NVRs that provide the same easy-of-use.

 

Best,

Christopher

 

A really basic NVR type of software, actually its more of a CMS but it will record from its IP cameras and DVRs ... Dahua's PSS. They just released a version that runs in Mac.... slow .. but it runs. I think it is emulated but didnt have enough time with it myself to check.

[cglaeser 0]

You could have Exacq email you on a event with the link for the web browser. Very easy to do.

 

Right. Very easy. Not only that, but you can set up schedule for these events. For example, you could create a schedule to send email if there are any indoor PIR triggers in a store after hours and on weekends, or something like that. Any full-featured NVR like Exacq should have these features.

 

Best,

Christopher

[thewireguys 3]

 

Well, Exacq Mobile works with the Exacq server. Other NVRs have their own mobile solutions. Some use web browsers, some use apps, and some use both. I was essentially making the observation that there are benefits to having both. Exacq Mobile not only supports multiple cameras, but multiple cameras on multiple servers. All the domain names and passwords are stored in the app, and starting the app and switching among cameras is extremely fast. You can watch one camera, multiple cameras, zoom, rotate, switch cameras, etc, very quickly. You can also use it for installs. With the exception of event searches, this app is done really well.

 

Best,

Christopher

 

Just so you know you call also log into multi-able servers with Exacqs web interface and review recorded video.

[cglaeser 0]

you call also log into multi-able servers with Exacqs web interface and review recorded video.

 

Right. The functionality is slightly better than Exacq Mobile, but the web interface needs improvement as well. The search features of both Exacq Mobile and the web server need to be enhanced so we can see if and when any events occurred. I talked to Exacq technical support about this yesterday. Fingers crossed, this will make the it into release 4.5.

 

Best,

Christopher

[ChrisRich 0]

It uses the regular Android browser.

 

Can't speak to other NVR remote solutions, but Exacq Vision supports both regular browsers (no ActiveX required) and the Exacq Mobile iPhone application (soon to be ported to other platforms), and there is no comparison between using a browser and application. Some have complained on iTunes about the $49 cost for Exacq Mobile and said they would continue to use the Safari browser, but for me, the speed, utility, and ease of use justify the cost. Exacq is aware they need to improve event searches, and once that is developed and released, this app with rock.

 

So, while it's certainly nice to be able to walk into any hotel lobby or internet cafe and use a vanilla browser without any ActiveX, etc, there are also advantages to a well-designed mobile app that is specifically designed for a task. IMO, a quality NVR should have both.

 

Best,

Christopher

 

This sounds like a great solution. I'll definitely check out this Exacq iphone app. I think being able to access images from home security systems like http://www.alarm.com/ is the way to go. Is this going to work as an Android app soon as well? That would be great.