Video security system?

[JoeP]

There was a news segment on GMA this morning about a family that got an email from their security system indicating a burglar was in their garage. Over a smart phone, they were able to see the perp in real time.

I have done a little research on the subject and found that there are quite a few solutions to monitoring your home while away, ranging from bundled camara/dvr to a simple USB camera connected to a PC.

Just wondering if anyone has any first-hand experience with such systems, and wouldn't mind sharing some details on cost and how well they work.

Thanks.

[seen]

I have one. I wouldn’t call it a ‘security system’ persay, it’s just a wireless cam. I originally bought it because in my then apartment, the water heater broke and the super had to enter the apartment to fix/replace it while I was at work. If you’re computer savvy in any way at all and have done some basic home routing before (specifically port forwarding) you can set up an IP cam very easily. The one I bought was this:

http://www.amazon.com/Foscam-FI8918W-Wireless-Network-Viewing/dp/B0046710G6/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1374255712&sr=8-2&keywords=foscam

With it, you can set it to record when there is movement, you can tell it to send you an email when this happens (as you indicated on GMA). There’s a few other goodies but basically if you set it up properly, not only can you view it live, you can control it from anywhere that has internet and reposition its feed. The only real drawbacks I’ve experienced are:

- When looking at the video real time, your video feed is bottlenecked by the upload speed of your internet connection at home. This isn't a problem if you're AT home, but if you're viewing it online away from home, you may be forced to reduce video quality to get a smoother picture, when really, if you’re recording you'd want the best video resolution available.

- If you set it to record movement there’s a lag. It will take a few seconds of movement before it will physically start to record to your harddrive.

- There is a light sensitivity adjustment for the motion sensor, but it kinda sucks, and if your cam is pointing in an area that gets a lot of sunlight, it can start to record as the sunlight advances and withdraws for minutes at a time. You could end up with a folder full of really short clips of nothing.

Hope that helps.

[snafu]

I think it's value depends on your needs. If you worry about B & E, talk to police on the regular number not 911. After a break-in with lots of electronics stolen and turned M Bdrm topsy turvy, we asked investigating officers about alarm services. When they finished laughing they explain having a sign that said the house was monitored was very valuable since thieves look for the easiest targets. The rest was pretty ineffective due to lag time.

If you want to monitor housekeeper, child care, pets etc. lots of potential if the activity goes where the cameras have been set up.

[FrugalSensei]

To me the decision depends on price and purpose.

I found that a decent system that could send to remote locations cost around $300 but that was for the cheap stuff. As I recall it included multiple cameras. There were also many stand alone cameras with wireless capabilities below $100. Fake cameras were less than $10 each.

After considering prices it comes down to purpose. Do you want to catch and prosecute people or deter them? The higher quality cameras with remote monitoring capability will cost a lot but provide you the best chance of getting a clear picture of the intruder though getting the police to respond in time is a huge variable.

On the other end of the spectrum is deterrence. Based on research and experience I would say that fake cameras are cheap and effective. Thieves, vagrants and vandals are quickly deterred by the mere appearance of a camera and generally don't take the extra effort to see if it's real, especially since that requires sticking your face closer to the camera. If you want you can even run same fake wiring to the fake camera to improve the facade.

[Mesem]

There was a news segment on GMA this morning about a family that got an email from their security system indicating a burglar was in their garage. Over a smart phone, they were able to see the perp in real time.

I have done a little research on the subject and found that there are quite a few solutions to monitoring your home while away, ranging from bundled camara/dvr to a simple USB camera connected to a PC.

Just wondering if anyone has any first-hand experience with such systems, and wouldn't mind sharing some details on cost and how well they work.

Thanks.

Yes I second this.