NFT: Webcam for home??

to watch our nanny. Works great, goes right to my phone and is relatively cheap

Is $200 about right for that?

You can find then on amazon. Plugs right into your WiFi and can add as many as your WiFi network can handle.

There is some configuration required for viewing when you are not at home (ie not on your WiFi) but not too difficult.

It's relatively inexpensive for a first timer like me. Sounds like a good deal.

Thanks

In comment 12342063 goldy1313 said:

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It's relatively inexpensive for a first timer like me. Sounds like a good deal. Thanks

I think that's the model I have. Do you intend to record or just view? If you want to record you will need to purchase additional software and have it run on a computer on the network

I really just want to see and be able to talk to my dog. OK yell at him to get off the couch!

The TalkBack feature is there on the foscam but I've rarely if ever used it

In comment 12342019 RonPaulsBalls said:

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to watch our nanny. Works great, goes right to my phone and is relatively cheap

So much potential in this post...so much...

In comment 12342019 RonPaulsBalls said:

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to watch our nanny. Works great, goes right to my phone and is relatively cheap

Watch the nanny...sounds like a show with solid potential.

Can't imagine what would be going through his doggy mind as your disembodied voice is yelling at him. Does he develop a neurosis and start endlessly searching the house for you? Does he believe you are now around to let him out and will drink more water than he otherwise would. I really don't know, but report back on this if it works and try to gauge the mental state of the dog.

In comment 12342019 RonPaulsBalls said:

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to watch our nanny. Works great, goes right to my phone and is relatively cheap

Does she know shes being watched?

In comment 12342210 spike said:

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In comment 12342019 RonPaulsBalls said: Quote: to watch our nanny. Works great, goes right to my phone and is relatively cheap Does she know shes being watched?

Where's the fun in that, amorite?

If you have comcast/cablevision internet you may have an issue.

They block almost all of the network ports for residential customers so you will not be able to access the webcam from outside of the house.

We tried to set up a foscam (great wifi camera) but could not connect from outside the network because of this.

That would be a deal breaker if I couldn't stream outside the house. Even if I don't want to traumatize the dog with a disembodied voice, I would like to see what he is doing during the day to formulate a training plan for the furniture rights.

Dropcam if you want quality.

I've installed no less than 20 of the Foscams, and have 4-5 of them myself. For whatever reason, a good 30% of them struggle to connect to WiFi. Can't explain it - same model, same firmware, same rev, same network - and yet 1/3 will not be able to connect whereas the other two will go up just fine. When they work they are a good cheap option though, resolution and features aren't the greatest but you can't beat the price.

With Dropcam being acquired by Google, I was hoping for cheaper hardware on the horizon, but so far no dice.

Does more than Dropcam and is the next wave of home monitoring
Canary - ( New Window )

I dont know.

When we moved we now have fios, but I haven't tried to hook it up. I have heard that it isnt an issue and if I remember correctly, the fios router will actually walk you through a wizard to set up the webcam.

RE Canary

That looks really interesting. Do you use it?

250 is a bit hefty even for an early adopter.

I can just imagine the first accidental:

"Canary:
Activity detected at home"

notification. How many BBIers are going to be busting through their front doors pistols drawn?

I also have an alarm system but use this to track air temp and guilty. I am a guitar player and want to make sure the room is OK to leave them out. It's fantastic and well worth the $$.

Webcam is only video and doesn't have the features that the Canary does. I'm thinking about adding another one

In comment 12342421 mikeygiants said:

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I can just imagine the first accidental: "Canary: Activity detected at home" notification. How many BBIers are going to be busting through their front doors pistols drawn?

Ha ha. When you get a notification, I always just check the video playback. Not many false alarms as its very cool technology

Temper your expectations when they say "FULL 1080P HD". Yeah, that's the resolution, but the bitrate is complete garbage. So it's not gonna look like TV.