Wireless IP cameras that motion detect record to SD

S

stupar

Guest
OK to set the scene -
My shed got broken into last week and my mountain bike and cordless drill stolen.

I want to monitor my shed using a wireless IP camera that will record to SD upon movement as well as email alert with a screenshot.
I also like the fact that I can remote connect to for a live feed.

Now having done some looking about these cameras range in brand and value so to me its a bit of a mine field.

Any recommendations and or info on what to go for would be greatly appreciated.

I know it won't necessarily stop future event but if I can at least record any happenings it is half the battle to me.

So.....hit me with your info

Thanks

P.S the camera will be mounted indoors but pointing through living room window to the shed with distance between the two being approx 2-3 metres
 
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sorry to hear about that. I have 4x foscam IP camera's on my home network, all being recorded to an old PC hidden away which runs Blue Iris DVR software. this is great as a networked system instead of a wired system. Not so sure on SD card camera's, but all the foscam's i have come with Free ftp upload, email notifications, live feeds. movement highlight/mask areas and so on.

I have a couple of older 640x480 foscams and they are OK, but the 720p ones are streets ahead, and would be far more useable as evidence. Foscam's get hit and miss reviews. I've replaced one outdoor over the last few years, and that after it got encased in 4 inches of ice and -25deg C which i guess is fair enough. appart from that they have been excellent.

regardless of make, general issues are over 1 or 2 wifi cams is the wifi gets a bit iffy. i had 4 at one time and they would keep dropping in and out randomly. i wired 2 of them and all is good. One camera will be fine.

the foscam's vary widely in focal length, so careful in this regard with your shorter requirements, and also if you are inside a window i think you IR lights will just reflect off the window (could be wrong though) and be useless at night.
 
Might be possible to have the IR detectors/lights outside and feed the wire through to the camera inside to turn it on.
 
OK question based on IR detectors/lights.
I have a halogen security light in the garden that will also come on if motion is detected. In a line of sight scenario the security light will be behind the camera but pointing at the shed. Assuming the security light comes on will that be sufficient for the camera not to go into night mode?
 
i have similar out the back. camera set to auto IR, and if the security light comes on, the IR lights automatically go off.

Keith has a good idea also, although i doubt there would be a need for the camera to switch them on/off. could just be left on all the time, on a timer etc.I'm sure i've seen IR lights on their own advertised.

Shadows etc can be a pain, but the best thing is to buy, setup and pretent to be a theif, see how the footage fairs. Sounds like you are covered though.
 
For a modest outlay its worth a punt. My shed also has a power supply so another option would be a camera in the shed (but not an SD one) linked using power adaptors
 
seventythree said:
Keith has a good idea also, although i doubt there would be a need for the camera to switch them on/off.
Click to expand...
Sorry I meant for the signal form the detector that senses the movement to tell the camera to fire, to be fed via wire to the inside.
 
with the blu iris DVR software, you can set a pre buffer which is included in the recording, so if a cam gets triggered you get anything up to afew minutes prior. I'de be guessing to an extent, but I'm sure the foscams, and probably most others have this inbuilt also.

the camera can be set to highlight/mask any areas to trigger recording, jpeg and so on. theres very little else needed with these IP camera. I'm talking mid range. I bet some of the more expensive have al sorts of bells/whistles.
 
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Mid range is all I need really.
I don't want a PC running all day (especially when out the house) to record any movement so that rules out PC based DVR, hence why I asked about SD card ones.
I guess there is also cloud storage but is that not a paid for service?
 
foscams come with FREE ftp trial.

if SD card you need, then there seem to be many on common sites. just pick 720p, make sure the viewing angle is acceptable, and the software meets your needs. there all much of muchness to be honest! IR distance is irrelevant in your case.

what puts me off with an SD camera is if someone up to no good clocks it, they are going to take that too!
 
They would have to break the window then as camera will be inside but pointing out
 
If you're going to get a camera make it easily visible, the idea is to stop thieves not capture evidence of them robbing you and if they see that they'll be on camera they'll be much less likely to try in the first place.
 
Sadly most thieves stop at nothing these days and in my eyes seeing a camera isn't going to make them think twice, not all of them anyway. Then there's the scenario where they trash the camera as its accessible
 
I can't add anything to the camera advice, but as your shed has power how about a burglar alarm in the shed? Or if you have an alarm for the house, could you put an extension to the alarm in the shed?

Dave
 
I'm considering alarming the shed Dave.
My hope is that between an alarm a security light and a camera, the deterrents are there as best as can be
 
I bought one of these http://foscam.co.uk/products/foscam-fi9821w-megapixel-wireless-ip-camera.html basically to try out and play with some of the server software I was considering.

It's ok, but I found, and with many other HD bullet cams, that there are two main problems with it;
1. Night performance is pathetic - you say you have a security light pointed at the subject. It may not be an issue, however it will cast harsh shadows, it won't record the crucial time before hand properly, and the transition from night to day mode could be too slow.
2. Distance - many of the cameras don't perform well in the distance. The crucial moment when someone is entering your property and a much better opportunity to capture them. And again night time performance kicks in.

Then there is a deterrent element, I'm still in two minds. Whilst it may deter the occasional beginner if they spot them which they shouldn't of it is indoors. Then there is the other viewpoint in that if it is visible; someone may have something of value and attracts them like a magnet.

Ultimately, if they want it they'll get it.

Ps. In the end we totally blew our budget with Avigilon cameras as that was the cheapest of the bunch where I could actually recognise someone on it. I didn't want to end up that in the unfortunate event it is required, the material was rubbish. Same principles apply as with cameras, fast lenses, big sensors blah blah
 
OK here comes dumb question number one then!

If I buy a wireless IP camera that does not take an SD card and I do not want to run a PC or DVR equipment then is my only other option for saving video recordings etc cloud storage?
If so how easy s it to set up the camera to record to the cloud source?
 
It's only easy when you know how to do it :)

If I was a thief, and notice cameras, I'd wait for sun or night, put my hoody on and cut the telephone cables. Offsite storage problem sorted, easily and quickly.

You are much better off having an sd card, but also hide a NAS like synology with its dvr software. It's quiet, it's efficient and easily hidden to not make it easy.
 
We have cable though so getting to it won't be as easy.
OK so are you saying that camera's can be plugged straight into the NAS?
 
Right sorry for all the questions, home surveillance is totally new to me.
if I go for a NAS system to store recordings etc is it as simple as below -

IP camera linked to router
NAS storage linked to router
IP camera set up to record to home network so by default the recordings go to the NAS (i.e. no wires trailing from camera to NAS)
 
Yes that is it. If your camera is onvif compatible most will just pick it up. The Synology surveillance station software is very good.
 
Cool thanks for the suggestion and confirmation. Will go away now and do some more research
 
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