WiFi Cameras

Clareman · 28-09-2015 10:12am #1

Hi all,

I've a simple WiFi CCTV Camera setup as a baby monitor in my daughter's room, I got it from Amazon and use it with TinyCam Monitor on our phones to be able to check in, I've DDNS setup on it so I can access it from anywhere in the world as well.

Now I'm looking to add a few more cameras and I was hoping that someone here could help me out with advice on what to get for the best price, re-wiring the house or running cables really isn't an option for me so WiFi is the only way for me to go, I've a few WiFi access points setup so coverage isn't an issue.

What I'm looking for each camera to monitor is:

Baby's Room - This will need to have very good audio as I want to use it as a baby monitor as well
Play Room - this can be any standard camera, just want to keep an eye on the kids from the kitchen
Hall - this will need a wide range of view so I can cover the front door and stairs

I have a spare PC that I setup in the past as a CCTV recorder, I could set this up again if anyone thinks this would be a good idea.

Seanieke · 29-09-2015 2:12pm

This is also something I've being toying with recently. Foscam is a brand that keeps rearing it's cheap and tempting head. A Motorola IP Camera in my local wholesalers is €200 odd quid. A Foscam version is around €60

They do a nice Network IP Camera recorder, Google will have to help with that, I'm on the mobile now, it's not letting me paste.

Clareman · 29-09-2015 2:38pm

An old camera I got had loads of software with it, TinyCam even allows you to record to a remote site, dropbox even. Recording isn't the top priority to me to be honest, big thing is nice and affordable (for 2 of them) and good sound recording for 1 of them. I might even put up an out door camera at some stage too.

degsie · 29-09-2015 2:40pm

You could use any old android phone as an ip camera if looking for a cheap solution.

Clareman · 29-09-2015 2:46pm

degsie wrote: »

You could use any old android phone as an ip camera if looking for a cheap solution.

Good idea actually, must see if I've any around, I like the ability to mount the cameras on the ceiling though as well as being able to pan and tilt.

readytosnap · 29-09-2015 2:50pm

Seanieke wrote: »

. A Foscam version is around €60

.

Have one of them but cannot for the life of me get it to work on an external network despite it having its own DDNS, something to do with me not having a static ip address so be aware of that if you are in the same boat (non static ip)

Clareman · 29-09-2015 2:54pm

readytosnap wrote: »

Have one of them but cannot for the life of me get it to work on an external network despite it having its own DDNS, something to do with me not having a static ip address so be aware of that if you are in the same boat (non static ip)

Broke my heart for a long time, you have to make sure you have DDNS and port forwarding setup correctly on the router side of things.

readytosnap · 29-09-2015 2:57pm

Clareman wrote: »

Broke my heart for a long time, you have to make sure you have DDNS and port forwarding setup correctly on the router side of things.

Believe me i did it all several times :mad::(, its because i do not have a static ip address. we are on a wireless internet connection here in the bog, no phone lines etc, just line of sight.
Still the camera looks pretty sitting on the shelf collecting dust.

Clareman · 29-09-2015 3:03pm

readytosnap wrote: »

Believe me i did it all several times :mad::(, its because i do not have a static ip address. we are on a wireless internet connection here in the bog, no phone lines etc, just line of sight.
Still the camera looks pretty sitting on the shelf collecting dust.

I'm on Vodafone Fibre and don't have static either, just setup the DDNS on the router for my DDNS.org account and then setup port forwarding for the cameras, I've the cameras setup with static IPs on the network.

I've my server and TV boxes working through it as well, it's 1 of those things that when it works it works, when it doesn't it's a pain in the @rse

readytosnap · 30-09-2015 1:28pm

I have to be honest I gave up after 3 weeks

Big Wex fan · 08-10-2015 3:11am

I'm looking to set up an IP camera on motion detection & send photo to email or something like that. Can this be done without connecting the camera to PC or phone? Can anyone recommend a low budget option? I seen ones on ebay for 20-25 sterling but not sure if these do what I want them to do.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2050601.m570.l2632.R2.TR11.TRC1.A0.H1.Xip+camera.TRS0&_nkw=ip+camera&_sacat=41968

Gheorge · 13-10-2015 9:43pm

Clareman wrote: »

Hi all,

I've a simple WiFi CCTV Camera setup as a baby monitor in my daughter's room, I got it psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_search_detailpage"]Amazon [/URL]and use it with TinyCam Monitor on our phones to be able to check in, I've DDNS setup on it so I can access it from anywhere in the world as well.

Now I'm looking to add a few more cameras and I was hoping that someone here could help me out with advice on what to get for the best price, re-wiring the house or running cables really isn't an option for me so WiFi is the only way for me to go, I've a few WiFi access points setup so coverage isn't an issue.

What I'm looking for each camera to monitor is:
Baby's Room - This will need to have very good audio as I want to use it as a baby monitor as well

Play Room - this can be any standard camera, just want to keep an eye on the kids from the kitchen

Hall - this will need a wide range of view so I can cover the front door and stairs

I have a spare PC that I setup in the past as a CCTV recorder, I could set this up again if anyone thinks this would be a good idea.

Hi,
My advise is to change your plan to a wired IP cameras. Only this way yo will be able to have a good quality and able to record the video. If is your house and can make some changes run the Cat 5e/6 cables and you can used it as data and power or you can use the power sockets to send the network anywhere. Ohh. do not waist your electricity keeping the old PC running, purchase an NVR and a spare drive and you are set.
Good luck and let me know if you need more info.

Stoner · 14-10-2015 10:03pm

Clareman wrote:

I've a simple WiFi CCTV Camera setup as a baby monitor in my daughter's room, I got it from

Clareman, wired is really the way to go. Before you panic many cameras only need a data cable for power and data. If your points are in rooms with an attic above it shouldn't be difficult.

It's what I have , wired cameras , bought 10m leads wired from the attic.

Clareman · 15-10-2015 8:53am

Fair enough, I'm not a big fan of POE devices (I already have a few for my TV) and I don't want the hassle of chasing walls for cables, if anyone has advice for the tidiest best solutions I'd really appreciate it.

Stoner · 16-10-2015 9:52am

I agree totally about the foscam units . Very troublesome.

I know it sounds cheap and flawed , but the trick mentioned above using the old android phones does seem to work, possibly because of the decent WiFi hw in phones. You'd need to get juice to them though.

We set four up in a house four a two week period and they all stayed working.

Had fun talking to the dogs over them too, and you can turn on the flash as a light remotely too.

Not a long term solution but might be worth a quick look. No need for port forwarding etc for remote viewing either. If you have them at home it might be worth it.

WiFi Cameras

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