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Pan & tilt Webcam review : FOSCAM FI9820W... avoid like plague !

  • 19-12-2012 9:39am
    #1
    CreepingDeath
    Closed Accounts Posts: 8,015 ✭✭✭


    I had have the Foscam FI8918W and was happy enough with it despite it's low resolution of 640x480.
    I even wrote my own Java libraries to control it and create timelapse photography videos.

    But FosCam just brought out a high definition version, the FI9820W.
    So I got it for my Christmas gadget.

    Anyways, it's a disaster.
    I thought it would be a nice incremental upgrade to the FI8918W, but it's not.

    1. It doesn't support Firefox, only Internet Explorer, even then you need to install their Active X control to do that. ( Not something for a secure work environment )

    The Active X control is stored internally in the camera, and I ran it through "VirusTotal" to scan it. It seemed to pass, although one virus scanner out of the 40 reported it as a trojan horse, but that apparently has a high rate of false positives.

    2. It is absolutely terrible in low light conditions compared with the older FI8918W. Both have infrared LEDS, but if you're pointing the camera out the window to monitor your driveway, the IR leds will reflect back from the window blinding the sensor. So you can manually turn them off (good). But, the new FI9820W just shows a black screen with some odd bright spots for lights, while the older FI8918W was able to show a very reasonable albeit grainy video of the area. So it's a disaster for any type of home security unless you invest in external IR light arrays and get electricians to wire that up for you.

    Apparently I'm not the only one on the net reporting serious issues with it.

    So just a word of warning on this one.

    Ps. if anyone has a good recommendation for a pan & tilt camera, with better than 640x480 resolution and around the €100-€150 mark, let me know !

    cheers,
    CD
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