Webcams

[Alan Knighting]

We use our webcam on both Skype and Messenger... and love it. It seems to work better on Skype, and of course it's always lovely to chat to friends and family.

I've now sorted out the settings on mine, so that I'm always in low lighting, and looking tanned lol.

So why is it that everyone says "Where's the dog then? We want to see the dog!", and they don't want to see me and Alan?

Elle xx

It sounds like a good idea even if they only want to see the dog (note for myself: buy a dog).

Alan

[Elle1971]

Lol Alan. He is cute though... so I can't blame them really.

Elle xx

[Wol]

We use our webcam on both Skype and Messenger... and love it. It seems to work better on Skype, and of course it's always lovely to chat to friends and family.

Elle xx

Yes, we use it with Skype too. It is good for people like us who only see family members in the flesh every couple of years.

[kevsboredagain]

I've set up cameras in both my properties, the one I'll be renting and my own weekend retreat. Because I've had loads of building work going on since June I've been able to know who goes in and out and when they were there which has given me alot of peace of mind. I obviously need to remove them or provide a way to block them when I rent the house.

I used IP cameras, 2 wireless and 1 wired. They work great although I needed to put them on timers to reset once a day in case they crash.

Here's what it looks like today!
http://www.adorvillaspain.com/Test/Graphics/Cam.jpg

[Mountain Goat]

Ours doesn't appreciate winter conditions, and we're upgrading. Are your cams weatherproofed?

MG

[kevsboredagain]

Not weatherproofed yet. The one in France is inside the house looking out the window and the one in Spain outside is under the terrace so I've only had problems with spiders. I have bought an outside light which I removed the light fitting and plan to put the camera inside. I haven't manage to find a proper housing that fits these cameras.

[Mountain Goat]

When we did our research last year, Stardot looked good and within our budget, especially for ice and snow. They've got enclosures but may only fit their kit. The only downside is possibility of our extremely strong sunlight burning out their aperture thing - they wouldn't guarantee performance.

One problem with our cheapie cam is that although it's controllable remotely, it sometimes goes into a noisy and wild spin, and punters, not surprisingly, not keen, especially as it ended up 2 weeks ago pointing into their teenage daughter's bedroom.....so maybe it's got listed on some stalkers' site. Until we get a decent cam we've taken it off the network.

MG

[Mountain Goat]

This has kicked us into action - Stardot have now got a 640x480 Standard model at US$399, and you get $100 rebate with a link to them from your site. For a weather-proofed webcam that's more than good value, and we're going ahead.

They include this kit of goodies:

Complete standalone Internet camera package includes NetCam camera/server, 8mm C/CS-mount lens, 50 ft. power/network cable, indoor wall mount, universal power supply, StarDot Tools software. Plugs directly into router or LAN behind Cable, DSL, T-1 or wireless Ethernet bridge. Maximum speed = 1 frame per second.

MG

[Hells Bells]

Thanks MG, I am going to check that one out, but suspect it is another 'next year' job now.

[Mountain Goat]

There's also a UK distributor, so I'll give them a go as well.

MG

[Hells Bells]

£349 from UK distributor though.

[Mountain Goat]

Negotiable. Tell Geoff a goat sent you.

And go for the Standard model.

MG

[Hells Bells]

I'll give them a look on Friday when I have a bit of time to myself.

[kevsboredagain]

One bit of advise about buying a camera is be really careful about the software that's built into it. Some of the IP cameras only work using Active X and Internet Explorer. I have one of these in the cupboard as it's next to useless only due to the really poor built in webserver.
The Panasonic ones I chose on the other hand have a webserver that works with any browser, no Active X and will do sensor detection, email, FTP etc. so have proven to be much more usable.
The NetCam gets good reviews though with no one complaining about the interface so I assume it's a good one if a bit expensive.

[Mountain Goat]

Yes, thanks for that, I've checked out the software, and 95% there with the UK guy - his price is not bad at all.

It was the weather-proofing I was after as a priority, although it will be under the eaves it's going to pick up ice.

There's a difficult choice with the lens, as I want to have an attractive view of mountains, valley etc. and a practical view of whether I need to give the snow-clearer, who does our forecourt, steps etc. a gentle reminder that there's 2m of snow blocking access....too much wide angle will give us a goldfish-style view and look naff on the website. Still not sure whether to have it on the website or not - fog's not seductive.

MG