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fartness (banned)
Donald Trump 2016
join:2003-03-25
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fartness (banned) to leibold

Member

to leibold

Re: Appx. hours of labor?

Was the price the same for both?

I thought Foscam sells directly from their site too last time I checked.

What kind of server and software do these Foscams come with? Is it any good?

leibold
MVM
join:2002-07-09
Sunnyvale, CA
Netgear CG3000DCR
ZyXEL P-663HN-51

leibold

MVM

said by fartness:

Was the price the same for both?

The price for both cameras from several sellers was with 2-3 dollars of each other. It seemed larger at first glance, but that was only because the $100 offer had a $6 shipping cost while the $106 offer had free shipping.

I haven't received it yet and no prior experience with that company or their products. I don't expect that it comes with a server (network dvr).
leibold

leibold to fartness

MVM

to fartness
said by fartness:

I thought Foscam sells directly from their site too last time I checked.

Foscam sells directly from their sites. Something I didn't pay attention to is that the US Support and Warranty only apply if the camera is purchased directly from Foscam US. Purchases from other regional Foscam sites (specifically Foscam China) are excluded. Also explicitly excluded are Ebay and Amazon purchased cameras!
said by fartness:

What kind of server and software do these Foscams come with? Is it any good?

I did receive the camera yesterday and today did some quick testing.
As expected the camera does not include a server. There is a CD included that I didn't open (for Mac and Windows) but that is not needed to make full use of the camera (the purpose of the included software is to make it easier for less technically inclined users to do the initial setup of the camera). I believe a software dvr is available from Foscam.

The good:
- the camera is big and heavy and makes a very robust impression (strong aluminum case)
- despite the self-contradicting product description it did come with the 4mm lens that I wanted
- no proprietary software needed!
- the IR light is extremely bright and reaches a good distance
- the IR light can be turned off (camera has reasonable sensitivity in dim light to still show colors)
- the camera can be powered through a supplied power adapter or through PoE (PoE is not mandatory)

The bad:
- when I first tried the camera the network interface did not work (make that the first 50 or so attempts). This does not seem to be a rare thing either based on some of the comments found on varies places on the Internet. Even factory reset (hold reset button for 30-45 seconds) did not work. It suddenly started to work after I left it alone (but powered and connected) for an extended period of time. The symptoms were no link indicator on the network (both ends) but signs that the camera was powered (click sound from relay when IR lights turn on/off as light becomes brighter/dimmer in front of the camera).
- even the 4mm lens is still a much narrower field of view then I expected. As far as I can tell 4mm and 6mm are the only options which means I can't use this type of camera in some of the places I wanted to (I need something much wider).

Overall I think the camera is worth the money I paid for it. Additional lens options for a wider view would be nice (and of course higher resolution).