BI and this PC: Gateway SX2801 Am I scrapping the barrel here???

[worlando]

Love the forum so far with all the reading I've done. Searched for this PC on this forum with nothing coming up. Reading BI minimum req. it looks like this PC is it and really BOTB!

My plan is only two cams: one 3MP camera and one 720P camera. Will it run it? How well? I've got the PC for free.

http://www.cnet.com/products/gateway-sx2801-01e/

 

[nayr]

i'd think it would work fine for 2 cameras, not much more than that tho... you might not get to use all the features available.

 

[worlando]

Thank you! What wouldn't I get? Higher frame rate?

I also have a i7 1.7ghz, 4mb RAM laptop that I could use. I could leave it connected to the network as I think I've read that wireless does not work all that well for BI with HD high pixel cams.

 

[fenderman]

Cant hurt to test it...use direct to disc recording to minimize cpu....also use a killawatt meter to measure power consumption...some older systems use lots of juice..

 

[nayr]

its free you'll just have to test and see; if you want motion detection and video overlays and online streaming it may prove to be too much.

and @fenderman makes a great point; if this thing sucks down 500w of power 24/7/365 it may be cheaper to get something more efficient than to use this freebie computer.. it is a Core2Duo at least and not a Pentium4.. would have to be really bad since its costing him $0 to obtain .. but if its over $100 a year to operate then you can get some nice minimal NVR's for $100 bux that take almost no power.

Power Efficiency should be considered with an NVR since they are always running and loaded, you could easily end up with an NVR using alot more power than you've saved switching to energy efficient lights and appliances over the last decade.. A 500w computer (easy to get that much) would exceed the savings of switching 10x 60w incadecents for LED's that never got shutoff.. since lights dont get used 24/7 it could = 20-30 light bulbs really fast. How much did all those bulbs cost?

 

[worlando]

Cant hurt to test it...use direct to disc recording to minimize cpu....also use a killawatt meter to measure power consumption...some older systems use lots of juice..

Dumb question, what other option is there? Doesn't it always save to disc in some way or another?

Any thoughts on the i7 laptop I have?

 

[fenderman]

there is an option in the recording preferences called direct to disc, with this enabled there is no processing of the actual image (only the pixels are analyzed for motion)..the downside it your cannot rotate the image (in BI, but you can in your camera) and you cannot overly blue iris time a date stamps (you need to use your cameras built in time. (Blue iris will still show the time, but the recording wont, unless you select to specifically add the time AFTER the recording during export...)

 

[worlando]

Thanks! So I miss functions from BI using the "direct to disc" but ultimately they both go straight to disc, just one is processed by BI and the other the camera.

Something like this on the meter: http://www.staples.com/office/supplies/StaplesProductDisplay?storeId=10001&catalogIdentifier=2&partNumber=1019697&langid=-1&cid=PS:GooglePLAs:1019697&ci_src=17588969&ci_sku=1019697&KPID=1019697&kpid=1019697&gclid=COPYg8e4w8ECFZBi7AodpFAALA

 

[nayr]

amazon has em for a better price, as always: http://www.amazon.com/P3-P4400-Electricity-Usage-Monitor/dp/B00009MDBU

 

[fenderman]

amazon has em for a better price, as always: http://www.amazon.com/P3-P4400-Electricity-Usage-Monitor/dp/B00009MDBU

to be fair the staples unit is the 4460 http://www.amazon.com/P3-International-P4460-Electricity-Monitor/dp/B000RGF29Q/ref=sr_1_1?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1414095672&sr=1-1&keywords=P3+International+p4460

 

[Mike]

to be fair the staples unit is the 4460 http://www.amazon.com/P3-International-P4460-Electricity-Monitor/dp/B000RGF29Q/ref=sr_1_1?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1414095672&sr=1-1&keywords=P3+International+p4460

I have this exact unit and it works well, purchased from Amazon too.

 

[worlando]

Thanks guys for the searches. I'll drive the 2miles to my nearest staples, save the shipping cost, and the simple return policy.

I just upgraded to SSD on my MBP and love it! Dumb, dumb, me didn't drive over to tigerdirect the other 2 mile direction and I got hosed for the $6.95 shipping and the ridiculous time it took to ship.

Any thoughts on using my i7 1.73ghz Laptop?

 

[fenderman]

Is that a first generation i7? there is a huge difference between say a gen 1 and gen 3...looks like a first generation based on the clock speed. It should be fine as well. If you are going to dedicate it to blue iris...

 

[worlando]

Is that a first generation i7? there is a huge difference between say a gen 1 and gen 3...looks like a first generation based on the clock speed. It should be fine as well. If you are going to dedicate it to blue iris...

How can i tell? Will Bios show?

 

[fenderman]

control panel > system

 

[worlando]

Wow, got the trial version going with just my simple Logitech Webcam C110 and CPU is running at 30%. Doesn't make any difference if I have direct to disc recording. I do have the frame rate set to 30 though.

Software does not seem to hard. Just hard figuring where each setting is.

Oh and here is the system for the I7:

 

[fenderman]

I dont know this to be true, but i recall reading something about usb webcams being more cpu intensive on BI than an ip camera. Did you check the processor model?

 

[worlando]

On the I7? I probably attached as you were typing.

 

[worlando]

Is this old? If I read it right.
http://ark.intel.com/products/49024/Intel-Core-i7-740QM-Processor-6M-cache-1_73-GHz

 

[fenderman]

That is first generation and is still ok for a couple of cameras...it ranks at about 3200 http://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Core+i7+Q+740+@+1.73GHz
vs a more modern moblie i7 at 7900
http://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Core+i7-4700HQ+@+2.40GHz
With mobile its tricky when just looking at the numbers because intel has a bunch of U processors that are low voltage in will score the same as your older processor but consume less power...
The benchmark is not 100 accurate as to how it will handle blue iris video as newer processors have other enhancements as well, but it gives you an idea.