Newb Alert! Great view of the bay, and want to share it.

A

alphawave7

Getting the hang of it
Mar 22, 2014
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Managed to grab a flat with a terrific view of SF Bay, and I want to capture/live-stream using a decent netcam. Problem is, I have a ton of expensive hobbies already, and don't want to shell out more than $2-400 for a cam. Fixed lens okay and probably wide angle (2.8mm?), but maybe someday a PTZ like Acti B95 *could* become a reality if I get totally stoked about what I do next. If you were in my shoes, what would be next? Cheers!:cool:

Edit with a tad more info: AMZ'd a Dropcam Pro when first released, and liked the zoom-in stream, but overall cloud concept/subscription wasn't for me, and sent it back: close to goal, but not quite. Am currently intrigued by hikvision mini dome (2532?) out of stock @ Wrightwood..right track or not?
 
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alphawave7 said:
Managed to grab a flat with a terrific view of SF Bay, and I want to capture/live-stream using a decent netcam. Problem is, I have a ton of expensive hobbies already, and don't want to shell out more than $2-400 for a cam. Fixed lens okay and probably wide angle (2.8mm?), but maybe someday a PTZ like Acti B95 *could* become a reality if I get totally stoked about what I do next. If you were in my shoes, what would be next? Cheers!:cool:

Edit with a tad more info: AMZ'd a Dropcam Pro when first released, and liked the zoom-in stream, but overall cloud concept/subscription wasn't for me, and sent it back: close to goal, but not quite. Am currently intrigued by hikvision mini dome (2532?) out of stock @ Wrightwood..right track or not?
Click to expand...

You are on the right track. Great camera, tiny with sd card slot. They are selling the "S" model that has a built in mic.
if you have no need for audio and don't need an sd card slot then you might want to save a bit and try this
http://wrightwoodsurveillance.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1_91&products_id=295
 
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Excellent! Correct..no need for audio..trash trucks and crows are not entertaining. :) SD card would be a perk but not needed. If this cam can be installed on a vertical post i should give it a go. Cheers!
 
fenderman said:
You are on the right track. Great camera, tiny with sd card slot. They are selling the "S" model that has a built in mic.
if you have no need for audio and don't need an sd card slot then you might want to save a bit and try this
http://wrightwoodsurveillance.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1_91&products_id=295
Click to expand...

Just pulled the trigger (would've liked a coupon code..anyone? :) ) on this turret...now need to shop for power/vid cable. I have a 110/120 volt outlet with a plastic weather box on it out near where I want to hang the cam..can cable-staple along a horizontal beam to the vertical, away from UV and rain, but now need to figure out the vid cable itself. The fun of new knowledge! :p Thanks guys!
 
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Perfect! Thanks for the help! :cool:

Looks like I'll need to dig out the old spool of Cat5 the field mice have been chewing on, and relearn how to wire the plugs..been SO long. Hell, even my speakers are wireless these days! :nuts:
 
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fyi, the 2532 is available with a wireless option, but I do not believe its being sold by any us retailers you need to order direct via aliexpress. In the long run, wired will be much more stable....
 
fenderman said:
fyi, the 2532 is available with a wireless option, but I do not believe its being sold by any us retailers you need to order direct via aliexpress. In the long run, wired will be much more stable....
Click to expand...

Very true..I thought about that, but after my Dropcam experience being flakey with my router (Buffalo with DDWRT) I decided wired would be preferable. :) BTW, ALREADY got the Click-n-Ship USPS email from Wrightwoods! On a Sunday night! Amazed. :love:
 
Just wanted to update it appears USPS has lost my Priority Parcel from Wrightwood! Annoying to say the least. Click-n-Ship says delivered, at around my normal postman's noon schedule, but it wasn't at the door when I got home at 8pm (and the likelihood of it being stolen here is NIL). After a bit of email with Nicole, I marched down to the PO Friday morning to find no package behind the magic curtain, but learned my regular postman is on vacay (gawd I hate that word/meme!) and 'several' other postmen are covering him for deliveries. Okay. And then there's that huge pile of Priority Parcels I saw and the end of the counter...a LOT for this area I think, in the middle of the morning, and I have to wonder if there's some unspoken strike going on like the French always do. :P Me, a conspiracy theorist? Naww.....

Guess I 'need' a cam pointed at my door, not my view! LOL!
 
alphawave7 said:
Just wanted to update it appears USPS has lost my Priority Parcel from Wrightwood! Annoying to say the least. Click-n-Ship says delivered, at around my normal postman's noon schedule...
Guess I 'need' a cam pointed at my door, not my view! LOL!
Click to expand...

Dang, I was looking forward to checking out the 3332 views... Love my frontdfoor cam, I just received my new Hikvision 4332 this morning which replaced this frontdoor Foscam today.


FI8910w.20140329_094557_1.jpg
 
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Nicole said she'd ship out a new unit to me next week...wondering now if it will be USPS Priority again? :P Just as well, though...I forgot to order the POE adapter on my latest Amazon order...I was all about the smoked turkey sticks and microwave spicey pork rinds, POE wasn't on my mind, obviously! :lemo:
 
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AMZ POE plug ordered, arrives Monday. Now to dig out the spool of Cat5, and hunt down the rj45 crimper from the 20th Century...
 
POE Plug arrived from AMZ today, and Nicole has re-sent my cam, via FedEx this time..should have it Wed or Thurs at the latest. Won't make it in time for ya'll to see the cruise ship currently parked, but they arrive almost weekly, a stop on the Hawaii circuit.
 
Cool. When you decide to get more cams (for your front door and everywhere else), be sure to buy a PoE switch. This is the best value that I know of, and the one I recommend to everyone: http://amzn.com/B003CFATT2

Depending on just how awesome your view is, you may have to get a fancy PTZ with 20x or higher optical zoom. Those are so much fun.
 
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bp2008 said:
Cool. When you decide to get more cams (for your front door and everywhere else), be sure to buy a PoE switch. This is the best value that I know of, and the one I recommend to everyone: http://amzn.com/B003CFATT2

Depending on just how awesome your view is, you may have to get a fancy PTZ with 20x or higher optical zoom. Those are so much fun.
Click to expand...

I'm ever-so slightly biased, but my view is, imho, very PTZ-worthy. Alas, I have a ton of expensive hobbies that keep me broke. A dynamite PTZ would be a pipe dream...I could indiegogo or kickstarter, though! LOL! Cheers on the switch! :D
 
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Got around to installing and hooking up cam for testing...not a permanent install, and I'm both pleased and slightly frustrated. PLEASED as punch with Hikvision and the QUALITY of this cam, for the price it's quite amazing. Hikvision software (well, firmware really) brought it online and configurable quick, although I still need to learn all of the tabs and their capability (I'll ask questions in a bit after I sort through my issues). I tried XProtect Go, and it slammed my fairly recent lappie with several concurrent apps and servers running (along with my own Plex, Subsonic, Teamviewer servers running) and I got low-memory warnings. Decided it was a bit much to expect, never got an image or cam to display, so I bailed. Installed BlueIris and whammo...nearly instant set up of cam, great image, seems nimble on resources and highly configurable. I think I'll buy it, and possibly the Android App (but I'm testing a few, and might wait until I get my issues resolved). For surveillance alone, I know this IS an outstanding cam, and BI is outstanding software...I'm pushing it to places it wasn't designed. IOW, I'll likely need a different cam to accomplish what I want..detailed (I suppose 'optical' over digital) zoom. On the Dropcam, you could easily pinch/zoom, and see details like folks walking, ships on the bay, Alcatraz,etc. in 'reasonable' detail. Drop is doing no Optical zoom, only a digital, afaik. When I 'zoom' on images in BI or Hikvision's image, it immediately breaks up to blur..not even pixellation, just a mess. I'm pretty sure I have tried both 1080 and 720 and different FPS to fiddle with image to no real improvement. I still want to try cleaning up the overall image in Hikvision, insofar as color saturation, brightness, etc. to make it pop, but ultimately if I cannot get a detailed ship on the bay, it's for naught. Still VERY glad I tried and am learning a ton on the way!
DeckCam.jpg
 
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bp2008 said:
Cool. When you decide to get more cams (for your front door and everywhere else), be sure to buy a PoE switch. This is the best value that I know of, and the one I recommend to everyone: http://amzn.com/B003CFATT2

Depending on just how awesome your view is, you may have to get a fancy PTZ with 20x or higher optical zoom. Those are so much fun.
Click to expand...

Prophetic vision you have my friend...can you give me upcoming lotto numbers? :laugh:
 
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alphawave7 said:
View attachment 288
Click to expand...

Very cool view!

Here a BI tip... Add another camera with same setting as your 1st (so not to mess up your primary setting), then

1. goto Camera Properties->Record Tab and set Video: Triggered + continuous each (:01 min for 1 sec)

2. check the "Alt/timelapse framerate" and select 2.0 sec)

This will record a frame every 2 seconds which will record a very cool cloud timelapse video. To view, click on "new clips" from the clips panel on the right. If the clouds move too slow, change up the frame rate to about 5
 
Make sure your image quality is set at 100% in BI...record tab>file format and compression. I cant believe that the dropcam produces a better image at zoom then the hik....what are your video settings on the hik (in the camera firmware)?
 
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