Newbie Here Getting First System Setup

[dell-vandenberggmail-com]

Hello all,

I off the cuff bought a 2MP Starlight Turret Varifocal IP Camera for my small apartment as break-ins in my neighborhood have been occurring.
I only have the one entrance and realize a simple doorbell camera probably would have sufficed, but I don't think I can get a refund at this point as the camera shipped immediately.

Is there a more affordable route for setting up recording with this camera than getting one of the $200+ NVRs in the IP Cam store?

 

[wittaj]

You can put an SD card in the camera and use that.

 

[dell-vandenberggmail-com]

You can put an SD card in the camera and use that.

Oh okay great! Much easier than I expected.

How do you monitor the camera? Would you need software like Blue Iris?

 

[Rob2020]

A Blue Iris license costs $55 assuming you have a PC to run the program on. That is not an annual fee for the software.

Choosing Hardware for Blue Iris

Buy refurbished. Don't build or buy new. The most cost-effective Blue Iris computers are refurbished business-class systems such as "HP EliteDesk" and "Dell OptiPlex". You can usually get a good deal by searching [URL='http://www.ebay.com/']Ebay[/URL] for specific CPU model numbers, and...

ipcamtalk.com

 

[dell-vandenberggmail-com]

A Blue Iris license costs $55 assuming you have a PC to run the program on. That is not an annual fee for the software.

Choosing Hardware for Blue Iris

Buy refurbished. Don't build or buy new. The most cost-effective Blue Iris computers are refurbished business-class systems such as "HP EliteDesk" and "Dell OptiPlex". You can usually get a good deal by searching [URL='http://www.ebay.com/']Ebay[/URL] for specific CPU model numbers, and...

ipcamtalk.com

I have fairly new computers, Windows desktop and Windows laptop that I use for other things, I assume this would work just fine. It doesn't need to be a dedicated system or anything like that right?

 

[wittaj]

If it is just one camera you can probably get away with it for Blue Iris and other programs.

But the recommendation is to have a dedicated computer that is not a laptop as laptops are not designed for the 24/7 operation of a VMS and will throttle CPU in favor of cooling.

Further, you run the risk of other programs or updates interfering with it. But that is the recommendation and some use the computer for other things and some have had problems.

But until then, you can use DMSS on your phone to review the camera and the stored video or from the computer you open up a web browser (preferably Internet Explorer) and type in the camera IP address and view and playback there. I would recommend this route as it is simple for one camera. Once you decide to add on, then I would suggest going BI.

 

[Rob2020]

I have 6 cams on my BI PC, it is somewhat "dedicated", I run BI 90% of the time by itself but I also use the PC on occasion to stream spotify, copy large files, surf the Internet, etc while BI is running and I have no issues.

Windows 10, Ryzen 2700 with 16 GB RAM.

 

[Perimeter]

Hello all,

I off the cuff bought a 2MP Starlight Turret Varifocal IP Camera for my small apartment as break-ins in my neighborhood have been occurring.
I only have the one entrance and realize a simple doorbell camera probably would have sufficed, but I don't think I can get a refund at this point as the camera shipped immediately.

Is there a more affordable route for setting up recording with this camera than getting one of the $200+ NVRs in the IP Cam store?

I am not sure I understand the situation correctly. You are living in a small apartment and want to use one cam to monitor your door. With the cam you bought, I assume you will do it from the inside of your apartment.
Now let's assume someone breaks in during your absence. What is your plan now?

 

[dell-vandenberggmail-com]

I am not sure I understand the situation correctly. You are living in a small apartment and want to use one cam to monitor your door. With the cam you bought, I assume you will do it from the inside of your apartment.
Now let's assume someone breaks in during your absence. What is your plan now?

it's actually just a single unit above a store front. We have our own separate entrance as well so I intend on putting the camera monitoring the door from the outside.

 

[garycrist]

1 cam + 1 SD card and your done. Monitor the cam via it's interface. Also, set the rules
up in the cam. Done

 

[Perimeter]

Is this camera going to be hooked up with ethernet cable (PoE or not) or are you planning a wifi solution?