DIY home survellience.

[R.F.D.]

I'm looking for some ideas in regards to setting up some simple home surveillance. I've poked around and found that most equipment, atleast where I am looking is very expensive. My inspiration has been the latest Rogers commericials.

This is more of a curious hobby than a raging loon with a safe room in the basement.

I think ideally what I would like to do is utilize POE and implement Pan/Tilt/Zoom (PTZ) cameras, one on the main floor and two outside or atleast pointing outside. Access via web browser would be ideal.

I stumbled upon some consumer grade cameras made by Foscom??? website appears weak and equipment likewise but price point was good however bundled software was a joke. Any opensource?

Where would you get the "video doorbell" or a good place to learn about the technology. Any input or direction would be appreciated.

[GregS]

Are you looking for IP cameras? Or traditional CCTV cameras that you can plug into a DVR and then get all the same functionality?

I have a few CCTV PTZ cameras coming into the shop next week for demo and test.

IP based PTZ cameras from companies such as AXIS will be at least $1700.

We have a video doorbell set up in the showroom too, but it starts at about $1500. I'm looking for some very inexpensive ones to fit more of a consumer market, but not so cheap as I would feel bad selling them in the first place.. and there are a LOT of those out there right now.

[R.F.D.]

Originally Posted by GregS

Are you looking for IP cameras? Or traditional CCTV cameras that you can plug into a DVR and then get all the same functionality?

I have a few CCTV PTZ cameras coming into the shop next week for demo and test.

IP based PTZ cameras from companies such as AXIS will be at least $1700.

We have a video doorbell set up in the showroom too, but it starts at about $1500. I'm looking for some very inexpensive ones to fit more of a consumer market, but not so cheap as I would feel bad selling them in the first place.. and there are a LOT of those out there right now.

I was leaning towards IP based cameras and ya that is beyond the scope of my budget. I noticed the AXIs cameras last night and the price tag on directdial.com. Even some of the dlink or trendnet seemed pretty good from a consumer grade price point.

[htsource]

I've recommended AXIS cameras to friends for indoor use, they're in very good quality:

http://www.axis.com/products/cam_m1054/index.htm

This one has a PIR sensor and illuminated LED so when it senses motion in the dark, it lights up then records. Since it's based on PIR for triggering a video recording it would be much more accurate.

They also have few other models which include WiFi based as well for easier placement.

I'm not a professional in this field but been playing with various cameras over the year, unfortunately you get what you paid for. We ended up having a PTZ dome Panasonic commercial IP camera with PoE for outdoor, it's great and quality is as good as it gets with a non HD quality. Pan/Tilt mechanism is super fast, can go from one extreme end to other in less than half a second. IP based is the way to go, it's easier to hook into portable devices like phones and tablets.

We have Teledoorbell with video, when someone rings the door, it rings the phones inside so you can answer the door from there. If you have electronic latch it can unlatch the door as well from a touch-tone phone. I'm not sure what else is out there now, but that quality of the Teledoorbell video camera could be better for what it costs.

Most cameras like from Axis, if you get the same model or from the same company, you can use one interface to see them all through a web browser for better integration.