Your Guide To Wireless

Panasonic KX-HCM110A

The Panasonic KX-HCM110A is one of the more affordable pan-and-tilt cameras on the market. It offers a substantial 173-degree pan and 105-degree tilt range to monitor a much larger area than fixed lens cameras. Though it’s missing optical zoom, the camera’s 10X digital magnification (still with scroll wheel control) adds to its flexibility. Dual-stack support for IPv4 and IPv6 may appeal to future-proofing fans, and IPsec support (the same technology used in many VPN connections) eliminates nearly any chance of a hacker viewing your video. Panasonic also included an integrated microphone and a jack for speaker output. Additionally, the KX-HCM110 features an I/O port so that, for example, when motion or a door sensor triggers an alarm, an external light might be switched on to assist recording. The camera can remember up to eight preset location and zoom combinations for quickly “patrolling” common areas in its field of view. Other basic extras, such as cell phone compatibility, configurable motion detection, and FTP, round out Panasonic’s midrange offering. The picture quality on this camera fit well with the other lower-midrange cameras. Daylight results were noticably below the KX-HCM280A, but low-light tests were suprisingly good (but still not on level with our higher-end cameras). Strangely, this unit does not support multiple cameras in the viewer application, and VGA mode still holds you to a 12fps limit. So although this is a solid choice for wide-area general monitoring, we wouldn’t count on it for surveillance image precision. [tags]Panasonic, Wireless Camera[/tags]

D-link DCS-3420 Wireless Camera

The DCS-3420 takes the usability attributes of the DCS-1110 and piles plenty of extra functionality on top, starting with 802.11b/g (WEP and WPA security included), moving from support for four cameras to up to 16, and accommodating interchangeable lenses (chief among them the optional infrared unit for shooting in total darkness). We didn’t receive the IR or auto iris lenses for testing, and our unit seemed biased by default for shooting in low light as images were very over-exposed. However, altering the video settings for optimal balance between bit rate, frame rate, and quality and tweaking the image settings (brightness, hue, etc.) yielded substantially better results. Even with the stock lens, though, low-light video proved remarkably clear. D-Link integrates a BNC video output for connecting to a standard monitor or CCTV system. Another cool feature unique to this camera is the 4X digital zoom capability, which can operate like a mouse-controlled magnifying glass zooming in on a portion of the full frame. Other hot bonuses include two-way audio with the built-in microphone, a removable 802.11b/g antenna, email/FTP of video snapshots, and AVI export. Motion tracking in 320 x 240 resolution mode was excellent, with very little noticeable blur or frame drop even over a wireless connection. The 10fps inherent at top resolution (704 x 480), however, shows a clear trade-off between detail and motion capability; you get one or the other, but not both. On the plus side, this unit’s MJPEG and MPEG-4 footage is viewable in any browser without a special application. Given its quality, rugged design, and flexibility for various lighting conditions, we highly recommend this as an upper-midrange security camera. [tags]D-link, Wireless Camera[/tags]

D-Link DCS-1110

Built like a half-pound brick with a camera peeking over its edge, the D-Link DCS-1110 really delivers on features and performance. PoE, a desk stand, and two mounting holes make this unit more versatile for placement than one might suspect. The DCS-1110 integrates one-way audio for recording and a powerful Nightshot mode that uses the full 0.5-lux sensitivity of the image sensor. You can monitor up to three different zones within the field of view, each with its own percentage of sensitivity. The DCS-1110 even lets you preview the amount of motion it detects in each area so you can set a more realistic threshold. D-Link keeps this camera easy to use without sacrificing flexibility or quality. The DCS-1110’s setup software displays D-Link’s usual simplicity, and its only awkward requirement is that it requires you to install ffdshow (an open-source DirectShow and VFW codec) to play back the MPEG-4 recordings, which, by the way, can spool straight to a NAS box. There are no proprietary DDNS service issues, you can manually adjust the lens focus, and we like D-Link’s thoughtful touches, such as an antiflickering mode when used under fluorescent lights and the ability to set bit rate along with resolution. For the price, D-Link does extremely well at preserving shadow detail and not showing blockiness. The Nightshot mode maintains impressive video down to surprisingly low light levels, and despite showing a noticeable delay between real time and what it displays on your screen, the DCS-1110 shows comparatively little blurring when shooting at VGA in 30fps mode. For those needing a general purpose IP cam on a budget, especially for businesses looking to deploy a bunch of PoE cams around a facility, this is your chooce. [tags]D-link, Wireless Camera[/tags]

Hawking HNC290G Wireless-G Network Camera

Hawking’s HNC290G Net-Vision Wireless-G Network Camera stands up against Linksys’ unit in the budget category, sporting similar 10/100 Ethernet and 802.11b/g connectivity but adding adjustable tilt on the lens. The external antenna is removable for those who want a high-gain substitute. Hawking promotes this as the first network camera with automatic router configuration, but this function didn’t work on our D-Link DIR-635 router, forcing us to perform a manual installation. Hawking requires remote service via the TZO DNS service, which has only a 75-day free trial. Another weakness is that motion sensing sensitivity isn’t adjustable. Also, some configurations require Hawking’s bundled camera viewing software, meaning you can’t change certain settings with the HNC290G’s internal Web server via a browser. The HNC290G’s image quality on this device is fair, showing greater detail than the Linksys camera but lacking its color depth. Many test scenes look darker than they should, and you’d be hard pressed to identify an unknown visitor at normal range. The camera showed sharper motion results than expected in lower resolutions, but the 10fps rate in VGA mode is a known limitation. In low light, the HNC290G did well for its price and even triggered into recording upon motion detection, although the image quality was very poor. Again, this camera would be a better choice for casually monitoring a well-lit area than for reliable surveillance. [tags]Hawking, Wireless Camera[/tags]