Who Sells 'Em, and Where Can I Buy an IPCamera?

If there was such as thing as the gold standard of (home use) IP Cameras, I would have to nominate FOSCAM. In fact, many other cameras are described as FOSCAM clones, or rebranded FOSCAMs. So for now, I'd call them your leader of the pack.

And in fact it's true that many companies seem to rebrand. I don't know all the details of how much they *value-add* the product. Many seem to use identical hardware, and install their own firmware which includes their custom webserver.

Some of the names you might find include WANSVIEW, LOFTEK, EasyN (which curiously is generally NOT Wireless-N capable), VideoSecu, Hootoo, and Agasio. Most of these companies offer comsumer-use cameras in the $80-$200 range, some suprisingly feature-rich. For example, the Loftek Sentinel D-1, a personal favorite and one I own, is an outdoor Dome camera with 3x Zoom for well under $200 US.


Some bigger players, many of whom offer professinal products, and tend to have their own custom hardware include players like Trendnet, Linksys/Cisco, D-Link, Planex, Logitech, GE, Lorex, Grandstream, Toshibe (not a typo), CP Tech, and Vonnic. There are dozens of others.  Some of these companies offer consumer-quality products, particularly familiar names like Cisco and Logitech.  But many focus on hi-end pro gear.


..and what about TECH SUPPORT?

Well many of us are familiar with support from Logitech, Cisco, and other well-known companies, and in most cases, it's excellent.


From the lesser-known sellers, they try, but often fall short of providing assistance. There are language issues, and there seems to be significant delays, if they respond at all. I view all of that as sort of the price-you-pay to get discounts. 


For a tekkie, like me, it's no big deal. In fact it can even be an advantage to deal with small companies with few resources, because they have less rigid policies and standards. Ask Logitech for the SOURCE CODE for one of their camera's webserver; you pretty much KNOW what that answer is! But a smaller company might provide it. I had one provide me with much of the internal code detail already (which I hope to rewrite for my own customizations).




And shopping?

Where is the place to shop for IP cameras. Online, you can find a huge selection of providers, and products on Amazon (amazon.com). Search for IP camera, you'll get the idea! The major sellers seem to offer products here. You may not find many options for discounted used IP cameras here since many of the products are recently introduced. Users haven't had time yet to get frustrated or bored with them!


Of course Amazon's rival, EBAY also has a plethora of options you can discover with the same search. Sort by price to see the discounts. And provided that the lens and mechanism are not damaged, EBAY often has many viable used choices as well. Normally missing software is NOT a problem as you can often download your drivers and updates, but check first with the manufacturer's site.


You can sometimes order directly from the manufacturer's or seller's site- Foscam.us for example. You might pay a bit more on those sites however- since on the major auction and retailer sites, there are lots of competitors.


You might find some IP cameras in the big-box B&M stores too. I personally wouldn't bother- they will not offer tech support from the store, the prices tend to be higher (gotta pay the rent!) and the options are fewer.




So stay in your budget, and if you're a newbie, but ONE camera first and get the feel of what's involved. Read the reviews (amazon has tons of them!). And most of all have fun!