Vivotek XIP101 review

Verdict:

Review Date: 21 Feb 2006

Price when reviewed: inc VAT

Our Rating 5 stars out of 5

Review
Specs

Vivotek's XIP101 costs more than twice as much as D-Link's DCS-900, but it has several advantages.

It connects to 802.11g wireless networks and can use WEP or WPA-PSK security. So unlike the wireless CCTV cameras reviewed on page 191, the pictures this camera sends are extremely difficult to intercept.

Setting up the XIP101 is straightforward. After we had plugged it into our wired network, it leased an address from the router. Opening this address in Internet Explorer showed the camera's picture and configuration pages. The XIP101 has several clever security functions. It has customisable motion detection, so you can choose to watch for movement in a particular area of the picture. When it detects motion, the camera can be set to email you photos or upload pictures to a remote FTP server. This allows you to monitor a room without the need for a PC to record the results.

The camera also works with the DynDNS.org Dymanic DNS service, so putting the camera on the internet takes just a minute or two. The Vivotek recording software lets you record to your hard disk when motion is detected and view multiple cameras onscreen at once.

The camera has to be focused manually, but picture quality is adequate for monitoring an office or a room at home. However, with no infrared illuminators or light source it'll be of little use in the dark. It's a great camera, but many home users will probably be tempted by the amazingly cheap D-Link DCS-900 instead.

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