I wanted a "nanny cam" to monitor a new nanny, but felt a little uncomfortable about having one of the hidden ones. I felt that having a visible camera known to the nanny was a more respectful approach, although I would need several of them to monitor multiple areas since the locations would be known (and could potentially be avoided).
The Panasonic BL-C230A seemed like a great choice as it is from a major international brand and the reviews of its other wired and wireless cameras indicated that they were well received.
PROS
1. It's cute - It could star as a character in a Japanese cartoon. The nanny cam is a cube about 3" x 3" x 3 1/4" (approximately) and actually looks cute with its single eye and single antenna that looks like an ear. It has a high quality look to it with its high gloss white finish and reminds me of a smaller version of an old Sony Dream Machine alarm clock. It actually looks like it belongs on a nightstand in the bedroom or in a kitchen. It does not look out of place in a home and does not have a "tech" feel to it. I think this is a major plus as I really don't want the nanny to feel like I'm trying to determine if she is a terrorist.
2. Uses Wi-Fi 802.11 b only, g only, b/g both
3. Free lifetime use of Panasonic's "dynamic DNS server" - (more on this later)
4. Easy setup (maybe) - Easy to use paper instructions limited to 3 sheets of paper (of which only 2 are necessary). Sheet 1 shows step-by-step instruction on how to plug the camera into your router with a cable (not supplied and necessary even for wireless in the setup phase) and to connect the power cable. Sheet 2 is the sheet on how to configure the camera using your computer. This is the part that has the potential to be alarming or at least uncomfortable if you're not lucky enough to have UPnP (universal plug and play) on your router. (More on this later.)
5. Great interface with web browsers - Once your device is set up for internet access (more on this later) it has a fairly intuitive interface using Internet Explorer with an Active X control (and also on my Apple Safari although I used my PC with Vista for the camera setup with my Apple Mac for the router changes). There is a viewing screen that allows for 3 resolutions (192x144, 320x240, 640x480). There is a graphical control on the left of the viewing screen with arrows up/down and left/right for tilt and pans. What's nice is there is an auto tilt and auto pan button that will cause the camera to sweep back and forth quickly to give a quick overview of the room. Clicking on a part of the viewing screen will redirect the camera to focus on that spot. There is also multi-camera support for what appears to be up to 16 separate cameras.
6. Fantastic image quality! (It is definitely grainy in low-light, but that's to be expected.)
7. Infrared body heat detection system - does not work if using only browsers but works well using the optional record software install
8. Sound detection - Camera can be set to record not just with body movement triggers but sound triggers.
9. Zoom ability - Only with the optional recording software installed. Does not zoom using browsers only.
10. Audio - (Not on iPhone browser or Google Chrome, however)
11. Mountable - Comes with mounting screws and a safety wire in case it falls from your wall
12. Seems to be Apple compatible (except the initial setup and for video recording which appears to require installation of software different from using just a web browser, although I have not yet tested the video recording feature yet) - Works on my Apple Safari web browser as well as Internet Explorer (with Active X).
The system requirements written on the outside of the Panasonic box seem to indicate only Windows XP SP2 and Vista with Internet Explorer 6, 7, 8 are compatible, but this may be true only for the additional software to set up video recording and the initial camera setup. The browsers seem adequate so far for just watching streaming video and taking still photos as well as maneuvering the camera. I cannot get sound, however, using my Apple iPhone Safari browser or Google Chrome on my PC. Sounds works well on Internet Explorer with Active-X.
CONS
1. Setting the camera up for internet access outside of your home can either be very easy or can be scary for technophobes. Your router must support something called UPnP, Universal Plug and Play for this to work smoothly (I imagine). When I say smoothly, I mean, being able to follow the step-by-step instruction on sheet #2. If you do NOT have a router that supports UPnP then the step-by-step instructions basically tell you to go to the manual on the CD which gives a great introduction on private IP addresses, WAN addresses, static IP addresses, and the usefulness of something called a "dynamic DNS server".
If you are now thinking that you will be over your head by all of this jargon, realize that most routers support UPnP and thus you can follow the step-by-step instructions which use an "automatic" mode in the configuration steps using your web browser. I am using an Apple Airport Base Extreme which does NOT support UPnP. My experience was that it required about 10 extra minutes for me to figure out that I needed to set up something like "port mapping" for my Apple router.
2. Although this is a "wireless" network camera, the description is slightly deceptive. It is wireless only in the networking sense. I should have thought about this more carefully, because what I really expected was a "cordless" camera. This camera has a powercord attached to it, although is "wireless".
3. It seems that there are 2 versions of video recording software that is an optional install. Oddly, the one for single camera support versus multiple (16) camera support are compatible with different Windows versions.
4. I have installed the optional software to my Windows Vista PC to support up to 16 cameras and found that the software works well and is intuitive to use for motion-detection recording. The software appears to be fine for my uses, but you have to pay for a retail version of the software if you want expanded features such as the ability to export their video data files to JPEG or MPEG format, or if you want to use their video backup feature. (I have separate third party software that mirrors my internal hard drives to external drives, so the lack of a built-in video backup feature is not critical to me.) I have not yet tried to see if this optional recording software will work with Bootcamp or VMWare on my Apple Macbook Pro.
TIPS
For those of you who also use an Apple Airport Base Extreme (which does not support UPnP), here's what I had to do:
A. Launch "Airport Utility" software from my Mac then select "Manual Setup"
B. Select "Advanced" from the top tab
C. Select "Port Mapping" from a sub-tab
D. Click on the "+" to add a device to this mapping so that an outside computer can access my device and is thus "mapped"
E. In the drop-down menu select "Personal Web Sharing"
F. Make sure the "public" and "private TCP" ports have the same number such as "80" in the text fields (which they do by default if you selected "Personal Web Sharing"
G. Save and update the modem (requires restart)
H. Go to the installation CD for the Camera and using Internet Explorer to configure the camera, choose "Setup" from the top in the web page
I. Select "Static" and NOT "Automatic Setup" and type in a number such as "80" into the "Port No." field, and save
J. Go to the "Internet" tab of the web page
K. Select "Disable" from the "Auto Port Forwarding (IPv4) option. This is DIFFERENT from the step-by-step instructions given which only work for those who have UPnP.
L. Select "Register with ...........com"
M. Select "Save"
N. You will then be directed to the "..............com" website which is Panasonic's "Dynamic DNS server" which basically will allow your router if it does not support UPnP to work. This website is also how you will be able to view your camera using a web browser outside of your home and local network.
CONCLUSION
I am impressed enough to have ordered two additional "wireless" cameras. Its ease of use with the iPhone's standard web browser is simply awesome. My colleagues at work were so impressed by it that they have also placed orders for the device within hours of them seeing for themselves the streaming video on my iPhone and on my desktop at work.
I also suspect that my nanny will not feel like I'm some crazy overly zealous parent either, but that I just want a logical way to check up on the kids. It is a non-intimidating appearing piece of houseware that just seems fun and entertaining while being a legitimate surveillance camera.
I hope this review was of some help! Panasonic BL-C230A Wireless Internet Security Camera - Ip Camera - Security Camera - Network Camera - Nanny Cam'
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