I have a new IP camera to review which has the ability to turn 360 degrees and most importantly I wanted one which can be installed outdoors. I have with me the Activepixel dome surveillance Wi-Fi IP camera, so let’s check it out shall we?
I have here with me a new dome Wi-Fi smart camera, which I picked up specifically for it’s ability to be installed outdoors. We have IP66 marked on the box which indicates it’s water and dust resistant. This thing looks big and intimidating, which hopefully would keep anyone from coming into the property for nefarious reasons.
Dual antenna, IR sensor, night vision standard options available on most ip cameras.
Why do I purchase cameras of the same brand, because hopefully I don’t need to install another app to access them, and this one uses the iCSee app which i’ve been using with other cameras earlier so don’t need to install another app.
Opening it up, we have a manual, and under the foam we have the camera with a power adapter, this one uses a barrel port to power up.
I wish the cable was longer or at least an extension cable was provided.
On the camera side we have the power input jack and an ethernet port.
The mount and camera are one piece,
Here’s the front, we have the LED array, An IR sensor and the main camera sensor. A microphone for two-way communication.
Two antennas with 5db signal gain, should help with Wi-Fi connectivity.
Here’s the mounting bracket? With a rubber padding on the back.
Here’s a speaker to playback any setup prompts from the camera or for our voice to playback during the two-way communication.
The camera has a 3megapixel sticker, have to see how clear the stream is.
Let’s get the protective plastic film off the lens. The lens does look big, hope the video quality is as good.
Surprisingly, the camera is not that heavy.
What else do we have in the box, a casing for the ethernet jack, maybe to protect it from water, and we have a set of mounting screws.
Let’s plug in the power and check the camera out. As I already have the ICSee app, i just need to add a new camera to the app.
When powering on the camera rotates through its extreme positions calibrating itself as all PTZ camera’s do.
On top, or actually the bottom of the cam we have this water tight rubber flap which opens up, revealing a microSD card slot and a small reset button.
Use a small screwdriver or something to push down on the button to reset it to factory settings.
Once the camera is ready and we hear the “Wait to be configured” voice prompt we can add the camera to the app.
I had a bit of a problem with the app, as it kept finding an older camera instead of the one I’m installing. So I connected it to my router via ethernet, and then found the camera on the app, and from the app linked it to my Wi-Fi. A slightly roundabout way but it worked. Even though it has two antennas it will work only with 2.4 ghz band. The extra antenna is for better connectivity.
Now we have the live feed visible on the app. We can pan and tilt using the app and we have access to all the cameras settings too.
The camera also supports night mode or night vision using the IR LED’s, and this is how it looks. The room is completely dark, and we can still view it quite clearly.
I installed it behind my house, and it was quite easy to install, and Wi-Fi also connected quite fast.
We also have an active tracking mode where the camera tracks a moving target and keeps it in the centre. That’s nice, as this gives us a larger range of view.
A couple of lighting modes are also available, enabling turning on/off the LED lights on the camera.
Here’s how the IR night vision looks, the details are quite good, and do note we don’t have a light on in the backyard.
The app has tons of options, and we can view the recorded video on the micro SD-card through the app too. Notifications for any motion can also be sent to the phone if you turn it on.
We also have an option to playback an alarm from the options available or even a custom message when motion is detected.
That was the Activepixel Wi-Fi dome camera, looks good and is working well. I would have liked a longer power cable, but other than that it works as good as I wanted it to.
So that was the video, if you have any questions do write in to me at tech@talkingstuff.net or WhatsApp me at 9652578833.
