Rosewill RSCM-12002 640 x 480 MAX Resolution RJ45 Wireless N Day/Night Internet IP Camera Rosewill RSCM-12002 640 x 480 MAX Resolution RJ45 Wireless N Day/Night Internet IP Camera

Pros: * Good quality video, reasonably clear in daylight and surprisingly sharp in the dark with the IR LEDs on; good frame rate and little delay; stable streaming.

* Easy to operate using the web interface: both viewing the video stream (requires a Java plugin, I used icedtea on Chrome and Firefox and it works fine) and configuring settings seem to work fine, with the exception of motion detection (see below).

* The status LEDs on the front of the camera can be turned off so the camera is completely invisible in the dark (IR LEDs are a different story, see below).

Cons: * The camera doesn't have true PIR detection, rather one that's based on differences between consecutive images, so I'm guessing that (e.g.) lights from a passing car could trigger it on as well; the camera sensor has to be running at all time, and IR LEDs must be on when dark, in order for it to work. That said, this appears to be the standard detection mechanism used in cameras of this sort, so I can't complain about it that much.

* Defining motion detection areas requires ActiveX and so has to be done with Internet Explorer, which I don't use. It may be that the provided software (which needs to run on Windows) can be used for that, but I cannot use that as well. This also means that motion based triggering for doing FTP uploads or sending email notifications won't work; fixed schedule triggers (e.g. a picture every 30 seconds) work fine. I guess this is a known limitation, yet I find it an unacceptable one given the choices that software vendors have today.

* I could not register the camera with the monitoring website (http://c4mi.com/), which kept claiming "device offline" whereas it was connected to my router (tried both wired and wireless). It may be that I have to have a PC running the provided software in order to connect to the service---? In any case, I should be able to monitor it remotely without the said service (see below), albeit not on a mobile device.
* IR LEDs produce a dim reddish glow when on, which makes them clearly visible in the dark; not clear why this is the case---?

* Switching to night vision and back emits a loud clicking; it sounds as if the relay that drives the IR LEDs is doing this. This is especially annoying when light level is borderline and the camera switches back and forth... I just keep it turned off regularly and turn it on by hand when needed, but this would prevent the motion detection from working in the dark.

* The camera body and mounting kit are entirely white, but it ships with a black power brick and cord. Go figure.

* Sloppy documentation with many typos, hard to read.

Other Thoughts: * I managed to connect to the camera from the outside world via an SSH tunnel to my home server. The video stream is as clear as it is on my home network, but that would vary based on your uplink and where the stream travels through on the Internet. In theory, I could use the same method to watch video from a mobile device, but I haven't gone through the pain. For some reason, plain port forwarding from the router to the camera did not work for me, but I have to say that I did not insist that much---the SSH solution would be way more secure and just a tiny bit less convenient.

* Haven't tried mounting it yet, but I suspect that the straight angled DC plug sticks out more that I'd want it to; I may end up replacing it with a square-angled, white one (the camera takes a standard 5V DC input).

* Bottom line: I'll need to get a Windows machine to talk to the camera in order to be able to use it's full line of features, namely motion detection and native remote monitoring on mobile devices. The image recognition based motion detection is inferior to PIR and/or microwave technologies used by alarm sensors, but I guess that's common in these consumer devices and to be expected. All in all, seems like a good buy for under $50.

Pros: very good image (IR) in absolutely no light.
very simple to configure even in linux (via ethernet).
good instruction on how to expose stream to an internet device for monitoring.
wireless just "works" and hasn't had to be re-started in 3 weeks.

I am hesitant to install bloatware just to configure a wireless device, and many surveillance servers are running some locked down linux variant, so I thought I would initially use this camera in a manner that might simulate real world application. I plugged the camera in and attached its ethernet connection to my router. In linux, I went to my router's admin page and found the camera in the list of dhcp clients, and obtained its IP address. I opened another browser tab to that ip address, and logged in the camera's admin UI. I set up its wireless connection, and brought that up. I then gave the wireless connection a static ip, and then disconnected the ethernet. The camera has been feeding a stream since, which is about 3 weeks. I use mplayer to view the recorded stream, because mplayer doesn't require a file lock, it just shows the contents. So I don't worry about the requirement of Java to use a browser - I can point mplayer at a port and view its stream via mplayer, vlc, or other client software.

Because it uses 5VDC, I can connect it into a common battery-backed power supply so that even in power loss it will continue to record. Some systems have strange voltage requirements, and that requires you to buy a proprietary system at $$$$.

Camera, bracket, and adjustments are very solid construction. Easy to aim in a fixed position.

Cons: Includes software that might fool some into thinking that this device is limited to windows.

Setting up zoom does require windows/activex. Boo.

Power/IR lights are on the front and very bright. I would probably put 4 layers of electrical tape over those. Why make it obvious that it's a camera? You want your fakes to have lights, but not your real camera...

No sweep servo, all you get is one fixed-position, relatively narrow view.

Other Thoughts: I set it up in a completely dark room, and then felt my way around in the dark. On the video, I could see everything clearly enough to ID me and everything I touched.

Pros: Price is right when on sale and combined with discount code on Newegg. Video stays up to date, no video breakup. The documentation is ok but leaves out an easy install for Wi-Fi. To setup Wi-Fi easy just press the broadcast button on your router and the Wi-Fi button on the back of the camera. The software is easy to setup and use just follow directions step by step. The color is good and the night vision works well but seams to switch to infrared black and white too soon. there is also a rest button on the back of the unit if you mess things up you can easily reset everything back to factory setting and start install over again.

Cons: Price is way to high when not on sale or discounted. I would have liked a longer power cord for mounting in the corner of a room near the ceiling. If I'm going to pay $120 then I would want to be able to zoom and tilt the focus to different areas. There are many usb webcams out there that do this for way less money.

Other Thoughts: This is a great product right now for $48 including shipping, for $120 I would not even consider it. It does what its advertised to do and does it well. The unit is kind of ugly and stands out, maybe mounting on white walls up high people might not notice it. I guess if you want to put in stores for security you would want it to be noticed.

Pros: I've had this device to review for just over a week and a half now and I have to say that for the price point, its quality both in the construction and in the video is
okay, not too bad not too good. But you do get for what you pay for. I've had older and more expensive IP cameras before from Panasonic and they were laggy
and jittery. Comparing these to the older IP cameras, there has been much improvement in the video lag and streaming. A lot of that is due to the Wireless-N
capabilities via WiFi and the CMOS Sensor.
The IP camera unit itself is very sturdy. It's made of white hard plastic all around. It even comes with a mounting bracket to mount onto walls or just sit on tables, countertops, etc. The included AC adapter is small too, which is good because I just hate those super large AC adapters.
The installation, documentation and the setup was a breeze. Nothing too complicated that a novice would have problems with as long as they read the instructions.
The instructions were farely clear on how to set it up step by step. There were even screen shots to help out.
On the software part, just remember that you MUST plug the IP camera into the router (via ethernet) to configure first before you can start using the WiFi! It's common sense because how is the IP camera going to connect to your network if there's a password? Anyways, the configuration screens are well thought out. The flow of the categories make sense and it's simple to use and navigate. There's even an option to email out snapshots to an email server at different times depending on which time you set it to. That was an awesome feature I have not seen on many IP cameras. You can even direct the video to a port. I'm guessing this is directing video to a network server for recording or DVR for recording.
The software that comes with the IP camera for remote viewing is ok (www.c4mi.com). I met some bugs which I'll explain below in the "Cons" section. Nonetheless, it does work if you configure it properly and I've viewed my IP camera from a PC, Laptop, Android phone and Iphone 4S. All without an hiccups.
In my setup, I tested both in a wired and wireless environment. There's no video lag when viewing them from within the network (via web browser). The range for the wireless is decent. I took the unit into my garage which was about a good 30-40 feet away from the router and it still performed well. I love the infrared and
now I can clearly at night time what happens in my living room when I'm at work. Lastly, I did have to contact Rosewill's tech support for some assistance via
email. All I have to say is that they did a great job responding back in a fashionable time although I figured out the issue myself before they could respond back.
Great work Rosewill!

Cons: Again, great price for an IP Camera but you do get what you pay for. The design of the camera is square, making it hard to find enclosures that would fit for outside usage. Although there was mounting hardware, it was somewhat difficult to mount the camera and turn the camera to the direction where you wanted it to.
The screw attached to the moving mechanism would either lock up too tight to turn the camera or too lose where the camera would move after you've set the
camera into the direction you want it to. You'll need another person to help you hold it and screw it on tightly so the camera doesn't move. Hard to do on a single
ladder.
I'm glad that they provided the AC adapter, but the cord is way too short. I believe it was only 4-5 feet in length. I wanted the unit mounted near my ceiling so I
only had one choice since the wire was so short, to make a small hole in my roof and power it from there. I didn't really want to make a hole but at the same time it
would look silly to have a long power wire going from the ground up into the unit. Nonetheless, if the AC adapter's cord would be longer, there'd be more options
for me.
Video quality and streaming capabilities are good for the price. The only issue I had is that it's always BLACK AND WHITE..no color when the infrared is on! I
can understand it being black and white for night time but at least include some way of detecting day time. You can still turn off the infrared in the software but that's
too manual for me. Another thing I would definitely like is to have pan and tilt functionality. Not really a con but nice to have.
As I mentioned before, I did have to contact Rosewill's tech support for an issue. Now that I've figured it out, it's simple, really. What I did was I set the IP camera
to have a static IP address from the very beginning. It's just something I do with all my IP devices so I know whenever someone new is on my network. I was able
to remotely access the camera from my laptop and my PC from within the same network, but when I tried to view it remotely (from outside the network) using the
included www.c4mi.com website, I ran into an issue. I made my log in name and password but when I tried to register the device, the message "Device Offline"
kept appearing. I did everything I could...plugging and replugging in the ethernet cable, swapping ethernet cables and even desperately plugging the camera directly into my PC. None of that worked apparently.
The issue is that the instructions were too blunt (in my opinion). The included documentation which showed the steps on how to register on the www.c4mi.com
website simply stated "Must have device plugged into network router then to PC"...which was what I did but after retrying for a whole day, I almost gave up. It
never occurred to me that I had it in a static IP address...which I eventually did and it solved the problem.

Other Thoughts: A good suggestion to anyone whom purchased or is going to purchase this unit, READ THE MANUAL FIRST! I'm one of those guys that usually never read the manual, I simply dig in and usually let my experience and common sense work out the rest. READ THE MANUAL FIRST before you start the set up to get acquainted with how to plug the unit onto the mounting bracket and how to first get connected with the device. It's pretty straight forward though; plug it in to your home network router, get on a PC/Laptop and type in the IP address to get into the IP camera's settings and log in with username and password. Before you do that though, do use the CD that came with the camera. There's a software in there that detects the IP address of the camera for you so you can just type it into any web browser, the username and password to log into the IP camera and the driver is in there too!
Overall, I would recommend product only if you just need a simple IP camera. It is worth its price. I'm going to purchase a couple more and connect it to my

HTPC since it's always on and put recording softwareA good suggestion to anyone whom purchased or is going to purchase this unit, READ THE MANUAL FIRST! I'm one of those guys that usually never read the manual, I simply dig in and usually let my experience and common sense work out the rest. READ THE MANUAL FIRST before you start the set up to get acquainted with how to plug the unit onto the mounting bracket and how to first get connected with the device. It's pretty straight forward though; plug it in to your home network router, get on a PC/Laptop and type in the IP address to get into the IP camera's settings and log in with username and password. Before you do that though, do use the CD that came with the camera. There's a software in there that detects the IP address of the camera for you so you can just type it into any web browser, the username and password to log into the IP camera and the driver is in there too!I'm going to purchase a couple more and connect it to my HTPC since it's always on and put recording software on it. I just hope that it can do more than just 8 IP cameras on it.

Pros: Let's take a look at this RSCM-12002 and see (but not necessarily smell) just what we have here. I'll cover the hardware, the software, setup under Windows XP and Windows 7 (I don't own, nor do I anticipate owning Windows 8), and also touch on setting up Internet Explorer 10 to run activex (necessary for the motion sensor setup). Finally, I'll go over how I came to my four-star rating. Ready? Good, let's first discuss the hardware:

HARDWARE

Size: Camera is approx. as tall as a cigarette package and half the thickness. Appears well-made. Note that in low-light conditions the picture will appear in B&W (this is the infrared kicking in) although the camera is indeed color capable. If you're expecting a super-duper high-def pic, well, you ain't getting one. If you're expecting a fairly typical surveillance-type 640x480 with a few grains, then you're good to go. I tried it in very low-light conditions (tripping-over-furniture dark) and could see very well -- surprisingly so, in fact. It comes with a stand, screws, some plastic anchors, an ethernet cable (about a four footer) and an AC power adapter. The included software is on a CD-ROM.

SOFTWARE

OK, so now that I've mentioned the software (Ultraview Pro), why not delve into that. Point one: I couldn't get it to install on my Windows 7 machine. Try though I might, it just kept telling me to close the program and set the screen resolution to 1024x768. Did that. Same deal, even though the screen resolution was set to 1024x768. OK, phooey, we'll try XP. Hallelujah! It installed, so now what?
Click on the Ultraview Pro icon, then when the screen loads, you'll see 7 round icons at the bottom of the page, all of uniform size. Navigate to the sixth icon from the left (kinda looks like a portable radio) and click on it. You'll see "device setting" above the icon. Click on it. This will take you to a new page. Click on "device search." After a coupla seconds, your camera will come up. Name it, highlight it, save it. This will get you started if you choose to use this software. Personally, although it will allow you to do quite a bit as far as scheduling and such, I didn't care much for this software. It was not particularly user friendly of intuitive IMO. But that's for you to decide. Anyhow, you don't really HAVE to use it if you don't want to or need to. You can set it up this way...

SETUP

Windows 7
Start --> Computer --> scroll down to "network" --> Right-click on RSCM-12002--> Left-click on "view device webpage" --> enter "admin" for username and password --> click on "live view" and you should be set

Windows XP
Start --> My Network Places --> Under "Network Tasks" click on "Show icons for Networked devices" and wait a few seconds for it to automatically configure --> right-click on the new "RSCM-12002" icon, then left-click on "invoke" (seriously...it's "invoke"!) --> enter "admin" for username and PW --> click on "live view" if the pic isn't already there. Further setup using

Cons: ACTIVEX UNDER INTERNET EXPLORER 10

Requires some tweaking. This is necessary if you need to setup motion sensor detection. This works for me (with one caveat that we'll discuss)

Start Internet Explorer
Tools --> Internet Options --> Security --> Click on "custom level" --> scroll down to "ActiveX controls and plug-ins" -->

You'll see 12 items that need your attention:

1. Allow ActiveX filtering: set to enable
2. Allow previously unused ActiveX controls to run without prompt: set to enable
3. Allow Scriplets: set to enable
4. Automatic prompting for ActiveX controls: set to enable
5. Binary and Script behaviors: Set to enable
6. Display video and animation...etc.: set to enable
7. Download signed ActiveX controls: Set to prompt
8. Download unsigned...: Set to Prompt
9. Initialize and scrip...safe for scripting: Set to prompt
10. Only allow approved domains...: set to enable
11. Run ActiveX controls and plug-ins: set to enable
12. Script ActiveX controls safe for scripting: set to prompt

This works for me, however -- and this is the caveat that was mention earlier -- the mouse pointer flickers like crazy when you try to define an area for the motion sensor. This makes it hard to size an area, bit it can be done with a little persistence.

Other Thoughts: HOW I CAME UP WITH FOUR STARs

Basically, I look at it like this:

Five Stars -- exceeds expectations in every way. Price is below what I would expect to pay and performance is far above what I would figure on.

Four Stars -- Meets all expectations. Price and performance are on par.

Three Stars -- Average. Could be better in some areas. Worth the money but not exceptional

Two Stars -- Needs work. Kinda screwy, even though it may function at a basic level

One Star -- either DOA or non-functional for its intended purpose

As for this camera, I was waffling back and forth on how many stars to give it, but settled on four. Pick it up on sale for around 50 bucks is my advice. At 50, it's a four-star buy. At 77 bucks it moves closer to three stars in my opinion.

OTHER THOUGHTS

Oh yeah, you'll note that I didn't mention the ability to use the camera's "cloud" service. That's because I did not try it. For many reasons that I won't discuss here (this is a review of the camera), I'm just not a big fan of cloud computing -- especially for a security item. Others have noted that this aspect works fine, and I have no reason to doubt their word. I did give a cursory whirl to the wireless aspect, and it does work. How well it works will tend to depend a lot on your particular equipment (router, etc.) and physical setup, so I figured it pretty pointless to go in-depth with the wireless.

Watching the living room in infra-creepie near-darkness kinda reminded me of an episode of "Ghost Hunters." I swear, if somebody woulda snuck up behind me and said "Boo," there'd have been quite a mess to clean up.

Pros: - Setup

Setup was very straightforward and simple. Just a matter of using the included "IP finder" application, and plugging the camera IP into your browser for setup/live network viewing. Please do remember, despite the cons about software, that when viewing works it works very well!

For more information about the software side, check "Cons".

- Nightview

In complete darkness the "nightview" mode works great within a 10 ft area. Everything appeared bright and vivid, and I suffered no network degradation like the previous reviewer mentioned."

- Quality
Not much to say here. Build quality feels very nice. It has a weight to it that let's the buyer know this isn't some cheap toy.

Cons: - Software

Viewing on a Windows PC is only possible with a java-enabled (not javascript) browser, or using the Ultraview Plus software found on the CD and/or Rosewill's website. Though Java is not completely gone, and most modern browsers have plugins for it, it is ridiculous to require it for viewing. Further, I have found no way (in browser viewing, nor Ultraview Plus) to activate the digital zoom claimed to be supported by this camera.

This is definitely a case of great hardware being dragged down by lack of quality software.

Android - I tested the Eaglesense android app, and it was satisfactory for internet viewing, with the slighty choppiness you would expect. However, if you'd like to view over LAN, you can't use Eaglesense, or your browser, since there are no java-enabled browsers for Android. I was forced to use a second (free) app for LAN viewing "IP cam viewer basic". This app doesn't support viewing over the internet, though, so there isn't a single-app solution for viewing over the internet, and LAN.


- No Pan and Tilt

Many of the other cameras in this price range, with the same feature set, also have a motorized pan and tilt mechanism to allow moving the camera to view different areas. This one, however, does not.


- Price

For the price, I feel like it sort of a mixed bag. On one hand you have a camera that does exactly what it says it will do - provide quality video day or night, over wired or wireless connections.

- Weatherproofing

This camera would otherwise be ideal for mounting outside a door, or window, however it is not water or weatherproof, essentially leaving it up to the buyer to keep it safe, or relegate it to indoor duty.

Other Thoughts: I was able to work out solutions for viewing with this camera, and it works great for my needs. However, the fact that the software is far from robust, and the camera lacks pan and tilt, and is not water/weatherproof costs it a few stars. I believe for the price, you can probably find a better solution for your needs.

Pros: Easy install, Nice Daytime quality, Easy record & Playback.

Cons: Not a nighttime camera at all, will slow your wireless network down tremendously.

Other Thoughts: If you require Nighttime security camera, this is not the unit for you.

Pros: I have 4 of these I bought over the last few months and I just ordered 2 more. I was using these with my Buffalo FTP server using the camera's configuration. I bought a Synology FTP server which gave me 1 camera license and additional licenses for about $57. The camera seems to be an iPux ICS 303C. When I configure it with the Synology Surveillance Station, I configure it as an iPux ICS 1033. Knowing that it seems to be an iPux made it compatible with a lot of other software I use. The iOS and Android apps also work very well. Make sure you activate each camera using the supplied code, so you can use it with phone app software like Eaglesense.

Cons: Requires ActiveX meaning you have to use Internet Explorer 9 or earlier so you can't configure the motion properly without it. Win8 comes with IE10, so forget about using that if you need to define a motion detection area.

Pros: None

Cons: ActiveX? Are you joking? I need ActiveX to setup? OK. I borrow a Windows Laptop to setup and it still does not work properly. Pictures are horrible. Java based viewer is horrible. Maybe the camera can work some other way?

Total waste of time and money.

Pros: Cheap (when on sale)
Stable operation
Easy setup
Compact
Good wireless range

Cons: It's VGA obviously, but even for VGA image quality not great
Requires a lot of light, otherwise IRs turn on
Narrow Field of View
IRs are a bit weak

Other Thoughts: It's a good buy when it's on sale. I bought it to place it outside where I don't care if it gets stolen or damaged. May even work ok for baby cam, but the field of view is pretty narrow, so you'll have to place it further away from the baby crib. I hope Rosewill will make HD version of this camera soon.