Buying an IP Camera-The Final Step

You’re ready to buy!  So what happens now?  So many factors could influence a buying decision of this caliber since the choices for products are endless.  It’s almost like choosing one of three doors and hoping for the best, which would be fine if you were Indiana Jones.  My goal is to have you walking away from this four-part series with the confidence to buy the right product at just the right price point.

Step one:  let’s structure your price point to meet your needs.  If you’re going to make an investment in outdoor surveillance YOU WILL pay more.  Let’s face it, materials and accessories are one surefire way to bulk up your order total.  With an approximately 25 percent price difference, a several thousand dollar outdoor setup can be substantially more than your indoor-based IP solution.  We’re not talking about Bazooka Joe bubble gum here, IP surveillance is a big ticket investment.

With that out the way let’s structure an indoor surveillance solution and you can figure accordingly for the outdoor upgrade.  To get started we’re going to line up three choices with similar functions across the board and rank them by monetary value:

Under $100 – Panasonic BL-C1A Home IP Network Camera 10X Zoom

Weighing in at just under $100, this Panasonic delivers the most basic yet reliable setup.  It’s ideal for any home office or small storefront.  

Under $300 -Q-See QSIPBL2 Ball IP Network Camera

Another ideal desktop or shelf top solution, this Q-see delivers a little more bang for the buck and includes a built-in web server.  You can now access your view from any computer around.

Under $500 – TRENDnet TV-IP400W – Wireless Advanced Pan & Tilt Internet Camera Server

The heavyweight of affordable technology, this TRENDnet is ideal for shelf and small area space.  It has wireless access and a built in server, so you can send images via Wi-Fi to your server or access the camera itself from any desktop you sit at.