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- First reviewMarch 1, 2015
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LinuxGuru's Reviews
Capture suspicious activities or monitor employees with this four-camera HD Swann DVR. Its eight-channel setup lets you observe multiple locations around your home or office, and its spacious 1TB hard drive stores recorded footage for at least 10 days. Access live feeds from this Swann DVR remotely with a compatible digital device, or play recorded streams at your convenience.
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1
Simply useless- Please read this review.
on March 1, 2015
Posted by: LinuxGuru
1.) Does not support saving to a cloud storage. (If your DVR gets stolen... then it is useless to you... but the crooks will have all your video files stored on the DVR) this is because this is an analogue system, not an IP system. *Tech support says their developers are trying to figure out a solution, but even if they do, current customers won't get an update to resolve it or anything of that sort.*
2.) Playback of recorded footage is only possible on a windows system with Internet explorer installed... Or Linux with windows running in a "Virtual Box" (This is because it requires Active-X). Same answer from tech support...*They say their developers are trying to figure out a solution, but even if they do, current customers won't get an update to resolve it or anything of that sort*
3.) Even with the mobile app, you can't use playback feature, so if you don't have Internet Explorer you won't be able to review the footage. Same answer from tech support...*They say their developers are trying to figure out a solution, but even if they do, current customers won't get an update to resolve it or anything of that sort*
2.) Playback of recorded footage is only possible on a windows system with Internet explorer installed... Or Linux with windows running in a "Virtual Box" (This is because it requires Active-X). Same answer from tech support...*They say their developers are trying to figure out a solution, but even if they do, current customers won't get an update to resolve it or anything of that sort*
3.) Even with the mobile app, you can't use playback feature, so if you don't have Internet Explorer you won't be able to review the footage. Same answer from tech support...*They say their developers are trying to figure out a solution, but even if they do, current customers won't get an update to resolve it or anything of that sort*
I am an experienced Linux user with employment background in IT, Devolepment and Low volt Alarm system instillation and service.
All of these system limitations, can be confirmed by Swann's customer support at 1-800-627-2799. I strongly encourage anybody thinking about buying this system to call Swann directly and verify this for yourself, or just google these problems.
The system itself is nice in looks, build quality, and resolution/Night vision... But even after settling on having no mobile app "playback" (Live view works great) and having to run windows inside a virtual box with Internet Explorer, to get full online access on Linux, the inability to save data to a cloud service makes this system utterly useless. Sure you can put the DVR inside a safe that is bolted to the floor to ensure thiefs don't take your data, but a much better idea is to get a hybrid DVR surveillance system that can be set to save data off-site or go with an IP surveillance system setup such as Foscam or D-Link. After spending $500 at best buy because they told me it was "There best system" and seeing nothing to the contrary on the box, and 15 hrs of install and configuration, I will cut my losses and just either run a usb cord from the DVR to a external hard drive that is somewhere super hard for crooks to get too (not really practical for the DVR itself as you need to have access to it to hook up a monitor for setup exe.) or add a dedicated computer somewhere off-site that then, screen captures the Live view from Internet Explorer on a rolling basis. Both solutions are somewhat "iffy" TRUST ME, DONT MAKE THE SAME MISTAKE I MADE.. There are better systems for the same price. If I could redo it, I would have bought 4 Foscam IP systems and used the extra money for power adapter extensions off Amazon, as even those have to be plugged into power and their cords looked pretty short. Removing my system now would take a long time and leave ugly holes from running cables and mounting the cameras with the supplied wall anchors. UUUhhh. DO YOUR REASEARCH. Even all 3rd party software only works on IP or hybrid systems (Including on Linux)(NOT analogue ones like this) Port forwarding is also useless as it wont achieve anything different using this type of system.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
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LinuxGuru's Answers
Will wirless led security monitor take all you wifi in your home
If your mean will it use lots of data, maybe.. If you mean will it hog all the signal, No.. not more than any other device connected on your wifi.
9 years, 1 month ago
by
LinuxGuru
Sparks NV
what is the best monitor to use
The monitor doesnt much matter, I use my flat-screen tv's, a $1,500 Eizo monitor, a tablet and smart-phones... there is no differance to be honest. Avoid Swann, as it can't use off-site cloud storage like other IP systems (Everything is stored on the DVR, If DVR is stollen so is your footage)... also Swann requires Internet Explorer (Windows Only) for recording Playback, I recomend Foscam over Swann for these reasons alone.
9 years, 1 month ago
by
LinuxGuru
Sparks NV
Will the camera work 400 ft away
If you can get a good internet signal and power supply that far away, it should... though that sounds like a bit of a stretch to me.
9 years, 1 month ago
by
LinuxGuru
Sparks NV
why are camera's considered wireless when they need to be plugged in?
If the cameras are considered wireless, why do they have wires to plug in???? How would I put cameras outdoors with no access to electricity?
"Wireless" is refering to the internet part of it, normal DVR systems need to be wired directly to your router via an eathernet cable. You can buy power extentions on amazon for cheap. IP systems are good because they support off-site cloud storage.
9 years, 1 month ago
by
LinuxGuru
Sparks NV
Is there a movement-activated babycam available?
I want to catch the thief who comes into the apartment when we are not around
A movement-activated recording camera seems best
A movement-activated recording camera seems best
Almost all cameras have motion activation features as well as night vision. Avoid Swann as they can NOT save the video to a cloud storage... With Swann, if someone takes your DVR that it uses to store the video, they also take the recording that is on it. Foscam would be my first choice.
Products from my answer
Foscam - Indoor Wireless IP Camera - White
(40)
D-Link - Pan and Tilt Wi-Fi Video Security Camera - Multi
(880)
Dropcam - Pro Wireless High-Definition Video Monitoring Camera - Black
(691)9 years, 1 month ago
by
LinuxGuru
Sparks NV