Gadget Victims

"Invalid License File" message after a firmware update

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Tue, 21 May 2013 14:09:00 +0000

Several users of the Dericam H502W (Cybernova WIP604MW, and equivalent...) have reported the appearance of an "Invalid License File" warning in their System Information page after a firmware update.

While the exact cause is still undetermined, some precaution should be taken before applying a new firmware.

Prior to any change to the firmware of your H.264 IP Camera, you should make a backup of its board.dat file, which can be extracted by visiting your IP Camera with the url: http://<youIPCurl>/board.dat

This constitutes your license file in case you end up with a Invalid License File warning. It should then be possible to re-upload it via the auth.htm page (you should take a snapshot of your own page also, while it's still ok). Only the manufacturer can provide a new valid license file. The board.dat is unique to each device so it won't help to upload one from someone else!

The Dericam, Cybernova and other Maygion-based H.264 IP Cameras are assigned with a unique Hardware Identification (HID), a User ID (UID, necessary for P2P feature) and a free DDNS ID (all visible in that auth.htm page mentionned above).

Apparently, this trinity is challenged against the encrypted content of the board.dat file, and any mismatch results in an invalid license situation.

In theory all this information burned-in the camera at factory should not be affected by firmware upgrade, but several cases have been reported already, all following update from very official firmware.

This situation is known to cause the following problems:

- It prevents the IPC to use the P2P function

- It makes the IPC reboot at interval of 10 minutes

Why this?

The cause is not clear but I suspect the older production of this IP Camera to be particularly affected once they get updated with a certain firmware version. The introduction of P2P maybe changed the way the license file is validated. I'll update this section if I get more information.

Wifi SD Cards: Transcend vs ezShare

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Wed, 08 May 2013 16:32:00 +0000

Wi-Fi SD cards are becoming more democratic with some decent Class 10 around 45€. I've tested 2 of the most affordable ones on the market.

Wi-Fi Memory cards are available for a good while now, with the predominant Eye-Fi brand, but until recently, their low capacity/performance could not justify the price.

In the 16GB/Class 10 category, the Transcend Wifi SD (TS32GWSDHC10) appears to be the cheapest on the market for 42€ shipping included.

Its SPI microchip supports Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n including WEP/WPA/WPA2 encryption. The internal software can be upgraded. Mine arrived with v1.5 and the Transcend Android app advised me to apply the 1.6 update (released in March 2013) when it first made the connection.

The product pack does not include any CD but everything is available from the Transcend web page. The Firmware Update Tool runs from a PC and detects the card from any card reader.

The firmware update process is quite safe: I had a few failures first using the internal reader on my PC. Despite that, the card was never "bricked" and the 8-steps update, which took a good 15 minutes, eventually succeeded once I used a cheap USB card reader instead. The card was almost smoking hot after that, much more than during normal operation.

The card starts in Direct Share mode and acts as an Access Point to which mobile devices can directly connect using the Wi-Fi SD App.
It is also accessible from any computer thanks to its web server (default http://192.168.11.254).

Both interfaces allow to browse the content of the card and change its setup. Up to 3 Wi-Fi hotspots can be pre-defined for the card to connect to in Internet Mode, and the default startup mode (Direct/Internet) can be changed as well. The Wi-Fi SD app v1.8 tested has a Shoot and View feature which pushes any photo taken to the mobile device for viewing, handy for quality review on a bigger screen. Its Browse section gives access to local and remote files plus the option to share them ~~to FB, Twitter, Flickr, Sina Weibo and Email. However, no Picasa/G+...~~
Update: The v1.9 came out while I was writting this review. It contains several simple but well thought improvements to the interface, like the indication of the IP Address used. The sharing destinations now extend to any available on the phone, so in my case Bluetooth, Gmail, Messaging, Picasa (at last!), and Send by LAN (ES File Explorer 3.0)

While it is recommended to turn off the camera power saving feature to maintain the SD card communication active, it is possible to set the card itself to turn off
the Wi-Fi after 1/5/10 mins. This is a welcome option as the card does not have a physical switch for this.

One thing to note is the absence of option to set a static IP address.

If you leave on travel with the card set to Internet Mode, it will be inaccessible if none of the pre-set hotspot are nearby. So it is advisable to always set your own phone as one of them.
There's however a smart and simple way to reset the SD card if needed, and thus get back to the Direct Share mode: Just delete the virtual, persistent "Restore Defaults" picture.

When using the Internet Mode, the card needs to be in the vicinity of a known router (as opposed to the Direct Share where the camera should be near enough any device connecting to it). The signal range is obviously much shorter than for a smartphone, but surprisingly good for such a small device (~10m indoor, 65Mbps max).

While the huge Canon Raw v2 (CR2) files are not seen as pictures by the app, they're listed in the category "Others" and can be transfered like any files. For the sake of reviewing the pictures taken, the camera should then always be set to JPEG+RAW rather than RAW only.

The average transfer rates are within the specs of a Class 10 with Read: 16.5MB/s and Write: 15.6MB/s

In general, the Transcend Wi-FI SD was good enough to convince me in getting a second card for my second camera. It definitely fills the bill for sharing pictures on the run and freeing up the camera storage space by offloading files to another device. However, because I'm curious, I decided to try a challenger for my next order.

Links:
Product Page
Product Manual
Firmware update tool
Firmware 1.6

Pros:
Simple setup
Card reset can be done directly from the camera
Can transfer RAW(incl.CR2)/JPEG and any other file extension.

Cons:
~~No option to share to Picasa/Google+~~ (added with v.1.9)
Generates somewhat more heat than the ezShare

--------------------------------------------------------------

The second cheapest Wi-Fi SD is the ez Share 16GB from LZeal (ES100) at 47€.

The first difference is the presence of a physical switch to turn on the Share Mode, which I see as an advantage over Transcend.

Despite the LZeal product page, and the Q&A of the dedicated web site: "During share process, there is intermittent beep(every 30s) reminding Share Mode is on..." (at time of writing), there is no buzzer in the version I received. As suspected and confirmed by Lzeal, it is an old feature that has been removed from the latest products.

Another difference is the absence of an "Internet Mode", i.e. the card only acts as a hot-spot and won't blend in your existing Wi-Fi network. This becomes a disadvantage once you have more than one card like this, as you'd need to connect to each individually whereas the internet mode would allow to access all cards simultaneously.

This is a 16GB Class 10 memory with 802.11b/g/n capable module (Heng Bao chip) and while there's no word whatsoever on the encryption supported, it does WPA2 like the Transcend.

EZ Share Android app v.1.4.0 (also released while I was writing this review) is neat and simple. What Transcend Shoot and View feature is also present and simply called Auto-Push. EZ Share just uses the "Share to" targets of the phone, so there's no real limitation.

Browser access is done simply by going to http://ez

The web interface offers a classic and a mobile view with same features than the EzShare app. CR2 files could be displayed once transfered to my phone. Unlike the Transcend which now deals with all kinds of file types, the ES100 is limited to video and picture files.

To reset the card to its defaults, the dummy file ezshare.cfg (it doesn't hold any actual settings) must be deleted from a PC. I found that trick less neat than the Transcend virtual picture which allows the same operation directly from the camera.

The Wi-Fi range (Indoor only tested) is conform to the 10m specified and 65Mbps max speed.

The average transfer rates are: Read: 15~19MB/s and Write: 10MB/s,... not great for Class 10 (for which 10MB/s is the absolute minimum). It was however good enough to shoot 1920x1080 videos @ 24fps.

While it also meets my expectations, the ES100 does not offer the same value for the price due to its lower SDHC performance and fewer features. The physical Wi-Fi switch remains its main selling point.

Links:
Product Page
User Guide

Pros:
Physical switch for the Wi-Fi mode
Simple setup
RAW(incl.CR2)/JPEG/Video transfer.

Cons:
Only acts as a Hot-spot, no "Internet mode" (Router connection)
No "Wifi On" reminder (buzzer) on this version.
Write speed on the fringe for a Class 10

--------------------------------------------------------------

Cards tested with Canon EOS600D and Canon SX220HS.
While difficult to quantify, the use of Wi-Fi function has an obvious impact on the battery, which is naturally more noticeable on the smaller SX220 than on the more powered EOS.

Similar products:
Trek FluCard Pro 16GB Class 6, ~70€
Eye-Fi Pro X2 16GB Class 10, ~100€
Toshiba Flash Air 8GB Class 10, ~50€

Firmware v5.53 for "MayGion" H.264 (Dericam, Cybernova, ...)

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 13:35:00 +0000

For once, this update was not published by Cybernova but directly posted on MayGion web site.
It brings further improvements to the ONVIF compatibility with special attention to Synology DSM 4.2.

Important Notice:

Before performing any firmware update, read this post to learn about potential problems that can result from this operation as well as how to backup the board.dat file.

This update, published directly on MayGion web site, allowed me to use the camera with Surveillance Station 6 for the first time. There's no Pan and Tilt control yet, but hopefully this will come later.

The mkbin tool is included in the package:
This tool was in fact made available by Maygion in 2010 and allows to unpack the bin file, and to pack customized ones.

Just drag and drop a bin file to the mkbin app to unpack. These extracted files are those that typically can be uploaded via FTP to their corresponding www or app folders.

I take this opportunity to praise the great investigation work done by macmpi on the hardware.fr forum!

If you don't read French, please use a page translator like the one included with Chrome and read the second post on that thread to know more about the customization potential of this camera. It's worth reading, ...and it's only the tip of the iceberg...!

ES File Explorer 3.0

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 12:10:00 +0000

If you updated your apps lately, you may have noticed that ES File Explorer icon changed. Version 3.0 is out and the most remarkable changes are not always the most visible...

Good surprise yesterday when I noticed that ES File Explorer 3.0 was finally out. The best File Manager for Android got even better!

With its brand new user interface, it is even more intuitive than before.

A long press will now bring up four action corners (Share/Copy/WiFi Send-by-LAN/Delete/) to which the file can be dropped. The same drag'n drop method works on folders of course.

It is very usable and file list is even more readable on my tiny 3.6" phone screen (thanks to the "Small Detail" view).

The biggest addition for me is a feature that I suggested to EStrong some time ago: being able to copy the full path of a file to the keyboard.

It seems small, but none of the FTP apps I tried so far allow that!

This discrete feature is actually huge for (Synology) NAS users like me!

Why is it so important ?

Suppose that you want to send a file located on a distant FTP server to your Synology Download Manager via Synodroid.

From ES Explorer, you now display the file properties, touch the "Copy full path" button, then go to Synodroid and pasting that path in the Add Download dialog. Full path means that part of the authentication used will be included in the path string. You will need to add the password manually though.

Until now, such an operation could be done from a PC but impossible from an Android device.

The screenshots below are just a quick view of the new UI which now includes gestures, multiple windows and Wi-Fi sharing...

Firmware x.7.19 for JPT3815W 2013

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 10:45:00 +0000

Tenvis has released another firmware update for their 2013 editions of JPT3815W and JPT3815W+.

This one brings more fixes plus the VLC support.

The forum also shows that now 2 hardware version exist for this model, 1.4 and 1.7, which require their specific firmware file.

I've been confirmed that, at least for 1.4, the manual control of the IR LED will not be possible and hardware will be modified to allow this. I don't know if it's already done with 1.7.

The firmware file can be found here:
http://forum.tenvis.com/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=485&page=1#pid4944

The main thing in 1.7.19 is that http://<cameraIP>/videostream.cgi and /videostream.asf are now functional.

Changelog:

----------------------------------
x.7.19 (1.7.19, 2.7.19 and 3.7.19)
----------------------------------
1. Fix motion detection alarm sensitivity unsaved problem.
2. Improve the surface and resolve the bugs for no snapshot for visitors
3. Fix BUG of save the <null> password for Non-admin user
4. Support VLC video player
5. Remove the Device Model from About page
6. Add Arabic language support
7. Update French, English, Japanese language
8. Fix error description of vertical and horizontal reversal
9. Save horizontal reversal image after rebooting

New firmware for JPT3815W 2013 Edition

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 14:27:00 +0000

Tenvis has just released the update 1.7.17 for its new JPT3815W 2013 Edition and the JPT3815W+

You can get it here. Pay attention to the hardware version and don't go bricking your older non-2013 JPT3815W with it!

The front green power LED state can now be controlled (On/Off/Blink) from the System > "Misc Setting" section.

Regrettably, there's still no option to select the outdoor video mode, and still no way to turns off the whole LED ring. Maybe next time!

The official changelog is as follow:
I. Added front power indicator LED control
II. Resolved email alert malfunction when using 4 email recipients
III.Resolved bug when using 21.cn as sender email address
IV. Resolved unsigned plug-in issue
V. Improved alarm schedule

Onvif Firmware for Cybernova WIP604MW

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 13:18:00 +0000

This official 05.39 update from CyberNova is a first step to bring the ONVIF compliance to the WIP604MW, well...sort of...

Before you jump on it, let me moderate your enthusiasm by saying that I could not get the camera to work with Synology Surveillance Station nor Hit-Mob's IP Camera Viewer.

I have one of the oldest hardware version of this camera, so maybe this is why my tests failed...

Strangely though, the Onvif device manager does find the camera all right and gets the picture back from it.

Important Notice:

Before performing any firmware update, read this post to learn about potential problems that can result from this operation as well as how to backup the board.dat file.

Download locations:
Cybernova: Firmware0539 , mirror

Dericam: Firmware03 (also v.05.39 but Dericam-branded)
Official changelog from Dericam:

1.Brand new outlook of Dericam webpage.
2.Fix the OSD bug,you can control the time display now.
3.Add the Onvif function,you can connect the H502W to NVR for record.(Such as Synology NVR).

Note: according to various tests, the Dericam release contains a bug whereas a logout will not effectively close the connection, still allowing direct access to camera via manually built urls like /sysinfo.xml
(more info: see French hardware.fr forum)

Another Probox2 firmware update released this week

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 09:32:00 +0000

A second, newer release of Android 4.1 is now available for Probox2.

If you upgraded your Probox2 to Android 4.1 last week, you may not have realized that another release has been published since.

The first release of Android 4.1 for Probox2 was ULTIMATE.411.012.11.130129.

Now there's a ULTIMATE.411.012.11.130227 version available from the same link at probox2.com and also from w2comp download section.

The visible changes are the additions of "Google Play Music" and "Google Chrome", and some core apps are updated to their latest version.

The firmware update should be done exclusively with RKBatchTool.exe. Do not use the device auto-update by copying the firmware file on the SD card as it results in a very unstable system.

Again, thanks to W2COMP.com for the information.

Synology DSM 4.2 is out

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Mon, 04 Mar 2013 11:05:00 +0000

After a beta phase slightly longer than usual (2 months), DSM 4.2 is now officially released.

Smartify your TV

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 16:54:00 +0000

Android sticks are a great way to convert a normal TV into a "Smart" one, with some of them available from ~40€. However it is worth reading the forums to avoid those many with antenna, power and overheating issues...

I was looking at the Rikomagic MK802 III as a potential candidate for a while, and was waiting for a version with a soft power off function (most entry-level Android stick must be unplugged physically). In the meantime, I read horror stories about antenna that needed to be relocated outside the box to work and other such experiences that put me off this model.

Within the huge choice of devices, one seemed to stand out:
The Probox2 (aka U2host) is a Rockchip RK3066-based device with 1GB RAM and 4GB Flash (of which 2GB for internal storage) and comes with a Air Mouse.

Its most appealing features of this box are:
- Decent overal specs with modest but sufficient storage (a microSD card reader is included)
- Device shutdown can be done from the remote, no need to unplug.
- No overheating, gets warm, not hot! (proper graphite heat sink)

- Good Wi-Fi range

- Gets enough power from standard TV USB port (a USB Power adaptor is also provided but I don't use it).

- RF Air Mouse, just fine to use in the darkness of a bedroom.

- Can be controlled from another Android with the Probox2 Ultimate Remote app available.
- 2 full size OTG USB ports, 1 micro-USB for power and memory access, 1 microSD slot, HDMI.
- No crapware, just the essential, and seems to have unrestricted access to Play store.

- Bluetooth

I won't repeat the already complete review by liliputing.com, but rather go through the troubles I had and how I eventually solved them.

My unit arrived with a slight problem: after the normal ProBox2 splash screen, and next only show a small portion of the screen height was used showing just the title "Air Mouse Manager".

This turned out later to be a badly flashed unit that needed to be re-installed properly with the Rockship Batch Tool. And that's were the fun begins...especially if you have a Windows 8 PC!

Probox2.com provides instructions for a 4.1.1 upgrade.
Their upgrade tool package contains all the drivers needed to install the "RK30" device.

Windows 8 won't accept the drivers unless you "Disable the Driver Signature Enforcement" by rebooting into the Advanced Startup Menu (click on the power icon, hold Shift + click on Restart) and going to Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Startup Settings, then click "Restart", and hit F7 or type "7" in the next screen.

From that point, the Windows Device Manager will let you include the unsigned drivers manually (Browse my computer for driver>Show all devices>let me pick from a list of device drivers... as shown in the upgrade instructions). The only detail not explained in the document is which device to choose on the pop-up list, but just remember that ProBox2 is based on RK3066 chip.

The device icon next will not be very engaging with its exclamation mark, but from that point, you've done all right.

The more tricky part for me was to get the Probox2 recognized by the Rockship Batch Tool. The theory is simple: maintain the little button marked with "U" pressed while plugging the microUSB cable, with the other end in the computer USB port.

The USB port on which I initially performed the driver installation never wanted to work with the Probox2.

I had to use another USB port (using a secondary USB controller) before the Rockship Batch Tool eventually recognized the device by showing a green square under Connected Devices.

So it may take some perseverance until you see it working. Only then, you will be able to load the firmware and hit the Upgrade button.

The above upgrade is based on the official Probox2 4.1.1 firmware. There's is also a custom one,rooted, provided by w2comp.com and using a different flashing method. Beside the supposed improvements to streaming, codec and overall performance, I found it less stable (a few "Wait/Close"), but I could make the Bluetooth work (official build wouldn't pair anything for me).

The custom launcher is well designed for a SmartTV context and I'll give it a chance for a while before trying something else. The set of pre-installed application is minimal, and that's fine by me, no crapware! The eHomeMedia app seems a good DLNA client/server solution but the Synology DSVideo app provides a better experience if your movie collection is on a DiskStation NAS. I confess I also didn't give it's chance to the included player and immediately installed MX Player. The decent Explorer app would be enough to browse the local and remote files, but again, I'm used to ES File Explorer...I'm filling in my own crapware it seems... :-)

The Air Mouse,

This little 2.4 GHz RF remote lets you point and click and allows to access all the necessary functions with just 9 buttons. It includes a microphone if the Android speech recognition works for you.

For my use (accessing the movies on my Synology NAS from the bedroom TV), this is ideal to use in the darkness. I get a functional range of about 4 meters which is just enough.

The Probox2 Ultimate Remote app is a free alternative which allows you to control the Probox2 from another Android phone or tablet.

In general I cannot fault this little gem, the Wi-Fi range is absolutely honorable compared to my phone and tablet. The fact that a USB port is enough to power the device is a great plus. At no time the box was more than just warm, no overheating whatsoever. USB Accesories are easy to plug thanks to the 2 full sized USB ports (tried wireless mouse and keyboard so far). No fuss, it works as designed, end of story!

The Probox2 is sold by w2comp.com for ~65€ and so far seems to be a very good choice to smartify any TV equipped with HDMI .

I could also appreciate the fast response from w2comp on some technical after-sale queries, another good point!

Recovering a Dericam/CyberNova HD IP Camera

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 16:06:00 +0000

This article applies to Dericam H502W, Cybernova WIP604MW and compatible models.
Although they're hard to brick, some operations may sometimes produce similar symptoms.
While your camera still works, do this...
A wise precaution to be ready in case of trouble is to perform the following backup of the camera:
- Save your settings
In Control Panel > Device Settings, click the Download button in front of Backup
- Save your firmware via FTP
With a FTP client like Filezilla, download the www and app folders from your camera.
That set of files will be your best recovery option if something ever goes wrong.
- Last but not least: make a backup of your board.dat (aka "license file") by using the url

http://<cameraIP>/board.dat

Read this post to learn more about this important file.

Sometimes, the camera just looks bricked, check for port 81!
When a firmware upgrade is performed, it sometimes reset the camera to its default with may become inaccessible through its usual URL.
Remember that factory default for HTTP port on that device is not 80 but 81.
The "Master" IP Camera utility remains the easiest way to find the camera, but checking the router's table for recent additions or using a network scanner like Overlook's Fing are valid methods. Consider also that the camera may become invisible to you if its default subnet was different than yours.

The default password and url are printed on the sticker on the base of the camera. The admin password is generally just "admin".

If the camera can't be reached from a browser...

If there's no HTTP service running, generally the FTP service is still up. Then a backup made previously or obtained from someone else (always prefer the first method!) can be uploaded to the camera.
The default FTP account can be MayGion with password maygion.com or admin/admin, depending the versions.

Once the www and app folders have been fully restored, unplug the power from the device and re-plug it.

Upon rebooting, the IP Camera Tool should see your camera. If it was restored from a personal backup, your settings and your admin password should be back. If it came from another source, it may contain some customization (port, password, ...). You can restore the factory setting by keeping the Reset button pressed for more than 5 seconds. While there was a hole for a reset button at the bottom of my camera, it was in fact located at the back, below the SD card slot.

As a precaution, once you recovered a functional camera via FTP, it would be wise to apply an normal update (bin files) from the camera Control Panel > Update Software (app.bin) and Update WebPage (www.bin), and then reset the settings using the button in Device Settings to ensure a clean start.

Where to get the recovery files

As suggested earlier, a personal backup is your safest option. If there's none, someone can provide you with his files. That's what I do below (-:

I made a clean Recovery Pack (mirror) containing:

File to upload via FTP (all default settings)
Firmware files for normal update from the UI.
The IP Camera finder (IPCamTool.exe)
Instructions document (howTo.txt)
All based on the official update 05.20 published by CyberNova.

MD5 Checksum: E38BC6229A2FAD4E04FBA3347AF71EF1

What if nothing above worked ?
In the cases above, the camera was never really bricked, and no matter how hard I tried, I could not yet make mine unrecoverable. If nothing above worked, you may then have a truly bricked device and should contact the manufacturer directly. Your luck is that both Cybernova and Dericam do reply to emails! Tried and tested both.

There's also now an updated version for Maygion repair tool on Dericam web site.

Tenvis JPT3815W: 2013 edition

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 16:30:00 +0000

According to Tenvis, the JPT3815W was their best seller in 2012 despite of the emergence of IR-cut and HD models.
So they decided to give the 2013 edition a little refresh.

This device keeps the shape that became so popular since my first IP Cameras purchased back in 2009, with the lens ball recalling the Princess Leia's hair cut.
My 2 old units are still in service, despite a hard life in my hands as Guinea pigs, with a permanent TTL connection soldered to them...

Some quick highlights of the Tenvis JPT3815 "2013 edition":

MJPEG 640x480, w/o IR Cut
Not to be mistaken with JPT3815W+ (5db antenna and IR-Cut)
Wifi 802.11b/g and Ethernet 10/100
Embedded microphone and speaker for 2-way audio
Audio out connector
No alarm I/O connector

My Tenvis unit came with the firmware 1.7.10. That version was unstable and I upgraded to the newly released 1.7.15 during my tests, which gave some relief.
Tenvis warned that the 2013 edition's firmware, which now comes as a unique 3.6MB .bin file, is not backward compatible.

The IP Camera Wizard software is aimed at making the network setup as easy as possible. The program will detect the camera for you and help configuring it in a few steps.

In addition, the Quick Start Guide gives a clear overview of the installation steps: Wired network setup, first access to the camera from a browser, IE plugin installation (IPCPlayerIEplug.ocx installer comes embedded in the camera), wireless LAN setup,...

The wizard will even assist in setting up the Internet access with your predefined built-in DDNS id (xxxx.tenvis.info). On the first day of test, there was no way to register to Tenvis DDNS, and I see similar complaints on their forum. The next day, it suddenly worked. Hopefully it will eventually become more stable as their server has recently been upgraded. Something to keep an eye on...

The following third party DDNS are also possible: dyndns.org, freedns.afraid.org, www.zoneedit.com, www.no-ip.com, and ddns.oray.com.

All these efforts in assisting the beginner with setting up the IP Camera are good points to be credited to Tenvis.

If you're more experimented, checking the predefined IP address and port labelled on the camera base should get you started quickly as well .

The first screen loaded upon connecting is a welcome page with various access options, the first one being the detected browser. The IE ActiveX plugin can be installed from there. The interface is localized in several languages...

I've tried the French interface and while the automated translation is usable -I've seen much worse recently- it could use some human touch...

The menu layout remains clear, with another particularity of Tenvis: they show their Customer Service contact details on the system information page. Rare enough to be noted!

During my tests, with the interface set to English, I sometimes got Chinese text appearing. Most of the time it self-refreshes to the English version. Sometimes also the page would need a refresh to show the picture.

However, these problems were seen under Windows 8, IE 10, Chrome, Firefox, and I didn't appear for the shortest time I used an XP workstation.

Leaving the iPad-style consideration aside, the general look and feel of the refreshed JPT3815W interface is clean and intuitive. The Mozilla interface has no option for 2-way sound, no movie recording, and no multi-view, and perhaps adding a VLC view to the Welcome Screen (the iPad button on the left brings you back to it) would be a nice addition in the future.

The picture quality is what you can expect from any 300k px IP camera. Strangely I found no option to set the video mode (50Hz, 60Hz, outdoor) in the interface, and the command /get_camera_params.cgi suggests that it's locked in mode 0 i.e. 50Hz

In addition to the various viewing ways already provided by the Welcome Page, the video stream of the JPT3815W-2013 can still be used as before with the SmartPhone app Hit-Mob's IP Camera Viewer. Strangely, in Synology Surveillance Station, while I could preview the camera as a Foscam FI8908W, it was impossible to enable it afterwards. I had to use the good old generic url .../videostream.cgi.

While I was playing with the CGI command set, I noticed that some of them would not work. This includes the get_misc.cgi and set_misc.cgi. This later is generally very convenient to activate options that are not (yet) in available the user interface.

As an example set_misc.cgi?led_mode=2 would normally turns off the front LED, but not anymore!
Furthermore, the missing video mode option in the GUI could normally be changed by issuing /camera_control.cgi?mode=2, but while I receive the "ok" from the camera, nothing changes.

This partial support of the SDK is definitely something I'll run through the Tenvis support.

Conclusion:
These affordable little workhorses are a good option for building a start-up surveillance kit on a restricted budget (priced around 50€, shipping included)
To be distinguished from the crowd, the JPT3815W from Tenvis has provided a well thought Setup Wizard, a modern user interface and its own free DDNS service.
The reworked interface is missing some basic features (e.g. LED control, video mode), and an updated SDK documentation is badly needed.

Pros

- Clear printed Startup Guide in proper English.

- Well thought Setup Wizard program, making the network installation a breeze

- Interface localized in 9 languages (needs ironing but usable)

- Embedded ActiveX plugin setup file

- Tenvis DDNS service

Cons

- Partial support of the current SDK
- no option to disable the front LED
- page comes back sometimes partially or fully in Chinese (seen on Windows 8)

To know more:
Product Page
Tenvis Forum

Firmware 00.00.05.28

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 11:38:00 +0000

This update is not from CyberNova, neither from Dericam (who didn't publish any firmware for the H502W yet), but has been successfully tested on my WIP604MW.
It brings a few interesting changes actually...

The 05.28 release is the first update for 2013. There's still no option for preset positions but some nice improvements still:

- An OSD settings section has also been added with option to "Show Time". I'm not convinced the option itself has any effect, but an OSD always shows in the MJPEG resolutions (with time regardless of the option), an no OSD ever in h.264 resolutions.

- The camera can now work with P2P for those allergic to IP settings. The latest Master IP Camera client (also here) takes advantage of it.

- If you followed the previous episode about the light sensor problem, the switchSeconds parameter is now supported. It adds a delay for the activation/deactivation of the IR LED. Along with the trick documented earlier, it might conclude the incident for good.

The file cs.def.ini in side the app folder contains the following section:
[board/irled]
automode=1
open=0
switchSeconds=60

That section can be copied inside cs.ini which normally only contains the 2 first lines of that same [board/irled] section. Hopefully, the switchSeconds will effectively forbid the camera from switching its LED before the defined delay.

Important Notice:

Before performing any firmware update, read this post to learn about potential problems that can result from this operation as well as how to backup the board.dat file.

Since the firmware is not available from the usual providers, I've made a share on my Google Drive for it:

Download location: Firmware0528

Usual precautions applies: don't flash through wireless, know what you're doing, don't blame me if..., blah, blah...
Update: see this article if you think that you bricked your camera.

As advertised on MayGion.com, a free IP Master client is available on Apple store (Android equivalent is available from CyberNova but still give some FC's).

But the best is yet to come: ONVIF compliance is planned for a future release!

Big thanks to Microsat for providing me with the files and all the information!

Improved support for IPRobot3 in the latest Surveillance Station

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 22:48:00 +0000

The latest release 6.0-2383 of Synology Surveillance Station brought some further support for the ONVIF-based IP Cameras.

As a result, now both the PTZ and Audio work for the Tenvis IPRobot3.

Quick fix for light sensor problem

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Thu, 10 Jan 2013 10:04:00 +0000

A common problem seen in Dericam H502W and Cybernova WIP604MW is the LED turning on and off continuously at times. In my initial review, I suggested that isolating the light sensor with a tube of black tape would help. There's now also an updated version of the LED ring that does just that.

The cause of the IP Camera ticking like a metronome is mainly due to the light sensor not being isolated from the light emitted by its nearby IR LED's. The reviewed led ring version (left on the picture) comes with a light sensor wrapped in a black plastic shield and also equipped with a filter.

Fitting:

All the actions below are done with the camera un-plugged from power of course. The whole operation won't exceed 15 minutes.

The head of the camera can be simply opened by removing the 4 screws located on the bottom.

It might be tempting to just unsnap the black plastic frame from the white cover with risk of cracking it, so prefer the softer way below:

Next, there are 4 more screws to remove in order to detach the lens board and give way to the LED ring. It's important to keep a note of the lens board position and also of the connectors assignments to avoid re-assembling it all upside down later on. Use the picture below as a guide.

Once the glue points are removed, the LED ring will come free.

Now just fit in the new LED ring. Do not neglect from gluing it otherwise any soft pressure on the LED's will push the whole ring back inside the casing. Pay attention to the lens board position and connectors assignments.

With the new LED ring in place, the clicking episodes should be -if not eliminated- greatly reduced.
You may still experiment some at times but of much shorter duration.

Obtaining an updated LED ring:

The LED ring can be purchased for ~6€ directly on eBay @ Andy.lig

I have contacted both Dericam and Cybernova and their current production already comes with the fix.

My special thanks to Lennard @ ipcam-shop.nl who made me aware of that fix!

Update: see this new post for further resolution information.

Synology DSM 4.2 Beta

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Tue, 08 Jan 2013 12:13:00 +0000

I've set high expectations on DSM 4.2 to boost my now old DS109 with more features and improved performance. The beta is out!

Also, as announced in their blog a few months ago, the DSM 4.2 brings an Android version of the DS Video application that was until now only available to Apple users. Among the improvements are the introduction of SMB2 and Large MTU support.
This will also end 4 years of continuous improvements for my DS109 as DSM 4.2 is the last version delivered to the phasing out x09 series.

DSM 4.2 Beta release note

DSM 4.2 Beta Live Demo

DSM 4.2 Beta download

Tenvis IP Robot3 - v264 Format and Demo Videos

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Mon, 17 Dec 2012 12:24:00 +0000

It is difficult to find videos recorded with the IPRobot3 because of the v264 format (not h264) used by the camera. So I'm sharing some native files for an accurate demo of the video quality.

v264 video format
The adoption of v264 format for saving videos is a strange product management decision and makes difficult to publish demo videos taken with the IPRobot3 the traditional way (YouTube, DailyMotion, ...).

v264 is different from the h264 format and no tool known to man (VLC, MPC, Quicktime, ...) can play it except the V264Player.exe provided by Tenvis.
Since that viewer is a Windows program, v264 files cannot be viewed on any other platform.

The V264 File to AVI File Tool on Tenvis website is supposed to allow the conversion of such videos, but output is limited to 352x288, so it's not an option at the moment.

Capture tools like Fraps or Ultra VNC Screen Recorder could be used but the result won't be exactly the same as the original.

IP Robot 3 is build around a GM8126 SoC which natively supports MPEG4 encoding so I hope that Tenvis will be able to implement such video format.

The demo file:
IPR3_DemoVideo.zip (6.81MB) contains 6 files:

Stream#1_1280x720x24fps_patrol.v264
High resolution video with PTZ action
See the Main Stream section of the picture below for details

Stream#2_640x480x15fps_patrol.v264
Medium resolution video with PTZ action
See the Secondary Stream section of the picture below for details

Stream#3_320x240x8fps_patrol.v264
Low resolution video with PTZ action
See the Third Stream section of the picture below for details

IR_vs_Day_Mode.v264
High resolution video with transition from Night Mode (IR ON) to Day mode (IR OFF)

V264Player.exe
This Windows program is needed to view the videos.

The last file, Settings.jpg, is the picture below. Please note: these are not the default values, e.g. frame rate for Main Stream has been changed from 30 to 24fps.

CyberNova WIP604MW Firmware 00.00.05.20

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Fri, 07 Dec 2012 09:24:00 +0000

And yet another firmware from CyberNova. The version 05.20 brings a user interface localized in French.
This latest update include a reviewed french file for the user interface.

Alternatively it is very simple to add / update a language to your camera:

Take the updated file, like this lang_french.js and upload it to www folder via FTP

Verify the result by accessing the login page of the camera (no reboot necessary)
If the French language does not appear in the language list of the login page,
ensure that lang.js (also in www) contains the following line at the end, and that it's not commented:

includejs("lang_french.js")

Picture comparison between 4 popular IP cameras

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 10:31:00 +0000

I lined up some of my IP cameras and took snapshots from the same position and distance...

All pictures are taken with the original lens, neutral Brightness and Contrast settings,

50Hz , no zoom applied. Click on the pictures to see them in full size.

The older one, the Foscam FI8918W, good picture but the classic colour aberration due to IR filter:

The Dericam M801W, one of the first camera to include IR-cut.

The Tenvis IPRobot3, HD and IR-cut:

The CyberNova WIP-604MW, HD and IR-cut as well, more colour, but more compression too...

Tenvis IPRobot3 review

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Mon, 03 Dec 2012 11:04:00 +0000

All the entry range IP Cameras tend to look similar. The Tenvis IPRobot3 is a welcome exception...

Tenvis have their range of Foscam-like cameras but with the IPRobot2 and now the IPRobot3, they introduced something new. It's not only the external look, the software is completely different from what I've seen so far from Foscam, Wansview, Dericam and the likes. The camera is based on GM8126 (ARM9 board) which seems increasingly used by the newer HD cameras (Foscam, Neo-Coolcam...)

Before buying, I checked their web site and was surprised to find a forum that appears to be actually operational and active. They also seem to release firmware updates on a regular basis.

Some highlights:

My unit came with the firmware version 1.1.3.2 and upgraded to 1.1.6.2. Although I'm quite used to perform firmware updates, I had a hard time with the provided Batch Upload utility. Upgrading from the camera interface was finally easier. I've seen people reporting the exact opposite...

The presence of a RS485 connector for alarm I/O control at the back also indicates the absence of IR LED manual controls.
It's a common fact for IP Cameras, the internal wiring and the button (lamp icon) are dedicated to one (alarm I/O) or the other (LED control).
For instance, the low-res IPRobot2 offers the opposite: no RS485 but IR on/off control. So unless you rewire it yourself, this camera is not the best candidate for sitting behind a window.

The 4.2 mm lens gives a slightly wider fish-eyed view than average.

The microphone is very sensitive and the device can be set to trigger an alarm on sound detection. A great point for parents wishing to use it as a baby cam!
The image can be divided in several detection zones, and masks can also be defined to hide things you don't want to share with other viewers (PTZ should be disabled for such viewers since the mask moves with the camera)

The embedded speaker is very loud and clear and, at first, it all looks great for 2-way communication, but unfortunately using both speaker and mic. together produces a bad Larsen effect straight away. Plugging an external speaker and placing it away from the unit does help. It is a pity though that Tenvis did not include a volume control in the interface.

There's a Micro-SD card slot but little freedom on what to do with it.
The memory card is only used as a buffer when the network is not available, and whatever is stored on it gets moved to the network storage when a connection is resumed. Upload to LAN can be done using FTP, NFS and Samba/CIFS (although I couldn't make this one work).
The Playback section of the interface gives access to Local (PC drive, not the SD card) and Remote files (the Mini-SD).
There is not way to access the camera via FTP but it's of little interest given the way it uses the memory card.
The camera runs a telnet service but it is restricted to Tenvis tech. only (secret login).

Length and size limit can be controlled quite well for the video files generated.
The .V264 format (which is not the standard .h264) of these files requires the PC Windows program V264Player.exe provided to be played...
The network connection in 802.11n was stable so far despite the small detachable 2dB antenna.

Compatibility:
The IPRobot3 is partially compliant with the ONVIF protocol.
I say partially because I could not use all the features, like PTZ controls and this is probably why Tenvis does not advertise this point.
It allows however 3rd party camera clients like the Synology Surveillance Station or the Onvif device manager to access the video stream.
Other standards used are Pelco-D protocol for PTZ control, and P2P which allows a plug-and-play access (automatic detection) from any P2P client.

Update 12/12/12: It appears that using the Generic_ONVIF From Synology Surveillance Station often leads to crashing the camera, it is advisable to choose [User Define] as Brand and build the url based on videostream.cgi documented lower. Leave Username and Password fields empty since they will be part of the URL for "Source Path".

Smartphone applications like IP Camera Viewer support IPRobot3 directly with PTZ, "Listen", and Presets.

While this camera uses a Quicktime plugin for Non-IE browsers, it remains possible to intercept the video and audio stream (in VLC for instance) in various ways:

Intercepting the A/V stream:

rtsp://user:password@ipcamURL:port/0/

followed by...

video0 is for the 1280x720 stream,

video1 for 640x480 and video2 for 320x240 (unless specified otherwise under the Encoder Parameters).

av0, av1, av2: same but for audio+video

audio for audio only

Example: rtsp://admin:admin@192.168.1.1:80/0/av1 will request the audio and video from the secondary stream.

(source: http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/1939748)

The more traditional videostream.cgi and asf also work.

http://ipcamURL/videostream.cgi?user=[USER]&pwd=[PASSWORD]&resolution=x&rate=0...where x can 32,24 &16

(source: http://www.ispyconnect.com/man.aspx?n=TENVIS)

For snapshots: http://ipcamURL/snapshot?strm=0 (or =1, =2), just press the snapshot button using a non-IE browser to see this.
~~None of the information above was available from Tenvis unfortunately~~.
Update: on December 7, Tenvis published the streaming instructions on their blog, well done!

Little problem... I spent some time fiddling with the upload settings (located in "Record on SD > Network Storage") and could make FTP work. CIFS never worked (Didn't test NFS as I don't enable it on my NAS).
But the real problem came after: playing too much with this section of the interface crashed the IP Camera.
I had to power it off, and re-enter all the configuration (except the user part). In such a situation, the absence of configuration backup/restore is regrettable!
I also sometimes see that the picture is in black and white during the day, which is due to the night view mode triggering way too easily!

Conclusion:
Although there's room for improvement, the Tenvis IPRobot3 is a surprising device that complies with standards normally found in more expansive IP cameras. The interface can be somewhat more confusing than average, and also can be slow and unstable at times. I'd wish to see more advanced information available on their web site, like the streaming examples above.
The 720p image, while not the most colourful, is sharp and a bit wider than usual. I made some comparative snapshots.
Tenvis offers a real Technical Support and Forum and releases regular updates so let's hope that this young model will evolve to its full potential.

Pros:
- 4.2mm lens provides a wider view
- Alarm interface (RS485 connector) with possibility to set parameters from the user interface
- ONVIF compatibility for video streaming

- Multi-zone detection configurable from the Web interface
- Masks (to hide part of the image) can be defined
- Sound detection can be used to trigger the alarm

- Supported by Robert Chou's IP Cam Viewer (Android/iOS/BlackBerry)

- Tenvis has an active customer support service including their own forum.
- Programmable automatic reboot

Cons:

- No backup/restore function for configuration.
- No Log

- Two-way use of audio impossible due to Larsen effect
- No volume control for the (loud) speaker

- Would be nice to have an extended ONVIF compliance (for controls)
- Would need an option to keep some recordings (videos) on the SD Card.
- Somewhat picky on microSD cards used.
- Stability problems at time.
- Tends to stick in night mode (IR and B/W picture) even in full indoor light.
- Proprietary .v264 video format requires Windows (only) program to view.

See also:
Tenvis IPRobot updated manual.
Tenvis forum

Add your logo to the IP Camera interface

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 15:20:00 +0000

On most MayGion V3 compatible IP Cameras, the free access to the WebUI via FTP allows some easy customization, like adding your own logo...

Create a bitmap about 320px wide max and save it as logo.gif. You can download the existing one from /www/images to use as a model.

Access the camera with an FTP client and:
- put logo.gif into /www/images folder (replaing the existing one)
- get the file tools.js from \www folder

Create first a backup copy of tools.js and, with an editor (like Notepad++), look at the end of file for the InsertLogo function, which content is actually commented out (//)

function InsertLogo() {

//document.write("<div align=\"center\"/><a href=\"http://www.cctvhw.com\" target=\"_blank\"><img src=\"images/logo.gif\" ></a></div><p/>");

}

Remove the // before "document.write..." and feel free to change the url in a href=, then save the file.

Access the camera with an FTP client and put the modified tools.js file back in /www

Check your login page and also the left frame of the configuration interface:

Disclaimer...blah blah blah...know what you're doing...blah blah...not my fault...well, the usual!

CyberNova WIP604MW Firmware 00.00.05.17

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 11:05:00 +0000

CyberNova is releasing a new firmware today to resolve a problem with some 3rd party Smart Phone software. Again, they shown a great reactivity in solving problems reported by their customers...
The new firmware 00.00.05.17 released on 29th of November 2012 is just coming 10 days after the previous update. It seems to be mainly a step back to an earlier stage following reports of problems that appeared between 00.00.05.07 and some 3rd party camera software.

The problem

Accessing the IP Camera from IP Camera Viewer became impossible since firmware 05.07.

The solution is either to upgrade to 05.17 or to try the one below from the IP Camera Viewer side:

Solution to try:
- I first exported my existing configuration to camera.xml
- Wiped the camera list (More > Delete Selected Cameras).
- Uninstalled and re-installed Ip Camera Viewer from the Play store (in the case of Android)
- Create a new Maygion IP Camera V3 configuration, and check that the "Test" now succeeds.
- exported that working config in xml file for inspection.

Comparing the old backup with the new one, I found only one difference for the MayGion V3 line, at the end, where bitOptions was different (set to 1 for the failing config and to 0 for the working one)

Repairing the camera.xml backup file:
- open camera.xml with an editor
- find your "MayGion IP Camera V3" line and check the end for bitOptions="1"

- change it to bitOptions="0"
- save the file
- Import your configuration now in IP Camera Viewer

That worked for me ...

I don't know what this bitOptions is for but it seemed to be set to the wrong value somehow.

CyberNova WIP604MW Firmware 00.00.05.07

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 14:49:00 +0000

A new firmware (00.00.05.07) has been released by CyberNova on 19th of November 2012.
While they didn't publish any changelog, so we have to figure out by comparing with an older version, like 00.00.05.04.

I decided to re-baptise my new CVLM-I234-2GEN as CyberNova WIP604MW, because that's what it really is and since the firmware upgrade to their version 00.00.05.07 went so well.

The most obvious addition is in the main page (IE interface only), where the Aspect Ratio can be changed: 4:3, 5:4, 16:9

In the same area, the Video Size can be set as low as 160x120

On non-IE browsers, Mirror and Flip have been added to the interface.

The /www folder on the camera contains a videomask.htm file which is not yet integrated to the camera interface, but this seems to indicate that we may have soon the option to define zones to hide on the picture.

Preset.htm file is still there but nothing new in the interface neither. These two features would bring this camera almost on par with the Tenvis IPRobot3.

The French language has been added (it was previously commented out in lang.js because the translation was not partial). However, the current version is a 'bit funny' and I'll send a reviewed lang_french.js to MayGion or CyberNova when I have time. Until then, using English is preferable.

The IR led problem is not resolved and the relay will go clicking endlessly at times. I've tried to isolate the light sensor with black tape in case it would be reacting to the IR LED but it didn't help (Update 15/01/13: After some time with this fix in place, it seemed to reduce the frequency of it but did not eliminate the problem completely).

Contacting the customer service: I recently emailed CyberNova and they replied promptly. According to them a new firmware version should be available around the 29th of November.

My First 720p IP Camera

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Thu, 22 Nov 2012 15:50:00 +0000

I decided to replace my older IP cameras with some of the newer mega pixel models available. One is the CVLM-I234-2GEN (aka CN-WIP604MW), and the other, the Tenvis IPRobot3. Both are supposed to have identical specifications.

This IP camera is sold as WIP604MW by CyberNova and as CVLM-I234-2GEN by Chinavasion. It's a wireless (802-11n), HD, PTZ, IR-Cut, Night Vision and has a SD card slot, all for less than €65 (Shipping and customs charges typically bring the total to just under €100).

Identifying the originator of this device:
The configuration backup produces a clear-text file where "SmartEye" appear. This means basically that Wansview (aka Shenzhen Smarteye Digital Electronics Co.) makes that model for other companies like CyberNova, Chinavasion, ...

Other similar devices are Dericam H502W, EyeSight ES-IP902W, CyberNova CN-WIP604MW and this later is the closest equivalent, with even some usable content available on their web site ( wouldn't risk the firmware yet though).

On the software side, the developer appears to be Maygion. It appears clearly on the FTP server banner,

Hopefully this should be the place to obtain newer firmwares ...whenever the website is up and running...

Some highlights...
FTP not only allows to access to the SDCard content, but also to the system files. It is tempting to fiddle with the files there and see how they can be modified. However, a safer way would be to experiment first using the Maygion Virtual IP Camera.
The www folder shows all the pages involved in the Web interface, and even some that are not, like /preset.htm which is no included in the WebUI and obviously a work in progress in my version (05.04).

The camera is AJAX-based, which is standard since the "Version 3" in MayGion products.

I've made an auto-translated version of their chinese reference document which can be downloaded here: IPCamera_AJAX.pdf

As an example, using the url http://<ipcam>/sysinfo.xml will return some system information such as:

<SoftVer>00.00.05.04</SoftVer>

<WebVer>2012.08.16(h.264)</WebVer>

...

So much for the old traditional CGI command set! However, you can still use some well known url's to get the video stream:

The MJPEG stream (from the screenshot above) is typically what you would use in 3rd party applications that do not explicitly support this IP camera, like Synology Surveillance Station.
It will give you the strict minimum (the picture) without audio and PTZ support. Note to myself: contact Synology support to see if they'd add Maygion to their list?

If you're lucky, other applications will list Maygion IP Camera V3, in which case you'll have PTZ and one-way audio, like the smartphone app IP Camera Viewer. This is the mobile application promoted on the accompanying mini-CD.

A great addition that I've been missing badly on my older cameras is the multiple-zone definition for the motion alarm. This should greatly reduce the number of pictures uploaded to my NAS and emails sent.
In addition, the SD storage is ideal to keep video files and thus reduce the network load. It also has an option to recycle the storage space (delete the oldest files) when the SD card is full.

The installation:
The mini-CD also contains the IPCamTool to use for the initial network setup. This was the easiest camera installation compared to older Foscam and Dericam. One appreciated improvements is that you can activate the Wireless connection without having to physically disconnect the Ethernet cable The ocx needed for full operation under IE is also embedded in the camera

Usage (after 4 days only...):
Despite reports of Wireless connection stability issues on some forums, mine has been running fine with my Billion 7800N (WPA2-PSK/AES) so far.
Despite what Chinavasion describes (Cybernova has more accurate information), there's no built-in speaker so you need to connect an external speaker to use the "Start Talk" button.

The 3.6mm lens give a good picture, a bit narrow, but it's easy to replace the lens for a wider focal if needed.

Problem:
- The camera has an issue with deciding when to turn on the IR LED in almost-dark situations, and the relay starts clicking like a old clock. Fitting a small dark plastic tube around the sensor (see picture) could help as it's maybe reacting to it's own LED (pending test). A temporary workaround is to set the IR LED Off.

Conclusion:
Time will tell if the components are durable. Hopefully it will compare to my other Wansview (IP611W) which survived outside in my front porch for over a year now. The picture quality is good in 720p under IE, an average in all the other cases (640x480). Because it is so Internet Explorer friendly (and I'm not), the fact that the camera is HD is not an added value to me.
Small things could be added like "digital" zoom + - buttons.
At least, the audio (one way) can be used in Chrome and Firefox, thanks to the VLC inclusion.
The microphone is sensitive enough and it would be nice to have an option to trigger the alarm on sound detection like the Tenvis IPRobot3.
The fact that the camera is so open (software reachable via FTP and settings exported in clear text) is an excellent point (tweaking potential!)
There's room for improvement on the software side but it's a nice-looking and functional camera for the price.

Another important point to note: CyberNova is the only provider (amongst the clones mentioned here) to update its download section regularly for their model. I could also verify that Their Tech.Support is very reactive, so I think it is fair to consider them as the primary source for buying that type of camera.

Pros:

Initial setup is much easier than with older models I reviewed so far.
Simple and straightforward interface
Multi-zone detection configurable from the Web interface
Supported by Robert Chou's IP Cam Viewer (Android/iOS/BlackBerry)
SD storage makes sense here for High-Res. images and videos.
Great customization potential (FTP access to firmware)
Customer support really responsive and Download Section up-to-date.
IR LED controllable from the user interface (Auto/On/Off)

Cons:

High definition and most video/audio control features only available through IE
Preset positions not implemented
Email alerts have the wrong time (8 hours back)
Struggles to find out if it's night or day (LED cycling on/off at times)
SMTP only works if authentication used

Similar:

Dericam H502W
EyeSight ES-IP902W
Anxin HW-M1007RNBCT

More reading:
Picture comparison between 4 popular IP cameras
Paillassou's topic on Hardware.fr (in French, look at the PCB BOARD PICTURES!)
IP Camera Viewer Device Support List

Quick'n Dirty way to Fix a fake SD Card

noreply@blogger.com (Bubbah) — Fri, 06 Jul 2012 14:55:00 +0000

If you're shopping on eBay for cheap memory cards, you are likely to receive one of these numerous fake products. Hopefully, you can get your money through a Claim process. But still, should you throw your 32GB card into the bin ?

If a price was so attractive that you forgot to read the buyers feedback for a shop and you end up receiving a 32GB-Class10 card that turns out to be a hacked 2GB-Class2, your first action as a buyer should be:

- read the other buyers feedback on the same item to confirm that it was not an accident and that you've been effectively scammed.
- leave a feedback to warn the others, or if you left a positive feedback too quickly, find the link "Follow up on Feedback Left" on the bottom of the eBay page to review it.

- then head to the link "Resolve a Problem" which will start the procedure to get your money back through a Paypal claim.
Proceeding this way, you will minimize the damage to only a waste of time in the end.

Now you may be tempted to see if you can use the fake memory card for its actual capacity (likely 2GB at best).
----------------------------------------------------------------

Putting in the balance how valuable is your time compared to the real value of your now-free eBay item will probably convince you not to waste more than 30 minutes trying to make this card usable (not for taking photos or keeping backup of course, but there are plenty of non-critical usage possible).
So, rather than spending hours reading forum and specialized web sites, here's just a quick'n dirty procedure that you could try first:

Procedure:

Get the following 2 small freeware tools:
The popular tester H2testw
A simple paritionner that can be used on SD cards: MiniTool Partition Wizard Home Edition

1. Finding out how much capacity is actually usable with h2testw
- Start h2testw.exe, click Select Target and select your SDCard
In Data Volume, specify a reasonable limit to test: your card's real capacity is likely to be the lowest possible so try around 2300 MByte. This phase will take about 20 minutes.
- Click "Write + Verify" and let the test run. Looking at the Writing, you will already give you an idea of the real speed index (2MBytes/s=Class 2, ...)
- When the "Verifying" phase starts, expect to see errors in red as soon as the real capacity is exceeded.

2. Setting the card to its real capacity
- With Partition Wizard Home Edition, select -carefully!- the drive corresponding to your SDcard
- Delete the whole partition
- Create a new one of 2000MB (1.9 GByte)
- Format to your desired standard
- After checking once more that you didn't wipe your main Hard Disk, click on the "Apply" button to make the change effective.

3. checking the fixed card

- Run either a Surface test from Partition Wizard or use H2testw again to ensure that everything now works as it should.