VueZone Wireless Security Cameras – No Network Cable – No Power Supply

I've seen several security camera systems for domestic use that are marketed as being wireless. Which was true in a sense, since they have a wireless network connection to connect to your home router. What was not mentioned clearly in the descriptions, however, was that they still need a power source – a wire, in other words. At the other end of the spectrum, there are cameras that can get their power via the network cabling, eliminating the local power supply but requiring data cabling at the place of installation. Avaak has announced for this summer the Vue Personal Video Network that lives up to the promise of being truely wireless.

Why It's Clever

Since I live in a popular neighborhood – popular with burglars, that is – years ago I installed a burglar alarm. This was before we had a burglary in our home, unlike most neighbors who installed it afterwards. When there's an alarm, it calls out to my cell phone and plays a voice message. But then what? Since we can't see what's happening, we don't know if we should call the police, the armed forces, or if it's just a power cut. Calling the neighbors helps, of course – if they're at home and awake.

Being able to access a webcam from a remote computer would be great in such circumstances, but we've been putting off such an installation because of the lack of cables. A first glance of the Vue Personal Video Network looks quite promising, saving time and effort during installation.

First of all, the way the cameras are mounted: They attach magnetically to a base in the shape of a half sphere, which itself can be stuck to a wall or another object in the house. Since the base is round and the attachment is magnetic, you can swivel the camera simply by gliding it over the base and point it in any direction you want. It's simple, it's aesthetic – I love it.

Need to move the camera? Just stick the base elsewhere and you're done.

You don't trust Internet security and don't want cameras pointing at you all the time? Since they're so easy to fix and detach, simply put them in a drawer and stick them back when you need them – or simply point them at the ceiling.
Vue FrameMesh technology

Then there's the wireless system. It uses "Vue FrameMesh" wireless technology (is this ZigBee technology?) that uses very little power – the camera works on a button cell, and Avaak claims a battery life of about a year! On a personalized web page, you'll be able to see the battery status of your cameras.

My VueZone

The cameras communicate with the Vue gateway, which plugs into your existing broadband router. When you want to view the cameras, all you need to do is to log in to your personal page at http://my.vuezone.com from a PC with a web browser or from a Flash-enabled mobile device. You can view up to 50 cameras on a single gateway, and record, play, and share video footage – even perform a one-click upload to YouTube or Flickr.

Summary

No wires for network; no wires for power; no drilling
Battery-operated cameras; one-year battery life claimed
Magnetic mount, easy to install, easy to move and point the camera
Range +- 300 ft
Gateway connects to existing broadband router
Up to 50 cameras per gateway
View images via http://my.vuezone.com
Record, playback & share video footage.

More technical data can be found at the VueZone website.

Tips

The base package, available on pre-order at the time of writing, consists of a gateway, two cameras, and four magnetic mounts. So you can install more mounts than cameras and move a camera to another spot in seconds whenever you need it.

Where to buy

You can buy the Vue Personal Video Network and accessories from the Amazon.com website and other places.

Approx. price: $300 for the base package (February 2010)

Categories: Security,Multimedia,Do-it-yourself

© Copyright Clever & Easy

Add New

Comments (2)

|2009-08-20 04:00:19 Philip

does this unit record the images while away or do you have to activate it when it triggers an alarm signal over your cell. for instance i do not use a cell if something occures while away dose this unit record so i can view it when i return home or is it only used for what is happening at the time. i find the unit waaaaayyy coool. i understand the use while at home for viewing but what of the earler guestion
Thank you Phillip Dalton
- 0
- 0
Reply Quote

|2009-08-20 04:01:08 Clever & Easy

Hello Phillip, this is what the Vuezone.com website says about it: "It's easy to schedule automatic recording of a video clip or snapshot with the calendar function. Vue gives you 2gb of storage space for your recorded content with service plans available for expanding."
- 0
- 1
Reply Quote