HoSafe... You said what now?

In July of 2016, after months of issues with neighbors, I broke down and purchased an IP Camera from Amazon.com (HoSafe Camera Amazon Link). Now, to be totally fair, this was the cheapest IP Camera that met my criteria. Setting aside the absolutely hilarious name, the HoSafe 1MB6P met all of my requirements. My criteria were as follows:

1. It must have POE capability.
2. It must be able to live outdoors.
3. It must have night vision with built in illumination.
4. It must be at least 720p.
5. It must be ONVIF compatible.
6. It must be cheap.

POE

Power over Ethernet is very important. I'd rather run a ethernet cable from my network board the attic to a camera than run AC power. You see, a standard ethernet cable has 4 pairs of wires, only 2 of which are used for communication. The others are left unused in almost all instances. So, how do we use this to our advantage? Well, we run 48v across the other pair, of course. The POE camera steps down that 48v to use for powering the unit. So, one cable for both communication and power!

Outdoor

Well, this is kind of self explanatory. But, I wanted to mount the camera on the front of my house to catch the comings and going of my neighbors walking dogs. (Your dog. Your pooh. Take it with you.)

Night Vision

The chip inside security cameras that sense the light and, in the case of IP cameras digitize it, is sensitive to infrared light. That's right! The very light that we use to control our TV, DVD, etc. So, how do we record in dark or low light without mounting big flood lights? Well, we make sure the IP camera has IR lighting built in, of course. This light isn't good for huge distances, but I rolled the dice and ignored the advertised distance of the HoSafe.

720p

Any more, the "P" is mostly irrelevant. That is, the "P" (progressive) should really be assumed. What it means to us is there the image is divided into 720 lines. The more lines, the more detail. Also, when the number of lines goes up the number of pixels (single dot of the line) goes up too. So, this means more detail. In general, the larger the area you are covering, the more pixels necessary to be able to make things out in the video or images.

ONVIF

This is a tricky business. ONVIF is a lot of things. However, for my purposes the only thing that matters is the cameras ability to respond to ONVIF compliant requests for how to make a streaming video connection. This protocol (language) makes it easier for applications on a PC or recording devices to connect to the camera without a lot of technical knowledge required of the user. Now, I'm not allergic to technical specs and setup. However, cheap cameras (and some expensive ones) are notorious for not providing this type of information. So, ONVIF compatibility can reduce the time it takes to get things up and running.

CHEAP!

This unit was $39.99 on Amazon Prime (Free 2 Day Shipping!!!) at the time of the order. This was an excellent price for a unit that was 3 Stars+ at the time.

The Unit Arrives!

This unit came in DOA. It simply would not power up. This was very disappointing. However, upon close physical examination I found the issue to be a slice in the data/power cable attached to the camera. So, I returned it to Amazon as DOA for a refund and reordered another unit. Same model, same seller, Amazon Prime. I saw no reason, at this point to penalize anyone for the error. It could have been missed by the manufacturer. It could have been damaged by a botched installation and returned to Amazon. However, I decided to try again.

The Second Unit Arrives!

This camera was fine. It powered right up! Now, for the fun part!

The Configuration

Before we delve into the config. A little background. I don't like ladders. I don't like spending time on them. I don't like going up and down them when it can be avoided. So, when it comes to device installation that requires my using a ladder. I do all the configuration possible on the ground, usually at my desk, prior to mounting any equipment.

So, from my desk, I connected the HoSafe camera and it powered up. Cool! Now we can start the fun stuff. Being an IP camera veteran, with many installs of everything from FOSCAM to Panasonic cameras under my belt, I did what I always do. I jumped right in and started looking for the camera on the network so I could login to the web page to configure it. 

Uh... Yeah... and NO! That's a big negative, sir! 

This camera doesn't work like that and I wasted a nontrivial amount of time only to find this out. So, it really does pay to read the instructions sometimes. BLAST!

Anyway, once I reviewed the literature, such that it was, I discovered that the application that records the video also configures the camera. So, I installed the provided CMS application and configured the camera. It went smoothly enough, once I was on the right track.

The Installation

The camera came with everything necessary to mount and connect the camera (except the RJ45 connector, but I didn't expect this and neither should you) including weather proofing for the network connection. This is a big score! Not all manufacturers include this in the design, rather expecting the camera to be mounted to a weather proof electrical box, in which all connectors are contained.

The installation was simple and obvious. No instructions needed here! It went up quick with the provided materials and with no fuss.

The PC Software

The CMS software provided is ok. It's only ok. It's not awesome or astounding or even amazing for the price. It's just OK. It's rather like all cheap DVR/NVR software. It hits and misses, and is almost always lacking in an area that is important to the user. So, after playing with it for a few days, it had to go.

The Apps

The iOS and Android apps available specifically for the HoSafe are another story. They are... well, interesting. Like the CMS software, they didn't really work the way I thought they should. However, they did (and still do) work for what I wanted. I wanted to see my camera view from anywhere I have internet and these apps to exactly that. No muss, no fuss, and very little configuration, and absolutely no router port forwarding!

What?! No port forwarding? But how?!

Well, these units connect to a central server on the internet (probably in China). The apps connect to the same server. So, no need to do port forwarding (that can get incredibly tedious with multiple cameras). 

The down side? Well, you're being watched! Well, not necessarily. However, it is certainly possible. So, I don't know that I would want one of these in my house. But, if someone in China wants to watch what is happening in front of my house? Who am I to judge, or care?

The Pros

• It met all my requirements: POE, Outdoor, Night Vision, 720p, ONVIF and Cheap. 
• It goes beyond by providing a free iOS and Android apps and accompanying service to allow you to view the camera from just about anywhere.
• The night vision works really well.

The Cons

• The CMS software was a dud. Although not surprising, it is a bummer.
• There is no config path for Mac Users. Internet Explorer and/or the CMS app are required for configuration and they are Windows only.
• Config and install of the HoSafe 1MB6P is not for the casual user. Like most (if not all) IP cameras, it does require either experience or stubbornness. If you lack both, get help or get a different IP camera.

The Conclusion

The HoSafe 1MB6P works and it let's you view your camera live on an iOS or Android device from anywhere you have internet. While the CMS software is not ideal, it will record and store your camera footage. The ONVIF compatibility means you can use many third party apps and programs to both view and record if the provided apps don't cut it for you.

I have ditched the CMS software and have been testing both free and pay NVR software for recording and archiving. But, that is another story.