I Spy With My Little Wi-Fi Wireless video cams can mean more security.
By Mike Hogan
Opinions expressed by BIZ Experiences contributors are their own.
The cost of video surveillance for your home, office orhome/office environs is going down, and the technology is goingwireless. A spate of new Wi-Fi cams, like the $200 (all pricesstreet) Linksys Wireless-B Internet Video Camera (WVC11B) and the$130 D-Link DCS-900 Video Monitoring Internet Camera, are sinkingprices and eliminating wiring chores.
These devices still need a wall plug, since 24/7 batteryoperation would be impractical. But they're considerably moreconvenient than the wired cams that have gained popularity withsmall and midsize businesses. Wi-Fi cams broadcast to a Netconnection like any Wi-Fi access point, their video streams viewedwith a Web browser. Mike Wolf, In-Stat/MDR principal analyst in Scottsdale,Arizona, expects more than 15 million security cams to be sold in2004.
About the size of a paperback, these cams haveless-than-pleasing video frame rates and image windows. But mostvendors provide toll-free support 24/7, and aftersometimes-confusing configuration details are worked out, operationis generally trouble-free.
"They will acquire much better images as the prices oftheir components come down and manufacturing volumes go up,"predicts Wolf, who adds that Wi-Fi cams are just the first of awhole host of other non-PC "appliances" that will bewirelessly networked in months to come.
