So you're looking for an IP camera, but you want make sure that you can view
it through your spanking new Core 2 Duo 13�MacBook.
Thankfully, your options are many.
For the most part you
won't need to worry since there is nearly always a way to get a live view from
any network camera on your Mac. However, there are usually compromises to be
made.
Often, a manufacturer will provide few options for viewing the video feed
from the camera. For instance, the Panasonic BL-C range provide two viewers - a
built-in ActiveX control and a static image refreshed every x seconds through
the standard http meta refresh mechanism. Your only option for a streaming video feed is to use the ActiveX control in Internet
Explorer and since Microsoft no longer develop IE for the Mac, this option is
out. You cannot (without a LOT of faffing around) install an ActiveX control in
Safari or Firefox.
This, though, is a small price to pay when the quality of the view is more
important than how many frames per second you can squeeze out of the camera. The
BL-C range will always deliver an image to you and your lovely new Mac.
And what of cameras from other manufacturers? With Axis and Sony your options
are slightly better as both manufacturers offer Java-based viewers alongside
their ActiveX and other viewers. Unfortunately the non-default viewers are often
feature-poor and less user-friendly than the default.
Viewer technology is not the only problem. Initial installation, video
recording and audio support are all given scant consideration. This will change,
we are sure.
There are many pros and cons to be considered here and we will consider them
in later posts. As Mac users we sympathise and we implore manufacturers to
consider beefing up their support for Macs. We know what they need to do. They
only need to ask.
Related Product:
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W1801C CIF
Single Channel Video Server
- Top advanced arithmetic-H.264 (MPEG4 Part 10) video
compression.
- High stability-Double system, double safety, more stable.
- excellent image quality-D1 down to CIF resolution.
- Professional audio-MP3 audio format, mono or stereo is
selectable.
- Self-adjust the frame rate according to the network width
to make network continuous transmittion.
- Support auto-connection when the network is cut....
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W1801D
single channel video server D1
- Top advanced arithmetic-H.264 (MPEG4 Part 10) video
compression.
- High stability-Double system, double safety, more stable.
- excellent image quality-D1 down to CIF resolution.
- Professional audio-MP3 audio format, mono or stereo is selectable.
- Self-adjust the frame rate according to the network width to make network
continuous transmittion.
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W1802C both
CIF Video Server
- Top advanced arithmetic-H.264 (MPEG4 Part 10) video
compression.
- High stability-Double system,
double safety, more stable.
- excellent image quality-D1 down to
CIF resolution.
- Professional audio-MP3 audio
format, mono or stereo is selectable.
- Self-adjust the frame rate
according to the network width to make network continuous transmittion.
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W1804 Video Server
- Top advanced arithmetic-H.264 (MPEG4 Part 10) video
compression.
- High stability-Double system,
double safety, more stable.
- excellent image quality-D1 down to
CIF resolution.
- Professional audio-MP3 audio
format, mono or stereo is selectable.
- Self-adjust the frame rate
according to the network width to make network continuous transmittion.
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W1860 high-end video server
HalfD1 compatible format to the following real-time D1, CIF,
QCIF format
H.264 video coding using the latest technologies, two-way real-time feedback MP3
transmission
D1 front snap photos (JPEG format)
Adaptive technology, network bandwidth and frame rate automatically adjust video
bit stream
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high-end Video Server Module board W1860
HalfD1 compatible format to the
following real-time D1, CIF, QCIF format
H.264 video coding using the latest technologies, two-way real-time feedback MP3
transmission
D1 front snap photos (JPEG format)
Adaptive technology, network bandwidth and frame rate automatically adjust video
bit stream
Video block, mobile detection and alarm functions probe
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IP/Network camera server/Wireless Network
Camera/Knowledge Articles:
