Foscam FI9816P
I recently purchased a couple of Foscam FI9816P H.264 720P IP cameras to add to my SecuritySpy system. I instantly found that I could not add this camera to my system as I was running SecuritySpy version 3.1.3 and I could not find the camera in the device list. I have since upgraded SecuritySpy to v3.4.7. I read a discussion from one of your other customers that they were successful installing this camera using Foscam H.264 as the device type. I however have been unsuccessful getting this camera to work with the device type being Foscam H.264.
I have been able to bring the (2) cameras into SecuritySpy using ONVIF as the device type. The problems that I have now is the PTZ functionality does not work with ONVIF as the device type. I've only had these cameras connected for a half an hour, but it also seems like I lose connectivity every once in a while. I do not believe this is a network issue at this time. When I see SecuritySpy lose connection to the camera, I can still PING the camera and connect via a web browser.
Can there be a patch made for this camera type so I can depend on it more?
I have been able to bring the (2) cameras into SecuritySpy using ONVIF as the device type. The problems that I have now is the PTZ functionality does not work with ONVIF as the device type. I've only had these cameras connected for a half an hour, but it also seems like I lose connectivity every once in a while. I do not believe this is a network issue at this time. When I see SecuritySpy lose connection to the camera, I can still PING the camera and connect via a web browser.
Can there be a patch made for this camera type so I can depend on it more?
Comments
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The first thing to try is checking if there is a firmware update for your camera, and installing it if available. We have heard of lots of problems with Foscam cameras with old firmware, but the latest firmware seems to work well.
Hopefully this will allow you to use the Foscam H.264 profile in SecuritySpy, which will enable PTZ support. However if it doesn't, and you still need to use the ONVIF profile, please try the 3.4.8 beta version of SecuritySpy, as it has some improvements related to ONVIF and PTZ. -
I downloaded and installed the 3.4.8b6 version. I changed the Device Type to Foscam H.264 on my two new Foscam FI9816P cameras using port 88 for HTTP. The good news is that I can now use the PTZ functionality. The bad news is I still get random disconnects.
As I stated in my previous post, I believe my network is solid. I have (3) other Foscam cameras (SD, been working for 3 years) that do not drop out AT ALL. I'd like to see this remedied with my new cameras as the video quality is great for a budget camera.
I also am experiencing trouble with playback in Browser with the FI9816P. I've been recording for a full week now. There are two days that I cannot easily playback the recorded video. I record via the movie per day. The timeline that I can playback video is literally compressed to 1/16 of an inch. If I try to move it forward, all I get is a white screen. Crazy, I know.
I very much like the SecuritySpy software. Very user friendly. If I cannot get a fix for my two new cameras, I'm pretty much forced to record locally to SD cards and abandon SecuritySpy altogether. I need to rely on my recordings. Is there anymore I can do? -
This is unfortunately why we are very careful with our advertisement of Foscam support, and why this camera is not on our SecuritySpy supported camera list. Some users are using Foscam cameras with the latest firmware with no problems, but your experience indicates that Foscam have a few more bugs to fix.
The fact that your other two cameras work perfectly, and the FI9816P keeps dropping, strongly indicates a problem with the FI9816P. I mentioned above about firmware updates but you haven't confirmed that you checked this - please can you make sure that your camera is running the latest firmware (google "FI9816P firmware" to find it).
As for your problem with playback of footage in the Browser, this is not something we've heard before. Even if the camera is unreliable you shouldn't get a white screen. What happens when you use SecuritySpy's web interface to view the captured footage, rather than the Browser feature? -
Thank you for your prompt response. Sorry that I haven't been as prompt. Busy, busy. I guess I shouldn't have assumed that all Foscam cameras would work with SecuritySpy. That is my fault.
I believe I have the most up to date firmware, but I will check to be sure. I will also try to use the web interface as well. I wish I could be more descriptive with what I am seeing with the Browser. What I wrote in my previous post is the best I could do, but it is precisely what I am experiencing.
