Linksys WVC11B Wireless-B Video Camera

Rating:
Summary: Linksys - nice products, frustrating support.
Review: I recently picked this IP camera up for cheap. I wanted to compare it to some other options for a home security thing I'm working on and then, ultimately, send it on to my folks in FL. Anyway, it says right on the box that it will only work in Internet Explorer 5.5 and above. Fine. Most products that say that ultimately *do* work in other browsers (MAC's Safari for example), but the manufacturer, for whatever reason, don't want to support other browsers. But I suspected that might not be the case with this unit since video playback (especially live streaming) is very platform-centric and would probably not work on the Mac. But, since I do have PCs here as well, and this will eventually end up in a completely PC household, I figured I'd give it a shot and see what's what.
As has been my experience with most Linksys products, setup was quick and relatively straightforward. And no, it wouldn't work on anything besides WinXP or Win2K running IE6.0. Linux with Mozilla - nope. OS-X 10.3.7 with Safari - nope. OS-X with Internet Explorer - nope. Okay, I expected as much. BUT, I figured I'd drop a line to Linksys to see if they had any future plans to support other browsers. This is where 'Amabelle Jao' joins our story. Below is the transcript from our online chat:

Jao, Amabelle: Hi, my name is Jao, Amabelle. How may I help you?
Ed: Hi. I was wondering if you had any plans for making the WVC11B work with any Mac browsers (specifically, OSX10.3x-Safari)?
Jao, Amabelle: it will only work for IE 5.5 and up
Ed: I know that, but do you know if anything for the Mac is planned or in the works?
Jao, Amabelle: we don't have any updates yet on for macintosh
Jao, Amabelle: because its not supported
Ed: I *know* it's not supported, that's why I'm asking if it will be supported at some time in the future.
Jao, Amabelle: it will only work for IE 5.5 and up
Jao, Amabelle: not on macintosh
Ed: You mentioned 'yet' for the macintosh, so does that mean that you may in the future, or that you don't know?
Jao, Amabelle: it will only work for IE 5.5 and up
Ed: Jao, I was kind of hoping for a yes or no answer...
Jao, Amabelle: i want a pony for christmas

And on it went for another hour or so without becoming any clearer than it was in the first 30 seconds...

Linksys, good products, stupid support people.

Anyway, for what it is (an entry-level IP wireless camera), it does a good job. The video is pretty bad and you'd be hard pressed to get a prosecutable image with it, but for seeing whether or not someone is in the backyard or if the kids are watching tv, then it's fine.

The included software works okay, but is rather clunky. I've also experienced inconsistent performance from the automated recorder program.

I'm going to check out the D-Link wireless IP camera as I've heard that it uses Java and WILL work on any Java-enabled browser. SO, if you just want a toy-thing to play around with and you exclusively use a Windows box with Internet Explorer, then this is your boy. Otherwise, I can't recommend.

Rating:
Summary: Not a real web cam
Review: I bought a Linksys WVC11b thinking that the $50 more I was spending than if I had bought a Dlink DCS-900W would be justified since Cisco owns Linksys. Cisco essentially built the internet, right? I thought it would be the most solid network performance. What I discovered is that the images the can only be viewed on machines running Windows, no Macs, no Unix, no Linux, just windows. The box said a PC was required, but I thought, "It's a webcam! Surly that is just for configuring it." Nope. Linksys states in on their support site, "You cannot view video on a Macintosh." I admit Macs are a small part of the market, but for $50 less you can get a camera that showes it's images on ANYTHING running java, even a phone! The camera is very well built, but a webcam should work on the web, not just in Windows.

Rating:
Summary: Product Review: Linksys Wireless - B Internet Video Camera
Review: Executive Summary  The Linksys Wireless - B Internet Video Camera (WBIVC) is a compact, network connected camera with promise.  The combination of camera, web server, and wireless integration into a single platform is highly appealing for installation flexibility and cost savings.  However, the WBIVC fails to deliver reliable remote connectivity with a platform failure (cold boot to resolve) occurring about every three days.  This could easily eliminate the product as a selection for users who wish to leverage network connected cameras as a security monitoring device during weekend getaways, jaunts to the Islands, or extended sabbatical travels.  Rated Don't Buy 

Pros 
> Integrated camera, web server, and wireless into a single platform.  This is an exciting combination because most network connected cameras require the camera and web server to be connected to an unintegrated, expensive 3rd party wireless base station for connectivity to a remote wireless access point.  The additional hardware will easily extend the entry price point from $200 to $300+ 
> The docking stand is sturdy and has exceptional wire management built-in to the base.  The actual wire management scheme reminds me of a wall mounted telephone where RJ cables slither through S turns holding the cables in place
> Input plugs to the camera are easy to reach while being connected to the camera and clearly marked for input type, for example, power and LAN
> Four green LED lights indicate Ready, Activity/Link, LAN, and Wireless status
> Software installation from CD ROM was straightforward and similar to other network connected cameras, for example, AXIS 205 
> Image refresh rate is sufficient while on the same local network mirroring live versus image with an unnoticeable delay 

Cons
> The camera's quality is poor in low light conditions producing distorted pixels and grainy output, for example, an indoor room with no lights on with sufficient sunlight produces blurred images
> The camera's manual adjustments (left to right, up and down) are flimsy and have me concerned one more adjustment may break the camera free of the base station
> The camera's manual focus adjustments had no real impact on the viewable image
> During the camera's configuration, Linksys defaults to port 8282 and does not provide a sufficient means of making a port reassignment after configuration has been complete.  This could become problematic if multiple WBIVC's were installed on a single network
> Green LED light for Activity/Link does not change color indicating the WBIVC has disconnected from the network when in fact it has.  This gives a false sense of security everything is okay when in fact the WBIVC is offline and requires a cold boot
> The image's text indicating time and a personal message is limited to a small number of characters, single lined, and unreadable.  You would be better off not using this feature altogether
> When accessing the camera from a browser, it is difficult knowing which URL to share with users of the camera.  When accessing by IP Address alone, 192.168.0.x, one is presented with a Linksys welcome screen with a number of options to select from.  This would be very confusing for a new user to network connected cameras, for example, a grandparent


Rating:
Summary: BAD buy compared to Hawking Technology NC320W
Review: I'm kicking myself for getting the Linksys WVC11B! Sure, the setup is a breeze, and the camera works flawlessly, but don't actually try to use this as a security or video camera! You can't adjust the video stream or the file format, it forces you to use Windows Media at an unusable 1.4Mb per minute stream! So unless you have about 100 hard drives don't try to record video (even of a still room), and don't expect useful features (like fast forward!) while playing it back in WinMedia.

FEATURES Hawking Technology HNC320W has that Linksys WVC11B doesn't: MPEG video compression (for small file videos easy to playback), motion sensitive (so a still room video is always a small file), powerful video editing software, Mac/Linux compatibility, all browser compatibility, up to 16 cameras viewed at once, powerful control panel with many more features.

The Hawking HNC320W was even reviewed better by Laptop Mag:

http://www.hawkingtech.com/images/laptopec.pdf

Rating:
Summary: OK Camera, but WVC54G will be better.
Review: I purchased this camera for a specific purpose. To be able to check on my pets when I travel. I have a DSL, and a Static IP, and with help from the Linksys support team, I was able to configure my Linksys Router to allow IP Forwarding to this camera. You really need to download the latest firmware from Linksys, because the release that came with my camera did not produce the best video. Now, its pretty good. I am using it with a 54G WAP, and it works very good. Setup up was not all that difficult, and Linksys support was very good. I like the feature that if the camera detects movement in the room, it will record about 30 seconds of video, and then email it to you. Gives you good peace of mind when you are away. Linksys is releasing a new model which Amazon does not have yet, it is model WVC54G that will be faster, has sound, and have a bigger picture. So I will buy one of these to replace this camera, and use this one someplace else in the house for security. If you are like me, and you have pets, and you have a pet sitter coming into your home. This is a pretty good way for you to check on them and your pet.

Rating:
Summary: A Disappointment
Review: I have nothing to add to the previous reviews save to agree that this product is worthless beyond being a toy. I regret wasting hard-earned money.

Rating:
Summary: Okay setup horribly limited and poor support. DON'T BUY!
Review: This thing sucks, plain and simple. First of all, I ignored the CD and the two pages worth of documentation and went right to the Linksys website, since I am tired of old firmware and outdated software. I downloaded the latest stuff (finding the camera is a chore, it's under the "Specialty Products" section, it's the only camera Linksys makes).

Setup took about 15 minutes at most, the reason is, there is almost nothing to set up. The camera gets detected easy, you set supposed image quality and a few other odds and ends (WEP encryption if you want) and you are done (unless you want to use the Sololink service).

I bought this camera because it had motion detection, I wanted to be able to enable that when I left my home so it would record 20 minutes of video on my hard drive whenever it detected motion. Guess what, it can't. I can't turn it on and off, I can't record to a hard drive on detect.

First I tried to find this info on Linksys' website, their Knowledge base has about 30 questions and answers on this product. They have no additional documentation, none. It's not even listed on their "Product Pages"!

I am currently sitting on Live Chat, it's been over two hours with this guy (the first one "hung up" without a single reply). This camera doesn't support Microsoft's WDM or VfS so you can't use any other software "because it comes with software." Yeah, well the software sucks. The support sucks (all I keep getting now is "One moment please..." every 20 minutes or so). Linksys does not support this thing and it probably won't do what you want anyway, find another product (the AXIS 210 seems a better choice, but costs around $400).

Rating:
Summary: Don't waste your money.
Review: I read the mixed reviews on this product and hoped for the best. I have been a long time fan if linksys because everything I have ever gotten from them worked very well for me, for what I need it for. I thought that this camera would help with security and would be fun to watch the cats and the house from work. I was really excited. Well the camera showed up, and it was very attractive, and very easy to set up. I didn't like that it only used WEP and not WPA, but I could have lived with that. The major problem that I had with it, and the major complaint is that the picture qualty is terrible... This is not a 140 dollar camera. I didn't have it out for 5 hours before I printed out my return label. Look at Axis lan cameras. A little more expensive but you can view their cams on the web and see what you are getting. Hope this helps you save some time and money.

Rating:
Summary: waste of my time
Review: 1) It doesn't capture still images. Only video. To get stills, you need to do a manual screencap, and then manipulate that image in a picture editor. This is the most basic thing you can expect of a camera, and this one doesn't do it.
2) Poor video quality.
3) Not only will it not do still image capture, it will only record in microsoft format video files. I didn't buy a $175 internet camera so that only people with a particular browser running a particular OS on a broadband connection can see it.
4) I didn't have a hard time configuring it, but I do happen to be a computer expert, so I can't really judge.