Not such a bargain. Not horrible, not good either.
Written: Feb 28 '03 (Updated May 11 '03)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Great concept, neat gadget. Portability option. FAST shipping. 24-7 customer service.
Cons: Blurry optics. Lots of wires for a wireless system. Needs gobs of light.
The Bottom Line: You get what you pay for. Quality is offset by the wireless feature. You are better off with a wired USB camera and a wireless USB hub.
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| bouncer67's Full Review: X10 XCam Anywhere |
I, like many others, was swayed by X10's bold advertising campaign. I am a gadget fanatic (see my other reviews). What could be better than a wireless camera that I could use for my computer AND my TV.
The advertised price seemed too good to be true. It was about the same price as other, wired cams. The ordering process was seamless and shipping was very fast. I opted for the Pan and Tilt Pro system. I ordered the extra X-ray vision USB converter so I could use it with my computer. The grand total: $150.
When I started assembling the system, I couldn't help but wonder why I thought that wireless meant no-spaghetti-of-power-cords. I was wrong. I needed to plug in an addressable power supply for the camera, pan and tilt base, and wireless receiver. In addition to that I had to plug in the two USB connectors to my computer, then the video RCA type wire from the receiver to the USB converter. Wireless it was not.
O.K. I should have seen that coming. Now that I had it working, it was time to see what I actually paid for. My computer running XP Home had issues with the PnP devices. I downloaded the latest drivers from x10, but nothing worked still. When I eventually called the x10 customer support, it seems that they never e-mailed me the software I didn't know I needed. Problem solved. Almost. When I tried to register the software I found myself on the phone again. After using the correct code, still no dice. One more call to customer support. By this time, Bill 234 at x10 could recognize my voice. The registration would not be effective for (up to) 24 hours.
Well, I just hooked it up to my TV instead. Picture quality in a REALLY bright room was the quality of a badly worn VHS recording. It was viewable but disappointing. When I started turning off lights, the image was almost unviewable. Antenna direction seemed to really matter. I was only 25 feet away from the receiver and there was one wall in between. Vibration and ANY movement made a big difference.
The next day, I successfully registered the software. I immediately started everything up to play with my new toy and was once again sadly disappointed. The image was not much bigger than a postage stamp at 100%. At the mostly viewable 200% the image quality was atrocious. It was just a recognizable collection of colored boxes.
Now it was time to play around with the Pan and Tilt. I only used the PC Tranceiver connected to the USB on my laptop approximately 25 feet away. The Pan and Tilt came with a largish remote but I did not have the 4 AAA batteries to use it. The range of the PC tranceiver was not impressive. I had to lift it above my head cross my fingers and do a rain-dance to get it to work. When the Pan and Tilt DID receive the signal, movement was painfully slow. When the camera moved, so did the antenna. Eventually, all video signal was lost because the antenna was "looking" elsewhere. This was not a good sign. How could this be used as a security camera if you had to be almost next to it in order to use it? Why bother making it wireless?
I am in the process of returning the entire package. I am now going to order a good quality Logitech camera WITH a wire (only one).
UPDATE!!
The return process was quite painless as long as you follow the instructions to the tee! You must let them know it is coming and get an authorization from x10. They also send you a label (electronically) that must be printed out and adhered to the box. I had my money back inside one week.
Recommended:
No
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Epinions.com ID:
bouncer67
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Member: Steve
Location: Long Island, NY
Reviews written: 8
Trusted by: 0 members
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