Samsung SmartCam Full HD Outdoor WiFi IP Camera SNH-E6440BN 1080p

I've had this SmartCam for over a month now, so I've put together all the details and tests to write this review. First off, I've owned 4 webcams (Foscams and a HooToo). They are cheap, functional, but lack good image quality. Of course, as people always say, you get what you pay for, so my expectations have to be more realistic. I did tons of research on this SmartCam before making the purchase decision. Yes, it's expensive, and yes, I've never had a Samsung camera before. So it's a bit risky for me, but thanks to Amazon's generous return policy, I was willing to give it a try. Boy, let me tell you, after getting this setup, I wouldn't even think of returning it and in fact, I'm thinking of buying another one. What I like about this SmartCam:- Extremely high image quality. If your bandwidth allows it, it can stream in true 1080 resolution. - Relatively easy to set up. Power on the camera, connect the wire to your router/switch, access the Samsung smartcam to register, you're good to go - Record video footage continuously for 3 consecutive days (32GB) and can be played back anytime. Auto-loop SD card when full - Send alert when motion alarm is detected, via email and/or iPhone/Android pop-up - Very impressive, super long range night vision - Record footage even when the network is down, since recording is done from an SD card - No recurring monthly service fees like "Draw dropcam" - Waterproof for sure (the storm hit the Bay Area at the mid-December and works like a champ when exposed to rain) - Stable wifi network connection through stucco walls and siding, about 50ft from base, no drops since deployment - Small profile, fairly stealthy though you want to hide it. Yet the IR lights are clearly visible in the dark, so not stealthy but work as a crime deterrent. There is no need to configure with DynDNS or register a static IP address for this to work. Samsung's Smartcam has you covered. Cons/need to improve - slow web/phone app interface. Each time you click on most options, it takes at least a few seconds (sometimes longer) to refer. Argh- Bad customer support. When I called Samsung for general help with the firmware upgrade, the tech said "just restart the camera and reset everything to default. it's raining. I need to disable the camera. 'alert when it's raining heavily. - No instant email notification. When I get the alert, I have to connect to the video playback, to trace what triggered the alarm. A snapshot of the triggering scene emailed to me would be great - Expensive.. Did I regret buying this SmartCam? Absolutely not. Love it. Want to buy another one soon! I think Samsung can do better on its applications (web app and mobile app) to make this camera more attractive. I hope this review helps you , if so, please kindly rate it. Send me your questions if you have any I would be more than happy to answer them if I know the answer Updated: January 10, 2015 - The camera seems to be holding up after the storm hit northern California. Heavy rain and cold did not cause any malfunction. It seems that Samsung has changed its webpage monitoring policy which restricts users from using their bandwidth for live viewing. If you watch the live stream for about 5 or 7 minutes from the web, the webpage will show a message that the connection is disconnected and if you continue to view the live stream, you will need to return to the main page. and select the camera to start live view again. I don't like it, but I guess that's how they can save their network bandwidth in the long run. - I changed my Micro SD card (Samsun EVO) to 64 GB. I formatted it in FAText (not just FAT or NTFS), plug the card into the main unit, now it can record 24/7 for 7 days before old recordings are overwritten. Awesome. I'll write more updates if I come across anything new. See you soon and Happy New Year! Another update: Jan 14, 2015 -- Noticed an anomaly occurred two days ago. The camera stopped recording live video out of the blue. All functions (even alarm, live stream, etc.) work except recording. I noticed this problem when I was at work, so I couldn't restart it remotely. I quickly restarted the camera (unplug the power cord, plug it back in) and viola, the recording function was back. No need to reformat the Micro SD or adjust anything else. I don't know what caused this hiccup but this is the very first time I had to manually restart the camera due to an issue so, I would say...not too bad. Not sure if this was caused by the new 64GB MicroSD I'm using, but it's not impossible. I thought I should share this with anyone who is interested in reading my stuff. :PMore Updated: Jan 19, 2015- It looks like Samsung has updated their mobile apps (iPhone in my case). The overhauled app lets me take a snapshot or record a video directly to my phone's internal memory, which used to be a cumbersome process. Kudos to their developer. I can't wait to see more improvements. If they are able to improve their web interface and improve their apps further, I might consider upgrading my rating to 5 stars. :-) More updates: February 8, 2015- I bought a QNAP NAS a few days ago for my network data storage. One of its features is having the built-in surveillance app which can record continuous videos to the NAS. I was able to use the app (two licenses) to connect to my Samsung camera as an NVR (network video recorder). Now I can record live video for as long as I want in high definition, and I'm no longer limited by the size of the Micro SD card. Currently I'm recording at .264, 15fps in good quality. I am very happy ! Update February 13, 2015 - Someone asked me how I connect this camera to work with my QNAP NAS NVR. I would like to give you an idea of ​​how it works. Basically, I bought the QNAP TS 453 Pro, but you don't have to go for the top-end model, as the lower models will do the same job just fine. As long as it's running QTS, which is their operating system that runs applications directly from the NAS, you're good to go. QNAP comes with two NVR licenses, which you can record live from Samsung camera 24/7 with different frame rates, image quality and resolution. Of course, the better the setting, the more disk space it will take, but that's really not bad. These are the steps to make it work.1. Run an app (included with your QNAP) called Surveillance Station. Click on the Camera configuration button and then on "Add". It will scan your Samsung (or other compatible cameras) from the network. The camera type I entered was Samsung SNB 5003. Leave everything else at default and enter your camera password. Now this is NOT the primary Samsung website password, but the secondary password associated with your camera.2. Once you have entered your password, click “test” to ensure the connection is successful.3. Click the "Video Settings" tab and select your desired compression rate, resolution, and frame rate. I leave everything at its maximum because I can worry less about disk space.4. I choose 5 days for continuous recording.5. Click the "Schedule" tab if you don't want to record 24/7. I want to save everything so I leave it at its default. You are done with this section, and go to "Advanced Settings"1. For the maximum recording time, I select 15 minutes, which is the maximum time for one file, but you can choose a shorter time.2. Select "Overwrite Oldest Recordings" which works like the Samsung camera's MicroSD card. Once done, that's about it. From now on, your clips of 15 minutes (or less) will be stored in the "Recording" folder of the NAS by date and time. Yes, you will see tons of files but they are very easy to find. You can play it from the built-in player (the fastest way to view the file) or you can download it to your computer's desktop and send it to the police if needed. Just in case you were curious, the folder size for each date, is outrageously 1.45 GB!!!!! Yes, it's not 14 GB but only 1.45, quite small, huh? Anyway, I hope you enjoy my detailed report and don't forget to rate it if it is useful to you. Update: 02/25/2015 - sturdy construction, really sturdy.- I was cleaning the gutter in my house and accidentally hit the camera hard. It fell about 15 feet to the cement and is still fully functioning. Scratches, yes, damaged to the camera. NOPE. It is simply amazing! Updated: 3/5/2015 - I uploaded a sample photo of my lawn. This shows the quality of the image. Update: 03/20/2015 - I noticed some people saying they can't receive email notifications successfully. I want to point out that after entering their Google email address, they must authorize the link by clicking "Go to Google page". If they miss this step, it will never work. I have absolutely no problem receiving email notifications when this feature is enabled from my settings page. This is something to keep in mind. james