Customer Reviews

D-Link DCS-1000 Ethernet Internet Camera

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

1. For an Ethernet device, the web interface is _incredibly_ slow. We're talking a good 10 seconds just to load up any configuration page.
2. Absolutely *HORRIBLE* CCD (the image sensor used to collect what's shown). For a device costing this much, I would expect a high-end CCD -- especially since it's advertised as a "security" device. Adjusting the resolution made it worse (see below). Bright lighting made no difference. I've seen CCDs this bad used in old (pre-2001) Logitech cameras; they're used solely for mass manufacturing (e.g. cheap).
3. 640x480 shows signs of bad hardware dithering -- hundreds of white dots along the edges of things. Bright lighting, again, made no difference. Even 320x240 shows signs of dithering.
4. Java interface lags behind by a good 1-2 seconds. This forces you to use the ActiveX component (which is properly syncd) -- however, the ActiveX component requires you to upload an .OCX file to an EXTERNAL webserver (it's not contained on the camera!).
5. This device cannot get more than 15, MAYBE 20, frames a second. I can see how for a security device this would be a Very Bad Thing(tm).
6. The latest firmware on D-Link's website is 1.26; the camera I bought from Amazon claimed to be 1.27. I find this mysteriously bothersome.

Positives, on the other hand, include VERY easy setup, and an excellent base mount (made of steel) -- although it's intended to be screw-mounted, not sit on a desk. It's Ethernet connectivity is great though (why don't more vendors use Ethernet!?)

But, for a device that costs this much, I would expect a LOT better quality.

Cannot get the camera to upload to my web site on ATTBI.

I've purchased this camera despite all the negative comments I've seen on the web and decided to use it as a monitoring device for our baby's room. Installation was a breeze and could not have been easier (four stars for the setup of the system). I was a bit confused that it would not receive the DNS information via DHCP (like all my other DHCP devices), but this was a minor quirk.

The killer is really the video quality. In my case high frame-rates were not a requirement, but high image quality was one. The DCS-1000W failed miserably. Compression artefacts (although it was set to lowest compression), fringing in higher contrast areas, blow out pictures the moment it was a bit brighter in the room and dark frames the moment it was a bit darker in the room.
I was in contact with D-Link support and when they looked at the images of the camera, they told me I had a broken device. After replacement I saw the same problem again and support this time said that I should change suppliers, because my current supplier probably had a "bad batch of cameras". Support never asked where I got my cameras from. Decided to stay away from D-Link ...

This is an easy camera to set up, but the picture and video quality is only so-so.

The camera was a breeze to setup. Once the IP address was entered for the camera using a browser my friend across the country could see me instantly by entering that same IP address into her browser. Setup took less than 5 minutes. The image was clear and bright. Frame rate was under 20 but that is ok for my use. A couple of nice features was the ability to send an image to an email address with a click of the button and also send images to an FTP server. Well worth the price if you have a 2nd IP address to use for the camera.