Customer Reviews

WiLife IR-50 Illuminator Kit

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

 

 

I have a couple of WiLife cameras and they are excellent and very reliable. I bought this IR illuminator for one of the cameras and it works great. It can illuminate fine from inside my glass window to the area where my cars are parked outside which is about 20-30 feet away. Note that the IR pass lens that comes with it and replaces the original lens in the WiLife camera will make things outside look more like black and white or greyish due to massive amount of IR light in sunlight. In the dark, it looks black and white as well. So for a camera facing outside, you basically lose the colors when using IR option. Since the lens assembly is mechanical in the camera, there is no option to turn on/off IR filtering based on the regular day light. Also keep in mind that the IR pass lens that comes with this kit is a little hard to put in the camera. You take out the original lens by unscrewing and put this lens in by screwing. But remember to not apply too much pressure or you will damage the threads. It took me about 15 minutes and seven tries to sit the lens properly in the camera before screwing it in. The instruction sheet recommends rotating it in the reverse direction so that it sits properly in the threads before screwing it in.

I had purchased the Wilife indoor camera several months ago. I decided to add the illuminator to for the night vision capacity. I had read the other reviews and the instructions, so I knew to set the lens before screwing it in. It was very easy.

So far, I've had no problems with it and would recommend it to any Wilife user who wishes to capture video at night with no lights.

I ordered this and the Indoor System. Setup was quick and easy. I just followed the directions for both the Master System and the Illuminator. After the quick interchange of lenses required by the this kit, I was up and running recording video at night. The night vision is ok, but not extremely powerful. I suggest you install additional lighting outside, such as a porch light or motion-detected flood light. I have both of these additional light sources and only get ok results outside at night. That said, the quality is good enough if needed as evidence of vandalism in my opinion.

The last reviwer was very thorough . As stated you need this for the lens or you could buy a generic IR Lamp . I originally was dissapointed but it turned out you must have a absolutely clean windown and camera lens . I would get some lens cloths and newsprint to clean your windows with if going through them . The lens is a 80 degree feild of veiw with the IR lamp set at 70 degrees . It is bright and will work for the stated distance well . It is rather narrow though it doesnt illuminate the whole field of camera view equal . Basically you get the center coverred and it fades out to the edges . It has 28 LED's . It comes with a 20 foot power cord . It also turns itself on and off as needed . You can sadly see 28 red dots if you look at it but it sits semi hidden if its the only light in that area you cant miss it so you do loose stealth they should of had a one way lens cover . You can easily supplement area lighting with another lamp but you need the lens that comes in this so just buy it unless you have another way to get the lens too . The threads on the lens are very , very fine so be cautious .They say to focus the camera when and where you put the lens in infront of your monitor . I forgot and had to go back and forth it is much more difficult so listen to them . This is a good ..infact IMHO a must have item if you want to catch theives in a area of no lighting it works perfect inside and very good outside for the stated distance subject to narrow beam limitations . God Bless .

Easy installation. I pulled out the old lens, screwed in the new one, just be sure to do it STRAIGHT. Remounted my camera. Then hooked up the illuminator. Works great!

I purchased the initial outdoor system and after a few months purchased 2 add-on cameras, for a total of 3. Within 6 months, 2 cameras lost connections and then the 3rd one failed. All 3 were replaced under warranty, however 2 of those failed. The offer I got from Logitech was to purchase 2 replacements at 50% off of regular price. After much testing and trouble shooting, what it comes down to is the camera has a power supply that overheats and shuts down but the camera can re-connect once unplugged and allowed to cool down. However after about 5 minutes, it fails again. Logitech will not acknowledge they have an issue even though the failure rate is over 60% and will not provide warranty support after 1 year. They also have no repair options available. For the initial system purchase, 2 add-on cameras and the half price replacement cameras, I paid a total of $990 for a functioning 3 camera system, so the initial "good value" has evaporated. Aside from the technical issues, the system works well in the daytime however poorly in the night time unless you light up the whole viewing area. One other note, all cameras need to be on the same line, so in the event you have 2 lines coming to the house (220v)all need to be on the same circuit for the system to see all the cameras.

I bought an outdoor for my home entrance gate which is 350' away from the building. I cannot get the camera's feed and don't know if this is a distance issue or not. I am now using it for outside of the building and works perfect. I can also get the feed from Internet in my office. A few problems with this camera:
1- No night vision
2- The view angle is narrow
3- Distance from the master system
4- No technical documentation
Any suggestions solving my peoblems is very much apprecaited.
Many thanks.Logitech WiLife Digital Video Security--Outdoor Add-On Camera

This was my second Illuminator, the first time it went well, the Second time its was very difficult to screw in the replacement lens. This would be a better product if the camera was should pre installed, without the need to have the end user replace the lens. I love the Wilife system, but wished they offered a better range of camera choices. A little too one size fits all.

I haven't been successful in placing the illuminator so that it does its job. I've tried 4 different placements. I checked the illuminator in a dark room and it works, but I'm about to give up!