The Amcrest Security is a relatively affordable home surveillance camera that delivers sharp image quality and offers motorized pan and tilt functionality, but it doesn't work with other home automation devices and configuring some settings is complicated. For More Info : http://in.pcmag.com/surveillance-cameras/106698/review/amcrest-prohd

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PCMagIndia | Consumer Electronics Reviews, Ratings &Comparisons | Digital Home | SurveillanceCameras | Review
JOHN R. DELANEY
Amcrest ProHD
The Amcrest ProHD is a relatively affordable home surveillance camera that delivers sharp image quality and offers motorized pan and tilt
functionality, but it doesn't work with other home automation devices and configuring some settings is complicated.
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Pan and tilt home surveillance cameras such as the Compro TN900RW and the Allie Home
offer a convenient way to view activity in an entire room rather than a fixed portion of it, but their
high price tags are prohibitive for many buyers. With the $109.99 Amcrest ProHD, you get motorized pan and tilt
functionality in a design that delivers a detailed, albeit slightly distorted, high-definition image with good color quality
and sharp night vision. But its cloud storage service is expensive, and you'll have to jump through a few hoops to
get some of its features to work correctly. The Zmodo Pivot offers a much friendlier user experience.
Design and Features
At 4.5 by 3.9 by 4.0 inches (HWD), the ProHD is significantly smaller than the TN900RW. It's available in black or
white and comes with a ceiling mount, an Ethernet cable, an AC adapter with a 10-foot power cord, and a quick
start guide. The round camera head is attached to a motorized cradle that offers 360 degrees of panning and 45
degrees of tilt maneuverability.
View All 7 Photos in Gallery
The 1080p camera has a 2-megapixel CMOS sensor with a 90-degree field of view and a 3x digital zoom and uses
12 infrared LEDS to deliver up to 30 feet of night vision range. Video is recorded at 30 frames per second. The
ProHD also has a built-in microphone and speaker for two-way audio and uses 802.11b/g Wi-Fi to connect to your
home network.
The rear panel contains a Fast Ethernet (10/100) LAN port, an LED indicator, a reset button, external alarm ports,
audio in/out ports, a microSD card slot (card not included), and a power jack. You can save recorded video to a
microSD card or subscribe to Amcrest's pricey cloud service. $6 per month gets you 7 days of storage; $10 per
month gets you 14 days; and $15 per month gets you 30 days of storage, all with unlimited live streaming. Or you
can use the free service, which gives you 4 hours of storage for free with a 2-hour monthly limit on live streaming.
By way of comparison, Netgear's cloud service is much more reasonably priced; it gives you 7 days of storage for
free, 30 days for $9.99, and 60 days for $14.99.
Live and recorded video can be viewed on a mobile device using an Android or iOS app, and on a PC by logging
into Amcrest's site. However, to do things like enable motion detection, set detection zones and motion sensitivity,
and change camera image settings, you have to download and use the Amcrest IP Config utility and log directly into
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2. Consumer Electronics Reviews, ... Digital Home Surveillance Cameras
the camera using a Web browser. And you'll have to do it using Internet Explorer or Firefox, as Chrome and other
broswers are not yet supported. Oddly, the app has Device Manager and Motion Detection settings, but they don't
work. A call to Amcrest confirmed that the majority of the camera settings must be configured through the PC utility.
Despite the convoluted configuration process, the ProHD offers a wealth of
camera and network settings including white balance, gamma, saturation,
and exposure levels, as well as TCP/IP, DNS, IP Filter, and HTTP port
settings. It can be configured to work with Bonjour and is compatible with the
Amcrest Network Video Recorder (NVR) line, but it doesn't work with other
home automation devices such as door/window sensors, door locks, and
connected lighting, and it doesn't support If This Then That (IFTTT)
recipes.
Installation and Performance
To install the ProHD, I downloaded the iOS app and selected Wi-Fi Camera
from the Device Type menu. I then chose to set up the camera using Wi-Fi
(you can also use a wired Ethernet connection). When prompted, I used my
phone's camera to scan the QR code on the base of the camera, named the
camera, and created an administrative name and password. Next I selected
a Wi-Fi network and entered its password. It took around 30 seconds for the
camera to connect.
Once up and running, the ProHD delivers very sharp live and recorded
1080p video with excellent color quality. Black-and-white night vision video is
also sharp, with good contrast. However, minor pincushion distortion is
evident around the edges of the image.
The pan and tilt mechanism is very quiet and provides smooth maneuvering, but the action is much slower when
using the mobile app than it is when using the Web interface. Motion and audio detection also work well, and push
notifications arrive instantly. Image detail remains crisp while using the digital zoom, and two-way audio is loud and
clear.
Conclusions
If you're looking for a motorized pan/tilt home surveillance camera on a limited budget, the Amcrest ProHD is worth
a look. It delivers crisp 1080p video and still imagery, and it offers smooth pan and tilt functionality, although panning
and tilting in the mobile app can be a bit sluggish. It has a microSD slot that allows you to store your recorded video
locally, or you can use Amcrest's cloud storage service, but it doesn't come cheap. Camera and alert settings are
abundant, but to use them you'll have to spend some time perusing the manual and downloading and configuring
browser plug-ins, as many of the settings are not functional in the mobile app.
For a much friendlier user experience, consider the Zmodo Pivot. It offers 360-degree panning, easy installation,
and is equipped with temperature, humidity, motion, and door/window sensors. If you want a camera that can control
a variety of connected home devices such as smart switches, thermostats, and lighting, the Icontrol Networks
Piper nv is your best bet, and our Editors' Choice for home surveillance cameras. It costs more than the ProHD
and doesn't offer motorized pan and tilt, but its digital pan and tilt features work wonderfully and it delivers excellent
1080p video.
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As a Contributing Editor for PC Magazine, John Delaney has been testing and reviewing monitors, HDTVs, PCs, servers, and other assorted
hardware and peripherals for more than 14 years. A 13-year veteran of PC Magazine's Labs (most recently as Director of Operations), John
was responsible for the recruitment, training and management of the Labs technical staff, as well as evaluating and maintaining the integrity of
the Labs testing machines and procedures.
Prior to joining Ziff Davis Publishing, John spent six years in retail operations for Federated Stores, Inc. before accepting a purchasing position
with Morris Decision Systems, one of NewYork's first value-added resellers of the original IBM PC. For ... MORE »
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BY JOHN R. DELANEY
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