Wireless Camera Freezing

Recently, a customer contacted us regarding his Wireless IP Camera freezing / timing out when accessing remotely from his web browser and iPhone.

I am sending back the Foscam. I’m in the market for a new manufacturer for a POE IP camera. The issue I had with the Foscam was that it would drop/ freeze video / audio. I have been thinking it has to do with the WIFI connection with the Iphone (4S & 5) Apps (Live Cams Pro, Baby Monitor for Ip Camera and IP Cam Viewer). I have a very good WIFI signal throughout the property. Using Verizon Fios Actiontec Router with a Amped Wireless Repeater. I have to think maybe it is the cheaper Foscam camera. What are your thoughts and sell me on the Zavio P5110? I will be looking at Panasonic as well.

Anything that you can add to help would be greatly appreciated".

Response:

Hello John,

There are several factors that may be causing the freeze of your Foscam IP Camera.

1. Most likely is your web browser. Especially if you are running it on your WebTV The majority of IP cameras use Internet Explorer with ActiveX controls to handle the video streams. Firefox, Chrome and Safari use the Quicktime plug-in. ALL can use Java if the embedded code is present in the IP Camera (very rare).

2. RAM and processing power of your PC / Smart TV.

Not all cameras are created equal. The embedded web server may be timing out or crashing. There may also be certain embedded code that is "buggy" and causing the browser to freeze or crash.

3. Intermittent wireless connectivity. Though you have a strong WIFI signal, there may still be temporary disconnection which may be causing the camera or browser to freeze. Also, even though a strong signal is present, IP camera video streams (especially megapixel video combined with audio) require ample bandwidth. A wireless connection will seldom have the throughput of a hard-wired connection.

4. Internet connection bandwidth a.k.a. upload / download speeds. Slow connection speeds may also be a contributor to browser / camera freeze.

5. Finally, how the camera handles the above conditions. Does it crash / Freeze? Does it refresh? Does it re-boot? Are there frequent firmware updates to fix known issues? Is there on going software development to revise / improve the embedded code for the web server and various browser platforms?

I can tell you from experience, that our Zavio cameras will run uninterrupted for months at a time in a reliable network environment. Will a wireless Zavio camera being access from a WebTV (or other) browser run 24 / 7 / 365? Most likely not. But you WILL get longer spans of continuous use. You will also have a live person (myself or other tech support rep.) who will actively help determine the root cause of your problem if it persists. You may not like all of our answers, but we are honest and will not "sugarcoat" your situation. The bottom line is that wireless IP camera technology is more complicated than it appears. If there is an issue with the Zavio camera, we will find the cause and fix it.