The house was burglarized late June; somebody entered a high-up bathroom window and got away with flat screen monitor, laptop, camera, headsets, and my brand new LCD TV. The sheriff thought it might be somebody from one of the many work crews that have been around (landscapers, concrete haulers, sewer people, etc.) It was a very unpleasant experience, and I have been thinking of what to do to prevent something similar in the future.
My immediate reaction would be to install some fancy system that would detect if somebody came near the house while I am gone, send me a message to allow me to watch the details. And I would then speak to the person "Excuse me, is there something I can help you with?" or just "Get off my property! Now!"
Well, I tried to explore more mundane solutions in the form of monitored alarm systems but ran into an issue: they all seem to require that there is a landline. I have decided not to have one.
I checked out some of the IP and networked video camera solutions.
First a couple from Fry's - of which one didn't work at all, and the other required a PC to be on all the times. Back to Fry's they went.
Next was a Q-see system w/ 4 cameras and DVR; it required a PC to set up but would otherwise provide the capability of remote web-based watching - special discount at Costco made it just over $500. The cameras looked like really good quality, nice and heavy, solid. But the DVR turned out to be very very noisy. And I couldn't get port mapping to work with my D-link Xtreme router, so the remote web options was not there. I returned it to Costco.
I am waiting for my third attempt: I ordered the AT&T remote monitor service, which is partly a hardware kit with a camera and a door detector, plus stuff to make the wireless setup really easy. The kit is $99, and the web and cellphone service costs $9.95/mo. It is quite close to my initial desire - at least i the description. Let's see when it arrives.
I also bought an automatic/electric gate opener - but haven't had it installed yet. The idea is to have the gate closed and thereby deter people from simply driving in their truck and loading it up with my goodies.
