Ask HN: Which night vision camera for Linux?

2 points·da02··3 comments

Most USB web cams don't seem to have IR/nightvision. Are there any camera under $50 that can be used with Linux, have night vision, and don't have weird connections to Chinese IP addresses? (Either a web cam or IP camera.)

I want to place a camera in my room in case the land lady's drug addict son tries to pull something again at night.

I'm using a Heimvision HM205, but I don't trust the app, PixPlus.

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Most cheap cameras are sensitive to 850nm infrared. If they aren't sensitive it is because there is a filter in front of them. This might be a filter that goes in front of the camera, or filters built into the "Bayer matrix" that creates color vision.

Try seeing if your cheap webcam can see the light from an IR remote control. Remember that IR webcams don't really "see in the dark" but instead they see a scene illuminated by 850 nm LEDs. If your camera can see the light from an IR remote control you will just need to build yourself an IR illuminator which is just a handful of LEDs in a simple circuit.

I decided to increase the budget and get a $60-$70 Amcrest camera: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Amcrest/node/7648105011

They are compatible with ZoneMinder and have a web interface for configuration. I found out about them from a blog post: https://blog.jasonantman.com/2018/05/amcrest-ip-camera-first...

Some of the Amcrest cameras, maybe all, also have an API.

There is also this camera: https://www.amazon.com/Security-Ethernet-Surveillance-Waterp...

It's compatible with ONVIF, Blue Iris and Zoneminder.

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