Video Surveillance Clock

 

How many times have you thought to yourself, “if only I could have caught that on camera”. And perhaps you’ve even thought about hiding one of those video cams in the house somewhere in an attempt to catch a baby sitter, a house worker, one of your wayward children, or even a misbehaving spouse you might be suspicious of? Admit it, we all have a little spy in all of us, right?

Well, if you want to perform a little inconspicuous video snooping and catch someone in in the act that you might suspect, then have a look at the Video Surveillance Clock from Hammacher Schlemmer.

The Video Surveillance Clock is a smartly designed, attractive analog clock that has a motion-activated video surveillance camera and microphone built in. In fact, the video camera and microphone are so brilliantly concealed, it’s almost impossible to tell this analog clock is actually a video camera in disguise, no matter how  closely you examine the device.

Go ahead, have a look at the detail picture above, can you tell where the video camera is located? OK, I’ll give you a clue, it’s the small little black dot above the numeral 12. That’s it, pretty well concealed, don’t you think? No one will suspect your attractive clock is actually a video camera taking a picture of them. A very clever undercover spy gadget!

The clock’s camera image sensor is able to capture video at a resolution of 720px by 480px with a viewing angle of 62º at a distance of nine feet away from the object. And the embedded microphone is sensitive enough to pick up sound clearly from 16 feet away.

The Video Surveillance Clock can also take still photographs at a resolution of 1280px by 960px. Videos and images are stored on a 4GB microSD card included with the clock. The storage is sufficient to capture up to six hours of AVI video or hold up to 52,000 JPEG images. The surveillance clock can also support a higher capacity 8 GB microSD card if you need even more storage capacity.

Once you’ve captured videos or images, you can easily download the content to a computer with the included USB 2.0 cable. The lithium batter is also recharged with by attaching the clock to your computer through the USB 2.0 cable. A single 3 hour battery charge provides up to 1 1/2 hours of video recording time.

But remember, this is a motion-controlled camera, so 1 1/2 hours of recording time is actually a lot of start-stop video surveillance time. And the same full charge provides up to 18 months of stand-by-time if no video recording is actually activated. So you don’t have to constantly check on your video surveillance clock to see if the battery charge is still OK.

The Video Surveillance Clock is compatible with Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP, and Mac. Dimensions are 2 3/4 inches in diameter with a depth of 3/4 inches, and the clock weighs 3 ounces. The video surveillance clock is definitely the perfect device for inconspicuously monitoring a room or office.

 

VueZone Personal Video Network

In the era of modern technology in which we currently live, we discover new devices every day that have the potential to make our lives easier, more comfortable and more safe and secure. One area of technology that continues to improve and advance is video camera surveillance. Many people are interested in adding some level of video monitoring to their home network, but the high cost, technical complexity and system security are often some of the obstacles that may have prevented you from tapping into this emerging technology.

If you fall into this category, have a look at the VueZone Personal Video Network (PVN).  If you’re not a technical wizard, no worries. The VueZone Personal Video Network is very simple to install, and doesn’t even require a computer. The system includes two video cameras with motion-detection and VueZone is completely wireless with no complicated cables or power cords to install. And there is absolutely no software to load or install!

Once you have the system setup, the VueZone video cameras can be viewed from any Internet browser and most Smartphones including iPhone, Blackberry and Android. It’s truly that easy and simple!

VueZone leverages a patented technology called FrameMesh that enables streaming live video to make your remote video monitoring experience seamless. Create your own personal (and secure) video network with multiple battery-operated wireless video cameras that easily install without any wires or power cords.

Innovative patented FrameMesh technology, developed for the Defense Department, enables streaming live video using wireless transmission from lower-powered, inexpensive battery-driven video cameras.

FrameMesh is a multi-device mesh networking protocol enabling ultra low-power cameras to easily link up to the network. Once a video camera joins the network, the camera device can be moved at any time without any further requirement for additional network configuration.

You can connect a maximum of 15 cameras to a VueZone personal network, which should be more than sufficient to cover almost any home surveillance environment. The individual cameras are inexpensive and cost around $70 without motion-detection and a bit more at $90 for the cameras equipped with motion-detection. Picture resolution is quite sufficient and can be configured for a lower resolution of 320×240 pixels (to conserve bandwidth) up to 640×480 pixels. The system also provides a higher resolution of 1600×1200 pixels for snapping single-frame pictures.

In a nutshell, this easy to use and effective video surveillance system provides an inexpensive way for monitoring the activity in your home and comes with a very affordable price tag of $289.95, complete with 2 motion-detection video cameras, VueZone gateway and all required mounting hardware. The VueZone Personal Video Network is also very modular, so you can easily add more camera devices if you need to expand the coverage.

Available: Amazon

Price: $289.95

Kwikset SmartCode Entry Lever

 

The world is not getting safer because criminals are getting smarter. Your doors and locks may not be as secure as you think. Today’s more cunning and brazen burglars are able to jimmy your door and enter your home, wipe your home clean of valuables, and leave within minutes. The company Kwikset has stepped up to offer home owners the latest advancements and improvements in home security with the Kwikset Smart Code Lever. It’s a door handle system that allows you to unlock your door with a configurable electronic key code. This enhanced door entry system makes it many times more difficult for a burglar to break in and gain unlawful entry to your home.

your mobile phone. Therefore, a burglar who does not have your mobile phone and the pre-programmed security code. would not be able to break an entry.

The Kwikset SmartCode Entry Lever has six buttons. Five of those buttons are numbered and it surrounds the sixth button which is located in the center. The sixth button has an image of a padlock. The Smart Code can be purchased at almost any hard ware store but the purchase does not come with free installation. You will need to set up and install the door handle yourself. You can also easily hire a handy man to do the job for you.

The Kwikset SmartCode Entry Lever has many useful features. It blinks to inform you whether the door is locked or unlocked. At the press of each button, you will hear different tones. This is to cater for those who like audible feedback. The most brilliant feature is the auto lock system which automatically locks the door after thirty seconds. This feature is especially helpful for those who consistently forget to look their doors.

With enhanced versions of the Kwikset SmartCode Entry Lever, you can synchronize the lock with your smart phone which will allow you the check on your door status where ever you are. You can even lock and unlock the door remotely at any time via your wireless network. Now that’s cutting edge security with hi-tech convenience.

The Home Connect feature allows the device to communicate through your home network using either the Z-Wave or Zigbee wireless protocols. These protocols are not compatible so you need to make sure your purchasing the right Kwikset SmartCode Entry Lever version that comes with the wireless feature and matches the wireless security protocol that you support in your home (if you do). The nice thing about Kwikset is that they don’t charge any additional fees for this wireless capability, where Schlage actually charges a monthly fee for the same function.

Available: Amazon

Price: $119.00

Phantom Keyless Home Entry

  

 

The Phantom Smart Home Hands-free Keyless Home Entry is a new system developed to allow Bluetooth enabled cell phones to be used as a key to enter a door.  It does this by detecting an authenticated Bluetooth connection to unlock the door thus reducing the need to reach into your pockets for a set of keys.

The benefits to the Phantom Smart Home keyless system is that if you are approaching the front door for example carrying some shopping you do not need to put it down to be able to enter. Just simply walk up to the door and the connection between the Phantom Smart Hands unit and the phone will unlock the door.

Some other benefits to this system is that most people take their cell phone wherever they go so instead of having to take keys and a phone you only need to take your cell phone. Traditionally multiple keys can be cut and supplied to people living in the house. In this instance multiple phones can be used as a key for the same door, simply pair it up with the Phantom unit and its good to use.

This gadget from a personal point of view is a really great idea. While carrying keys is not much of a problem for me, trying to find the right key and placing it in the lock whilst drunk can seem like the most difficult task in the world. (If anyone else has experienced this leave a comments just so I know I am not the only one.)

If you are worried about security of other mobile phones being able to open the door using Bluetooth technology then fear not. The Phantom keyless system can only be used with a mobile phone that has previously been paired with. Also, once the door has been opened the Phantom unit automatically locks the door thus keeping any would-be thieves from entering.

What happens if your phone is lost or stolen? All you need to do is reset the Keyless Home Entry and revoke access via that cell phone. This is a far easier process when compared with traditional method of having to get new locks and keys cut should you lose a set of keys.

You also need not worry about the installation of the Phantom security system. All it takes is one hour with simple DIY skills and tools. The system is compatible typical door handles and locks and works with your existing security hardware. All it costs is $198.

[Source: Phantom Home Entry]

Black Out Stamp

 

In this day and age, the thing most often stolen is your identity. If it sounds like something out of a movie, think again. Your credit card details can be stolen to purchase items that you have never even heard about, and your Identification and personal details can be used to do things you don’t even want to think about. Most often, it is carelessness that leads to identity thefts. After all, simple documents contain everything about you and if you are the type who leaves them lying around all over the place, then you’ve just given the thieves an easy job of it.

You need a security gadget that can prevent this.

This is where the Black Out Stamp will help you make stealing your identity so much harder. If you used to have to shred your documents or just spend time cutting out the pertinent information then this will be a Godsend to you. Place the stamp over the details that you want to black out and the results will be jumbled up letters and numbers that will confuse even the most expert identity thief. The Black Out Stamp is best used on uncoated paper i.e. bank statements. It works by using special compound ink to create a new alphabetical and numerical pattern on your document.

Thus, if you have always been worried about unintentionally giving away private information about yourself, the Black Out Stamp will do the job for you. Cheaper and much easier to use than a shredder, this will help ease your worries.

You can purchase the Black Out Stamp in most stores for only $9.98. At that price, give yourself a little peace of mind.

Available: Amazon

Price: $19.98