Mobile
Y-Cam HomeMonitor Review: Monitor a House via Tablet or Phone
Y-Cam HomeMonitor connects to a user’s home network via Wi-Fi and records video and audio to the HomeMonitor servers whenever the Y-Cam HomeMonitor senses movement in the person’s home.
The company also provides an app and website to keep track of a home while away. The Y-Cam thus makes a great nanny cam. Some users might want to use it just to keep track of their pets or kids while their away from home. It’s not the best security camera available, but for the price it might help a user see when an intruder breaks in.
The Y-Cam HomeMonitor Indoor camera costs $199.99 and comes with a free subscription to the monitoring service. An outdoor camera costs $349.99.
Y-Cam HomeMonitor Setup
The Y-Cam HomeMonitor comes with an easy to follow Quick Start Guide. Follow it, and the online instructions the guide points the user to, and setup takes just minutes. Once the user configures the camera, it’s time to install it in a permanent location.
The included mounting system holds the camera in place. Physical installation is as simple as drilling a couple of holes in a wall and then screwing the mounting bracket into place. Attach the camera onto the bracket and lock it down with the plastic locking mechanism.
The user can connect it to a router for a wired system, or use Wi-Fi if they place it away from their router. Both work pretty well.
The Y-Cam HomeMonitor setup process doesn’t take a lot of skill or technical expertise. It’s simple enough for anyone to follow.
HomeMonitor Functionality
HomeMonitor offers a website, free universal iPhone/iPad apps and an Android app.
Screen shot taken of a video shot with Y-Cam of me viewing video over the iPhone app
Both the website and the apps offer a Live View page, or archived videos.
Tap the play button to view Live View.
The app and the website include the same toolbar. Users can view live video feed, archived videos and turn the camera (or just the motion sensor) on or off. The service also sends email notices when the camera senses movement. See the example below:
Conclusion
This Y-Cam HomeMonitor system works well, and even for $199.99 we recommend it. HomeMonitor provides easy to follow set up instructions and the service works as we expected. Video quality, even over Wi-Fi, is good enough to monitor a home with.
HomeMonitor could improve the time between video upload and availability. We got the following error the first time we went to see a video.
Imagine someone wondering if their home’s compromised and getting this error. That would be disconcerting.
Also, the Y-Cam HomeMonitor system promises to work in “complete dark” but it needs some light. Users can solve the problem by putting the camera where there’s a little ambient light.
Finally, defeating the security cam would only mean unplugging it. So it needs hidden and placed where it senses movement before the intruder sees it.
We liked the Y-Cam HomeMonitor system and the apps. See their pricing page to learn what comes free with the camera and what users can get as an upgrade for $39.99.
