Lorex LW2731 Live LCD SD Recoring Monitor with Wireless Camera (black)

The Lorex LW2731 package comes with a 7 inch full colour LCD monitor and one security camera. The monitor is a bit on the small side coming in at 7 inches but supports up to 4 video feeds. The camera is also a tad on the largish side measuring around 4 inches (much larger than a webcam) but has built in LED lights for illumination.

When I received this unit I thought I would set up the camera at the front of my house on the porch overhang pointing at my front door. This proved to be a bit of a pain in that both the camera and the monitor require mains power (no battery option). The power adapter for the camera, although it has a fairly generous amount of chord, was not enough to put the camera where I wanted so I had to rethink. Another problem with this is that you end up having to drill a hole through your wall in which to put the power cable, so not a quick easy solution.

This leads me to another point. If a thief or whomever is determined to break into your house, then its a very simple case of just having to snip the wire and the camera won't work. It would have been much better for the camera at least to run off batteries.

The wireless part of this unit is the video feed from the camera to the monitor, not the monitor to your home network. You have the ability to view the camera feed over skype (a good option) so that you can see your video feeds from anyplace, however in order to do this you must hook the monitor into your computer (cable supplied) and leave your computer running all the time (you must also remember to turn off power saving features on your computer).

The video quality that the camera transmits is excellent. Better than some of the security camera footage you see on the news and the camera works very well whether in bright light or with the aid of the built in LEDs and sensor at night.

The range of the wireless feed seems to be good. I couldn't find anyplace in my 3 story house where I couldn't pick up the video feed, even when I placed the camera in the top corner of a bedroom on the top floor and took the monitor down to the opposite corner of my bottom floor, so it was travelling a fair distance and through a lot of wood and concrete.

If you are thinking of buying this unit to monitor the outside of your house (which I think most people would), then be prepared to have to do some work and drill holes in your walls to do this. Also be prepared to have to rethink where you wish to put the camera due to the power cables length. This is a major shortcoming of this unit in my opinion.

If you are just looking to monitor the inside of your house or small business then this unit will work great, with the addition of some extra cameras.

Overall then, a good security system once setup but has some fairly big flaws.

Security systems are one of those things that you really need to consider your objectives before investing in them. Do you want a babysitter or dog cam? Do you want to be able to see who's at the door? Or if someone is sneaking up to a window? Do you need multiple viewpoints, motion sensitive recording?

In my case, I simply wanted a system I could mount by the front door, so I could see who it was there and whether I wanted to respond. For me this works perfectly for that. I can sit in my office and see (and talk with, if I choose) the person at the front door without having to open it.

For me, here are the ups and considerations of this system:

Easy plug and play: It's as simple to use as they say.

Does what its supposed to with good quality: the motion sensor and record works as stated, reception is always clear

Reasonable cost for a security system, even if I want to add a camera for the back door (both as a monitor and to see when the dog wants in:-)) It's only another $150 or so, and I can monitor it off the same screen.

Really considering before buying:

How you want to use the system: Do you need the ability to interact with the person which this one has?

Do you want it to record? This one does, and I find it a useful feature for when I'm out.

Where you want to place the camera, and if there's a nearby electrical socket near it. The camera does require one, and is probably one of it's biggest downsides. I wish it had a battery option.

Do you want to send a clear "security" message, which this one does or is the use you have in mind more for a hidden cam which I have a tough time imagining this one being.

All in all: An affordable security system that does what it promises. Like all security systems consider what your true objectives are and what you are willing to pay to accomplish them. I think this is a great starter security system, if you have the electrical sockets to accomodate the camera(s) and/or a convenience to be relied upon for monitor and record traffic coming in or through your home or store entrance.

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I like that this camera set was really easy to setup just turn on, get electricity running, and you've got a nice system. However, I have a few gripes. I think people need to be aware that you need electrical power to this camera, so if you have an older house without electricity outside, you'll need to set something up. This is noted here on the product page, but I don't think people understand what a pain that can actually be, or how much an electrician will cost if you need to set that up. So something to keep in mind.

Luckily, we had already installed electrical wiring outside when we had a motion-activated security light put up, so installing this WAS relatively easy. We noticed, though, that the camera kept moving in its positions, and that it had a tendency to fall out of position a lot kind of like it got "tired," and drooped down at the end of the day. Not a big deal for us, but if you want precise monitoring of a certain spot, it seems like the brackets/joints of the mount are not made precisely enough for this.

That being said, the monitoring capabilities of this thing are really cool, and if you have a dog or a child at home that you'd like to keep an eye on remotely, it's pretty nice. But I don't see why a web camera system wouldn't be just as easy for a smaller task like that indoors. If you really want to have monitoring in several outdoor and indoor areas of your house and want an expandable system, I think this is a nice system. But if you just need indoor monitoring, go for something cheaper, and if you need outdoor precise targeting, go for something more expensive :)

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I also have the Lorex LNC104 LIVE Ping Wireless Network Camera camera from Lorex so I can't help but compare it to that. I really like the LNC104. It is wifi and comes with easy to use software for the PC and Android. Extra cameras can be viewed all at once within that software. The LW2731 system uses Skype instead, so I can't add it to my camera network. That would have been really cool.

The coolest feature of the LW2731 system is the monitor it comes with. It was also very easy to set up. I had the system up and was watching my front door in minutes. You can move the monitor around with you but it needs to be plugged into AC power. It will need to be plugged into the PC via USB to use the Skype remote viewing software. This means the PC must stay on as well. Unlike the LNC104 which is a WiFi device that only needs an internet connection to broadcast.

This system is very nice for a self contained camera system due to the nice monitor. It is nice not to have to launch software to monitor the camera since you can mount the monitor anywhere you want.

Notes:

System only comes with one camera. Extras are not cheap.

Would be nice if it used the same remote monitoring software as the LNC104 so that they could work together.

Camera is indoor/outdoor which is really nice.

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I know this is overkill, but I've been using this as a baby monitor and it is better than excellent for that purpose. My daughter is an on call nurse with a new born. She only lives a couple blocks away, so when she's called into work, she drops my granddaughter by and my hubby Dub and I gladly watch her. She has her own nursery at our house and Dub has set the camera in this security system up facing her crib.

Again, I know this is overkill to the max for this product and that there are a lot of options out there to monitor an infant for a lot less money, but they'd be hard put to match the quality of this excellent screen. And yes, the camera looks a bit strange in a nursery, but I'm used to it now. If you want to use this system for the purpose it was intended, I'm sure it would do an excellent job, because the quality of this unit is first rate. Simply put, this is a wonderful unit.

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