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I am my own spy: A personal surveillance story
One of the first webcams I purchased was a Dropcam several years ago. We'd had a couple of package thefts, and I wanted to see if I could catch the perpetrator in the act. I positioned the camera at our front window, with the lens pointed at the steps leading up to the front door. Alas, I never did catch anyone because we never had any more package thefts. Maybe they were scared off by the presence of a camera, or maybe they realized their folly when one of the packages they'd stolen was simply a bag of cat litter.
Nest services go down for the third time in three weeks
Tonight owners of Nest devices are reporting (as show on Down Detector, Twitter and Reddit) that access to their thermostats, cameras and other devices has been cut off by an outage. While that can happen occasionally, this is the third time in as many weeks that the system has had a widespread problem, following similar blackouts on November 27th and November 15th. So far the company's support accounts say only that they've received reports and are investigating -- we'll let you know if we hear any details on a reason behind the recent disconnects or word on when it will be back up. Update: Nest tells us the service is back up, and based on user reports, most had access again within 20 - 30 minutes of this latest outage. There's still no word on the cause, however this bird has been ruled out.
Apple fills new hardware team with ex-Google satellite execs
Apple has hired two people with intriguing backgrounds in the field of satellite technology: John Fenwick, the former head of Google's spacecraft business, and Michael Trela, the ex-lead of Google's satellite engineering group. Bloomberg reports the hires, citing people familiar with the matter.
Nest security cameras can be knocked out via Bluetooth
Your connected security camera might not be as trustworthy a defense as you think. Security researcher Jason Doyle has published details of three vulnerabilities in the Nest Cam, Dropcam and Dropcam Pro that lets an attacker disable their recording over Bluetooth. Two of them, which rely on sending excessively long WiFi data, will trigger a memory overflow that makes the camera crash and reboot. The third exploit tricks the camera into temporarily disconnecting from WiFi by making it try to connect to another network.
Silk Labs Sense: Not your typical home monitoring camera
As useful as Nest's Dropcam is, it isn't the best looking home monitoring camera. Still, there aren't many of them that do a better job design-wise. Silk Labs, a startup founded by Mozilla's former CTO, Andreas Gal, sees this as an opportunity to offer something different. Enter Sense, which is similar to Dropcam in functionality but also comes with a few notable differences. For example, it's said to be smart enough to recognize multiple faces; that can be used to let you know if it thinks a stranger is in your home, or play music based on a particular individual's taste.
Kodak has a new surveillance camera to compete with Nest Cam
Google's Nest Cam, previously known as Dropcam, is without a doubt one of the most preferred home monitoring camera brands. But Kodak doesn't want to be left behind, and today it introduced an upgraded video surveillance camera as part of its CFH-V series. The new model, called the CFH-V20, features a 180-degree field of view, night vision and WiFi capabilities (including a built-in signal extender. It also comes with IFTTT integration, letting you pair the device with third-party automation apps and services, as well as lifetime one-day cloud storage that lets you watch any HD recording from the past 24 hours. Kodak's V20 is available now for $150, which is about $50 cheaper than the Nest Cam.
Nest outage cuts remote users off from Dropcams, thermostats (update)
If you're trying to login to a Nest (or Dropcam) account at the moment, you probably can't. The company acknowledged a service problem with the mobile and web app on its Twitter account, but so far there are no details about what's behind the problem. Thermostat owners can still change their temperature the old-fashioned way, by walking up to it and fiddling with the device, but that's probably the kind of experience they were trying to get away from. The same probably goes for those with the Nest Protect smoke alarms, although we're hoping no one finds out for sure before things are back up and running. Dropcam users don't seem to have any kind of direct interface workaround for the time being, so they'll just have to wait until access via the cloud is restored. Update: As of midnight (ET), it appears service is back up, we're able to log in and many readers say it's working for them too. Nest tweeted that service is restored, if we hear anything about what caused things to go down for a few hours, we'll let you know. [Thanks, Michael]
Nest Cam review: a slightly better Dropcam
Keeping an eye on your family, pets, neighbors and maybe a thief or two is the pitch for the Nest Cam. The evolution of the Dropcam Pro WiFi camera isn't much more than a modest hardware upgrade with the Nest name now attached. And while the $199 device shoots higher-quality images and features a better stand, unlike the other two products in Nest's lineup, it doesn't work with anything else you might have in your connected home. Still, it's a great way to keep tabs on your abode while you're away.
Nest's home monitoring camera is a sleeker Dropcam
In one of the worst kept secrets in recent history, Nest revealed its new Nest Cam wireless camera. It borrows heavily from Dropcam, a recent Nest acquisition, but has a thinner profile. The new camera shoots 1080p video, is slimmer than the Dropcam and has a new magnetic base with a tripod mount. It also sports better night vision with eight built-in infrared LEDs and improved algorithms. Like its predecessor, the Nest Cam and companion service includes live video streams to mobile devices and a CDR (Cloud video Recording) service that records up to 30 days of footage via Nest Aware. The camera is available for order today for $199. It will ship next week in the US, and in early July in the UK, where it'll be priced at £159. The Nest Aware subscription will cost $10 a month (or £8 in the UK) for the first camera and half that for each additional one for 10 days of video playback history. For 30 days of playback, it's $30 (£24) for the first camera and half that again for every extra lens.
Nest's first home camera will look familiar, but its app won't
If you've been wondering what kind of home monitoring camera Nest would make after buying Dropcam... well, don't expect a revolution. Droid-Life has posted leaked details revealing that the companies' first joint product, nicknamed the Nest Cam, looks similar to earlier Dropcam models. The biggest hardware changes should be 1080p video streaming and simpler pairing through Bluetooth. This last part might have been confirmed in a recent FCC filing.
Google sends a Glass-like mystery device through the FCC
Google might have just hinted at the future of its Glass headsets. The company has sent a mystery "smart BLE" (Bluetooth Low Energy) device to the FCC for approval, the A4R-CAP1, and there are a few telltale signs that it's one of Mountain View's wearables. Most notably, the product's digital FCC label (shown below) not only looks a lot like a Glass interface card, but requires that you swipe to see it -- that suggests a touchstrip, as you'd use on Google's eyepiece. Mentions of an Android-like firmware revision and a battery help, too. There's the possibility that this is another gadget that simply happens to use Glass-style navigation, but that seems less than likely. Don't be surprised if you're eventually plunking CAP1 on your head.
Nest is losing both its tech VP and the CEO of Dropcam
Google's plan for a connected home including Nest and Dropcam lost a few family members today. Nest's Vice President of Technology Yoky Matsuoka and Dropcam cofounder Greg Duffy have left for other ventures, according to The Verge's sources. Matsuoka's joining Twitter while Duffy's next move isn't known at this point. Nest and Twitter, for their part, offered us an official "no comment" when we asked for confirmation of the departures. Matsuoka's Twitter profile looks relatively new, with her sole two follows being Alex Roettler and Dock Costolo -- Twitter's VP of engineering and its CEO, respectively. Update (2/2): Yoky Matsuoka has also confirmed her departure -- appropriately in a tweet -- and that she will be the VP of Technology and Analytics at Twitter.
Dropcam will give you a free replacement camera if yours is too old
Normally, companies don't do much for you when they stop supporting a device. They'll give you a too-bad-so-sad notice and ask you to buy their latest gear. Not Dropcam, however. The Nest-owned company is ditching support for both its original home security camera and the Echo on April 15th, but it's also launching a replacement program that will get you a free Dropcam HD if you own one of the older models. You'll have to switch to a new subscription plan if you want the cam to be useful for cloud video recording, but there otherwise aren't any strings attached -- Dropcam will maintain legacy service for free until the cutoff date, and refund the difference if you've paid for a yearly plan. This isn't really an altruistic gesture (the company makes at least $99 per year from your subscription), but it'll at least take some of the pain out of switching to newer technology.
Petcube's WiFi camera lets you play with your pet, remotely
Sometimes your Tuesday is going horribly and the only way to fix it is face time with your four-legged best friend. We've likely all been there. Petcube wants to help make those bad days melt away with its WiFi-enabled pet camera. More than simply offering video and two-way audio communication via smartphone app (both Android and iOS are supported), each camera has a built-in laser pointer that you can control remotely by dragging your finger across your mobile's screen. We saw it in action with cats in San Francisco (pictured above), and it was pretty cute watching felines chase around a red dot controlled by one of Petcube's employees standing next to us at CES in Las Vegas. The outfit says you can grant access to your camera, too, so people besides you can, say, exercise your pets if you're a bit too busy. Naturally, they just need to download the app to their device of choice.
Nest devices now talk to the rest of your automated home
Nest's thermostat and Protect smoke detector may help automate your home, but they haven't actually talked directly to home automation systems so far -- a bit of a discrepancy, don't you think? All should be well now, though, since the Works with Nest program has just expanded to support the whole-home automation gear from Control4, Crestron, RTI and URC. If you're fortunate enough to have one of those systems, you can now integrate Nest equipment with home theaters, lighting and anything else that talks to one of the supported control hubs.
Nest is acquiring Dropcam for $555 million
Nest has just announced that it'll be purchasing IP camera company Dropcam for $555 million. According to Re/code, Nest is acquiring the firm on its own without the assistance of Google, its parent company, and will be incorporating Dropcam into the Nest brand. Dropcam makes one of the more popular WiFi surveillance cameras on the market and most recently released an advanced Pro version for $199 late last year. Along with the hardware, Dropcam also provides a service that lets you view what the camera's seeing via the web or a dedicated Android or iOS app. There's an optional subscription plan that'll give you access to Dropcam's Cloud Recording service that records video as well. We're not entirely sure yet on how Dropcam will work in concert with Nest's smart thermostats and smoke alarms, but we imagine it'll open more possibilities for the connected home. Update: We've since corroborated with Nest that it has indeed purchased Dropcam outside of Google.
Dropcam can now tell the difference between your cat and boyfriend
Wi-Fi-connected surveillance camera Dropcam can be useful for checking on your special furball when you're away from home. However, movement from an enthusiastic scratching post session registers the same as a burglar running off with your flatscreen, making it a less than ideal for security. That means you either have to deal with constant push notifications, or run the risk you're getting robbed. Today Dropcam announced that an update coming August will allow the cams to differentiate between people and pets. The company created an algorithm for picking out Fluffy without using depth sensors like other systems by analyzing hours of publicly-shared videos. That means she can keep on frolicking in that sun spot, and you don't have to hear about it all day.
Daily Roundup: Fitbit Force fitness watch, Twitter's Event Parrot, Pantech Vega Secret Note and more!
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
Dropcam Pro launched with better optics, dual-band WiFi and Bluetooth for $199 (hands-on)
Before 2012, Dropcam was a software outlet famous for integrating its camera tech into other people's hardware. However, it knew that in order to grow, the company needed to get into the hardware business as well. So, it hired some of the team behind Cisco's Flip video cameras to create the Dropcam HD -- one of a few IP shooters on the market that offered 720p video at an affordable price. Little did the Dropcam folks know, of course, that the device would be a big hit, pushing revenues 500 percent higher than it'd ever experienced. The Dropcam Pro, then, is version two. The new unit is a considerable upgrade from its precedessor, with an entirely redesigned optical system that includes a six-element all-glass lens. This is still a rarity in WiFi cameras -- even the HD lens is mostly glass with plastic making up the rest. "There's a limit to how good of a resolution you can get with plastic... it's just not as exact as glass," CEO Greg Duffy tells us. There's more to the Pro than just the glass lens of course, and we'll detail more of what's new about the Pro and give our hands-on impressions after the break.
Dropcam powers up connected video with new Pro camera
Do you have pets or family members you enjoy checking in on remotely? Or a home that makes you nervous when you're not physically in it, worrying about your stuff? When you think about ways to soothe your anxiety and keep an eye on the things you care about, the mountable, networked, USB-powered, WiFi-connected cameras of Dropcam are there to help. Today, the camera and cloud video company is announcing its revamped, souped-up camera: Dropcam Pro. The improved unit takes the features of the older Dropcam HD (now renamed to just "Dropcam") and improves video, audio (two-way talk), wireless connectivity, night vision -- even adding Bluetooth LE support to position the Pro as a potential hub for the connected home. The iOS Dropcam apps have been revamped too, with direct setup for cameras and a Hollywood-style "zoom and enhance" mode that has to be seen to be believed. The genesis of the original Dropcam, launched in 2009, began with the founder's father and a wayward pooch. "My dad wanted to catch the neighbor's dog pooping in his yard," CEO Greg Duffy says. But the challenges of rigging networked cameras and getting a finicky PC to serve as a DVR were too much for even a technically sophisticated guy, and Duffy teamed up with co-founder and COO Aamir Virani to build a cloud solution to make everything work together, out of the box. Now the core use cases of "Parents, Pets & Property" are all big business for Dropcam, but Duffy points out that there's a very long tail of other use cases -- animal adoption centers with an adopt-a-cam, small businesses that want to share a view or (one of his favorites) live streaming from the back of a 16-year-old tortoise. The new Dropcam Pro sports a larger image sensor for better standard and low-light performance, and an all-glass lens for max clarity. It covers a 130-degree field of view -- and when you use the pinch-zoom-enhance feature, you can identify a smaller area of that wide field and watch it magically clear up as the camera selectively streams just that section of the image. It's a CSI-style feature that will definitely impress your friends as you easily identify exactly what Fido is chewing on back at home. My testing of Dropcam bore out the coolness of the zoom feature, and also the dead-simple setup -- connecting the camera to a laptop for a few minutes was enough to get the WiFi connectivity rolling, and anyone with an iPhone 4S or newer plus the latest Dropcam app can set up directly from their phone. The video and audio quality was definitely a step up from Axis or other IP cameras, with plenty of detail and good responsiveness. "At its core, Dropcam is a software and services company. That means Dropcam gets better over time with hassle-free automatic updates to the camera, cloud service, and apps," says Duffy. That optional Cloud Video Recording (starting at US$9.95/mo for a seven-day history, $29.95 for 30 days) means that customers can access stored footage or share it out easily to other services. Dropcam Pro will be hitting shelves at $199, while Dropcam (formerly Dropcam HD) continues at $149. Both cameras are available today at Amazon.com and Dropcam.com; other physical retail outlets are on the way.
