Foscam FI9805W

H.264 720p megapixel IP camera

Available here (though getting phased out): Foscam UK . Foscam Western Australia

The camera I have working successfully with Zoneminder is running the following firmware:

Software Firmware Version 1.4.1.7

Application Firmware Version 1.14.1.21

There are known issues with RTSP streaming on earlier firmwares than the above, with the RTSP connection become unavailable after a few hours when used with Zoneminder (or VLC, for that matter). This often requires a soft or hard reboot of the camera to get it working again. Indeed, even with this firmware, RTSP generates errors, but I've found the following camera settings to be reliable:

Stream Type 0

Resolution 720P

Bit Rate 512K

Frame Rate 10

You may get away with a higher Bit and Frame Rate but, using Zoneminder 1.26.3, I find I get smearing with anything much above what's listed here.

It's also worth noting that the camera halves the Frame Rate when it switches to night view, so the above will give 5fps when it gets dark.

Videostream:

Default settings, with the exception of:

General

Source Type : Ffmpeg

Source

Source Path : rtsp://<username>:<password>@<ip_address>:<port>/videoMain

Target Colorspace : 32 bit colour

Capture Width (pixels) : 1280

Capture Height (pixels) : 720

Note: Using the Camera Webinterface I changed "Main strem video settings"

Resolution 960P

Bit Rate 512K Frame Rate: 8

Key Frame Interval: 10

This is resulting in a more stable stream--Elmargol (talk) 09:33, 20 February 2015 (GMT)

i have found this stream better and showing very little to no lag. i have not reduced the frame rate and the night vision is refreshing correctly.

Default settings, with the exception of:

General

Source Type : Ffmpeg

Source

Source Path : rtsp://<username>:<password>@<ip_address>:<port>/videoSub

Target Colorspace : 32 bit colour

Capture Width (pixels) : 1280

Capture Height (pixels) : 960

M-JPEG:

I got better result using JPEG snapshots. Here I have set up my camera with a resolution of 1280x960.

Default settings, with the exception of:

General

Source Type : remote

Source

Remote host name: <ip_address>

Remote host port: 88 (default for my camera)

Remote host path: /cgi-bin/CGIProxy.fcgi?cmd=snapPicture2&usr=admin&pwd=password

Target Colorspace : 24 bit colour OR 32 bit colour

Capture Width (pixels) : 1280

Capture Height (pixels) : 960

Notes

9805W cameras run at resolution 1280x720 by default with no password. Do not put on WAN. Some 9805W are slower than others. 1 vs. 3 daytime FPS respectively. It's likely there is only one HW rev. so these are an older firmware version. There are steps to update the firmware, but it requires updating firmware in a certain order. Details available online in foscam forums and in firmware update files. Use caution. It takes a while, also.

Note that 9805E and 9805W are essentially the same, but the firmware files are unique to each. Don't flash a 9805E on a 9805W!

These cameras are OK, however occasionally drop out, and are not 100%. For large installations, I recommend you get a different model or brand, as it's not possible to buy these new in most regions (obsoleted). These work well outdoors, but indoors there are better brands you can get.

If the cameras drop out you can use this script which I used at one point on ZM 1.29. I later set cameras to modect, which removed the need for the script. Modect tends to work better (in 1.29). 1.30.4 and 1.32 might also work better.

When setting static ips on these cameras, they have a tendency to fail to set the static, and then require pressing the physical reset button. When this happens, you will set the static, but it won't change, and it won't allow you to login. It doesn't happen all the time, but it can happen. After resetting them, you should be able to set the static.

These cameras also have FTP saving, and some other features, you can add on top of ZM.

See 9804 page for more details, as they share the main CPU board.

Issues

• Some cameras can work 100%, others can dropout occasionally. It's camera dependent.

• MJPEG FPS is limited to 1-4, not adjustable by camera.

• Firmware upgrade is a bear.