Of late, the Cape Coral Police Department was in the news, because its police volunteer trainees regularly make security checks at houses where owners are away on vacation. Fortunately, for this area, the department has 158 volunteers, and these unpaid police officers in training check up to 30 homes per week. In a year, this department checks about 250 homes.

Recently, one trainee found a house burglarized, and the intruder stole a gun, radio and television. Although the burglar wasn’t caught red handed, the officers have evidence as well as immediacy on their side. Homes on a security checklist have a better chance of not being burglarized. However, if they are broken into, there is more of chance that the officers can solve the crime sooner.

Residents in Fort Myers, Florida can request the Cape Coral Police Department to do a house check by visiting the headquarters and filling out a form. Your home can be checked for as many as 30 consecutive days a year. This is an amazing service the department provides. Whether you’re going on vacation or selling your house, a home security check is worthwhile. While not all police departments provide this service, especially if they’re understaffed and underfunded, you can at least inquire about it.

If you’re still on the fence about whether or not to install a hidden camera, it’s beneficial to look at the pros. What can you get out of a hidden camera? Well, there are actually several different roles that a hidden camera can fulfill.

The camera can monitor the outside of your home when you’re not around. With a hidden camera, no one will know that they’re being watched. Plus, you don’t have to worry about a potential burglar tampering with your surveillance camera if they can’t find or see it.

Unfortunately, you can’t trust anyone including close friends, neighbors and sometimes even family members. By having a hidden camera inside of the home, you can solve issues that might arise. For example, you can find out who took your watch or cash that you left on the kitchen counter. Pointing the finger and blaming someone doesn’t do anything if you don’t have proof. The camera might give you some sense of trust with individuals that you were unsure of too.

Nanny cams are beneficial when you have a baby or a younger child and you hire sitter. With the help of hidden cameras, babysitters have been caught abusing and mistreating children. If you have to hire a nanny, it’s hard to entrust them or any other person for that matter with your child. However, with a hidden camera, you can find out how well they are treating your child.

Hidden cameras might give you the creeps, but they can helpful in more ways than one. You will definitely find out who you can trust and who you can’t out of the process.

In order to use this new app, you need to purchase Dropcam’s surveillance cameras, which are priced at $199. The camera requires no computer, and it has a 320 x 240 color resolution. Currently, this model doesn’t have audio, and you can only view the live feed—in the future, the company is planning to enable playback by DVR.

There are three different plans you can choose from Dropcam. The Basic version includes the single camera with live viewing and no recording for free. The Plus includes up to two cameras with live viewing and seven days of recording for $8.95 per month. Last is the Pro version, which includes up to two cameras with live viewing and 30 days of recording for $24.95 per month. With the Pro and Plus plans, your video is stored by Dropcam and isn’t located on your home computer where it can be stolen or tampered with. In other words, you don’t need to be a technology wiz to figure out how you’re going to store and view the video.

In addition to viewing your camera footage from the new iPhone app, you can view it online from any computer as long as it has Adobe’s Flash player installed. From the app, you can view video from other cameras that Dropcam has setup around the world. Right now you can view the Empire State Building in New York, Dropcam’s offices in San Francisco, Calif. and Interstate 5 located in Del Mar, Calif.

Dropcam is just one surveillance camera company you can work with. Their competition includes Avaak’s Vue and Logitech’s Wilife. However, the Vue camera is battery operated, and the Wilife needs to be setup with a computer.

Having the ability to protect your home from harm is convenient, especially if you’re frequently on the road. Plus, the app makes it easy to view what’s going on at your house even while you’re at home. So if you hear a noise that concerns you, just check your video footage from your phone without even getting up!

Cost-Effective
Home alarms systems can be a costly expense every month, so if you don’t have enough room in your budget for a security system, install the cameras instead. The price of surveillance cameras range, so you’re sure to find ones that you can afford.

Versatility
Technology has improved drastically in your favor. You can install surveillance cameras and view what’s going on in your home on your home computer, mobile phone or via the Internet. If you travel regularly, you can relieve some stress knowing that your house and belongings are safe.

High Protection
If an intruder decides to break into your home, you now will have evidence of the event and possibly a view of the person’s face or license plate. The cameras also act as a deterrent, because the burglar isn’t going to want to risk getting caught.

Easy Installation
Setting up security cameras inside and outside your home is simple DIY project. Even if the instructions that come with the camera don’t spell it out well enough for you, you can always get additional information online. The process is so easy, you might even want to add cameras to your workplace too.

Easy Monitoring
Do you have children or pets? This is an excellent way to monitor your children if they’re home with a new babysitter, or you can check on your pets while you’re at work. If you have a teenager who enjoys staying at home while you run errands, the security cameras can give you some peace of mind. Plus, your teenager can find out who is at the door by looking on the computer instead of opening the door to a stranger.

With a security camera, you can literally see what’s going on in and around your home when you’re at work, on vacation, out playing, etc. Many of today’s systems can even be hooked up to your computer so you can check your cameras via a special web page that lets you monitor your home 24/7.

When it comes to security camera options, you need to decide what you’re looking for and how much money you want to spend.

A fully monitored home security system with multiple security cameras indoors and out will cost you a pretty penny (thousands of dollars).  However there are many do-it-yourself home surveillance systems on the market today that you can install with some basic home improvement know-how.  Wireless systems, in particular, are a lot less work when it comes to installation and can be set up without professional help.

Let’s assume you don’t want to spend a fortune and take a look at some of the DIY options.

Security Camera Options

Complete home surveillance kit systems — Many of the DIY kits are adaptable for a wide variety of home uses.  They will come with several cameras (and there is often an option to buy add-on pieces) and may include such perks as internet monitoring tie-ins (you’ll usually pay a monthly service fee for this feature though).  Wireless kits are the norm these days, and since there are no cables to hide behind walls or trenches to dig outdoors, installation is fairly simple.

Hidden security cameras – Hidden cameras or “nanny cams” are small units that are meant to go unnoticed.  For home security purposes, a visible security camera is often better than a hidden one (since just seeing a camera can cause burglars to choose a different location), but many people like to install one or more hidden units to monitor baby sitters, house sitters, house cleaners, etc. to ensure the hired help is staying honest.

Fake security cameras — The cheapest option is the one that doesn’t involve buying a real camera at all.  You can get fake models that look like working security cameras, complete with blinking LEDs and the works, but that don’t actually record anything.  Of course, these won’t help you identify a burglar if you are robbed, but just as some folks stick up home security company stickers when they don’t have a system, some like to install these fake cameras in hopes of scaring off burglars.

But today we won’t talk about the technical stuff; we’re just going to discuss the hidden vs. not hidden debate.

When to Place Your Security Camera in Plain Sight

If you’re like a lot of homeowners, you may nod in satisfaction at the idea of catching a thief in the act.  This is why many folks try to hide even their outdoor security cameras, obscuring them with shrubbery and the like.

The problem with this thinking is that even if you get footage of a thief… they’ve still got your stuff.  You may or may not ever see any of that again, and who knows if the footage will actually be good enough to allow police to catch a thief and then convict him or her in a court of law.

In most casts, it’s better to display a security camera in plain sight.  This is because a visible camera acts as a deterrent, telling would-be thieves that your home is under surveillance and there may be other security system components installed as well.

When a thief sees a security camera, he or she is likely to move onto the next house without ever bothering you or your belongings.  This is a far better scenario than catching someone on tape, since by the time you or the police actually arrive, chances are the thief will be gone with a bunch of your stuff.  It’s better to keep them from encroaching on your property in the first place.

When to Use a Hidden Security Camera

So, if we want thieves to be deterred by the sight of a camera, is there ever truly a case for a hidden security camera?

Sure.

The most practical use is to observe people you’ve hired to work for you in your home.  For example, you may feel more comfortable leaving your kids with a new baby sitter, if you know you can secretly “check in” while you’re at work or out to dinner or what have you.  A hidden security camera, or “nanny cam,” let’s you test the integrity of the individual in a way that a visible security camera doesn’t (while a visible camera can thwart undesirable behavior, it doesn’t really let you know if that person is honest or if the camera is just making them so… until an opportunity presents itself).

If a hidden camera or nanny cam is what you’re looking for, you can get something like this SVAT GX5204 Wireless pinhole hidden security camera, which is small enough that it can be placed above or behind just about anything.

Security mirrors like these make a lot of sense and are cheaper to install–and simpler to monitor–than complex surveillance systems that record activity in every nook in cranny.  And, as you may have guessed from the title here, a security mirror need not only be for commercial establishments.

Residential Security Mirrors

Take a look around your yard, especially the entrances to your house (front, back, side, garage, etc.).  Are there any places someone could hide, waiting to ambush you while you’re fumbling for the keys with an arm full of groceries?

If you think about it, there are often moments when you’re going into or coming out of the house where you are quite vulnerable.  This is why it can make sense to install a home security mirror.

Other Uses

Mirrors can also make sense outside of a thieves-in-the-bushes home security context.  For instance, if you have a lot of bushes at the end of your driveway, backing out into the road can be hazardous. The same is true if your garage is right off a street or alley, and the walls themselves block your vision until your car is largely out of the garage.

If you can’t see oncoming traffic until your vehicle is halfway into the road, it can be an accident waiting to happen.  You could possibly hit another car, a wandering cat or dog, or even children.  Consider placing an outdoor mirror strategically so you can see what’s back there before you start inching out into the street.

Type of Security Mirror for Home Use?

When you start browsing the mirror section of the security store, you can find quite a few options.  Dome mirrors, corner dome mirrors, rectangular mirrors, convex, roundtangular (who comes up with these names?), etc.

For home use, a simple round convex mirror is probably all you need.  These can be used for garage and driveway exits, and they can allow you to see down side alleys alongside your house and nooks and crannies near your entrances.

As far as installation goes, you typically get everything you need when you buy the mirror.  It doesn’t take a security pro to attach one to the side of the house, though you’ll want to experiment a bit before installing it, to ensure you’re getting the best possible vantage point.

In spots where the sun may strike the mirror, or nighttime security lighting could cause glare, you may want to get a sun visor to attach to the top (this feature will cost extra).

A home security DVR is a digital video recorder that stores camera images and sometimes even live video feeds.  Think of it as TiVo for your indoor and outdoor cameras.

For less than $500, you can get a system that includes a DVR set and four cameras: Q-see 4CH Dvr with 250GB HDD & 4 Cmos Cameras

If you already have cameras, you can also buy stand-alone DVR systems for less than $200: Q-See QSD004-160 4 Channel Motion Detection DVR with Pre-installed 160GB Hard Drive

Do make sure to read reviews and do your research before making a purchase though. You often get what you pay for when you pick up the really low end (read: cheap) models.

Home Security DVR Hard Drives

Before you buy, make sure you know whether or not the DVR comes with a hard drive. This should be included but sometimes the manufacturers will offer bare bones systems that are inexpensive but require you to purchase a hard drive separately.

Different DVR recorders come with different size hard drives, and you may wonder how much storage space you need.

This depends largely on how you plan to use the camera DVR system. Will you only have the cameras record when motion is detected? You don’t need much space if that is the case. Or will you be recording what’s going on in and around your premises 24/7? You’ll need a much larger DVR hard drive to store continuous footage, especially if you’re away for extended periods at a time.

Typical DVR Features

If you’re simply looking for an effective DVR system that works with your cameras (and you’re not looking to spend a lot of money), then you might not get a lot of features. Some features you might want to look for, though, are:

• A counter — this makes it easier to check what was going on at a certain time during the day or night
• High resolution image quality — in order to save space, some systems don’t allow a high resolution image quality, but if your camera is high resolution and you want to be able to clearly see faces and what not, you may want to go with one that allows a better image quality
• Motion detection — if you choose a DVR with a smaller hard drive, you may want a surveillance system that only starts recording if something happens
• USB transfer compatibility — if you think you’d like to transfer images to your computer for permanent storage, then look for a system that allows for this
• Manual deletion of recordings — some DVRs handle file deletion (they delete old stuff when the drive becomes full) and don’t let you delete manually
• Audio playback — if your cameras can record audio as well as visual, it makes sense to buy a DVR that supports this feature

Even though basic units don’t always have all the bells and whistles (or even simple conveniences), the affordability of home security DVR systems today is great. Where security and surveillance systems like this once set you back thousands of dollars, it’s possible to set up a decent system today for less than $500.