Ubiquiti UniFi UVC-Micro Indoor Security Camera - 1080p HD, Night Vision, Motion Detection - 1 Pack for Home & Office Surveillance

This camera works pretty great, and I love how small and un-obtrusive it is. It is, however quite tricky to set-up, and not well suited to the average home consumer for that reason.I use it without the ubiquiti NVR software or device, which means I have to access it directly by IP, but that's okay, it's exactly what I expected. The description for the UVC-Micro on Amazon is pretty lacking, but the Ubiquiti site has much more detail. I'm relatively knowledgable about wireless networking (it's part of my job), so I had a good idea of how the product I was buying worked, but I don't think that the average person would.It really isn't clear that you also need to buy a Ubiquiti NVR device or run a server with their (free) software on it, in order to get the cloud functionality. The very fact that it's called "cloud" functionality would tend to suggest that you wouldn't need to run your own hardware, in fact (Especially because there ARE other cameras on the market that connect to cloud services without running a local server). I don't think it's a fault of the product itself, but Ubiquiti could do a much better job communicating.Now, here's the rub: Like I said, you do not need to have an NVR to use the UVC-Micro, if all you want to do is check in on it remotely on occasion. However, in order to set up the camera initially, you DO need have a computer running their UniFi Video software, even if you want to do all the setup on your mobile device. This is extra confusing because the literature that comes with the camera does not explicitly note this. The biggest issue is that their software only runs on Windows or Linux. As someone who only has Mac computers (a common use-case!), I was forced to create a Linux VM and fiddle with the VM networking settings in order to get the camera connected. Once I finally got my VM set up with UniFi Video set up and running (which is also challenging, because the software download pages never tell you that the way to operate the software is over a web interface), it took several attempts of updating the software on the camera, that (or another provisioning step) failing, and forcing me to hard-reset the camera, before I got it up and running. Very challenging, and the process would probably be above the skill level of 95% of home consumers.That said, once I got it up, it has stayed up for months, and is working like a champ. I really have been happy with it, once I got it working, hence the 4 stars.Pros:- Great image quality in night-mode and day-mode- Neat magnetic mounting options.- Small and unobtrusive, with an easily-concealable white power cord.- Have had no problems at all accessing it to watch the feed.Cons:- An enormous pain to set up- So non-user-friendly that I wouldn't recommend it to anyone non-technical, unless I knew I'd be able to set it up for them.- Although already small and easy-ish to make look inconspicuous, I wish there was an option for a a white fascia, so it wouldn't look so out of place on a white wall.I have used several different Foscams for various purposes (baby/nanny cam, driveway cam, home security) that I works but one way or another I wish was better. This is a really good solution to set up webcams around if you need to monitor places remotely. The design of this is what initially stands out for me. To begin its' footprint is significantly smaller than most of the webcams available. Next it has a unique swivel base that allows for allows you to angle appropriately wherever you have it located. One thing I wanted to note is that it does not "sit" on a flat surface but rather it was made to be attached to a wall or a corner. Another nice feature this webcam has is an EXTREMELY long power cord but intelligently designed plug which can shorten or lengthen your power cord and nicely hides it within a compartment.It uses it's own network video storage system which you can purchase separately or you can download the software on an "always on" pc that will control the camera. This specific Unifi webcam can be setup with their smartphone app. I had some difficulty setting it up but eventually figured it out. Which brings me to point out that most of Unifi products, although well made and designed, is not necessarily user-friendly. If you have moderate tech knowledge, you can get by but I would imagine someone like my parents, and they would be unable to set this up.Overall picture quality is really good but I have to put a disclaimer that it strongly depends on wifi strength. If you get poor picture quality, I would check to see how strong of a wifi signal there is (the network video application on my pc and on my android app clearly shows which wifi it is connected to and what the strength of the signal is). Recording is an option as well as record on motion.I gave 5 stars because it is probably one of the best webcams available. My only complaint really is I wish there was an option to choose which wifi I could get it to connect to manually. Also I use tinycam app on my android and I only get picture, no sound.*update 6/2016Now that I've used it for some time I wanted to update. There isn't much to say fortunately because it works all well without a hitch. It's not entirely userfriendly but if you can figure out your way around (for example connecting directly to the microcam to turn off the blue light) it is a great ip webcam. There is about a 10second delay between video on the Unifi app on my Android and I believe it's mainly because I have it prerecording several seconds ahead with the motion detection. On my tinycam app it's only a second or two behind, albeit without audio (still can't get it to work on there with the audio).The motion detection recording came really in handy for us as we had to reference back to it several times and it was a breeze. I still highly recommend this as a ip webcam. Small footprint, works flawlessly without me having to tinker around with it ever so often like my foscams. I really appreciate the design as it can swivel on the base easily. I use the 3m mounting sticker when I need to change positioning in the room.I bought this camera thinking it was POE. It's not. It is wifi. It was a breeze to setup with my Unifi NVR but quickly realized it is not the highest of quality. If you have a room bigger than 10 x 12 forget about using it. The camera does not do great in low light situations. I would rate it at best FAIR quality. I have seen someone mention delays. I don't have delays when using the NVR. You will if you use the camera's web portal. That is just how the ubiquiti products are. I'm not sure the web portal is to be utilized as the main tool for viewing the cameras. I attached a screenshot of the camera showing my entry way. You will notice it is a little grainy. In night vision a persons face tends to blend in with the wall and it is hard to make out who the person is from that short distance. Also note that wifi can be an issue with this camera. If your wifi signal is under 60 percent good luck. This location I am right at 70% and the WAP is also Ubiquiti just under that wood floor not even 10 to 12 feet away.The size is a plus. Super easy to mount. The cord wraps up in the plug which is cool but it was a bit hard to squeeze the access cord in the plug since I mounted the camera next to the plug. They expect that cord to be out about 2 feet.