Watch my plants grow with me! Introducing the Ellz GrowCam!

[ellz]

UPDATED POST:
The Ellz GrowCam LIVE view is currently down. Here is the most recent live video:

Feel free to subscribe to my YouTube channel for the latest time lapse videos! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7Z...pnwuazYQD6URA/
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Old post:
Hey GWE community! Today I picked up a Blink X2 home surveillance camera to install in my grow room so that I can check on my plants any time, from anywhere. I also wanted to invite all of you to watch my plants grow with me if you would like! Each day, I will be uploading a short clip of the day's progress to YouTube then sharing the link on here for all of you to see. Please note, these videos are not public, but rather visible only to people with the url so I only ask that you don't share the link outside of the GWE community.

A little bit about the camera:
The Blink X2 is a battery powered (2 AA lithium batteries) and it connects to your WiFi so that you can monitor the camera from your smartphone. You can't monitor on your PC at the present time, only on an Android or iPhone. Also, your videos are stored on the cloud then you can download them or share them from there. You are limited on storage space but you can pay to upgrade if you choose. I don't plan on doing that since I can store my videos on YouTube for free. One super cool feature is that the camera tells you the ambient temperature where it is located so at any time I can see the temp in my grow room just by checking the camera! You can also set it to send alerts to your phone when the temp gets too high or too low. Cool right?!

Here is today's video:

[Farmall]

You can also do this using the WYZE cam. This is an inexpensive series of cameras about the size of a 2” cube. They get more deluxe if you prefer but the base model is $24.95. It works wonderfully on either Android or iPhone, takes snapshots as well, notifies you of any movement or sound, has night vision and you don’t need batteries. It uses a usb power cord. You can even easily set it up for time lapse video recording. For your blink cam, try using a program on your PC called “BLUESTACKS”. It emulates the android OS and you can add you app as it it was a phone or tablet. Then launch it to view and record they way you do currently

[ellz]

Do you know if the WYZE cam reads temp?

[Doubledealing72]

I don't believe it does. I have one, and it works great! Lately, I've had it set up so I can find which dog is stealing a loaf of bread 🤣🤣

It has been a successful tool

[ellz]

🤣🤣 cool, thanks

[quirk]

You kids and your gadgets.

[Farmall]

Thanks. 7 decades I should by now! 😆

[smoorman]

The WYZE cam does not read temp itself. You can remotely pan and zoom to whatever thermometer you have nearby. The night vision is excellent. I got mine at Lowes. Great bargain.

[ellz]

The only thing I will say for the Blink is that it not only tells you the temperature, but it will also send you an alert if the temp goes above or below whatever you set. Plus, I wouldn't be able to see my temp sensor with the camera because I leave it on my reservoir so I know what the temp/humidity is at the plants. Finally, the other thing is the ability to run only on batteries. Like I had mentioned somewhere else, my garage is limited on amps thanks to the crummy job the builders did of only adding ONE LINE to my garage. I know that's probably standard for most builders but it really sucks for the homeowner who needs more than just one 20 amp circuit.

[ellz]

Here's today's video...

[ellz]

UPDATE: I ended up moving the camera to a new position in hopes of getting a more stable connection (it's in a detached garage a good ways away from my wifi node). I also changed the settings to the lowest setting since it requires less bandwidth. If I can get a better signal, I will change the quality but for now, it's not too bad with the low setting.

Here's the most recent video:

As you can see, I have added my heater and a humidifier. It mists over the res so the plants can benefit from it the most before it escapes through the vent fan. It's virtually impossible to keep the relative humidity above 40% without a much larger humidifier (which I don't have the amps for). Hopefully, once the plant is growing it will go up.

[Farmall]

Hey ellz. Does the camera have a time-lapse setting as well ?

[ellz]

No. Unfortunately that is not one of the features. I plan on sending an email in to customer support asking if they could possibly add that feature to the app. For now I plan on just editing all the clips together at the end of the grow and making a time-lapse video from that.

[Farmall]

Good luck, that would make it nice...does this blink cam have an option for extra memory? That’s what makes the WYZE cam work well..it has a slot for 32gb ram so you can record movements or time lapse and you can define time frame and speed

[ellz]

There is no option for expanding the memory other than expanding it on the cloud (or saving it to your device to free up space).

[ellz]

One quick update: I swapped back to "standard" video mode which is the middle setting.

Here's today's video:

[ellz]

MAJOR UPDATE!!!!

So after careful consideration, I'm returning the Blink. It's nice but it lacks way too many features for the price. I looked at the Wyze cam and it was okay but it's limited to a 32GB max for the micro sd slot. Then I found the Amcrest ProHD 1080p WiFi camera that is PERFECT!!! It not only does time lapse but it can take a 64gb card and I can monitor it on my computer!! It's one of the few that offers that ability these days. Most want you do view via an app on Android or iOS with zero support for PC. Not Amcrest! They made what looks like the perfect option for me. I ordered it on sale for $40 (almost half what the Blink cost) and it has pan/tilt and zoom. Until it arrives, I'll be using the Blink.

For anyone who may be interested, the black Amcrest ProHD 1080P WiFi Cam 2MP is on sale through Monday at Newegg.com: https://www.newegg.com/amcrest-ip2m-...quicklink=true

[9fingerleafs]

I found a brand called eufy when looking for doorbells and they also offer local storage and WiFi feed. They have smart software so you can program things like what parts of an image trigger the motion sensors and that sort of stuff

[ellz]

New camera should be here Friday. Super excited.

[Farmall]

I for one, look forward to it...the time lapse should be more interesting in a 30 second clip...👍

[ellz]

And naturally, because the world has a joy for sticking it to me this week, the camera is delayed. It left Denver yesterday MORNING and hasn't been seen since. If anyone ever needs a sports team to lose, just ask me to root for them because with the luck I have, it's a guaranteed loss!

[UndergroundFarmer]

If it worked retroactively, I'd have you root for the '85-'87 Miami Hurricanes.

[ellz]

Still no update on the camera other than it left Denver on Thursday morning. I really don't know what to do because it's a UPS/USPS hybrid ship and when I tried to inquire about it through UPS (who was the last to have it) they can't investigate it. I am basically hoping that it's either found in the next few days or maybe the seller (Newegg) will let me mark it "Lost" after the 4-7 business day window. Just bummed because I was really wanting to get this post up again. If I hear anything, I'll let you know.

[ellz]

Finally got them to issue a claim since it's been missing since Thursday. Probably will be waiting another few weeks or longer.

[Farmall]

Even Amazon Prime deliverys suck now more than ever...if they think they’re charging me for the last 2 months... I’m out

[ellz]

According to USPS, the camera is now out for delivery. Hopefully I get it today and I can get my feed back up.