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[mehow88]

hi. I am new on this forum so if I am not asking in the right place please move this topic.

I am a new owner of DCS-932L as I have just ordered it.

I have a few questions I'd like to ask from you:

Firstly, is the internal store 32MB or 32GB? The official site indicates that it's a 32MB (http://mydlink.dlink.com/products/DCS-932L) but UK's Argos says 32GB http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/1415924.htm#pdpFullProductInformation.
That's a huge difference from my point of view as I am planning to record nights(only). Obviously I will be sleeping at night so I'd like to be able to go back and fast-forward the night to see if anything unusual has happened overnight (I don't want to rely on the movement sensors as for example dogs would ruin the idea behind it anyway).

Secondly, I haven't set up recording yet as I am unsure about my options; do I need a machine with a huge store turned on 24/7 to be able to record all night or is the internal camera store enough to store recording night's worth?

What are other possibilities in terms of recoding a night's long video? I read about FTP but would I need to buy/rent a server/service to be able to set that up? Is there a micro-card slot anywhere that could be used as a temporary storage or do I have to buy the DCS-942L model?

Im looking forward to your answers and thanks for your time, much appreciated.

[JavaLawyer]

The DCS-932L does not have any internal storage available for recording. The internal memory is reserved for firmware and user settings. Saving motion detection events is only possible through automatic pushing motion captures as email attachments or to an FTP storage location.  That said, the DCS-932L does not have the capability to record video and can only records still images at user defined intervals. Newer model Cloud cameras can record video.

[mehow88]

Thank you for your answer. It's very valuable to me.

What model would you recommend that is capable of recording ~12hr long at optimal quality?

[JavaLawyer]

There are several different routes you can follow. D-Link has a free software product called D-ViewCam (which I should have mentioned in my first post) that can be installed on a PC. If you link the DCS-932L to D-ViewCam, the software can record streaming video on your PC from the DCS-932L (or any D-Link Cloud camera model). The one caveat is that you'll need to keep the PC + software running 24x7, to ensure everything is recorded.

The DCS-933L is the successor to the DCS-932L and has the capability to record video.  The DCS-933L also has sound detection, which can be used to trigger video recording based on sound. The DCS-933L has better video quality than the DCS-932L. Using the DCS-933L, you can record video using either D-ViewCam or recording to a FTP storage location.  

The DCS-942L is an older model, but does have the internal SD Card slot for recording and playback and PIR for motion detection. For ~<$100 you can purchase the DCS-5010L, which has the same functionality as the DCS-933L (no SD Card slot), but has motorized pan/tilt, if that's a feature you're interested in. There are other models that are more expensive with an SD card slot and HD quality video as well.

[JavaLawyer]

As an addendum to my last post:

Recording to an FTP location on any of these cameras will store video files as ~10 second interval video clips. So during a full night, you'll have lots of those clips if you're recording straight through. If you use motion detection for recording, video clips should only be generated if the camera picks up a motion detection event, which will save storage space.

[mehow88]

Thank you very much JavaLawyer for your valuable answers. I really appreciate your help. Thanks to you I have changed my mind and rather become an owner of the DCS-942L, a bit older but with the ability to record to a SD card which is the feature I was kind of hunting for as I don't want to have a machine running 24/7.

Thanks again and good luck!

[JavaLawyer]

After you get the camera, make sure to update to the latest firmware posted on the DCS-942L board on this forum as there were many fixes that will substantially impact functionality.

Feel free to post back with any additional questions!