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War Driving Version 2.0

Posted by timothy on from the community-access-television dept.

asv108 writes: "There is an interesting article in the New York Times about the popularity of wireless cameras from X10 and how easy it is to easedrop on the feeds with relatively inexpensive equipment from up to a 1/4 mile away." I wonder if they're doing the things the X10 ads imply they might be doing.

11 of 182 comments (clear)

  1. Implications. by saintlupus · · Score: 5, Funny

    I wonder if they're doing the things the X10 ads imply they might be doing.

    Yeah, because hot chicks in skimpy outfits love guys with nothing better to do than fuck around with obscure protocols.

    That's one of the many reasons RMS gets all the ladies, right?

    --saint

  2. no no no by nomadic · · Score: 5, Funny

    I wonder if they're doing the things the X10 ads imply they might be doing.

    You've got it all wrong; X10 is meant to protect and safeguard your family. All those half-dressed women in the ads are simply burglars, removing their bulky clothing so they can slither in through your window and steal your stuff.

  3. My favorite quote by usermilk · · Score: 5, Funny
    The nanny who decided to take off her dress and clean up the house in her underwear would probably have no recourse"

    If only it was true...

    1. Re:My favorite quote by artemis67 · · Score: 5, Funny

      The nanny who decided to take off her dress and clean up the house in her underwear would probably have no recourse"

      If only it was true...

      Hmmm, there's something about middle-aged, overweight Venezualan women that just doesn't do it for me....

  4. For a good time... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Call 1-800-564-8982

    Press 2, then 5228. Enjoy!

    I'm sure all /. editors should be very familiar with it...

    1. Re:For a good time... by dr_labrat · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Soooo, for those of us not in the states, or too lazy to pick up a fone... WTF is it?

      --
      The secret of success is honesty and fair dealing. If you can fake those, you've got it made. (Marx)
  5. Re:dumb law, bad law by dattaway · · Score: 5, Informative

    The one I got from X10 runs at 2.4GHz. These things are like visual CB's or walkietalkies.

    All you need is the receiver to pick up a very nice picture and the range is incredible. Its too easy to fashion a crumpled up piece of aluminum foil around the antenna to concentrate the signal for dramatic range increases across the city.

    Pass laws against receiving these? That's like banning the receive mode on CB radios. Its pretty much public airspace. Its an anarchy that people need to learn how to use if they want any privacy.

  6. Receiving Equipment by BingoBoingo · · Score: 5, Informative
    The wireless video camera, which is heavily advertised on the Internet, is intended to send its video signal to a nearby base station, allowing it to be viewed on a computer or a television. But its signal can be intercepted from more than a quarter-mile away by off-the-shelf electronic equipment costing less than $250.


    Or you could just order a reciever from X10 for $49. Maybe he was buying the 6 camera pack with eagle eye motion sensors and the auto vcr kit for the $250.

    If you order from X10, what ever you do, make sure you give them a disposable e-mail address because they will send you so much spam, you will long for the days when all you received was viagra and porn e-mails.

    -Bingo

  7. Read the story... by OrangeHairMan · · Score: 5, Informative

    ...with out registering with The New York Times:

    http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=68 &ncid=68&e=1&u=/nyt/20020413/ts_nyt/nanny_cam_may_ leave_a_home_exposed

    Orange

  8. A start anyway by interiot · · Score: 5, Informative
    From X10 themselves:

    Here's How XCam2 Works, and
    X10 cameras and Video Senders use the following frequencies: 2.411GHz, 2.434GHz, 2.453GHz, 2.473GHz. So something like this (the Icom IC-R3) might work, as it can quickly scan the frequencies you're looking for and lock on one once a signal is found.

    Also, from the XCam2 manual: "Refer to the setup and operating instructions that came with the 2.4 GHz Video Receiver, Model VR31A or
    VR36A (sold separately) to set up the Receiver.". In other words, one only needs to buy said on of the suggested receivers for $50-$90 and scan those four channels manually.

  9. Re:Ooooh, scary by dsoltesz · · Score: 5, Interesting
    Well, we picked up a set of X10's that were coming with the rotating base. Our purpose was to transmit goofy "web cam" and home monitoring stuff -- video of the bird feeders, the dogs in the backyard (we're curious what they do all day to entertain themselves you see), spy on the cats (how in the hell did they get up there?), and as a cheap image capture for the telescope. It hadn't occurred to us the phone was also running at 2.4 GHz, which interfered with the picture. We unplugged the phone, played for a while, then packed everything up and sent it all back -- we weren't about to give up this particular phone in order to keep the cameras :-D

    I thought the system was worth the $250 bucks or so -- four cameras, robotic base, and other accessories. The images were acceptably clear, there's an interesting selection of cameras available, and the robotic base runs very smoothly and quietly. A decent web cam ususally runs around $50 or $60, so I thought it was worth the money.

    Actually, the robotic base is what pushed us over the edge to finally buy a package. We were looking for a cheaper alternative to the $2500 and up price tags we were finding for such things. Even though the set up didn't work for our house, we think using them at work to "monitor" things like the computer rooms, printers, etc. would be handy. Printers and plotters in particular -- some folks in other buildings waste a lot of time walking across campus checking up on their prints.