FLIR Goes Consumer - Dropcam Killer?

By: John Honovich, Published on Jan 07, 2014

Following one of the most surprising video deals in years (Flir acquiring Lorex), FLIR has announced its first consumer IP camera, a release that clearly takes aim at hot startup Dropcam. In this note, we break down the features, positioning and pricing of FLIR FX, contrasting it to Dropcam.

[UPDATE: See IPVM Test results of the FLIR FX.]

FLIR ** ********

**** ********** *** **'* ability ** '*********' ****** from:

  • ****** **** / ***** monitor **
  • ******* ************ ****** **
  • ****** /*********
  • ****** ******

*** ****** **** ****** **** into ********* ****** / enclosures *** **** ***********. Here's ** ******** ** the **** *** ******** components:

****'* ***** ********* ***** that **** * ****** more ** ******:

***** *** * *** important, ***********************:

  • ***** *****, ***** ** ***** high *** *** ******** IP ****** ****** (******* and ****** ********* *** 720p)
  • *** ****** ***, ***** ** ***** wide *** ********* ******* how *** *** ****** can ******* *******
  • ******** ** **** ********** **** **** **** the ****** **** **** with ** ** **** though **** **** *** confirmed **** **** ** contrast ** ******* ***** requires *******/ ***** ******* only
  • **** ***** ********* **** **** *** video ******** ** ** card, ********** *** **** for ********** ************ *** recording ***** (* ** Dropcam)
  • ******** *******, ***** *** ** to * ***** ***** enables ** ** ** moved *** **** *** short **** ********** (***, sporting ******, ***.). **** is ***** ******** **** IP *******.
  • ******** ******* *** * built ** ** ********** ** *** * embedded ** *** ****** which **** ***** *** 80 **** *****. ****** an ******** ******* ** not ****** *** ******** IP ******* *** *** additional ** **** **** certainly **** *** ****** areas.

******* *** ************

*** **** ** *** core **** **** ** $249 ***. *** ******* is ********* *** ******* in "**** ****** ** early ****** ****."

***********

***** *** ******* ******** and *******, **** ** clearly ******** ** *** higher *** ********. ***** are * **** *********** differentiators ** ***:

  • *** ******* ** *** the ****** *** ******** purposes *** **** ** more ******** *** ****** than *********** ****** **** fixed ** *******.
  • **** ***** ****** *** video ******** ** *** SD **** *** ********* one ** *** ******* and **** ********* ***** of ****** *****.

**** ** *** **** compelling ****** ** **** seen *** ** *******, given *** ******* ********, undercutting ** *************, *** marketing ****** **** ** putting ****** ****.

** *** ***** ****, the **** ** ****** is ***** * ** 6 ****** **** ** the ************** ***** **** out ** ** **** *** /** ******* *** ******* something ****** ** *** interim. ***** ** ** good ** *** *********** heating **, *** ****** remains ** ** ****.

 

Comments (13)

Avatar

Luis Carmona

IPVMU Certified | 01/07/14 07:23pm

I wonder is they are trying to position themselves to be bought by broadening their line portfolio.

John Honovich

IPVM | In reply to Luis Carmona | 01/07/14 07:27pm

You mean FLIR is trying to get acquired by someone else?

Avatar

Luis Carmona

IPVMU Certified | In reply to John Honovich | 01/07/14 07:33pm

Yes, or either they may do some more buying so they are not thought of as just the "Forward Looking IR camera" company" anymore. Seems they are really trying to get out of that speciality and diversifying now.

John Honovich

IPVM | In reply to Luis Carmona | 01/07/14 07:38pm

Well, FLIR does ~$1.5 Billion annual revenue so I don't think a consumer camera play is going to make a huge difference. From what they say, and it seems sensible to me, is simply they want to expand to other markets. They also are working on bringing thermal down to the consumer / commercial / intrusion detection applications.

Avatar

Jon Klieman

01/07/14 07:38pm

i am curious as to the camera power requirements if mounted in that external unit. i have a few dlink cameras around my house that do a good job. but this camera looks pretty cool.

have you seen bubl cam yet?

John Honovich

IPVM | In reply to Jon Klieman | 01/07/14 07:43pm

I don't know about the external power requirements there but presumably one would have to hard wire it.

I have not seen bubl yet, thanks for sharing! Looks pretty interesting, I just started to read through the website...

Avatar

Jon Klieman

In reply to John Honovich | 01/07/14 07:51pm

welcome onthe bubl link

Avatar

Ethan Ace

IPVM | 01/07/14 07:38pm

I was assuming that this is something Lorex had in the works pre-acquisition and FLIR just decided now is the time to start branding everything FLIR. It's an interesting little camera, potentially.

John Honovich

IPVM | In reply to Ethan Ace | 01/07/14 07:40pm

From my conversation with FLIR, they say that the contributed to the industrial design and other aspects.

It's certainly an outgrowth of what Lorex did, but this is more ambitious / slick than what I have seen from Lorex historically. It appears to me that FLIR is dedicating more money to grow this out.

Avatar

Ethan Ace

IPVM | In reply to John Honovich | 01/07/14 08:13pm

Actually, now that I look at it, the outdoor housing does look like a small version of the FC series camera housing:

Also, as far as them going consumer, I just noticed the FLIR One, a thermal imager for iPhones. That's interesting, though I wonder how much demand there will be, and what the price point is.

John Honovich

IPVM | In reply to Ethan Ace | 01/07/14 09:42pm

More important for security/surveillance applications is the chip that the FLIR One is using, the Lepton. This is what FLIR is positioning to 'revolutionize' low cost thermal. I don't know the details yet but this is what is worth tracking for our space.

Avatar

Ari Erenthal

Chesapeake & Midlantic | 01/07/14 08:06pm

Well, the only complaints I get on Dropcam is the fact that it isn't weather resistant and that it doesn't support internal storage. If the software is as intuitive as Dropcam's is, I'd be worried.

Speaking of Dropcam, this is the best Dropcam demo in the history of ever.

John Honovich

IPVM | In reply to Ari Erenthal | 01/08/14 03:48pm

Ari, your tortoise is the lead of a NY Times article today!

Login to read this IPVM report.
Why do I need to log in?
IPVM conducts unique testing and research funded by member's payments enabling us to offer the most independent, accurate and in-depth information.

Related Reports on Consumer

Wyze AI Analytics Tested - Beats Axis and Hikvision on Jul 17, 2019
$20 camera disruptor Wyze has released free person detection deep learning analytics to all of their users, claiming users will "Only get notified...
RaySharp Revealed - Major China OEM For Western Consumer Video Surveillance on Jul 02, 2019
RaySharp is mostly unknown, even among people in the video surveillance industry, though it is a major supplier of OEM surveillance equipment such...
Directory of 30+ VSaaS / Cloud Video Surveillance Providers on Jun 07, 2019
This directory provides a list of VSaaS / cloud video surveillance providers to help you see and research what options are available. 2019 State...
China / US Trade War Impact Splits Industry on Jun 04, 2019
As the trade war continues to heat up, 170+ integrators told us "What impact will the US / PRC China conflict have on the industry?" Respondents...
Security / Privacy Journalist Sam Pfeifle Interview on May 24, 2019
Sam Pfeifle is best known as the outspoken former Editor of Security Systems News. After that, he was publications director at the International...
ADT's Top Dealer "The Defenders" Sued 20+ Times on May 07, 2019
ADT's largest authorized dealer, The Defenders, has been sued more than 20 times since 2012, IPVM has verified through analyzing legal...
Amazon Marketing Pro Installs of Amazon Security Systems on Apr 25, 2019
Is Amazon a threat to conventional providers like ADT, Vivint and Brinks Home Security? Many say no. Now, Amazon is advertising free in-home...
Camera Disruptor Wyze Enters Sensor / Security Market on Mar 28, 2019
Wyze, the company that has disrupted consumer IP cameras, combining American marketing and Chinese manufacturer, has just announced its expansion...
ADT And 'The Defenders' Silent About Massive Complaints on Feb 14, 2019
ADT's largest dealer, "The Defenders" has been the subject of a massive number of complaints over many years and many forums, most recently a CBS...
Surging Wyze Raises $20 Million, Threat To Chinese Brands on Feb 01, 2019
The Seattle Startup that is disrupting consumer IP cameras with $20 pricing has just raised $20 million dollars (SEC Filing and company press...

Most Recent Industry Reports

Responsibility Split Selecting Locks - Statistics on Jul 22, 2019
A heated access debate surrounds who should pick and install the locks. While responsible for selecting the control systems, integrators often...
Vivotek Trend Micro Cyber Security Camera App Tested on Jul 22, 2019
Vivotek and Trend Micro are claiming five million blocked attacks on IP cameras, with their jointly developed app for Vivotek cameras. This new...
Avigilon ACC7 VMS Tested on Jul 22, 2019
Avigilon's Control Center 7 boldly claims it will "transform live video monitoring" with the new Focus of Attention "AI-enabled" interface. We...
History of Video Surveillance on Jul 19, 2019
The video surveillance market has changed significantly since 2000, going from VCRs to emerging into an AI cloud era.  The goal of this history...
Mobile Access Usage Statistics 2019 on Jul 18, 2019
The ability to use mobile phones as access credentials is one of the biggest trends in a market that historically has been slow in adopting new...
New GDPR Guidelines for Video Surveillance Examined on Jul 18, 2019
The highest-level EU data protection authority has issued a new series of provisional video surveillance guidelines. While GDPR has been in...
Wyze AI Analytics Tested - Beats Axis and Hikvision on Jul 17, 2019
$20 camera disruptor Wyze has released free person detection deep learning analytics to all of their users, claiming users will "Only get notified...
Anyvision Aims For 2022 Revenue of $1 Billion on Jul 17, 2019
Only 3 video surveillance manufacturers do a billion dollars or more in annual revenue - Hikvision, Dahua, and Axis. Now, Anyvision plans to join...
HD Analog vs IP Guide on Jul 16, 2019
For years, HD resolution and single cable signal/power were IP camera advantages, with analog cameras limited to much lower resolution and...
How To Troubleshoot Wiegand Reader Problems - Inverted Wiring on Jul 16, 2019
Wiegand is the dominant method of connecting access readers, but problems can arise for installers. In fact, one of the most difficult reader...

The world's leading video surveillance information source, IPVM provides the best reporting, testing and training for 10,000+ members globally. Dedicated to independent and objective information, we uniquely refuse any and all advertisements, sponsorship and consulting from manufacturers.

About | FAQ | Contact