When comparing Icontrol Networks Piper NV vs Withings Home, the Slant community recommends Icontrol Networks Piper NV for most people. In the question“What are the best home-security cameras?” Icontrol Networks Piper NV is ranked 2nd while Withings Home is ranked 4th.
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Pros
Pro IFTTT functionality
Pro Built-in siren
The siren is very loud - rated at 105dB (louder than a snowmobile or motorcycle). It's loud enough to scare off virtually any intruder.
Pro Tracks the weather
With a temperature and humidity sensors on-board, the Piper NV can give you a good idea of what the interior 'weather' is like. It can also track outdoor temperature, and will warn you of local weather alerts.
Pro Great Android/iOS apps
The apps are simple to use, and designed to make sure the most important stuff can be accessed the quickest. Any important actions will give you feedback from the Piper NV itself so you can rest assured each action goes through.
Small details are included in the app as well - from adjustable motion sensitivity (for shadows, animals, and other small movements) to a trusted circle of contacts that will be notified each time an alert is triggered.
All features worked as advertised, notifications were delivered quickly, and the camera is very responsive to actions performed in the apps.
Pro Talk & listen supported
The Piper NV has both a microphone and speaker, letting you have a conversation with a person in front of the Piper while you are elsewhere with your phone. This can be handy for conversations with babysitters, deliverymen, or even talking with your children when you're away.
Pro Great video quality
The 1080p camera allows for up to 10X digital zoom. Without zooming, the picture is very crisp and clear which is immensely helpful when figuring out who is on the camera and what they're doing. The digital zoom will reduce this clarity, but allows for a close-up inspection of any small details.
The device can also tilt and pan - unique features that let you get the best angles of view.
Pro Night vision tracks even in pitch black
The NV in Piper NV stands for night vision. This product included infra-red LEDs that illuminate pitch black rooms so that the camera can still see (although human eye's can't detect this light).
Pro Wide-angle lense
With a full 180 degrees of vision, this camera can be placed on a wall and see everything around it. Because its fish-eye design, the edges of the image will be slightly warped, however this is required for such a high field of view.
Pro Can be set up to control light within a household
Z-Wave controller is built in.
Pro Built-in motion detector
Has a proper IR motion sensor, so does not image analysis to detect motion. This is very useful as it avoids the false alarms that many other camera are subject to when clouds change the lighting conditions.
Pro Can also work as a baby monitor
This security camera has built in features that make monitoring a baby easier. It can provide a nightlight, and also has a lullaby setting where it will play soothing music to help the baby fall asleep.
Pro Includes environmental sensors
These sensors include: ambient light, sound, temperature, and humidity. Average temperature and humidity can help you realize how to reduce your heating bills.
There's also a VoC (volatile organic compounds) sensor which reads the amount of particles in the air - a measure of air quality. If this reading is high, and you have an air filter, it's probably time to change or clean the filter.
Pro IFTTT compatible
IFTTT (IF This Then That) is an app that allows for custom automation. It combines triggers and actions to create recipes that are easy enough for just about anybody to create. IFTTT allows you to automate things like when you receive a specific text message from a specified number to start/stop recording, or start/stop speak & listen mode.
Pro Have a conversation through the Withings Home
With both microphones and a speaker, you can have a conversation with somebody through the Withings Home even while you're out and about. Your voice will be carried from the iPhone and played through the Withings Home speaker, and their voice will similarly make its way to your iPhone's speaker.
Pro The magnetic base makes it more stable
You can adjust the angle of the camera without needing a mount, thanks to its magnetic base. The base is curved, and you can off-set the curved camera's bottom to a preferred angle and it will stay there.
Cons
Con IFTT NO LONGER SUPPORTED
They cancelled all their IFTT integrations and hung all their customers out to dry.
Con No web app
Web apps can be handy if your phone is dead or misplaced at the time. They also allow access from any computer using just a login and password, which can be useful if you've run out of data on your phone and are out of Wi-Fi range. This also means that Windows Phone or Blackberry devices won't be able to control the Piper NV.
Con No removable local storage
There is no removable local storage available on the Piper NV - all media is immediately uploaded to the Piper cloud. This online storage is free, but is limited to 1000 clips before it starts overwriting old clips. If the camera is offline when a clip recorded, the video is stored on the device and uploaded once online again.
Con Homekit support is not yet available
We've reached out to Withings, and they have said that HomeKit support will be coming with iOS 10, expected around September 2016. You can find more information here.
Con Low quality picture
While rated for full HD (1080p) video recording, this camera looks noticeably grainier than most 1080p cameras. It still provides sufficient resolution to see what's happening, although the clarity is a bit disappointing.
Con iOS only
There is no web page, and no Android support either. You can only control it from your iPhone, iPad, or iPod.
Con Can't download video
There is no option to download recorded videos, and videos will only be held online for 2 days with the free subscription.
Con Extremely sensitive motion sensor
The motion sensor is too sensitive, picking up many false alarms. While other security cameras allow you to adjust the sensitivity of the motion sensor, there are no such option available here.