Astak’s Mole IP Camera Digs into Internet Video

By Geoff Duncan October 28, 2009

Astak Mole Camera (thumb) — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Sure, Internet-enabled cameras have been around for a long time…but they’re almost uniformly difficult to set up, configure, and manage. Astak is looking to take away the pain with The Mole, a new IP-enabled camera that work using either wired or wireless net connections, and promises to be so simple to set up and configure that users can even get it running and manage it via a mobile phone.

“The Mole will redefine home and business surveillance, and it also opens the door to using a remote camera for sharing unattended video, since it’s Web 2.0 ready,” said Astak CEO Jason Hsia, in a statement. “When interesting or important events are underway, you can’t always be there to see or record them in person. That all changes with the Mole, where motion-detected events can be auto-uploaded to YouTube and a tweet auto-sent to your Twitter feed.”

The Mole purports to be the first truly do-it-yourself Internet video solution, and features automatic configuration so users can set up the camera in three steps and access their video feeds securely without any networking knowledge. Once set up, the Mole offers direct access from any Web browser—even a mobile phone—enabling users to change the view, pan the camera, and instantly view their video. The Mole includes features like motion detection, and can be configured to automatically upload video to YouTube, send alerts via email or Twitter.

The Mole can show VGA or QVGA video at anywhere from 1 to 30 frames per second, features H.264 compression technology, an integrated SD slot for storing video, and offers two-way audio via a built-in microphone. The built-in remote access supports up to 5 simultaneous users, and the camera has automatic fault recovery and reconnection after a network outage.

Astak Mole wired/wireless Internet camera — Image used with permission by copyright holder

The Mole should be available from Astak’s retail partners (including Fry’s Costco, NewEgg, Amazon, Walmart, and more) this November at a suggested price of $299.99.

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Geoff Duncan writes, programs, edits, plays music, and delights in making software misbehave. He's probably the only member…

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