Vivotek FD8136-F3 IP Camera Review

[Harri Whipp]

Today we have another review of a Vivotek IP camera; this time it's the FD8136-F3. It's no secret that we are fans of Vivotek cameras here at use-IP and we use some as part of our own office security. The FD8136-F3 is a small compact 1MP camera that we were very impressed with because of the size, quality and price.

This miniature camera has many good features. It has a 1MP camera that can shoot 1280 x 800 with a viewing angle of 61 degrees. This compact camera would fit into any small office/business, home application or school environment. This camera has on-board space for a micro SD card to record directly from the camera. In the box with the camera you also get Vivotek's 32-channel recording software ST-7501 (free software that can also be downloaded from our website or Vivotek's own website). The camera also uses PoE, which is the preferred method of 95% of our customers.

This camera is one of three cameras in the FD8136 range. You have the '-F2', which has a 2.5mm lens and a viewing angle of 89.9 degrees; next you have the '-F3' (the camera we are reviewing today), which has a 3.6mm lens and a viewing angle of 61 degrees and lastly the '-F6', which has a 6mm lens and a viewing angle of 35.5 degrees. Each of these cameras are available in either black or white.

The full FD8136 range is available from the use-IP webshop.

We recently unboxed the FD8136-F3 on our YouTube channel:

This camera is perfect to mount to the ceiling of any room or corridor as well as wall mounting to cover a good area. The camera has quick and easy installation that consists of two mounting screws and connecting an ethernet cable, making it a lot more attractive to a wider consumer. The easy-to-use focus adjuster Vivotek included in the box also makes the whole set up process easier. Below is images of the focus adjuster and a size comparison.

​

​

​

As mentioned earlier, this camera comes with FREE ST7501 software, which will allow you to record up to 32 channels using Vivotek cameras. You can client view the ST7501 software as well as view from an iPhone and Android device.

To read more about Vivotek's ST7501 software or general Vivotek discussion, take a look at the Vivotek forum.

Vivotek's web client for their cameras is a great application, with an easy-to-use interface and many setting and configuration options, as well as the ability to control PTZ, use the digital zooming tools, record footage direct to your computer and taking snapshots. Below is an image of the live view feed in the webclient, click the image to make it full size.

We also captured some sample footage of this camera in action in our office:

​

I feel that this mini dome camera is a great camera that would fit into an existing camera networks but would also offer a good solution to start a new security system. As said before, this would be best suited to a small office/ classroom/ small shop/ home environment. This camera also offers great value for money, as the price does not change whether you would prefer the narrower or wider view model (the F2 or F6).​

​

If you are looking for a small, compact, good quality camera at a good price by a well known brand this is the camera for you.​