WIFI video camera

Has anyone found a surveillance camera that has a decent wifi range?
 
I have two FI89xx Foscams, two newer R2 Foscams and one Hikvision DS-2CD2142. The old FI89 Foscams seem to be the best of the lot but none are near the range of my laptops or IOS devices when connecting to the same wireless access point. The R2's have trouble staying connected from one room to the next. If the problem was interference then I would expect my laptops and Iphone to have problems but they are fine.
 
Are the cams known to have weak radios?
 
Mike.
 
 

Way long time ago relating to use of Axis CCTV cameras and WIreless covering a large area used wireless bridges for a commercial CCTV view of multiple warehouses and a large fenced in area for commercial construction do whats (with a high fence - barbed wire). 
 
Before installing this system and reason for installation was that one day a truck rolled in the yard rolling over the fences and stealing a few large job site (gas and oil job sites) generators valued at a few thousand dollars (over 100K worth).
 
Really above the issue related to creation of the willy nilly infrastructure of the site (it was a permanent location).
I did see a lot of this with same company and implementation of security post issues which is truly a mickey mouse to do business. 
 
I have seen this methodology of wireless CCTV and WAP's used for camp grounds etc...
 
For residential today you can do similiar at a reasonable cost.
 
Here you would utilize the network port on the camera and connect it to a wireless device and directional antenna going to your home.
 
Years ago (early 2000's) created a double DD-WRT router wireless bridge to the neighbors house a few hundred feet away for their internet access.  Basically it was a dedicated Linksys DD-WRT router with directional parabolic antennas made of paper and aluminum creating a bridge between the two homes. 
 
For one camera with wireless you could install a dedicated and directional WAP pointing to the camera.  You can also make directional parabolic antennas on each end for better wireless.   Seen this done using an old direct TV dish.

The one batch of Foscams I tried, the wifi was terrible - I ended up using a TP-Link Pocket-Router to handle the wifi instead.  It's been running solid for about 4 years now that way.  The foscam thinks it's wired.
 
If you needed to go real long-range like pete describes, nowadays it's much easier than piecing together the parabolic antennas and all that (I've done that in the past) - nowadays, you can use a Ubiquiti NanoStation Loco to do the job (or a pair of them) - much easier than it used to me.

That pocket router looks like an easy affordable way to go. I think that someone mentioned one to me here a while back and I forgot about it.
 
Mike.

There are alot of cameras with good wifi range but i will personaly suggest you hard wired cameras because these are secured and is faster as compared to wifi cameras.

MichaelHarris259 said:

There are alot of cameras with good wifi range but i will personaly suggest you hard wired cameras because these are secured and is faster as compared to wifi cameras.

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Would you care to name a few?

mousehunt said:

I think all of the Foscams described above will do either wired or wireless.  I have a old mjpeg indoor Foscam that I mounted under the soffet.  They are build solid.  It's been seven years and 3 named hurricanes and its still working.  

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I have four foscams here and none of them would make it 100' line of sight with wifi. MyFoscam  r2's are frequently disconnecting and reconnecting and they are only about 20' from the wireless access point.
 
Mike.

MichaelHarris259 said:

There are alot of cameras with good wifi range but i will personaly suggest you hard wired cameras because these are secured and is faster as compared to wifi cameras.

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+1. 
 
I've done a lot of large, large wifi installs (not alarms, but business systems), and what that has taught me for my home is this: run a wire.  It only hurts for a few hours while you pull cable, then it works forever.  It's (relatively speaking) hack-proof and fool proof, and you can power over the same wire. Get a cheap POE switch and you can remotely power cycle the camera if you ever need to as well.
 
Sure, I have wifi at the house, for phones and chromecast and the like.  But anything I expect to be up and running all the time has a wire. 

I would like to buy a long range wifi camera to use as a tool. I want to be able to place it in different spots around the property temporarily to see if I like the view. I also wanted to place one camera on my swimming pool heater to see where the mice are getting inside and nesting. It would be nice to have a cam that is mobile but the range on my Foscams and my one Hikvision is only around 50 feet. I may have interference problems.
 
Mike.

I have both wired and wireless cameras here and they all perform pretty much the same. The wifi cameras do fall out once in a while but I only know about it because the r2's talk when they disconnect and reconnect. They have all been there when I look at them because I have installed the wireless very close to the wireless access point.
 
This is exactly my point, the wifi in my experience have very limited range. I understand why with some of you are pushing me to wire all of the cameras but I disagree, a wifi camera is very convenient in limited situations at close range.
 
I'll re-phrase my question - Does anyone know of a wifi camera that has better range than most? Say 100' or more in open air line of sight? i have placed a wifi camera in my yard about 100' from the house and it can not connect.
 
Mike.
 
EDIT - So far I like Work2Play's pocket extender solution best.

Mice... ugh.  I like metal window screen for plugging holes mice use.  Tough enough they can't chew threw and can also be rolled up to plug smaller areas.  We once had them chew threw a plastic plug in a refrigerator and get inside the main compartment.  Couldn't figure out how they managed that for a while.

cobra said:

Mice... ugh.  I like metal window screen for plugging holes mice use.  Tough enough they can't chew threw and can also be rolled up to plug smaller areas.  We once had them chew threw a plastic plug in a refrigerator and get inside the main compartment.  Couldn't figure out how they managed that for a while.

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I have put 1/8" wire mesh over any opening that I could find and a mouse still got in there. It is much better than last season before the mesh but one still managed to find a way in a few weeks ago. There must be a small opening in the floor of the metal cabinet. I'm at war. I love animals so I have a Hav-a-hart  no-kill trap in there so that I know when one gets in, it seems that they can't resist corn flakes.
 
I did the same for my air conditioner after they chewed through a wire and killed it. I managed to repair it myself and closed it up with mesh and it has been good for years now.
 
Mike.

mikefamig said:

I have put 1/8" wire mesh over any opening that I could find and a mouse still got in there. It is much better than last season before the mesh but one still managed to find a way in a few weeks ago. There must be a small opening in the floor of the metal cabinet. I'm at war. I love animals so I have a Hav-a-hart  no-kill trap in there so that I know when one gets in, it seems that they can't resist corn flakes.
 
I did the same for my air conditioner after they chewed through a wire and killed it. I managed to repair it myself and closed it up with mesh and it has been good for years now.
 
Mike.

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It doesn't take much of an opening for a mouse to get through.  I found a hole that was barely more than 1/2" in size that mice were using to get into my basement.
 
This web page below suggests that a hole of about 0.6" is required.  But that would be for full grown mice.
 
https://nerdist.com/whats-the-smallest-hole-this-mouse-can-get-through/
 
Pest control folks use copper mesh to stuff holes around pipes and such, as it doesn't rust and won't react with the pipes.
 
https://www.amazon.com/Stuf-Fit-Copper-Mesh-Birds-Control/dp/B0001IMLTY

I don't know if it's true but I heard somewhere that it is the size of their skull that determines the space they can fit through.

mikefamig said:

I don't know if it's true but I heard somewhere that it is the size of their skull that determines the space they can fit through.

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Yes, I've read that, too.  Makes sense that their skull is the one thing that can't be compressed in size.