Have you ever been out and about with your iPhone or iPad and wished you knew how to just press a button and get a video view of your home? Sure there are home security solutions that can do this -- for a lot of money. But how about on the cheap? Well, if you have an iPhone or iPad 3G and Skype, you can. We'll show you how after the break!
[Thanks to Mickey Papillon for this ninja-level tip!]
Okay, if you want to set up Skype to be your cheap home security, on-demand video peeping solution, you'll have to get a few things set up.
This is an advanced level tip so we're going to assume you know what Skype is, have an account, and are familiar with using it. If not, let us know in the comments and we'll break out some basic tutorials to get you started.
- Login to Skype.com and set up a second Skype account
- Don't give anyone this second account ID or allow them to contact it unless you don't mind them peeping into your house either!
- Setup the second Skype account on your home Mac or Windows PC in the room you want to be able to look into
- Set Skype on that PC to automatically answer video calls
- Open up the Skype app on your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad (logged in on your regular/primary Skype account).
- Use your primary Skype account on your iOS device to call your second Skype account at home, which will now automatically answer.
- Watch the video and make sure everything is safe at home.
That's it. Again, the steps above require a knowledge of how to setup and use Skype so if you need help, let us know. Otherwise, if you try it out, how does it work for you?
Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)
