Lorex security using DVRs and MacBooks

This is more of a series of statements than a question and intended as information only for those of you who want to have your Lorex security link to your MacBook.

I have a 4 camera Lorex security system purchased @ Best Buy which has the only Lorex system that currently interacts with Alexa. I also use my MacBook constantly and have android phones. My wife uses Windows based laptop.

I wanted my own DVR vs. paying for cloud storage and I wanted a wired system.

Lorex provides a free DDNS server (your own personal Lorex Website) which allows you to login in from your laptop anywhere in the world to view cameras live. Takes awhile to set up and though I was able to log in - it requires a plugin. The kicker is that the plugin only exits for Internet Explorer 32 bit. So DDNS will not work with Safari, Firefox, Opera, Chrome or any other web browser. It will only work with Windows Internet Explorer.

So the impact of this is simple. You will need to subscribe to their cloud service and pay to view your cameras live on your MacBook. I dunno about the iPad.

The App for the iPhone works fine and allows live view, and if you purchase one of the DVR systems it will record to that without requiring you to buy a cloud service package. For most of us, this is enough.

The system that's sold by Best Buy is also supposed to interact with Alexa, which is does but in limited fashion. Once the skill is added to Alexa, you can tell Alexa to show you camera 1, 2, 3, etc. But it will not alert you to motion like Ring doorbell for example. Lorex is apparently working on an IFTTT (If this, then that) applet, that will allow setup of alerts from Alexa. To date Lorex hasn't responded to my request for a release date. Important to me because I'm hearing impaired and wouldn't hear the phone app alert while sleeping.

Anyway, CS @ Lorex is lacking. So I thought I'd share what I know.