I completely agree with rjgvt. The motion monitoring/recording features that are built-in to many IP cameras can present various problems: too sensitive or not sensitive enough...or changing the sensitivity setting doesn't seem to change anything...plus you have to figure out how/where to save the recorded events. If you have recorded motion events e-mailed to you, e-mail servers can be slow and often have limits on how many messages can be sent in a given amount of time (to prevent spam), AND have data limitations. You're much better off spending the extra little money on electricity to keep your computer on 24/7. In addition to using my computer to run icamsource 24/7, I also use my computer as a DVR (I'm running Windows 7 Pro, which includes Media Center, paired with a cable card tuner so I can use it with my HD TV service--works with FIOS/Time Warner/etc), and as a remote computer (there are a few things I just can't do directly on my phone, but that I can accomplish through my phone by tapping into my computer). This helps justify leaving it on 24/7. You'll just want to make sure your laptop is always plugged in and sitting on a hard surface (not cloth or carpet) so it can get good airflow, and use compressed air to occasionally clean out the fan air inlet and outlet.
