Security cameras

[Brisco 130]

I know this came up before at some point.

Looking to add a cctv system to some shop space I lease. Thinking wired only. Most likely no Wifi available. There are just so many systems available. 

Need 2 outdoor cameras, 4-6 indoors. Almost all will be mounted 15-16" above ground. Space is not heated.

Was looking at a few 8 camera systems. 2TB? 4TB? Are the included cameras any good?

Good brands? Brands to avoid?

Based on what I've seen, thinking $300-600 range.

Thank You

[Scorpio64 5,147]

1 hour ago, Brisco said:

Most likely no Wifi available.

You can get WiFi (IP) cameras, and set up a WiFi router to function as a switch only.  The cameras will be able to talk to the DVR, but there will be no internet access.  If you absolutely had to have internet connectivity for remote notifications and access, You could always get a wireless hot spot.

Set the wifi up as an invisible network that can only be connected to if you know the SSID, use a strong password for authentication, and add some encryption on top.  There are ways to see "invisible" wifi networks, so for goodness sake don't name it Brisco's video surveillance system, if you are looking to catch a thief.

[JackDaWack 2,895]

I just picked up an amcrest POI system.. 4k NVR 8channel.

Been running the arlo pro 2 system, which is good. But I'm looking for more image range, picture quality...

 

Riolink gets good reviews, but there cameras and nvr seem to only be compatible with their hardware...

 

Of all the "all in one systems" those seem to be the better ones. 

[Sniper 6,372]

2 hours ago, Brisco said:

Need 2 outdoor cameras, 4-6 indoors. Almost all will be mounted 15-16" above ground. Space is not heated.

Was looking at a few 8 camera systems. 2TB? 4TB? Are the included cameras any good?

Good brands? Brands to avoid?

Based on what I've seen, thinking $300-600 range.

Most systems in that range are made in China, so one is as good as the other. 2TB should give you plenty of storage, depending on how long you want to save the recordings.

Most of those cameras are fine in the package deals, but they have different focal lengths and field of vision , so you need to verify what you actually want to see in each camera before deciding/purchasing. I have different types of cameras in different locations on my system, based on what I'm trying to see.

Plus, is night vision important, because these cameras come with different amount of IRs for illumination? Some pickup/record better in low light situations

Also, are you going to need to access the system remotely , or want to be notified if a certain camera gets "triggered"? This will require a Internet connection.

[DirtyDigz 1,811]

If you don’t mind running new cabling then Get POE (power over Ethernet) cameras.  More reliable than Wi-FI.

[tony357 386]

I did wifi  and in stalled program on my computer. The wifi drove me nuts would never stay connected good for about week and camera would lose signal. Then I purchased 8 camera 2tb system with 4 camera's and never looked back. I use TV for viewing on HDMI-2  for viewing.  I did purchase two separate larger camera's with further night vision so I am good out to 100ft. I can see all the way down the block but right out front I have good viewing.

 

[CAL. .30 M1 2,101]

 

 

This again.......

[Scorpio64 5,147]

1 hour ago, tony357 said:

in stalled program on my computer. The wifi drove me nuts would never stay connected good for about week and camera would lose signal.

The problem could have been caused by any number of things, or a combination of things.  wifi is only one of probably a dozen things that could go wrong.

[Sniper 6,372]

1 hour ago, Scorpio64 said:

wifi is only one of probably a dozen things that could go wrong.

But usually the main one. Lots of data and WiFi are not usually a good mix. Plus, being that video evidence is the end goal, hardwired connections are more reliable.

[Scorpio64 5,147]

1 minute ago, Sniper said:

hardwired connections are more reliable.

Can't argue with that.  I'm a big proponent of hard wired.  I don't run anything wireless if I can help it, but with phones and pads, I had to buckle under.  WiFi will never be as reliable as wired, but it can be very good with decent equipment and software.  Also, whether the DVR is a PC with DVR software or a DVR box makes a difference too.  PC based is far more prone to hiccups.

[Sniper 6,372]

30 minutes ago, Scorpio64 said:

I don't run anything wireless if I can help it, but with phones and pads, I had to buckle under.  WiFi will never be as reliable as wired, but it can be very good with decent equipment and software. 

That's it... WiFi is fine for posting here at NJGF and general web surfing, but when handling large amounts of data transfer (like in video), it's very unreliable, and subject to glitches...

32 minutes ago, Scorpio64 said:

Also, whether the DVR is a PC with DVR software or a DVR box makes a difference too.  PC based is far more prone to hiccups.

A dedicated DVR designed for video surveillance, multiple camera recording, is worth every penny. When you add the extra layers of PC software/hardware, you're just asking for issues.

35 minutes ago, Scorpio64 said:

Can't argue with that.  I'm a big proponent of hard wired.

Me too. Yes, it's a pain to pull wires, but in the end, it's definitely worth it, if reliable recordings are important. My systems are all hardwired, and it was a real PIA to climb through the attic and pull cables, but since I did that, zero issues and drop outs that you can get with wireless systems...

Plus, the recorded video is stored on a DVRs that I own right here in my possession, not up in a Cloud, stored who knows where, and not even knowing if it can be retrieved, if necessary...

[tony357 386]

9 hours ago, Scorpio64 said:

The problem could have been caused by any number of things, or a combination of things.  wifi is only one of probably a dozen things that could go wrong.

Connection lost scanning across the screen.  

[Scorpio64 5,147]

1 hour ago, tony357 said:

Connection lost scanning across the screen.  

Seeing that across a computer screen is about as useful as a CEL on a dashboard.  It only indicates there is a problem, not what the problem is.

[Brisco 130]

Thanks for the input everyone.

Definitely going to be hard wired. Still deciding between NVR with POE or older school DVR. Most likely go with NVR.

Anybody have a lift they want to bring over to make it super easy?

It's five minutes from DirtyDigz place

[CAL. .30 M1 2,101]

57 minutes ago, Brisco said:

Thanks for the input everyone.

Definitely going to be hard wired. Still deciding between NVR with POE or older school DVR. Most likely go with NVR.

Anybody have a lift they want to bring over to make it super easy?

It's five minutes from DirtyDigz place

Dvr = analog

Nvr = IP

Typically....

 

[Scorpio64 5,147]

Simply put...

Quote

At the core, both NVR and DVRs are responsible for video recording. DVR stands for Digital Video Recorder, whereas NVR stands for Network Video Recorder. The difference between NVR and DVR is how they process video data. DVR systems process the video data at the recorder, whereas NVR systems encode and process the video data at the camera, then stream it to the NVR recorder which is used for storage and remote viewing. As DVRs and NVRs handle the video data differently, they require different types of cameras. Most NVRs are used with IP cameras whereas DVRs are used with analog cameras. It’s important to note that a DVR based system is a wired security system, whereas NVR systems can be a wired or wireless system.

 

[CAL. .30 M1 2,101]

2 hours ago, Scorpio64 said:

Simply put...

 

The above is not wholly correct....  the camera can stream single or mutiple steams and can provide analytics processing at the edge device, camera or at the vms, video management system.