Recommendations for camera/dvr combo

[chrishick]

I need to set up some exterior cameras on a construction site. They will all be mounted to the construction trailer so they can be wired. I would like to have a dvr and good iPhone app for remote viewing. I see lots of systems on Amazon in the $200-300 range but don't recognize any of the brand names. I don't need anything to fancy and could probably live with SD cameras although it looks like most systems include HD cams.

 

I know there are a lot of experts here on the UDI forums so I thought I would get everyone's input. What's the best system for less than $500?

 

Thanks for your help guys!

 

 

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[oberkc]

Do you have internet access on site? Wifi? How many cameras do you want?

 

I use a lot of D-Link wifi cameras, and they seem to work well. Coupled with their little dnr-202, this could be a viable optionfor you.

 

My perceptions are that wifi cameras are a bit more expensive compared to the wired counterparts. For more than a couple of cameras, you might be better off with a wired (or proprietary wireless) systems with a hub. It seems that Swann systems are readily available with hub/DVR and multiple cameras, well within your budget. If I were.doing it over again from start, I would probably opt for this solution.

[chrishick]

Yes we will have Internet and wifi, but my experience is wifi cams will kill your wifi speed. I would prefer either wired ip or RG6 cabled cams.

 

4 cams would probably be enough but I could have more coverage with 6 or 8.

 

I like a packaged system such as the Swann rather than try to piece something together with a separate NVR. I have 12 Foscam and Blue Iris NVR on a PC at home. It works great but looking for something simpler to implement on the site. Plug and play with minimal configuration.

 

 

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[oberkc]

Yes, I have found that cameras can seriously tax a wifi system and internal network. Mine has been undergoing some major upgrades.

 

I am not sure whether the impact of six wifi cameras versus an equal number of wired cameras is any different to the speeds of your internet and WAN.

[stusviews]

Swann DVRs can be accessed via the internet and work with any CCTV cameras.

[KeviNH]

If you'd like the system to be readily expandable in the future, look for a product that claims compatibility with "ONVIF Profile S".

 

There are several options for DVR type systems, usually these use proprietary "HD" analog cameras all hardwired to a central recorder which has Internet accessibility and motion detection in the DVR.    Sometimes the recorder itself might claim ONVIF compliance even if the individual cameras are all proprietary.

 

When looking at a central DVR system, the important thing to keep in mind is that most surveillance DVRs are usually rated by their total frames-per-second at a given resolution.  So a DVR that says "D1 @ 120FPS, Half D1 / 100FPS" can record 4 channels of 720×576 at a full 30 frames/second, but if you plug in 8 cameras and want the same resolution, you'll need to drop the frame rate to just 15FPS, or drop the resolution to Half D1.

 

Here's a quick example of the difference between these resolutions:

 

 

If you have a Costco membership, you can always try out Swann or  Lorex and use costco's return policy if it doesn't meet your needs.

[builderb]

Picture quality is going to be low at that price point. Lighting at night is an issue to, the IR on cheap cameras doesn't go far.

 

Using it to bust people you can recognize and fire is one thing. Nailing somebody random in court is a whole 'nother thing. Just keep your expectations in line with your budget, and you'll be fine.

[kohai]

I'm always surprised when I see the news and they post pictures of someone they want the police to catch.  The photos are either really low quality, or the camera is too high to get a picture of them (the baseball cap covers their face).... or the camera position doesn't catch the license plate due to location.

[stusviews]

The surprise is that they actually do find someone who can ID the suspect from those pictures.

[Scottmichaelj]

FWIW I like Hikvision cameras. ONVIF and MPEG streams are supported at the same time.

[builderb]

The surprise is that they actually do find someone who can ID the suspect from those pictures.

If you recognize the clothing, body type, mannerisms, etc, it's not had to id someone from a fairly lo-res pic. But the cops generally use that as a lead to dig up more evidence that can actually place you at the scene, rarely as the sole evidence.

 

And quite frankly, even that is rare. Construction job sites get robbed all the time. If you want your tools back, go to the swap meet the next weekend.

[Teken]

If you recognize the clothing, body type, mannerisms, etc, it's not had to id someone from a fairly lo-res pic. But the cops generally use that as a lead to dig up more evidence that can actually place you at the scene, rarely as the sole evidence.

 

And quite frankly, even that is rare. Construction job sites get robbed all the time. If you want your tools back, go to the swap meet the next weekend.

 

On a quick tangent the latest DeWalt tools have a GPS and a battery lock out mechanism. I can't honestly say a feature such as that is attractive to me but obviously this would offer some possible measure of locating the stolen equipment.

[kohai]

We had a construction project in a touristy but rural area.  The locals wanted the project so they could have jobs but others outside the little town were against any development.  When the project got rolling we ended up with graffiti one time.  The locals (those with community influence but not necessarily the community leaders) put the word out that they would not stand for it.  On their own, they visited a few people they thought could possibly be involved to spread the word.  After that, no big problems came up.

 

It was really nice to have the locals step up and make it known peacefully that they felt ownership with the project (maybe community pride is a better word).  They got a lot more results than the police did.  I think when we live in bigger cities we lose those relationships and feelings of personal ownership of the community.