video surveillance

[PoorOwner]

Thought I would ask.. I have been trying to get a system for years to monitor the driveway and around the home. Maybe someone here would know in this better..

I finally waited long enough to come across features that I wanted for decent price.

http://www.costco.com/Browse/Product.aspx?Prodid=11289854

It has
- H264 codec,
- VGA support (use with cheap LCD monitor)
- Support Mouse and some graphical user interface.

As far as I know alot brands in America are rebadged from China, Taiwan and Korea using their software.

As far as frame rate it seems to support 240Fps with 8 cameras so each one gets full motion 30 fps. Just a couple years ago these specs might even consider commercial grade.. and this recorder does seem powerful enough although I don't know if the 640x480 recording will impact frame rate or not. Perhaps it will cut the frame rate by another 4 times?

It's more of a toy for me, I am not thinking too much about crime evidence.. more of a deterrant though. It's more for when I am out of town I can take a look that my car is still there and the pets are OK.

Thanks

 

[ddawg16]

I looked at that one as well. Looks to be a good deal and good performance. Yea...a lot has changed in a couple of years....imangine what it will be like 2 years from.....

I have one camera...works well, but I'm having issues accessing it remotely....most likely due to some server computer settings.

What you want to look into is setting up a remote computer to record data...say your work computer? That way, you get a 'hard copy' of data at a remote location...so if someone breaks in while you are out of town and decide to take the server...all the video up to that point is intact.

 

[kbs2244]

That is a lot of system for just around the house.
They are a little vague on the recorder.
If it uses tape, take a pass and look for one that records direct to DVD.
A hard drive is nice if you want to review something while still operating the whole system, but that is all.
I have friend who owns 3 convenience marts.
He gets by with 4 cameras at each.
He gets 24 hours per camera for 30 days per disk.
That is 2880 total hours.
They do not mention that spec.
His has 2 drives, and with a calendar, it switches to a new disk at midnight of a new month.

 

[wantedabiggergarage]

I was wondering what these hook to? Just an old VCR (good luck finding the old 8 hour tapes), or a computer, or USB hard drives, etc. I know it has network capabilities, but what do those consist of? Just reviewing, or saving remotely to disk, etc?

 

[beanz2]

I have Costco's other H.264 DVR system (the 16 camera kit made by Q-See) installed. It records to a hard drive and depending on the HD size, it records over the old data once every 14 days. What is cool about the system is your ability to monitor the cameras over the internet via a password, provided you can have a fixed IP address from your broadband provider.

The network capability provides that ability plus the ability for any computer in the network to view the cameras, so if you are in the garage and the doorbell rings, you don't have to run to the front, or look at the main monitor to see who's there. My system allows for two main monitors connecting directly and an unlimited number monitors on the network.

You operate the DVR through an infrared remote that needs a line-of-sight connection to the box for viewing individual cameras and to operate the PTZ (Pan, Tilt and Zoom like you see in casinos) functionality if you have the camera. Maybe the PTZ function can be accessed through the internet/network connection, but I haven't read the manual that far. I hate reading manuals, you see. I guess I can use an infrared remote extenders, but that sounds like a pain (and more manuals to read )

The down side of this DVR is the heat and fan noise it produces. Mine is installed in a 2.5 x 2.5 x 9 ft electronics closet that keeps the noise down, but temperatures inside the closet are typically 8-10 degrees warmer than the house.

While you can see the images on an iPhone, the split screen is way too small to see much on the 9-camera or 16-camera grid, really. Unless you only use 4 cameras or leave the monitor on only one camera (ideal for, say, watching your babysitter doing her job )

This Swann kit in question seems to be expandable to 16 cameras. If it displays the eight camera images in a 3 x 3 grid like mine does, it will have one blank corner for a 9th camera to be added. This would be ideal to add a PTZ camera for one most important area to monitor . . . such as the garage.

 

[jay50]

I have Costco's other H.264 DVR system (the 16 camera kit made by Q-See) installed. It records to a hard drive and depending on the HD size, it records over the old data once every 14 days. What is cool about the system is your ability to monitor the cameras over the internet via a password, provided you can have a fixed IP address from your broadband provider.

The network capability provides that ability plus the ability for any computer in the network to view the cameras, so if you are in the garage and the doorbell rings, you don't have to run to the front, or look at the main monitor to see who's there. My system allows for two main monitors connecting directly and an unlimited number monitors on the network.

You operate the DVR through an infrared remote that needs a line-of-sight connection to the box for viewing individual cameras and to operate the PTZ (Pan, Tilt and Zoom like you see in casinos) functionality if you have the camera. Maybe the PTZ function can be accessed through the internet/network connection, but I haven't read the manual that far. I hate reading manuals, you see. I guess I can use an infrared remote extenders, but that sounds like a pain (and more manuals to read )

The down side of this DVR is the heat and fan noise it produces. Mine is installed in a 2.5 x 2.5 x 9 ft electronics closet that keeps the noise down, but temperatures inside the closet are typically 8-10 degrees warmer than the house.

While you can see the images on an iPhone, the split screen is way too small to see much on the 9-camera or 16-camera grid, really. Unless you only use 4 cameras or leave the monitor on only one camera (ideal for, say, watching your babysitter doing her job )

This Swann kit in question seems to be expandable to 16 cameras. If it displays the eight camera images in a 3 x 3 grid like mine does, it will have one blank corner for a 9th camera to be added. This would be ideal to add a PTZ camera for one most important area to monitor . . . such as the garage.

Hey beans2,

I'm looking to get a set up such as this, maybe with less cameras. How is the clairity of the cameras? Also, can this system be set-up easily without being a computer geek? I'm pretty good at reading manuals and following directions....
Would you rate this set up as being a good deal for the $s for what you get, etc.
thanks

 

[beanz2]

Hey beans2,

I'm looking to get a set up such as this, maybe with less cameras. How is the clairity of the cameras? Also, can this system be set-up easily without being a computer geek? I'm pretty good at reading manuals and following directions....
Would you rate this set up as being a good deal for the $s for what you get, etc.
thanks

The Q-See cameras provided are good enough to recognize faces under infrared, provided it is placed at the right angle (which itself can be a challenge, place it too low, it's within sticky fingers reach if outside; too high, the viewing angle becomes too steep.) Monitor size also makes a big difference.

The hardest part is really the cabling. I had my house prewired with RG6 to all the camera locations and an optional centralized 9V power supply for the cameras to eliminate the need for 110V electrical outlets near each camera. I opted for a cabled system to avoid 2.4GHz interference.

The setup is not too bad, and the Engrish manual is not really helpful most of the time anyway. The Q-See setup requires you to activate the remote to be recognized by the DVR, a very important step not mentioned in the manual . Phone support means you have to call during business hours and sometimes you get lucky and wait for 2 minutes, sometimes you wait 15 minutes. Thank God for speakerphones.

I would say the deal is pretty good comparing prices you see outside of Costco (comparable to Fry's Electronics, cheaper than specialty security stores).

 

[PoorOwner]

Hey Bean I was looking at some Q-see before as well, it doesn't matter the brand as they buy these from Asia and translate the manuals anyway.

Here is the manual for the system I posted maybe you can take a look and see how it is different than yours..

It's supposed to support 3G phone and PDA around the house that mean in the bedroom I can pick up the PDA and see the driveway or check if I closed the garage door. I know, i'm getting nerdy but hopefully help some others with a bigger shop than me

http://syndicate.sellpoint.net/Synd...92/14443/14445/DVR16-8600_DVR_User_Manual.pdf

 

[beanz2]

Oh man, I like the Swann user interface much better than Q-See's already. The instructions are much easier to understand and the setup is a lot more intuitive. Interesting that they specifically state only WinCE PDAs and Symbian OS phones work with theirs, but it doesn't say if the iPhone would. It looks like you can choose which camera to view full screen, etc. Heck, you can even control PTZ cameras on a full fledged browser...

Now I'm jealous

 

[PoorOwner]

Hey, the DVRs advance very well and things do get outdated quickly.. even this one will feel outdated someday I am sure. But lets hope the camera will last. This one does seem decent and I have looked at many manuals and I can't believe how clunky the interface is on some units, like, how do you use this thing..

how many cameras have you installed? Did you drill a hole out from the attic and I was wondering what you used a grommet or some people say use "great stuff" foam to seal the wire and hole.

 

[beanz2]

how many cameras have you installed? Did you drill a hole out from the attic and I was wondering what you used a grommet or some people say use "great stuff" foam to seal the wire and hole.

I have eight installed, but I am having a PTZ unit added in a strategic location to look down the halls and the stairs, etc. I had the house prewired for CCTV before the drywalls went up so it was too easy for me The installer used a typical electrical box at each location then the cables go through a grommet on the cover. The connections are inside, hidden from the weather.

This is how it looks (pic with flash and without flash)