cglaeser

Do you think it could read front and rear plates at night as well or better than the 3MP? Best, Christopher

Thanks. That's why I'm leaning towards the 3MP over the 5MP. Best, Christopher

I think that may be the 3MP. The 100 dB dynamic range does a nice job on those plates at night. I'd like to get a few of these myself. Best, Christopher

I have a Panasonic WV-NW502S, and the documentation is not clear (big surprise) about "Light Detection Control". When this option is set to "On", does that mean VMD (video motion detection) will ignore dimmer/brighter changes in lighting? Or is that the function for "Off"? I've tried this option both ways, and it doesn't seem to have much impact. As the sun rises in the morning and sets in the evening, the camera tends to have too many VMD false alarms. If I had to guess, the camera takes a snap shot and then uses that frame for an extended period of time to detect motion in future frames. Instead, the camera should update the baseline frame over time, perhaps by combining a number of frames to create a rolling average. As the sun begins to rise or fall, the VMD will issue false alarms every ten minutes or so. Comparing frames second by second, there is no apparent motion or change in light intensity when the false alarm is generated, but comparing frames ten minutes apart, there is a change in light intensity which is apparently causing the false VMD alarms. Comments? Best, Christopher

SATA II will be fine with 8 cameras. Best, Christopher

How many cameras are you planning to attach to your Q-See? Best, Christopher

I have a Linux based RAID storage that is limited to 2 TB drives. SATA III should be compatible with a SATA II port. I don't know why your drive will not format, but my initial guess would be the size of the drive and not the SATA III. Best, Christopher

The issue *could* be related to size. For example, some devices will only work with drives up to 2TB. Best, Christopher

+1 Avigilon video encoders are an excellent migration path. Excellent quality, affordable price, and only one license per four cameras. Then, start adding IP cameras as budget and requirements dictate. Best, Christopher

At $100 per NVR, they are about as cheap as the PoE switch they replace, and the redundancy is a nice feature as well. Sometimes thieves look for and take the NVR. What are the odds they will take two NVRs if located in different parts of a building? Best, Christopher

Fourth Bruce: Right, I just want to remind you of the faculty rules: Rule One! Every Bruce: No Poofters!

Your dogs did not age very much in twelve years. Best, Christopher

There was a super low light camera demonstrated at ISC West. Anyone have a link to the camera or company website? Best, Christopher

Not sure which units you are looking at, but I think the long range photo beams typically don't include the wireless alarm signal. That said, virtually quality any wireless alarm system you select should be able to cover several hundred feet outdoors. Best, Christopher

I'm guessing you don't have a problem with burglars in the rafters. Can you aim the camera down a bit, just below the lights on the other end? That may eliminate the problem with dueling light sources. Best, Christopher

So, is it just a difference in the firmware, or is it a faster processor, larger disk, or some other enhancement? Best, Christopher

Does the 8 channel Dahua have 4 or 8 POE ports? Best, Christopher

It's easy to build your own hybrid using the Avigilon video encoders. Avigilon is in another league compared to Dahua both in features and price, so if you are looking for the least expensive system on the market, then don't test the Avigilon timeline. It's exactly what you are looking for regarding the ability to rapidly review hours of video and you will be disappointed when you install something else. Best, Christopher

I too spend quite a bit of time reviewing recorded video at several locations. Avigilon allows you to expand/compress the timeline to any duration and quickly scrub the timeline with as many cameras in the view as you want. No other NVR has the feature, and once you use it, you really miss it when using another NVR. I'm waiting for Dahua or some other vendor to offer low-priced cameras that are sufficiently ONVIF compliant to work with Avigilon. Best, Christopher

Does Dahua make any cameras that will work (e.g. detect motion) with NVRs like Avigilon? If not, any word when they will enhance their ONVIF support for motion detection? Best, Christopher

Perhaps he was referring to the Lorex SDI HD 1080p? Best, Christopher

If you guys really want to catch someone, then add outdoor motion sensors that let you know when someone is in your driveway. I have ten arrests on our court using a combination of cameras and motion sensors. Best, Christopher

The Avigilon timeline is similar to a video editor in that you can shrink and expand the time to look at virtually any length (weeks, days, hours, minutes, seconds) and scrub that timeline at virtually any speed by simply dragging the timeline marker. This is quite useful when seconds count. That said, the price point of the Costco systems are quite compelling for the average homeowner. Best, Christopher

After watching some of the YouTube videos today, it appears the system can not rapidly scrub the timeline like Avigilon. To review video, I think you have to watch the video in 1x, 2x, 4x real time, is that correct? Best, Christopher

Thanks Buellwinkle. Is there a system available somewhere that I can test remotely for a few minutes? This system looks very compelling for some of my neighbors and I'd like to test the remote UI features. Best, Christopher