Securame

Of course it does!

If you are going to be using IP only, forget about hybrid systems, go for NVR. Dahua NVRs do audio recording, you just need cameras with mic, or with audio in so you can get audio from an external source.

Agree. With IR you might see a face, with no IR maybe you won't, since the only light is on the back of the subject.

You need to give the exact model to get the correct firmware; otherwise you might brick the DVR. As an advise, if you do not have a good reason to update the unit, do not do so.

LOL. Someone asking for a Dahua unit to be identified? You have the manufacturer printed on the front, and you can just search for the sticker on the back, or under your unit, it will say what model it is. From the front, it could be many models. From the screenshot, we can only tell that it is a firmware from 3 years ago (Dec/2010). Maybe a DH-DVR1604LE-A?

What a jerk...

With a Hikvision DVR you can use their own free DDNS service, www.hiddns.com (www.hik-online.com). That way you can get rid of dlinkDDNS.com (if it is just a trial).

Hikvision has been changing for a while to cases like this on all their entry level models. I think I haven't known for ages anyone who used the controls on the front, so I guess it is just a matter of costs saving.

it has been on the euro site for 3 days. http://www.hikvisioneurope.com/portal/index.php?dir=Product%20Firmware/Cameras/TI%20365%20platform%20firmware/V5.1.0%20build%20131202/

£150 for a decent IP PTZ camera? I don't think that is going to happen at that price. http://www.apexis.com.cn/en/productsdetails_183.html http://www.apexis.com.cn/en/productsdetails_202.html You could get something like the Apexis APM-J901-Z-WS, but I would not call it a quality cam. It would probably something like what you already have, but outdoors and with 3x zoom.

Really? You can record from one Hikvision camera to the SD card on another Hikvision camera?

That is probably because your routers do not have "NAT loopback". When you connect to a DVR from outside the same network, you have to use the public IP, when you connect from the same network, you have to use the network IP. You are probably using some dynamic DNS service, and when you are on the basement with the router probably connected to your wifi, so your router does not know where to send the connection when you try to see the cameras. Once you are away, the wifi network is disconnected, and when you try to connect you are using 3G/whatever, so it works.

I was hoping but alas it doesn't seem to.. Not connecting via FTP You do have a FTP server and FTP account, don't you...?

LOL, that is some serious vendor, if they do not even know what CMS to use with the DVRs they are selling... Try contacting them: http://www.avtrontech.com/sales-support.html

You need to forward in both TCP and UDP all the needed ports, not just the web port; 81, 27156, 8101 and 15966 Also, I would change secondary DNS to 8.8.8.8 (Google's DNS), it is useless to have it set to the same as the primary DNS.

We have a customer with 5pc DS-2CD2112-I which do not have audio in (I know there is a model DS-2CD2112-IS which does have audio in; but now it is too late to change the cameras). Now he wants to record audio, 1ch would be OK, 4ch would be great, and I am trying to figure out what is the best way (if any) to do it, since the cameras do not have audio in. Hikvisions NVRs do not seem an option, they have one audio in but it is for mic, I think it can not be recorded on a IP stream. Hikvisions hybrid DVRs could be an option; 7608HI-ST does have 4 audio in, but I think that audio can only be recorded on the analog streams (it has 8ch IP, 8ch analog, 4ch audio). We could just record the IP cameras and then also analog video channel with no image, and audio. But that would be quite a dirty hack. Video playback would be OK from iVMS (customer would have to sync play both channels, and turn on the audio on the analog one), but live viewing would not be so easy. I do not think there is a way to record audio on a IP stream from an external source, but I am asking anyway in case someone knows a solution. Any hints are welcome. Thanks!

You can, but would you plug on it? An old tape VCR? The DVR which you say does not work? Maybe it would be better to worry on geting a DVR that actually can do the job, instead of workarounds...

Then you can try to move the lights a little bit more far away from the cameras, so they do get in night mode and stay that way through the night. Or cover some of the lights, etc. If they do not blink at all, you should be able to find a point where the cameras go to night mode with no problem.

1. Only if your cameras have OSD menus, so you can adjust some settings on them. If your cameras are the wollowing, you can not do it: http://www.swann.com/s/products/view/?product=1413 2. That is the IR cut filter. It surely is not good for the cameras on the long run to have it activate/deactivate every 5 seconds, you will shorten the cameras lifespan. 3. There is not. If your christmas lights make the image change, that is detected as movement. If your christmas lights blink or something like that, there is movement, so you will have 24h recordings.

Post pictures of those baluns you are using...

Maybe those TVs do not support the resoluiton the DVR is trying to use. It might be that the TV only supports up to 720p (1280x720) and the DVRs are preconfigured at 1080p (1920x1080), so you do get to see the logo when booting up, but as soon as the interface kicks in at 1920x1080, the TVs can't show it. I would find it very strange that you did get two deffective units... Make sure your TV supports 1920x1080.

That looks pretty normal to me. If they were my cameras, I would not even bother changing one for the other.

You can use either main or sub stream.

Quite a strange camera... If you just connect a cable from ALM-IN+ to ALM-IN- it does not trigger the alarm? So it needs (3.3V~5V) to activate? Guess that you will have to take the 5V through the PIR then...?

You connect it to the ALM-IN+ and ALM-IN- You might have to check the camera settings to tell it that the input is NC (normally closed), or see if there is a jumper on the PIR so you can set it to NO (normally open).