Superfluous

Hi, In my last home, I had a simple 2 camera setup and used the local storage to record. I had the Hikvision 2532 for the front door (with audio, which was great) and the 2732 for the side of the home. The local storage made it easy, but at 64gb, limited how long it could record. New house is prewired cat6 to central location. I'm planning for 8 cameras, including 1 at the front door. What I really liked about the Hikvision 2532 was that it had a built-in microphone. I can't seem to find any others that do. The 2532 seemed to also have better picture quality than the 2732, which shouldn't be the case. 1. Is Hikvision still a good option? 2. Are there other cameras with built-in microphone like the 2552? 3. If not, do I go with the 2552 all around the house? 4. Any suggestions on an NVR for this?

My camera was working and recording fine for about a year, but when I checked on a recording recently there was nothing recorded on the local hard drive (64gb micro SD). I tried reformatting the drive but it gives me errors and it says "Status = Uninitialized." Should I assume the SD card is fried and I should replace it?

Got them installed. While I put 64gb of local storage in each, I'm thinking of buying a mini pc for storage as well. In the mean time, does IVMS work for Mac Yosemite? It didn't seem to work for me.

Sorry for the million questions but the search feature is pretty poor on this site. What's the max distance that the camera can be powered over ethernet using a PoE injector or a POE Switch? Is a 50 foot cable okay?

Which height/location is better for monitoring the windows/doors to the left?

The trickiest part for me is the wiring. What do you guys use on the inside wall where the cable will be coming out? like one of these?

So... how problematic is the fact that the mounting surface is bumpy and uneven? What could I fill the gaps with? For some reason it got flipped on its side. It's actually a wall it's up against

So the side plug outlet doesn't matter in terms of weather?

Thanks, found it. When mounting it on a wall, would you mount it with the logo upright? It puts the side plug on the bottom. Any issues in terms of weather/water leaking in? Are there any write-ups on wiring through walls from exterior to interior? I'm going to have an electrician do it, but want to make sure everything is prepared and covered.

So the 2732 arrived and it looks like a nice camera. I'm a bit confused by the varifocal, since I thought it would change the point of view/degree angle, but there seems to only be one spot that is focused properly. Shouldn't the camera be automatically focusing/adapting to the change?

I'm thinking of also putting a Hikvision 2732 on the backside of my townhouse. Where do you recommend for placement to monitor the french doors and the left window? I was thinking under the right light fixture pointing to the side (how high?). Keep in mind, my home ends just after the furthest left window. Thoughts? As a side note, do you guys have any worries about only recording to the micro SD card in the camera? Someone could destroy the camera and therefore take your footage too, right?

Ok, as long as putty and paint is acceptable, then I should be good.

Thanks, I'll take a look. Do you guys have any issues with drilling holes into things? I want to mount it in the door jamb of my front door, but I'm hesitant to put a 2 inch hole in the frame. Is it a concern when you go to sell the house?

Yes, your review shows it's outdoor but it seemed strange that it's never mentioned on the store page. Either way, I think the camera is a bit too large. I'm unlikely to go with an NVR, but why are they limited to a certain amount of channels? I'm assuming you can link cameras that aren't directly plugged into their ports like a computer. Do most people only record on motion or 24/7?

I have 3 HIK running on the same comp no problem at all Are you on the i5 or the i3? They also have a Celery Stick version. Would that not be good enough?