bike_rider

I just bought a 3364 (non WDR version of the 3384). This is the camera I've been waiting for. The low light ability is close to what I get from my better analog cameras. Given a choice between Axis and ACT, I will always take Axis.

2nd (3rd?) tier vs top tier. Like it said in the audio world - if you can't tell the difference, don't spend the money.

Simply not true. If you've never used a high end camera, you don't know what you are missing. Show me a camera with the performance of something like an Axis P3364 (made in Thailand FWIW)for materially less money and I"m on it. I have an Axis encoder and a vivotek encoder - the images (being only D1) look about the same, but the build quality of the axis is obvious and the feature set difference is huge. Add to that the customer support from axis and the two have little in common. They both work, but if I needed another one... I screwed around with an ACTi $500 camera and it was not up to my needs and expectations. OTOH, I'm loving this P3364. It's the camera I should have bought. My time has value (even my 'free' time) to me, so the the 'cost' of the ACTi, especially in terms of aggravation, was huge. So, for high end cameras, "If you have the means I highly recommend picking one up". If you can't afford it, that's fine. Everyone's situation is different. Do what works for you. Just don't try to convince anyone that a Kia is a Lexus.

There's "low light" and then there is "low light". City scenes are usually much better lit than your suburban backyard. Who knows, maybe they were shooting with a Canon 7D. My point is that you are making a lot of assumptions about that clip.

How wide is the field of view? How is the lighting at night?

I thought you were going to get a PTZ unit. In that case, the lens is included. But I'm not sure anyone makes a PTZ with a lens big enough to reach 2000 feet. a 200mm lens on a 1/3 inch sensor, 1280x720 image, is going to get you 26 pixels per foot. You'll see what is going on, but the image could not be used for identification. And you are going to have to have a a super stable platform for that lens otherwise all you will get is blurry cam pictures. Image quality is all about lenses - that's not the place to get cheap. Fujinon, Computar, Penta, Tokina, etc - look for brand names. A quick price check shows that a 320mm Fujinon IR corrected, megapixel lens is about $4500. That lens includes motorized zoom/focus.

I have a magnalight IR unit and it is built like a tank. I'm surprised that they did not suggest this in 940nm: 1300' throw. http://www.magnalight.com/pc-47335-186-infrared-led-light-emitter--40-leds--120-watts--850-or-940-nm--1300l-x-180w-spot-beam--9-42v.aspx

That's what I was thinking. http://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/USA-Remote-Controlled-Licence-Plate-Frame/201285_466771498.html

It is a little hard to tell exactly what happened. Can you post a video?

That's not really WDR, that's BLC (baclight compensation) and the Dahua's have that. Opps, right. I tend to lump them together for my needs. Oh and there is no standard for how wide that "wide dynamic range" might be. One person's WDR is another person's low contrast shot.

No VAT in the US. Sales tax can apply depending on if you are buying in person (yes) or over the internet (not usually - complex laws). Sales tax is usually 5%-8%. WDR - For a camera looking at a door to the outside - WDR may be important. Otherwise the person coming through the door will be in shadow while the camera tries to adjust to the outside brightness. Cameras pointed where the sun will shine directly at them (sunset/sunrise) can also benefit from WDR. It all depends on where your light soruces are. Check out the image on this page. http://ipvm.com/report/wdr_surveillance_test Even if cannot access the article, you can see the affect.

That's about what I expected you would get. I wonder if you can remove the front "glass" and mask off the LEDs (black paint, RTV silicon, liquid electrical tape, etc)

I agree with Max's assesment of BI. Very good for what it is. Biggest limitation is that there is no effective multi-camera playback. Vitamin D is essentially an end of life product. IIRC the developers bought it from the company after the company closed. They have stated on their web site that there is no ongoing development. If it does what you want, great. If it does not, do expect to see any features added.

Video encoders like the axis are an effective way to deploy a hybrid system. axis tends to be one of the most expensive options, but it does a great job.

Did you get a chance to get this installed? Most IR LEDs do have a visible glow. You can get external illuminators in the non-visible range, but they are expensive and cameras are not as sensitive to that wavelength, so you need a more powerful one. Can you turn off the LEDs on this camera?

You should contact the manufacturer directly for tech support.

I need two cameras. One dome that works in lowish light (house outside lights on, lighting can be upgraded if needed) and one that will rely on a strong IR at night. Box or dome is fine for the second. I don't need WDR - I'm moving the cameras to avoid direct sunlight into the lens. The IR dependent one is a tough scene because when there is no person/car in the image the background does not reflect IR very well. This can confuse a camera that cannot quickly handle the apparent change in lighting when a reflective surface (like a person) enters the scene. the 3364 looks very promising for my non-IR dependent scene. thanks

I always find it interesting what sort of subtle issues you only find out when you have the camera in hand. So in night mode, if I force a fixed shutter speed (1/100), as long as I have an auto iris and reasonably consistent light, it should be OK? I have to say I'm a bit disappointed. I'd read good things about the 1604 and somebody hear posted 3364 images. I went back and looked at those 3364 images from a bar scene and it looked like somebody had used watercolors for the image- there was no fine detail at all.

So you are saying that in night mode you can't set the shutter speed to something like 1/100? When you say that the IR results are not exceptional, may I ask what you are comparing against and is there something that you would consider exceptional (box preferred, but can live with dome)?

I was hoping that this camera would make a decent night camera with some additional IR illumination. So far, it is very disappointing at night. Day time is fine (I suspect all MP cameras look at least good in the day light). I have two issues that I'll have to contact support for. 1. Transition between day/night loops for about 5 minutes. Morning or evening, this camera can't decide what mode it wants to be in. It has parameters to set the light level that should trigger the transition between modes, but there is a bug in the current firmware. Transition levels are based on how much gain the sensor thinks it needs. So, level 0 is full sunlight and level 100 is pitch dark. Just before sunrise is around 65. With Day->Night at 67 (just after sundown/before sunrise) and Night->Day at 8 (sun over the horizon), you'd think there would be no problem. The problem is that the sensor reading is retaken after it switches modes. So at sun rise, it says "Hey it is getting brighter, let me switch to day mode." Then right after it switches to day mode, it says "Hey, it seems kind of dark now, I better switch to night mode". etc, etc for about 5 minutes until the post-switch mode reaches a certain level of lights. I have the Day-Night at 12, and Night to Day at 12. It is nice that you can get a current reading on the exposure level, but that only helps to confirm the problem. 2. Very noisy night images. I"m still working on this because you can set the "Brightness" and the "Auto Exposure Reference". My target area has a lot of asphalt so it is very dark when there is nothing in the image. The sample here shows some of the problem. I still have work to do on focus under IR and and work on the balance between AE target and brightness, so maybe I can get it a little better. Current firmware installed.

This thing is going back. The distributor is surprised that it doesn't have local storage. Overall a very unimpressive experience. Am I dumb enough to buy a "better" ACTi to replace it? I hope not.

I am more conservative 75 pix minimum per foot even day time I do like your number better. I think I'm about 60-65 on my setup and night shots can still be dicey.

At some point, you can't argue with resolution. A quick run through a lens calculator says that a 3.6mm lens, with a 1/3" sensor, shows HFOV of 67' at a distance of 50'. US plates need at least 50 pixels per foot in good light. More in poor light. Taking 50 PPF, and 66 feet, that's an image with 3300 pixels across. You will need to adjust your scenario.

The fun just keeps getting better. I decided to submit a ticket to ACTi support abut the day/night flip. Even though I included the server report file, that shows everything there is to know about the camera, their first email was "what firmware do you have?" After I answered that, they asked "Please so a reset and see what happens." WTF? Then it gets really exciting. I had not looked at the on board storage because I doubt I'll use it. But I had a little time, so I thought I would take it for a spin to see how it compared to the Vivotek interface. Son of a gun - this thing does not have a slot for a card! The manual says it should, the ACTi's web site says it should. I'm going to see if I can return this stupid thing. You won't see me recommending ACTi to anyone.

Have you used that product? It is very inexpensive compared to some others on the market and I wonder if it really is a bargin.