Good day everyone,
First of all, let me say hello! Clearly this forum is the number one place for camera related info, so I'm excited to be here.
Secondly, pat me on the head, I'm a camera noob. I moved into a house that has a system with 2 IP cameras going to an ADT rebranded Dahua DVR. The cameras are POE powered, and not PTZ. They're little domes, and look like lower/mid cost stuff from China.
Here's the issue- the software is terrible. It glitches, and the motion sensing areas (i.e. only record when there is motion) doesn't work, so I can't even flag areas of movement. The app for iOS basically does fine with Live View, but other than that, looking back at footage is terrible.
So, I'm thinking I can go one of two ways to get out of the HikVision, Dahua, and other unrefined systems:
- Find a commercial grade DVR/NVR system that has excellent software and phone app
- Build something PC based, and then find some excellent NVR software to run on it, that hopefully also has a great phone app.
Considerations:
- If I dump the dedicated DVR, I'm looking at needing 2 POE injectors, or a POE switch, unless the system already has this.
- I might like to expand the system in the future, but by no more than 2 additional cameras. I just don't have the area to need more than that.
- I would love a system that would output the cameras via a video cable at the source, so I could have a monitor connected.
- Wish: Broadcast HDMI over Ethernet to HDMI2 ports of various TVs to 'switch to' as needed to see who's at the door, etc. Is this even possible?
So, I need some expert help. I'm an IT professional by trade, but I haven't worked in the security field. Any recommendations that anyone can provide would be greatly appreciated. I've started looking a little at Synology, but I'm not sure how 'refined' that is. Probably their entry level stuff would handle 4 cameras.. but does anyone know how well the software works in comparison to the entry level equipment? Has anyone used the DS Cam app? I see that there are some videos, and a software demo of the main interface. Are there any app demos?
Thanks for the help,
-pd
