todd2

Looking at some of the AverMedia DVRs they offer CIF, D1, and D1 Enhanced, whatever that means. Running at "D1 Enhanced" gives you only 1/2 the frame rate of D1. Has anyone used AverMedia DVRs and/or know whether this feature is any good? Both AverMedia and Geovision sell mobile DVRs, but the AverMedia DVR has double the rate rate @ D1, and equal frame rate @ D1 Enhanced.

If you're referring to the eb1304mob net, only the wifi version is available in the US. The 3g dongle is not yet available. Even if it were, I would doubt AverMedia would provide plans--wouldn't they expect you to provide your own sim card and wireless plan?

I just checked with T-mobile here in the US and they don't offer an aircard with unlimited data; their "laptop" plan is 5G per month. They offer an unlimited data for phones, but if the guy said that if you connected a laptop it would have only about dialup bandwidth, which likely would not be sufficient for remote monitoring.

Anyone sell these? Minimum length I see is 25ft but for wiring a vehicle I won't need that long of a cable, don't want to use extra space on unused length, and don't want to snip and resolder the cables. Yes I'm a perfectionist.

The Geovision Compact DVR is not Windows based, it's Linux based. The case does have a fan, but so does the AverDigi EB-1304MOB. I believe they're both spec'd to require 5A @ 12V from the vehicle for the motherboard, cameras, & HDD. Not sure why you think it will generate a lot more heat.

Actually, your post caused me to look at the averdigi website again and I noticed they have announced a new product, the AverDigi EB-1304MOB NET, which seems to be an improved version of the EB-1304MOB that has a LAN (RJ45) port and a USB port that can accept a G3 dongle. Basically, exactly what I want. Only problem is I don't see any for sale in the USA yet; just the announcement on the international AverMedia website. The other candidate I found is a Geovision Compact DVR. Are the Geovision and AverMedia products of about the same quality level? They both also seem to make DVR cards.

I was looking for an entry level intellicam 8 channel dvr and stumbled upon a web page [edit by mod-store link removed] selling the G4-8LTA for $455. However the "specs" link is broken and the intellicam website doesn't list that model. Is it discontinued? For the models I do see listed on the intellicam website, the minimum price on the web is around $700, which is $200 more. It's really a shame that a good 8 channel is the price of 2 4 channels. (Or, I could order a cheaper one from gadspot, but you can't figure out what brand you're actually getting, which makes me nervous.)

Actually, there's a thread elsewhere in this forum where I asked about how to remotely monitor a garage with mains power but nothing else, and I found that a 3G router and aircard will get the job done. That made me think that I'd like that capability for my car DVR as well. It may not work well in a tunnel, but wherever a cell phone signal works, I should be able to connect. The idea is that I can sit at my desk and watch the cameras in my car so I know immediately if something happens rather than later on when I review the security footage.

I want to install 4 cameras in a vehicle to try to get full coverage, including low on the vehicle--so the cameras will have to be high on the pillars looking out a near side window. Problem: do I go with board cameras or bullet cameras? It may be impossible to make it very covert given the coverage requirements, but it seems the board cameras are less obvious than the bullet cams. However, mounting the bullet cams on pillars would be a snap compared with the board cameras. With the board cameras, I'd need to fashion some sort of housing (like a "gauge pod") that sticks out of the pillar and covers the camera board. Not sure this is even possible without custom plastic fabrication capability. It looks like the selection of board cameras is slightly better, but I could still get want I wanted as a bullet camera I suspect.

Agreed, which means the camera signal is the same, but the mounting process is different, as well as the level of concealment. Perhaps, if a tinted dome is used, but wouldn't that lower the night lux rating of the camera?

Are the Intellicam DVRs quiet? I found the fan noise from the Avtech 761 unacceptably loud, and had to extensively modify the case to mount a larger fan spinning at a low RPM to achieve the same airflow. Ideally, I'd like something as quiet as a Dell PC. (I also had a problem with the damn buzzer on the Avtech 761 sounding each time the unit switched on and off, so I had to remove it from the motherboard with a soldering iron. However, I've recently been running it 24/7 so that isn't as much of a problem with my next DVR.) Obviously, if I pay $700 for a DVR, I'm not going to want to take a chance voiding the warranty like I did with the AVC 761.

I have a location with mains power (110V), but nothing else. Assuming cell coverage, I want to install a cheap device that will detect motion and send some pictures to an email or ftp. The device itself could be stolen, so I don't want to spend a lot or use something that won't transmit to an offset location. I saw something call the Nokia Remote Camera, but it's apparently only available in Europe.

Ok, some jerk is stealing mail out of my mailbox and I want to catch him. I need a tiny spycam/dvr that will run for at least 24 hours and record to an sd card (motion activated preferable). I've seen a dvr pen and a dvr gum stick size device, which would be fine except that their battery life is like 2 hours since they're not motion activated. I guess I could rig up an external battery but that might be more conspicuous. Any long running tiny dvr devices out there? Looking at <$200 ballpark.

I have used the following made by TopGlobal MB5000k ($170) and the MB6800 (give you more ports but not much else) I like these routers because you are able to use lots of different 3G/4G Cellular PCMCIA cards so what ever coverage is in your area will most likely work in the router. I can even set one up for you with my Verizon card if you want to check it out. I dont know about the whole thing for under $200 but you could definitely put something like this together for 300-400, remember though you will need unlimited data plan for 24/7 surveillance so that runs about $50 a month here, maybe cheaper where you are. Ok, one point is confusing me. Assuming I can't sit viewing the camera 24/7, where is data going? Does the IP camera send to an ftp server, or only a live viewer application on a PC? FTP probably can't handle a live data stream and I'd hate to have to run my home PC 24/7 for this. If the IP camera had motion detection and only tried to communicate when it saw motion, that would be perfect, but probably that would be a lot more money.

I did a quick price check; I need a central panel and one of the motionviewer devices, so we're talking about $1000. That's out of my range. I could go to maybe $200. I'd hoped there was some cool hack for a camera cell phone to get the job done.

Wouldn't that require local Wifi access at the camera location? There isn't any Wifi.

I need to put a cam in a garage that is not air conditioned. It could reach 110F. Most cameras are rated to 100F at most operating temperature. Do I have any recourse? Will the camera just shut down if it gets too hot or would it start a fire?

I'm trying to evalute candidates for a new DVR to replace the AVC 761 I currently have. Are there any other candidates I should consider besides the Intellicam 4XLA? The biggest problem I have with my current unit are the two ftp problems mentioned in the other threads. It seems with the 4XLA, that it doesn't send snapshots at all like the AVC. Instead, I'm told it waits until the end of the motion recording on the hard drive, and then simply sends that file to the ftp server. I'm not too keen on that, because it means if the connection is broken with no stop in motion from premises entry, the file will not be sent. Anything out there that either sends smaller chunks as they are captured or sends snapshots like the AVC761 (but done right, where if motion continues, more snapshots are sent periodically, not just once)? This is getting to be very aggreviating; it also seems like I need a DVR with open source firmware to get exactly what I want. Also, the modifications I made to the AVC761 to quiet it (replaced stock fan with a larger fan running at low rpm by cutting a hole in the top of the case, and unsoldered the damn piezo sounder) will void the warranty of the Intellicam.

Location of camera will be in vehicle in parking garage (100' by 100' or such). Garage is lit at night, but not during the day. What sensitivity level of a camera will I need to get decent images under such lighting. Would a .05 lux camera work? Installation is covert and thus no IR led array can be used.

The piezo units are tough little buggers. Before I unsoldered mine from the AVC761, I filled it (through the hole) with caulk. I waited 24 hours for the caulk to dry. No effect.

The problem is that even though the unit has a timer, the timer only controls whether recording is turned on/off; it doesn't put the unit into a powersave mode like a consumer DVR. At night I want the unit to shut down completely, so I drive it with a timer. I do have a UPS, but the timer is between the UPS and the DVR. Wouldn't taping up ventilation holes be a bad idea? Maybe I need a ventilated cabinet that can help block some of the fan noise.

If you have your AVC 761 set up to ftp motion events (which are also recorded in the machine's event log), there's a problem. The time delay you configure (5-40seconds) only comes into play once the motion stops; it determines how long the motion must be stopped for the event to end so a new one can start. However, no matter what this setting is, the event will last potentially forever if the motion *doesn't* stop. I.e. supposed a thief enters a room and tosses the place moving around crazily until he runs off. Even if he stayed in view for 10 minutes trashing the place, you only get one event...unless he stands still for 5 seconds (or 40 seconds if you have it set to 40!) I have the DVR on 24/7 record, but the events do determine when ftp images are sent, so you'd only get 1-10 ftp images at the instant the bad guy poked his head through the door, and NOTHING for the next 10 minutes. What I'd like to see is the time setting (5 - 40 seconds) override any motion and stop the event. That way, if the perp is going nuts moving around, you'd get an event every 5 seconds. I'm really not too pleased with the 761 at this point, given the other problem (the switch to alarm camera problem that we already know about).

Not sure who your last response was directed to, scorpian. I never had the DVR working as I wanted. I use only the ftp, not the email, but I believe the issue is the same viz-a-viz "switch to alarm channel". The DVR is supposed to switch to the channel causing the motion alert, but instead it sends the currently selected camera. I still get an image so it's not an ftp problem. My complaint about AvTech support ist that my DVR is fairly new so I'd hoped they would provide a firmware update to fix this problem.

The specifications for the new SATA model AVC761AS claim "Remote Alarm Notification: E-mail images, and upload images to FTP site's specific account" In other words, it does support emailing images. Not sure how, but I can't imagine it sends raw bitmaps, so it must be JPG or GIF I would guess.

Did Avtech say they weren't going to fix the AVC761(IDE) firmware, or is it just that no one has asked them? It doesn't appear consumers can ask them directly. My "old" model is barely more than a year old, so it surprises me that they refuse to support it, when presumably it's just a firmware fix. It doesn't give me much motivation to buy another one of their products.