Request for DVR suggestions

[KNIGHTRD 0]

I have three DVR projects to complete right now. One of them is challenging me a bit though, so I'd appreciate any help or recommendations that can be offered.

 

At the site I'm most concerned about at the moment they have an existing installation with 4 cameras over coax. There is a camera outside the front door, two cameras in a hallway, and one camera out back. The have a box in the plenum above the ceiling tiles in one room, kind of like a central room (off center TECHNICALLY). All the coax goes there and connects by BNC. You might envision it as a hub and spoke model. It's not a DVR that connects them, rather it's just a crude monitoring hub. The video out is by coax to another room about 20-25 feet away where they can view everything in a back room.

 

What they'd like to do is get an **Internet ready DVR with 3G cell phone viewing capabilities**. So essentially they'd like to be able to check up on everything when they can't lug around the laptop.

 

The question is whether anybody can recommend some brands (or even specific models) that are Internet cable and won't require rewiring and/or replacing the cameras??? I know there are some PC cards that are capable, but that's not an option because they're going to move to a DVR. If there is no other choice, they will have to go down this route. I've located cell phone viewable DVR's, but none that support the cabling.

 

The cost to redo everything isn't that great, but I can understand their desire not to waste any of the existing cabling or cameras. I've done some searching and sent out a few inquiries with some DVR producers. If anybody has some suggestions, I'd sure appreciate them. The total length of all the cables added together is probably no more then 200-250 feet.

 

They have another site, but in that case I can do it all from scratch.

[scorpion 0]

I am confused to your request. If they are upgrading to a DVR then this means that they do not have a DVR at this time. The central monitoring HUB as you describe must mean that it is a multiplexor of some sort.

 

You know what they say about assume, and I may be wrong.

 

If the cameras are using coax, and BNC connectors then you should have no problems putting in any kind, and any brand of DVR.

 

You appear to be a CCTV installer and I am fearful of giving all of the tips that I would normally give to a DIY person as I would not want to offend, or to bore you to death.

 

I will add some tips for the readers who come across this post in the future who themselves may be the do it yourselfer (DIY).

 

If you are providing a one year warranty on your work the by all means repull the cable!! How old is it? What is the old wire's life span? Are you in a coastal area where you may have salt that is in the air, or a high humidity area that may affect the wire. It may be good to go today, but in 8 months you may have to go back constantly for issues. In the begining you are more likely to go back and cut off the connector, and cut the wire back 6 inches to get to fresh copper, and reterminated the connector.

 

There will come a day where you have to repull a wire because of constant video loss. This can be a pain as it disrupts the organization, and the job of repulling wire can interfere with their day to day operations.

 

It would be better to pull wire now while it part of the "installation" rather than later.

 

 

The other question is what kind of COAX is it? If it is broadband cable that is used for the Cable Company then this is the wrong kind of coax. The coax needs to be copper center conductor, and the braid has to be copper.

 

The cable company uses steel center conductor with a copper coating. This works for the cable company, but not for camera video.

 

If you do not repull the wire then get something in writing that you are not responcible for the wiring, and get a signature!

 

If you want to avoid rewiring it then quote a real high dollar amount to do it, and they will refuse because they cannot afford it, and down the road if there is an issue you can point back that you recommended that they install new wire, and that they refused, and now the ball is back in their court.

[KNIGHTRD 0]

My uncertainty about the cabling is because some of the solutions I was coming across had some unconventional cabling. I was concerned that I'd get into this project and get stuck without all of the needed equipment.

 

It looks like we're going to replace all the cameras and cabling. I have tested out an AverMedia EB1304Net DVR with a Windows Mobile based cell phone. You can just visit the DVR's webpage using Internet Explorer on your cell phone and it will have a link to download the .cab file to run the DVR remotely.

 

Then you run the downloaded file, configure the IP address, configure the port, configure the user name, and configure the password. After that you can login, switch between various cameras, or view all 4 cameras at the same time. Total hardware cost for the installation is about $800 plus labor. New Windows Mobile phones (w/out a 2 year contract) run about $450+.