What's a nice starter box cam, clean professional image?

[WildCard 0]

I just had a thread about a professional customer wanting a nice quality, but nice priced dome cam. It's here:

 

http://www.cctvforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=2166&highlight=

 

But given Rory's response about a dome will never have as good a pic of a box camera - what box's would you suggest in the same environment? I am looking at some of the boxes that Intellicam sells, I am not sure what ones would be decent performers.

 

Is it generally accepted that all box cams are atleast good, especially compared to domes? Or is it another case where some boxed cams are good and some are crap?

 

Any advice on what boxes to avoid, would be appreciated. I am thinking of getting one for my end user, implementing it on a low priority cam and showing him the quality difference.

 

Thanks again CCTVforum, you are very helpful,

-WC-

[kaysadeya 0]

Depend on what you're looking for. Color? B&W? Day/Night? Price range?

[rory 0]

Name brands, GE, Bosch, Sanyo, Ganz .. to name a few. Ive used the first 3 of these and they were all great. Ive used the OEM box cameras like 4 years ago and never went back after moving to the big boys.

 

Toshiba and JVC are supposed to be very good also. Samsung Techwin (not Samsung GVI which is more typically pushed in the US) has some great specs but havent tried them yet.

 

Panasonic also has some impressive cameras, but the price is way out of wack...

 

The majority of Box cams I have installed in retails here have been the GE KTC-840CE Exview High Res Color camera, with Fujinon or Computar Varifocal AI Lenses. Great image quality on those. All using Altronix 24VAC Power Supplies.

 

Rory

[WildCard 0]

Thanks Rory. You have a treasure trove of good info..

 

By OEM, I assume you mean the simple unbranded box cams that companies sell, right?

 

Doing a web search for GE KTC-840CE comes up with prices in the $*** retail range. That's not much more than some of the OEM ones I've been looking at.

 

I've been looking at lenses & the Altronix ps, thanks for touching on those points too.

 

-WC-

 

//Edited out websearch pricing, posted because I thought the price found was retail, not dealer pricing.

Edited May 26, 2005 by Guest

[rory 0]

Hi, yep .. actually that is wholesale dealer price, before our resident mod jumps in, they dont like us posting dealer pricing, just as there are so many DIyers in here and can conflict with someones business .. maybe // Anyway, PM Hermin so you can get in the dealer section and we can discuss pricing there

 

But yeah you are right on, its not that much more. And yeah the OEM means unbranded, small name companies.

 

I missed a company out though, never used their cameras but they are supposed to be very good as well, Ikegami.

 

Me personally, i need to sell something I can get my hands on easy enough, and that I have instant pricing on for quotes. I wanted to carry the Samsung Techwin line, just from the specs, but have had to go to what I can get.

 

For box cameras, this is the selection I am currently using ..

 

-GE KTC-540CE for a BW Exview (with IR up to 1100nm),

-GE KTC-840CE for indoor or outdoor low light,

-Ganz ZCY30 Wide Dynamic Camera, as its one of the least expensive Wide Dynamics and has had very good reviews,

-Panasonic Day Night Wide Dynamic (for those applications like Gas Stations, etc, where they need Day Night and have varying lighting conditions and glare such as from vehicle head lights),

-Sanyo 4594 Day Night Camera (has IR resonse up to 1100nm) True Day Night and inexpensive

-GE KTC-2000DN True Day Night, Exview for low light color and switch to BW low light

 

Ganz also has some good Day Nights as well as color cameras, but I like to use what I know .. GE is easier to get my hands on also than the others.

 

As for compact Box cameras, that can fit in smaller housings and dome housings:

 

-Panasonic has a mini Wide Dynamic Day Night Box Camera..WV-CP474H

-Ganz has a Mini Wide Dynamic Box camera also ..ZC-YHW701N

-GE has a Mini Color Camera ..KTC-215CC

-GE has a Mini Exview Color camera ..KTC-240CCE

-GE also has a Mini BW Exview camera..KTC-115CC

 

Rory

[WildCard 0]

Spectacular list. This is very helpful.

 

I have seen you say on a few occasions in a few threads that you like GE cams, looks like about half of the ones you use are GEs. I've always been under the understanding that GE doesn't make too much of anything (except the high end medical etc stuff), that they typically just rebadge someone else's goods as their own. Maybe that's just the toasters, blenders etc out there.

 

Locally I see a lot of OEM cams, sometimes I will see Sony - but I think a lot of people are tolerant of mediocrity in this area. You selling so many systems is indicative of that you sell well on the value vs price sales pitch.

 

Thanks for the list, it's a great one.

 

-WC-

[rory 0]

What it is, is a company called Kalatel, which was bought out by GE a couple years ago. Thats why you may see some of us still call it Kalatel. Kalatel made some of the first DVRs, and have been making CCTV equipment for years. Kalatel bought out a camera line called GBC a couple years before they themselves were bought out by GE. GBC are their discreet camera line, the mini domes, and the hidden cameras, etc.

 

Yep, like all big boys, they all buy alot of their stuff from someone else and rebage, though they have kept the CCTV area pretty much designed within at least. They are obviously going to keep their secrets to themselves as far as that is concerned, though they do claim their DVRs are made in the US .. ofcourse the components are mainly IMB Power PC, and some other micro computer stuff, though I guess they do the design and build it so thats what counts I dont have a GE camera here right now, but It sais on it, Made in Taiwan (or china . cant remember )

 

Alot of web sites/companies will call their cameras SONY but most of the time it is just an OEM using a SONY chip, like alot of them do today. If its a real Sony it will have the Sony on the camera image .. though even that I have seen Photochopped onto the image on at least 1 web site! Sony has great CHIPS but there cameras are not actually the best .. their Cam Corders rock though ...

[bryan1656 0]

KTC = Kalatel Traditional Cameras? Korean Technology Company?

 

Something like that?

 

Anyway...

 

So, if you see KTC in the model number, that usually indicates a KTC camera, many which may use a Sony board...maybe even a Computar lens, or something... and then it may all be branded as GE or "un-branded" as a "no name" OEM.

 

It is sort of one of thse "open secrets" - everything gets rebranded, branded, unbranded... whathaveyou, but they will openly keep certain identifiers in the various model numbers, and they'll openly tell you about using ExVIEW or SuperHAD (Sony) chips.

[rory 0]

KTC = Kalatel Traditional Cameras? Korean Technology Company?

 

Something like that?

 

Anyway...

 

So, if you see KTC in the model number, that usually indicates a KTC camera, many which may use a Sony board...maybe even a Computar lens, or something... and then it may all be branded as GE or "un-branded" as a "no name" OEM.

 

It is sort of one of thse "open secrets" - everything gets rebranded, branded, unbranded... whathaveyou, but they will openly keep certain identifiers in the various model numbers, and they'll openly tell you about using ExVIEW or SuperHAD (Sony) chips.

 

[rory 0]

All their products start with "k", for Kalatel I imagine.

 

Nope, Kalatel was making cameras before the asians ...

They have Cameras with Exview Chips in them, or without them.

 

Still blows away the OEM cameras.

[bryan1656 0]

I'll admit to being confused.

 

There's KTC as seen on the Kalatel stuff... then there is KT&C that has KPC in their model numbers... with KPC , I believe, indicating something like Korean Products Company, or something - made by KPC using alot of Sony chips, duistributed by KT&C (and others).

 

And then there is the whole Watac/Genwac thing with Watec Company Limited vs. Watec America Corporation.

 

yeah... I get confused.

[loop 0]

GE bought a Taiwanese manufactuer named Kampro 2 years ago. Most of GE's cameras are manufactured by them. They still oem to other companies, probably by earlier contracts, or the absence of "conflict of interests".

 

But these are no secrets...

[rory 0]

Dont know about that. The camera I use from the Kalatel day (before GE) is the same as the ones they sell under the GE name now ..

 

Im sure the manufacture them in Taiwan but they are still the same cameras from the Kalatel Days ..

[loop 0]

http://www.kampro.com.tw