remmy870 0 Posted November 30, 2012 Hello! 1st, I hope this is in the right forum. 2nd, I have a small amount of CCTV knowledge, but need quite a bit of help I'm afraid. 3rd, thanks for any help! I need a hidden camera/dvr system. I think my best route is a DVR with a hard drive to be a stand alone system. I'm thinking I'll only need 2 channels, but may go with 4 to be safe. I'll basically just need to record for around 12 hours a day and have enough storage for probably no more than a few days. From what I understand, the amount of storage used up in the DVR's hard drive can vary quite a bit based on if it does motion recording, how many frames are captured, etc. I don't think I need motion recording, but will need the frames to look "live" (not sure what that would be btw, maybe 30 fps?). I'll also need some form of hidden camera. This is in an existing building, I can run wire easily, but I don't want to just pop cameras up. I don't know much here, but maybe pinhole cameras are a good option? I do wonder what kind of quality you can get from those. I guess I need some basic thoughts on what I need and maybe some product suggestions. I guess I should also mention this has to be budget minded. And if I've left out anything I should have thought to mention, please let me know. Thanks! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sinbad 0 Posted December 1, 2012 1. look at Digital watch Dog DVR for decent quality and cost. 2. you'll want 15FPS for good motion. 30 is better but most times 15FPS will do. 3. there is no 2 channels DVR you looking at 4 channels. 4. hidden cameras usually suck at quality >480 TV lines, you better get decent camera and hack it to hide it. but I don't see why you'll need hidden camera in a building. better let people know there are cameras than hiding them. 5. you said building? hire a professional Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
remmy870 0 Posted December 1, 2012 Thanks sinbad! I'll search for a 4 channel of that brand. What do you mean by hack a decent camera to hide it? My problem is these workers need to be caught, seeing a camera will defeat the purpose. I talked to one pro, the price was just kinda high I thought. That's when I started doing a bit of research myself, and ended up here with questions. Thanks again! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sinbad 0 Posted December 1, 2012 My personal opinion is that you rather deter them than catch them. but thats just my thoughts. the hidden cameras you see inside smoke detector/ PIR / clocks are usually very low quality. it's basically small board camera with 420 TV lines so the image won't be great. what I mean by hacking a decent camera is to mount it on ceiling tile where you cut a small hole just for the lens or install it behind a picture or large object etc. If I were you I would get another professional, tell him what's your budget (nothing wrong there since you have low budget) and see what he recommends. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
