New IP Cam / Costco System

[AussieInSeattle 0]

I just ordered this as well. This after many years of saying I was going to do it. Both of our vehicles were broken into last night. This seemed the best bang for my buck. I am computer tech and net admin and while I would love to put really highend stuff in place. I also need to be realistic. I suspect this thing will be about as loud as a cisco switch. Not sure where Im going to put it yet but Ill find a spot.

 

Where did you get your other two cameras? I didnt see them on costcos site.

 

I suspect it is these - 2 for $349:

http://www.costco.com/Swann-1080p-2-Pack-NVR-IP-Bullet-Cameras.product.100039914.html

Item #759675

[zikronix 0]

I just ordered this as well. This after many years of saying I was going to do it. Both of our vehicles were broken into last night. This seemed the best bang for my buck. I am computer tech and net admin and while I would love to put really highend stuff in place. I also need to be realistic. I suspect this thing will be about as loud as a cisco switch. Not sure where Im going to put it yet but Ill find a spot.

 

Where did you get your other two cameras? I didnt see them on costcos site.

 

I suspect it is these - 2 for $349:

http://www.costco.com/Swann-1080p-2-Pack-NVR-IP-Bullet-Cameras.product.100039914.html

Item #759675

 

 

Ouch...Is there any confirmation that the other hikvison cameras will work?

[flynreelow 0]

I just ordered this as well. This after many years of saying I was going to do it. Both of our vehicles were broken into last night. This seemed the best bang for my buck. I am computer tech and net admin and while I would love to put really highend stuff in place. I also need to be realistic. I suspect this thing will be about as loud as a cisco switch. Not sure where Im going to put it yet but Ill find a spot.

 

Where did you get your other two cameras? I didnt see them on costcos site.

 

I suspect it is these - 2 for $349:

http://www.costco.com/Swann-1080p-2-Pack-NVR-IP-Bullet-Cameras.product.100039914.html

Item #759675

 

 

Ouch...Is there any confirmation that the other hikvison cameras will work?

 

Which camera specifically?

[zikronix 0]

maybe some of their domes...idk just tossing it out there

[JBDigital 0]

The cameras are now available from Costco. They are 349.99 for a two pack.

 

http://www.costco.com/Swann-1080p-2-Pack-NVR-IP-Bullet-Cameras.product.100039914.html

[cchan 0]

Here are the 2 quick Videos that cchan has uploaded for us.

Please right click, save as, (as my server wont allow streaming of these video files)

http://www.quickbay.biz/cchan/

Just added 3 more sample/test videos so there are 5 now. In particular, I added some nighttime video clips.

 

To recap:

Clips 1 & 2 - recorded late afternoon, with all 4 cameras recording simultaneously.

 

Clips 3, 4, & 5 - only a single camera was connected during the recording.

#3 gives you an idea of the scene during the day for comparison to 4 and 5. Camera was just placed outside of my front door for this test, similar view as #1 and 2 but different location.

#4 is at night - Street is lit by a streetlight to the right off camera, but otherwise no other lighting on the pathway, plant on the right, lawn, and outside of the house on the left, that is from the camera's IR LEDs.

#5 - I decided to turn the front house lights on/off to see what adding visible light does.

 

Resolution is certainly lower at night than day... how does this compare with other cameras?

 

Thanks again to flynreelow for hosting these.

[Dixit 0]

Still not bad to me. Im really thinking of just pulling the trigger on this and the extra cameras (even though those alone will be $700 for 4 more cameras) and then seeing how it goes with full 8 going.

 

Dixit

[SB_Jim 1]

Really glad you're all providing so much info on this Swann NVR as I've got my eye on it as well for my home exterior. BTW, I owned a lower-end Swann product for 5-6 yrs without a problem, and now it's used by my brother - again without any issues. I use the mobile app and the PC app to view from out of town, and these are both highly reliable and responsive.

 

From the 8CH Swann HD's owner's manual (which I downloaded from the web) it states:

 

Recording Resolution:

1280 x 720 (720P)

1920 x 1080 (1080P)

 

Recording Frame Rate:

NTSC: Up to 30fps/channel

PAL: Up to 25fps/channel

 

Somewhere I recall seeing a statement of 240 fps max., but I don't think I saw it in the owner's manual.

 

I don't find anything about a frame rate of 60 - as some have claimed was part of the spec. Also, the Swann tech group sent me an email the other day saying that the power consumption for each provided camera is 4W - if anyone was curious.

 

I could live with the 4 cams for a while, but I sure wish that we could find a solution to using another brand & other styles. The add-on cams are sure pricey - but they're 2.1MP - so hopefully they perform at an expected level.

 

Jim

[perrin 0]

I just ordered this as well. This after many years of saying I was going to do it. Both of our vehicles were broken into last night. This seemed the best bang for my buck. I am computer tech and net admin and while I would love to put really highend stuff in place. I also need to be realistic. I suspect this thing will be about as loud as a cisco switch. Not sure where Im going to put it yet but Ill find a spot.

 

Where did you get your other two cameras? I didnt see them on costcos site.

 

The noise comments were greatly exaggerated. This thing isnt any noiser than most 17 inch laptops. Its not by any means hairblower loud, and not even close to cisco switch loud.

 

In fact, I would call it quiet. Not silent, but quiet. You lose the sound when you're more than 15 feet away from it.

[perrin 0]

I just got this in at 7pm, so i dont have any external installation feedback yet.

 

Hooked up the NVR (quiet, low fan hum, not loud like previous comments) and all 6 cameras and ran it through a gamut. The IR cutoff switches over fairly easily, and night vision mode is decent out to 10-15 feet for clear facial recognition. Overall the live view playback seems grainy however, but I have yet to pull any footage off the NVR itself yet, and im operating in very poor conditions (floor of my office with all the cameras stacked on top of boxes.

 

Looking through the feature set, this NVR has signal/power loss alarm state triggering which is really nice. Someone goes to smash a camera, itll trigger an alarm and sent you a couple jpgs in an email and pull the last 5-10 second video stream before power loss if you want it. Thats a very beneficial feature.

 

I had a brief setup hickup where one camera would not recognize, but after switching out cables, and switching out cameras, it appears it may actually be a software glitch. You can manually select the stream from the camera and it works fine, but was showing no signal in live view 1+5. However, after cycling a bit and messing around, this resolved itself and all 6 cameras record cleanly at 1080p, 25fps in this NVR. This has some decent processing power to it.

[zikronix 0]

Ill be putting in 8 cameras this weekend. Thank you for all the feedback. Im excited to get it in. Its alot of money but the piece of mind is great. Its cheaper than what my alarm company wanted to sell me....what a bunch of clowns!. I did call them to get their quote which all I really wanted was their opinion of where to put the cameras.

[Q2U 0]

...Its cheaper than what my alarm company wanted to sell me....what a bunch of clowns!. I did call them to get their quote which all I really wanted was their opinion of where to put the cameras.

 

 

Yor're a real gentleman, and I'm certain all of the hard working clowns at the alarm company appreciate what you've done when they try to feed their baby clowns and pay the mortgage on their circus tent.

[zikronix 0]

...Its cheaper than what my alarm company wanted to sell me....what a bunch of clowns!. I did call them to get their quote which all I really wanted was their opinion of where to put the cameras.

 

 

Yor're a real gentleman, and I'm certain all of the hard working clowns at the alarm company appreciate what you've done when they try to feed their baby clowns and pay the mortgage on their circus tent.

 

If they didnt activley try to rip people off then i would have felt bad. Try this on for size

 

500GB DVR 8 port (looks like the monoprice dvr) - 1100.00

480TVL - Dome camera - 550.00ea

480TVL - Bullet Camera - 400.00 NO IR ea

600TVL - Bullet w/ IR - 550.00ea

Remote viewing is avaialible.

This system they have doesnt even have alarm output.

 

The system with alarm output -

1GB DVR 8 port (looks like a qsee) 1500.00

600TVL DOME - 600.00

600TVL Bullet w/ir 650.00

Remote monitoring is availaible.

ALARMNET REQUIRED! additonal 10.00 a month

 

 

A system wit no DVR and just cameras:

Alarmnet Required

Cameras are 490.00 each

Addon module for alarm pannel 300.00

Install - 400.00

 

Their actual alarm stuff isnt that expensive...its resonable. Reasonable to the point of when I was going to buy the panel from my buddy and all the contacts at cost they were literally on 50.00 higher and they installed it. The monthly service is also reasonable.

[Q2U 0]

If they didnt activley try to rip people off then i would have felt bad. Try this on for size...

 

 

What credentials do you possess that entitle you to judge what should be charged for this equipment. You're disrespectful attitude towards people who are trying to earn a living is simply nasty and it is uncalled for. Why on Earth did you feel the need to make it personal. There are a lot of folks here at this forum who sell and install this equipment, and a lot of these folks help you with your questions. You've embarrassed yourself in front of them all zikronix. You do what you think is right, but I'm of the opinion that you should aplogize to all of the hard-working clowns out there. I'm done commenting on this regardless of your reply and I hope you rethink this and do what's right.

[zikronix 0]

If they didnt activley try to rip people off then i would have felt bad. Try this on for size...

 

 

What credentials do you possess that entitle you to judge what should be charged for this equipment. You're disrespectful attitude towards people who are trying to earn a living is simply nasty and it is uncalled for. Why on Earth did you feel the need to make it personal. There are a lot of folks here at this forum who sell and install this equipment, and a lot of these folks help you with your questions. You've embarrassed yourself in front of them all zikronix. You do what you think is right, but I'm of the opinion that you should aplogize to all of the hard-working clowns out there. I'm done commenting on this regardless of your reply and I hope you rethink this and do what's right.

 

I was never once disrespectful to them. I even asked them why not do it my self. She said if you know how...you can. I told her I considered it but I wanted to see where they came in, because if the price was right id have them do it. She said well if your going to do it. You would probably want a camera here, here and here. And yes there are alot of people that do sell this equipment, i respect that and them. Not everybody knows how to install it and grandma isnt going to. I realize their prices do reflect install cost, and I under stand that. However adding 300.00 to the cost of a camera for install and a 1 year warranty. Oh and that one year warranty only covers hardware...not the service call which is 99.99 is a little greedy, especially when competing companies offer the same equipment at about half the cost.

 

You say to do what right. So you're telling me you would spend almost 4000.00 for a d1 4 camera system installed. If you wouldnt you're telling me you wouldnt use their camera location suggestions in your own install. You know and I know thats a bunch of BS

[anthonywebb 0]

My new cameras arrived today form costco. Seems like a pretty solid bundle for the price. Noise is not like a hairdryer as has been reported, but definitely not something you would put in your family room or something. Mine is gong in a utility room so I didnt care.

 

Night has not set yet so I cant speak to that, but the daytime cam is great.

 

Here are the things I think are real downsides, and may prompt me to return the package:

 

1. No mac support, meaning you can view or playback anything from a mac. I do have a windows desktop and tested the web interface in both IE and Chrome, and it is indeed superb. Was worried I was going to get watered down video unless I had a monitor plugged into the NVR, but can report that is not the case. The windows support was great, no mac support at all, ouch.

 

2. iPad/iPhone apps are absolutely terrible! I have not looked for alternatives, but I am suspecting there wont be any. The real big showstopper is no support for viewing your cameras when you are not at home. Which for me defeats the purpose of even having a camera. You gotta be able to view these things from the road, c'mon guys. Also, there is no excuse for an app published so recently to not support the iPhone5 screen, insane.

 

3. I cant get any of the recorded mp4 clips to play in either quicktime or windows media player for some reason, this might be user error, but should have been more obvious. Still playing around trying to make this work, I'm fine using the web interface to play stuff, but like having the option to export stuff too.

 

4. It is unclear how to connect to the RTSP port, anyone able to connect?

 

Overall I am just really torn, love some stuff, hate other stuff. I suppose the stuff I hate can be changed with new software, real question is how dedicated is swann to fixing the deficiencies?

Edited April 18, 2013 by Guest

[Q2U 0]

...I suppose the stuff I hate can be changed with new software, real question is how dedicated is swann to fixing the deficiencies?...

 

I would guess that Swann cares only that the camera works with it's NVR. But I care only that the camera feeds a good image to Blue Iris.

[SB_Jim 1]

Are you using 554 for your RTSP port? Are you using the correct app? There a specific one for the NVR.

 

Jim

[anthonywebb 0]

I would guess that Swann cares only that the camera works with it's NVR. But I care only that the camera feeds a good image to Blue Iris.

Do you know how to get the cameras talking straight to Blue Iris?

 

I see there is RTSP support on port 554, but I havent been able to connect to it yet, and not too sure how I would do that since the NVR only has a single IP, are you saying you bypassed the NVR completely?

 

I was trying to connect to the rtsp port with VLC.

[Q2U 0]

Somewhere buellwinkle wrote that he thought these "Swann" cameras might be Hikvision DS-2CD2032-I. So here are pictures of both. What do you think?

[Q2U 0]

And here's some more...

[SB_Jim 1]

I think B-Winkle was right! Might that imply that if Hik made a small dome that it would work w/ the Swann??

[Q2U 0]

DS-2CD2032-I Specs From HIKVision Website

 

http://www.hikvision.com/en/Products_show.asp?id=7326

 

Camera

Image Sensor: 1/2.5" Progressive Scan CMOS

Signal System: PAL/NTSC

Min. Illumination: 0.07Lux @ (F1.2, AGC ON) ,0 Lux with IR

Shutter time: 1/25(1/30) s to 1/100,000 s

Lens: 4mm@ F2.0, Angle of view: 75.8°

(6mm, 12mm optional)

Lens Mount: M12

Day& Night: IR cut filter with auto switch

Digital noise reduction: 3D DNR

 

Compression Standard

Video Compression: H.264/M-JPEG

Bit Rate: 32 Kbps ~ 16 Mbps

Dual Stream: Yes

 

Image

Max. Image Resolution: 2048×1536

Frame Rate: 50Hz: 12.5fps (2048 × 1536), 25fps (1920 × 1080), 25fps (1280 × 720)

60Hz: 15fps (2048 × 1536), 30fps (1920 × 1080), 30fps (1280 × 720)

Image Settings: Saturation, brightness, contrast adjustable through client software or web browser

Backlight compensation: Yes, zone optional

BLC: Yes, zone configurable

 

Network

Network Storage: NAS (iSCSI optional)

Alarm Trigger: Motion detection, Tampering alarm

Protocols: TCP/IP, HTTP, DHCP, DNS, DDNS, RTP, RTSP, PPPoE, SMTP, NTP, UPnP,

ICMP,IGMP,SNMP, FTP, 802.1X, QoS, HTTPS(SIP,SRTP,IPv6 optional)

Security: User authentication, watermark

System Compatibility: ONVIF, PSIA, CGI

 

Interface

Communication Interface: 1 RJ45 10M / 100M ethernet interface

Reset Button: Yes

 

General

Operating Conditions: -30 °C ~ 60 °C (-22 °F ~ 140 °F)

Humidity 95% or less (non-condensing)

Power Supply: 12 VDC ± 10%, PoE (802.3af)

Power Consumption: Max. 5 W (Max. 7 W with IR cut filter on)

Weather Proof: IP66

IR Range: -I: Approx 20 to 30 meters(65.6-98.4ft)

Dimensions: 60.4×76.9×139.28 mm (2.4” × 3.0” × 5.5”)

Weight: 500g (1.1 lbs)

[Q2U 0]

Aye Laddie, me thinks brother Buell NAILED IT. " title="Applause" />

[flynreelow 0]

My new cameras arrived today form costco. Seems like a pretty solid bundle for the price. Noise is not like a hairdryer as has been reported, but definitely not something you would put in your family room or something. Mine is gong in a utility room so I didnt care.

 

Night has not set yet so I cant speak to that, but the daytime cam is great.

 

Here are the things I think are real downsides, and may prompt me to return the package:

 

1. No mac support, meaning you can view or playback anything from a mac. I do have a windows desktop and tested the web interface in both IE and Chrome, and it is indeed superb. Was worried I was going to get watered down video unless I had a monitor plugged into the NVR, but can report that is not the case. The windows support was great, no mac support at all, ouch.

 

2. iPad/iPhone apps are absolutely terrible! I have not looked for alternatives, but I am suspecting there wont be any. The real big showstopper is no support for viewing your cameras when you are not at home. Which for me defeats the purpose of even having a camera. You gotta be able to view these things from the road, c'mon guys. Also, there is no excuse for an app published so recently to not support the iPhone5 screen, insane.

 

3. I cant get any of the recorded mp4 clips to play in either quicktime or windows media player for some reason, this might be user error, but should have been more obvious. Still playing around trying to make this work, I'm fine using the web interface to play stuff, but like having the option to export stuff too.

 

4. It is unclear how to connect to the RTSP port, anyone able to connect?

 

Overall I am just really torn, love some stuff, hate other stuff. I suppose the stuff I hate can be changed with new software, real question is how dedicated is swann to fixing the deficiencies?

 

I believe these can be viewed on a MAC, with a simple safari plugin.

 

Also, check out Vitamin D software for MAC.