$899 Swann 8Ch w/ 4 1080P IP Camera back @ costco

[hotneutron 0]

Saw this in today's booklet: Online-Only Offers 9/4/13 - 9/22/13

 

Page 20

Swann 8-Channel Surveillance System

2TB hard drive, HDMI, real-time 3mp recording and free instant remote access via apps. Includes four 1080p day/night bullet camera #788693

 

1199.99-300.00 = $899.99

[rayt 0]

Saw this in today's booklet: Online-Only Offers 9/4/13 - 9/22/13

 

Page 20

Swann 8-Channel Surveillance System

2TB hard drive, HDMI, real-time 3mp recording and free instant remote access via apps. Includes four 1080p day/night bullet camera #788693

 

1199.99-300.00 = $899.99

 

Not sure if this is considered a deal anymore after the Lorex Deal

which had the NVR, 4 bullets and 2 domes for 999.99. Then again for some, 4 cameras is more then enough.

[buellwinkle 0]

They are SDI cameras, unless I'm seeing something different or coupon code is required. They do offer a network camera version for $1,199.

[Sleepmd 0]

The DVR looks like the package for the IP camera set. The item # in the Costco ad does not match either of the Swann 1080P packages they are currently selling (SDI or IP). However, the ad is $300 off and the original price of the IP camera package they currently have is $1199 (1199-300=$899). Of interest, the ad does mention 3mp recording which is an improvement from the gimped 2mp DVR/Camera set that Costco was selling for Lorex.

 

On a side note, I bought the Lorex package a few weeks ago and also got the old domes. I called Costco, got routed through to Lorex, and the Lorex rep was no go about replacing the old domes with the new one. He recommended buying another set and just switching out the domes but Costco is no longer selling that package. Thinking about returning the Lorex set almost on principle but it's still not a bad deal still (6x1080p cameras is about the price of the Lorex set that comes with DVR).

[zikronix 0]

Product wont be online until the start of the book on the 4th

[funkadelic 0]

Not sure if this is considered a deal anymore after the Lorex Deal

which had the NVR, 4 bullets and 2 domes for 999.99. Then again for some, 4 cameras is more then enough.

yeah, i bought both the Swann and Lorex packages from Costco but decided the keep the Lorex since it was a better deal with 2 additional domes + $200 cheaper at the time. The only thing that kills me about the Lorex is that it didn't come with rack mount ears (the Swann did) and I'm having a hell of a time finding rack ears for it since Lorex doesn't sell them and Hikvision USA doesn't sell direct to consumer.

 

That said, I think the NVRs are a little different. I read in another post here someone suggesting that the Swann NVR was possibly a Hikvision DS-7608NI-SP in a different case, while the Lorex NVR is a DS-7608NI-SE/8P. At first glance the main differences i spotted was the Swann appears to have alarm in/out where the Lorex doesn't (and the swann comes with the rack mount ears for those that intend to rack mount their NVR -- too bad the NVRs aren't the same width otherwise I'd try to buy the rack ears from swann)

[zikronix 0]

The swann is a 7708 in a different case and the Lorex is a 7608. More interesting is the swann 16 port has a 16 port Poe switch and hik vision doesn't have an oem of it only an 8 port Poe switch. I'm pretty sure their 16 port is a 7716

[pnyxxpress 0]

I just got my Costco booklet and this is not listed.

[zikronix 0]

I just got my Costco booklet and this is not listed.

 

 

It was in the online oinly offers booklet that mailes last week some time

[rayt 0]

I just got my Costco booklet and this is not listed.

 

 

It was in the online oinly offers booklet that mailes last week some time

yup i see it there

[pnyxxpress 0]

I apparently don't get the online mailer. I'll keep an eye open online starting the 4th. Thanks

[JoeyJoey 0]

I apparently don't get the online mailer. I'll keep an eye open online starting the 4th. Thanks

 

 

It is there now.

http://www.costco.com/Swann-8-Channel-3MP-NVR-Security-System-with-2TB-HDD-and-4-1080p-Cameras.product.100058520.html

 

What is interesting on this one is:

 

"For the ultimate in protection the kit includes 4 all-weather 3 megapixel (2048 x 1536 pixels) cameras"

[Sleepmd 0]

I flashed all the cameras from the Lorex bundle with the new Hikvision Raptor firmware and they support 3MP as stated elsewhere on this board (still works with the Lorex NVR too, but just won't record at the higher resolution). I guess the only difference from the Lorex bundle to this Swann bundle was the ability of this DVR to record in 3MP (though the description of the DVR in this ad doesn't explicitly state it) and official support from Swann for the 3MP resolution of the cameras.

[thmaxxer 0]

So I guess the advantage of using 3 MP over 2.1 is better clarity? I guess better zoom capabilities? Not sure if I should pull the trigger and return my 2 week old swann system for the new one.

[MaxIcon 0]

Most cams that offer both 1080p and 3MP give the same pixels per foot (or whatever), but show more pixels for a wider FOV at the higher resolution. The Hiks have a smaller horizontal FOV and a larger vertical FOV at 3MP than at 1080p, for the equivalent of a zoomed in image with the same lens. One image or the other is interpolated, rather than a pixel to pixel image, but it's not clear which.

 

This gives more pixels per foot, but a smaller FOV, at 3MP. I'm not aware of any other cams that handle these two resolutions in this fashion.

[zikronix 0]

Just to be clear the nvr will run out of bandwidth really quickly if these cameras are running at 3mp

[rayt 0]

Just to be clear the nvr will run out of bandwidth really quickly if these cameras are running at 3mp

 

3mp and 15 fps can't be that much more then 2mp and 30 fps.

[pnyxxpress 0]

On the 7708 what's is the max supported watts per port and the total for all ports? thanks

[zikronix 0]

Just to be clear the nvr will run out of bandwidth really quickly if these cameras are running at 3mp

 

3mp and 15 fps can't be that much more then 2mp and 30 fps.

 

True,

[MaxIcon 0]

Just to be clear the nvr will run out of bandwidth really quickly if these cameras are running at 3mp

 

3mp and 15 fps can't be that much more then 2mp and 30 fps.

 

The bandwidth is determined by the bit rate setting on the cams. The resolution and frame rate don't affect it directly, but can affect the image quality at a given bit rate.

[Hitch 0]

Just to be clear the nvr will run out of bandwidth really quickly if these cameras are running at 3mp

 

3mp and 15 fps can't be that much more then 2mp and 30 fps.

 

The bandwidth is determined by the bit rate setting on the cams. The resolution and frame rate don't affect it directly, but can affect the image quality at a given bit rate.

 

Can you explain this a bit (no pun intended) more? My parents are looking for a security system. Four cameras would be plenty for them (they may not even need all four). I was thinking about recommending this package to them, but I don't think I understand what you are saying.

 

Also, is it possible to add audio to this system?

 

Thanks!

[MaxIcon 0]

On most IP cams, one of the settings is for bit rate, which is usually in multiples of 1024 kb/second, though some let you set any random number. You can often set fixed or variable bit rate as well.

 

It's important to note the difference between kb/s (bits) and kB/s (bytes); networks use bits, and you'd divide bits by 8 to get bytes, which hard drives use!

 

For fixed bit rate, the cam will send out data at whatever you've set, regardless of the content. If you have 4 cameras set for 4096 kb/s, your network traffic from the cams will be 16,384 kb/s, or 16Mb/s. As long as the NVR and network will handle that, you're good.

 

If you added 4 more cameras, that would take you to nearly 33Mb/s, and if your NVR only handled 30MB/s, you'd have to reduce the bit rate on one or more of the cams to keep it below that limit.

 

As you change the resolution and frame rate, this will often change the limits you can select for bit rate. At a low resolution like D1, you may not be able to choose more than 2048 kb/s, while 3MP may go as high as 8192 or 16384 kb/s.

 

The relation between bit rate, resolution, frame rate, and video quality is complex, and depends a lot on how the programmers have implemented the h.264 encoding. Generally, though, 4096 gives good quality for 2MP and 3MP cams, though high frame rates might benefit from higher bit rates. 2048 is usually fine for lower frame rates, like 10 fps.

 

This also directly affects how much video you can record on a hard drive. So, 4096 kb/s (bits) is 512kB/s (bytes). Multiply that times 60 for 30,720 kB/minute, or about 31 MB/minute. Multiply again by 60 to get 1.8 GB/hour, and by 24 to get 44 GB/day, recording 24x7.

 

Variable bit rate can reduce or increase the network traffic, depending on how it's implemented by the software people. Some cams (I believe the Hiks do this) cap the bit rate and won't let it go above that, but will let it drop below if there's little motion or detail. Others will increase bit rate for more motion or high detail.

[pnyxxpress 0]

Interesting.. So to simplify this. Would one of you bit rate gurus be so kind to tell me. If I have 8 3mp cameras installed running at max resolution on this nvr. What would be my max bit rate and fps per camera that I could run. Thanks

[buellwinkle 0]

I tried various bit rates to see where the fall off point would be and with 3MP at 15fps, I use 4096. Going higher like 8192 does not produce a significant difference.

[pnyxxpress 0]

I tried various bit rates to see where the fall off point would be and with 3MP at 15fps, I use 4096. Going higher like 8192 does not produce a significant difference.

 

It doesn't sound like the nvr will support this on 8 cameras. Without reducing the fps to a painfully slow level I won't be able record at a full 3mp.