Budget Surveillance System that Records to Computer

[polskieserce 0]

Hi, I'm looking for a video surveillance system, but I am very confused by the different options available. I tried check out newegg to see what is there, but I don't even know what 90% of the specs mean. I am looking for a video surveillance system that matches this criteria:

 

-Records video to a computer that is on 24/7

-Is able to record good quality video day and night *

-Suitable for outdoor and indoor use

-Small in size, not a huge clunker that is very visible

-I need at least 2 cameras to be part of this system

-Motion detection is a must have (so that I don't have hours of blank recording)

-Total cost (including cameras, wires, etc but excluding the PC, which I already have) must be $200 or less*

 

*By good quality, I don't necessarily mean HD. I just want to be able to recognize a person in the footage. I don't want it to be so blurry that the person in the recording is barely identifiable.

 

*I will be buying from an online retailer like Newegg or amazon, since they are cheaper than smaller retailers/box stores.

 

What would you recommend?

[buellwinkle 0]

Actually, cameras tend to be pricier on Amazon as they have charge about 10% for their service. Even resellers on Amazon I know of, sell the same camera on their site for about 10% cheaper. The cheapest are analog cameras, $30 probably gets you a nice low end analog camera, but to record to a PC you need a special board. Then there's are IP cameras in many price ranges. Foscam is the sort of the leader in the under $100 space. Dahua & Hikvision are the leaders in the under $200 space. Then it goes up from there. IP cameras, at least beyond Foscam, require you inject power into your Ethernet cable as that's how they are connected and powered on the same wire. You'll need a PoE injector per camera or a PoE switch to handle multiple cameras.

 

For an IP camera to record to a PC, clearly the PC has to be turned on when you want it to record. You'll need software, ranges from free, to low priced, to high priced. Many here use BlueIris software for the low end, about $39, runs on Windows, easy to setup. Free would be Zoneminder on Linux. Also, some higher end software like Milestone provide a free version, their XProtect Go is free for 8 cameras and limited to 5 days recording.

 

As for resolution, HD, non-HD, UHD, that depends on what you are trying to do. You need someone's face to be at least 85 pixels tall to identify them, or 45 pixels tall to recognize them. So you can have someone standing 20' away and recognize them with VGA or HD, depends on focal length of your lens. For example, maybe you can use a 1080P camera with a wide angle lens vs. a telephoto lens with a VGA camera. So the more pixels you have to play with, the wider the field of view you can effectively use.

 

So in your price range, $200 for a two camera system, check out Foscam. the Foscam FI8905W is a popular outdoor camera, the Foscam FI8910W is a popular indoor camera. Both plug into with their included power brick adapter. Both use WiFi to connect. They are good starter cameras and make sure you buy from a place that gives good service & warranty.

 

If you want something real for that $200, get a Hikvision ds-2cd2032-i, a very good starter camera, $167 shipped, 3MP and an order of magnitude better than Foscam. Then get a PoE injector, about $15 and use their free iVMS software and smartphone apps. Wait until you get more money, then get something for indoors.

[polskieserce 0]

Actually, cameras tend to be pricier on Amazon as they have charge about 10% for their service. Even resellers on Amazon I know of, sell the same camera on their site for about 10% cheaper. The cheapest are analog cameras, $30 probably gets you a nice low end analog camera, but to record to a PC you need a special board. Then there's are IP cameras in many price ranges. Foscam is the sort of the leader in the under $100 space. Dahua & Hikvision are the leaders in the under $200 space. Then it goes up from there. IP cameras, at least beyond Foscam, require you inject power into your Ethernet cable as that's how they are connected and powered on the same wire. You'll need a PoE injector per camera or a PoE switch to handle multiple cameras.

 

For an IP camera to record to a PC, clearly the PC has to be turned on when you want it to record. You'll need software, ranges from free, to low priced, to high priced. Many here use BlueIris software for the low end, about $39, runs on Windows, easy to setup. Free would be Zoneminder on Linux. Also, some higher end software like Milestone provide a free version, their XProtect Go is free for 8 cameras and limited to 5 days recording.

 

As for resolution, HD, non-HD, UHD, that depends on what you are trying to do. You need someone's face to be at least 85 pixels tall to identify them, or 45 pixels tall to recognize them. So you can have someone standing 20' away and recognize them with VGA or HD, depends on focal length of your lens. For example, maybe you can use a 1080P camera with a wide angle lens vs. a telephoto lens with a VGA camera. So the more pixels you have to play with, the wider the field of view you can effectively use.

 

So in your price range, $200 for a two camera system, check out Foscam. the Foscam FI8905W is a popular outdoor camera, the Foscam FI8910W is a popular indoor camera. Both plug into with their included power brick adapter. Both use WiFi to connect. They are good starter cameras and make sure you buy from a place that gives good service & warranty.

 

If you want something real for that $200, get a Hikvision ds-2cd2032-i, a very good starter camera, $167 shipped, 3MP and an order of magnitude better than Foscam. Then get a PoE injector, about $15 and use their free iVMS software and smartphone apps. Wait until you get more money, then get something for indoors.

 

I am currently unemployed, so I won't have any money coming in for a long time. I don't need a camera for indoors, only outdoors. I will look into the Foscam and see what the deal is there.

[Devilish 0]

Actually, cameras tend to be pricier on Amazon as they have charge about 10% for their service. Even resellers on Amazon I know of, sell the same camera on their site for about 10% cheaper. The cheapest are analog cameras, $30 probably gets you a nice low end analog camera, but to record to a PC you need a special board. Then there's are IP cameras in many price ranges. Foscam is the sort of the leader in the under $100 space. Dahua & Hikvision are the leaders in the under $200 space. Then it goes up from there. IP cameras, at least beyond Foscam, require you inject power into your Ethernet cable as that's how they are connected and powered on the same wire. You'll need a PoE injector per camera or a PoE switch to handle multiple cameras.

 

For an IP camera to record to a PC, clearly the PC has to be turned on when you want it to record. You'll need software, ranges from free, to low priced, to high priced. Many here use BlueIris software for the low end, about $39, runs on Windows, easy to setup. Free would be Zoneminder on Linux. Also, some higher end software like Milestone provide a free version, their XProtect Go is free for 8 cameras and limited to 5 days recording.

 

As for resolution, HD, non-HD, UHD, that depends on what you are trying to do. You need someone's face to be at least 85 pixels tall to identify them, or 45 pixels tall to recognize them. So you can have someone standing 20' away and recognize them with VGA or HD, depends on focal length of your lens. For example, maybe you can use a 1080P camera with a wide angle lens vs. a telephoto lens with a VGA camera. So the more pixels you have to play with, the wider the field of view you can effectively use.

 

So in your price range, $200 for a two camera system, check out Foscam. the Foscam FI8905W is a popular outdoor camera, the Foscam FI8910W is a popular indoor camera. Both plug into with their included power brick adapter. Both use WiFi to connect. They are good starter cameras and make sure you buy from a place that gives good service & warranty.

 

If you want something real for that $200, get a Hikvision ds-2cd2032-i, a very good starter camera, $167 shipped, 3MP and an order of magnitude better than Foscam. Then get a PoE injector, about $15 and use their free iVMS software and smartphone apps. Wait until you get more money, then get something for indoors.

 

I am currently unemployed, so I won't have any money coming in for a long time. I don't need a camera for indoors, only outdoors. I will look into the Foscam and see what the deal is there.

 

I am not an expert but here is a current deal on the Foscam outdoor units to look into.

 

FI9804W 720p Megapixel Outdoor Bullet Camera for $109.99 (Free shipping)

To get the deal, follow the link below and use coupon code "EYBFVEH8" at checkout:

 

http://www.amazon.com/Foscam-FI9804W-Outdoor-Wireless-Camera/dp/B00GYBIU7O/ref=sr_1_1?t=slickdeals&tag=slickdeals&ascsubtag=d0e224fb398d422882902682adc37e32&m=AM1AKWRN957PC&s=merchant-items&ie=UTF8&qid=1400255931&sr=1-1&keywords=fi9804w

[polskieserce 0]

The foscam is too big and bulky. I need something more discreet than that. With a camera of that size it will be clearly visible. I want something smaller.

[mimilovell 0]

I would seriously go and by on quality rather than price. This is with everything in life. In my view there isnt a real ppoint of getting cheap nasty cameras and then find out when the footage is needed, the image is not good enough to be used in a court of law. There are a lot of cheap cameras on the market and after a few months, the pictures seem to fade and give a wash out effect. And the night vision range isnt that great. The range is limited. etc.... Once you et a good camera up, that is just one last headache you need to worry about, and you can forget about it, and not spend more on upgrading.