Security Camera suggestions

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N9JIG

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I currently have a cheap Zosi home video system that has 8 WiFi cameras and a DVR with hard drive storage. The cameras work fine and the system is great for live viewing but I have never been able to get the system to be accessible from a computer on the network or the mobile app. I went around and around with Zosi Support and it just has not worked. In addition going back for reviewing incidents is awkward at best.

I am looking for a reasonably priced system that has the ability to live-view, retrieve prior incidents from the hard drive and mobile/computer access, all with WiFi cameras.

Has anyone had experience with such a system and care to share suggestions?

Thanks!
 

bharvey2

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If your existing cameras are ONVIF compliant and you're happy with their clarity and capability, you may be able to use them with another DVR/NVR. I've installed a number of HikVision systems at work and I find them relatively user friendly for live view and playback both on site and remotely.

While their cameras and NVRs are ONVIF compliant, the Secure Equipment act of 2021 has rendered them and many other Chinese made (or semiconductor populated) security products banned in the U.S. Existing stock already in the States is fine but it may be a while (if ever) that new products will be imported.

If your cameras can record to an integrated SD card, you may be able to connect to them via a software NVR. I haven't experimented with those in quite a while so I can't suggest any among the current crop of products.
 

N9JIG

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I found my oyster!

While at Sam's Club the other day we saw a couple systems and the "Night Owl" seemed to tick my boxes. It promised easy set up using the Bluetooth of a smart phone as well as local, computer and smart phone/tablet access.

For the 8-camera/10 channel WiFi system with a 1TB HDD they charges $600. Got it home and last night I set the NVR and 8 included cameras up. It was as easy as they advertised, In 15 minutes I had the NVR and the first camera setup. I then plugged in the other 7 cameras into an outlet strip and each was added in the next 10 minutes. I then went to Amazon and bought 2 more cameras as the NVR supports 10 channels.

This morning the wife and I installed the 8 original cameras and about the time we finished the 2 new ones arrived so we installed them too.

The power adapters were the same so I did not have to change out that. The only issue I had was the mounting holes did not match the old cameras so I had to mount a few new anchors here and there. I had to make a couple adjustments to the wiring on a couple of the cameras and of course run power for the two new ones but that was no big deal.

So far the system is great, much better than the old one. The cameras are all 4K, nice and clear with vibrant color. I want to see how they look at night, the old system, while only "HD" would go to B&W mode in the dark and actually looked pretty good.

The Mac application seems to work fine and the iPhone and iPad apps do as well. This is important for the wife, she can pop it into her iPad and watch it while she is in her sewing room.

While it has only been running for the day it looks great so far. I am a little concerned that only a 1TB HDD might not record too long, but we will see what happens with that. I suppose I could take the 4TB from the old system and swap them if the system supports replacing the HDD.
 

bharvey2

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I found my oyster!

While at Sam's Club the other day we saw a couple systems and the "Night Owl" seemed to tick my boxes. It promised easy set up using the Bluetooth of a smart phone as well as local, computer and smart phone/tablet access.

For the 8-camera/10 channel WiFi system with a 1TB HDD they charges $600. Got it home and last night I set the NVR and 8 included cameras up. It was as easy as they advertised, In 15 minutes I had the NVR and the first camera setup. I then plugged in the other 7 cameras into an outlet strip and each was added in the next 10 minutes. I then went to Amazon and bought 2 more cameras as the NVR supports 10 channels.

This morning the wife and I installed the 8 original cameras and about the time we finished the 2 new ones arrived so we installed them too.

The power adapters were the same so I did not have to change out that. The only issue I had was the mounting holes did not match the old cameras so I had to mount a few new anchors here and there. I had to make a couple adjustments to the wiring on a couple of the cameras and of course run power for the two new ones but that was no big deal.

So far the system is great, much better than the old one. The cameras are all 4K, nice and clear with vibrant color. I want to see how they look at night, the old system, while only "HD" would go to B&W mode in the dark and actually looked pretty good.

The Mac application seems to work fine and the iPhone and iPad apps do as well. This is important for the wife, she can pop it into her iPad and watch it while she is in her sewing room.

While it has only been running for the day it looks great so far. I am a little concerned that only a 1TB HDD might not record too long, but we will see what happens with that. I suppose I could take the 4TB from the old system and swap them if the system supports replacing the HDD.


Glad you found what you were looking for. Swapping out the HDD may work if the NVR's OS doesn't reside on it. You might also look around the settings and see if there is any mention of H265+. That is a more efficient codec.
 

bharvey2

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N9JIG, what is your opinion of the Night Owl's setup and remote viewing software? My boss is looking for a small video system for his house. He and his wife would be using the software for remote viewing but neither are really tech oriented.
 

prcguy

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I might add that WiFi specific cameras can be disabled from a distance from a simple device that costs around $15. I can walk up to your house with one and all your cameras just go dead, that is one big reason not to use WiFi and go hard wired.

With that out of the way I've had great success with Reolink cameras and NVR, they are reasonably priced and work very well. You can view all your cameras from a very nice cell phone app or any computer anywhere running their app, plus you can set up motion detection to alert you via email.

Here is an 8 camera NVR with four cameras where you only need one Ethernet cable from the NVR to the camera and power is handled over the same cable. They also have 4k cameras available.

 

bharvey2

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Personally, I'm not a big fan of wireless security cameras given their inherent vulnerabilities. (As you mentioned) I much prefer PoE cameras. For convenience purposes, like who's knocking at the door, wireless is okay. Thanks prcguy for posting the Reolink video system link. I'll take a look at it and see if it will fit the needs of the boss.
 

LS101

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try this site everything you would want to know, very useful site explains on what to and what not to buy. a wealth of knowledge.
Don't buy something you will regret, as for big box store security systems you will regret it, not much you can do with them almost all settings are stripped from NVRs and cameras, looks good in the day but at night there useless, what good is a system at night when you can't even make out a persons face or the car that,s what you will get with these stripped down big box system. Read and read and you will see why.

 

N9JIG

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For me this system works fine. I want to see what is going on around my home from anywhere and can't really run Ethernet wires all over. The view on these cameras at night is better than I expected.

Our next home will likely be custom built and we plan on running cabling everywhere to a server closet, it just is not practical here and now.

This system will get us thru the next 2 years and we will leave it for the next owners to use.
 

p1879

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I have a question for you knowledgeable folks--"almost" on topic. I need a cheap camera solution to watch my bird-feeding platform. No smart phone capability needed. There is a shed with power beside the feeding platform, I have wifi, and I just want to watch the birds from the radio shack inside the house. The camera location is about 40 feet from the wifi router in the house. Do not need motion sensing or recording, just want to watch live my beautiful Redbirds. Wired video cable impracticable. Would appreciate any recommendations. Thanks-----p1879
 

thinbluebbq

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I have a question for you knowledgeable folks--"almost" on topic. I need a cheap camera solution to watch my bird-feeding platform. No smart phone capability needed. There is a shed with power beside the feeding platform, I have wifi, and I just want to watch the birds from the radio shack inside the house. The camera location is about 40 feet from the wifi router in the house. Do not need motion sensing or recording, just want to watch live my beautiful Redbirds. Wired video cable impracticable. Would appreciate any recommendations. Thanks-----p1879
+1 on Wyze cameras. They are cheap and nice to use. I have 8 of them at my house and they work wonderfully well. Big fan for ease of use and setup.
 

p1879

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If it is indeed capable of constant monitoring, then my order is off today!
 

N9JIG

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Well, a couple months in and I am really liking the Night Owl system. It has performed well, I can access it from a computer, phone or iPad and the picture quality is superb.

My wife likes it because she can watch the camera(s) from her iPad in her sewing room when I am not home. I can check for deliveries when I am off flitting about. It sets up a lot faster than my Ring camera.

I did have a quick support question during the install process and used their live text messaging and they were responsive and answered my questions accurately.

In the words of the immortal Max Fielder: I Like It.

I Like It.png
 
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