Geekzone: technology news, blogs, forums
Guest
Welcome Guest.
You haven't logged in yet. If you don't have an account you can register now.


dimsim

848 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted
Lifetime subscriber

#104432 18-Jun-2012 20:28
Send private message

ok, after some hardware and software recommendations to setup some home surveillance

I've been playing with the ubiquiti aircams for the last few weeks and for their price I've been pretty impressed. The airvision software is a bit clunky, doesnt run as a service, is resource intensive and not good at storage management but does work well on my iphone and does notify me of movement etc.

The aircam quality is ok but not great, basically it works but i think ill wait until they release their pro version before I revisit them.

The other cam I've tried this week was from Level 1, the FCS-5051 a 2MP IR Bullet. A completely different kettle of fish to the Aircam. A solid IP66 housing that felt solid and secure. It also had features that I was interested in, like inbuilt NVR, image transfer to FTP and email notification on movement etc all on-board. The image quality was pretty good but i didnt really get a change to fully test it outdoors. There is a 5MP unit due shortly which id also like to test.

Unfortunately the Level one cam wont FTP video to offsite only still images, so I've started to look at a NAS that will backup to clouds like Amazon of via FTP etc. Both QNAP and Synology seem to have products wehich will do this.

So after the rant my questions...

1. NAS recommendation that will work with wide variety of IP camera and backup realtime to cloud.
2. IP Camera for outdoor day/night use that will work with the above ($700-$1000)


or if there is a free open source NVR product i could install on an old Core2 laptop and use that as the NVR... infact id probably prefer this..






View this topic in a long page with up to 500 replies per page Create new topic
 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | ... | 10
Ramjet007
319 posts

Ultimate Geek


  #642903 19-Jun-2012 06:00
Send private message

Been playing with ispy (http://www.ispyconnect.com/)

Using cheep wireless ip cams from Trademe. Works ok.

Run 3 cams with no problem.



sbiddle
30853 posts

Uber Geek

Retired Mod
Trusted
Biddle Corp
Lifetime subscriber

  #642907 19-Jun-2012 07:49
Send private message

You'll probably really struggle with cloud based backup simply because it's not an option I've ever heard anybody want before. The concept of IP CCTV is to backup streams to a NAS, and when you've typically got a minimum of few hundred GB of data per month most people aren't going to want to them move this over the internet and couldn't afford the bandwidth or upload speed to do it.

The AirCam stuff is pretty poor at present so I'd avoid it. Lots of potential, but right now the quality is pretty poor and it's a matter of getting what you pay for.





dimsim

848 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted
Lifetime subscriber

  #642911 19-Jun-2012 08:27
Send private message

sbiddle: You'll probably really struggle with cloud based backup simply because it's not an option I've ever heard anybody want before. The concept of IP CCTV is to backup streams to a NAS, and when you've typically got a minimum of few hundred GB of data per month most people aren't going to want to them move this over the internet and couldn't afford the bandwidth or upload speed to do it.

The AirCam stuff is pretty poor at present so I'd avoid it. Lots of potential, but right now the quality is pretty poor and it's a matter of getting what you pay for.


i was hoping with motion detection recording only that id get away with 10-30gb a month. I have about that spare on my allowance so thought an offsite backup was a good idea.



sbiddle
30853 posts

Uber Geek

Retired Mod
Trusted
Biddle Corp
Lifetime subscriber

  #642912 19-Jun-2012 08:31
Send private message

Well if you don't have much movement it could be that, I'm mainly just use to larger systems and/or systems with a lot of movement.

I just don't know what you'll get in the way of cloud based backup, mainly because it's not something I've seen in a feature set and never come across anybody who's wanted (or had a need) for it.




BuffyNZ
241 posts

Master Geek


  #642913 19-Jun-2012 08:33
Send private message

I use www.zoneminder.com to detect motion and then it emails the video to a gmail account.

Works well for me.




Recursion: See recursion.
--
“It is important not to let the perfect become the enemy of the good, even when you can agree on what perfect is. Doubly so when you can't. As unpleasant as it is to be trapped by past mistakes, you can't make any progress by being afraid of your own shadow during design.”

     --Greg Hudson, Subversion developer


davidcole
6034 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

  #642914 19-Jun-2012 08:33
Send private message

What is a good brand of IP CCTV - pretty set and forget? Either for a house or a shop?




Previously known as psycik

Home Assistant: Gigabyte AMD A8 Brix, Home Assistant with Aeotech ZWave Controller, Raspberry PI, Wemos D1 Mini, Zwave, Shelly Humidity and Temperature sensors
Media:Chromecast v2, ATV4 4k, ATV4, HDHomeRun Dual
Server
Host Plex Server 3x3TB, 4x4TB using MergerFS, Samsung 850 evo 512 GB SSD, Proxmox Server with 1xW10, 2xUbuntu 22.04 LTS, Backblaze Backups, usenetprime.com fastmail.com Sharesies Trakt.TV Sharesight 


TinyTim
1042 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

  #642926 19-Jun-2012 09:00
Send private message

CCTV = great for getting pictures of the top of the intruder's cap visor. Not so good for getting evidence.




 

 
 
 
 

Send money globally for less with Wise - one free transfer up to NZ$900 (affiliate link).
dimsim

848 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted
Lifetime subscriber

  #642931 19-Jun-2012 09:04
Send private message

davidcole: What is a good brand of IP CCTV - pretty set and forget? Either for a house or a shop?


For outdoor, I'm leaning towards the level one range. Mid-range pricing around $1000, great build quality, good quality images 2MP+ (FCS-5051) or 5MP (FCS-5061) onboard NVR/motion dectection, PoE, can email on motion and ftp images offsite.

Jaxson
8042 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

  #642943 19-Jun-2012 09:17
Send private message

TinyTim: CCTV = great for getting pictures of the top of the intruder's cap visor. Not so good for getting evidence.


That's the deal, you either go with dummy camera's as a deterrent, or quality cameras to give you solid evidence after an event.  There's not much point at all playing with anything in between.  If you're after real ones you may also need to provide adequate lighting to get a worthwhile detailed shot.

BuffyNZ
241 posts

Master Geek


  #642950 19-Jun-2012 09:23
Send private message

I think it depends on your goal.

For me, mine is hooked into my alarm system. When the alarm is armed, so are the camera.

When the alarm goes off, I get a email and a text. I check the gmail account, see if I recognise who set the alarm off, and then ignore it.

When the 'I dont recognise the person' situation came up it was dealt with in a slightly different way.




Recursion: See recursion.
--
“It is important not to let the perfect become the enemy of the good, even when you can agree on what perfect is. Doubly so when you can't. As unpleasant as it is to be trapped by past mistakes, you can't make any progress by being afraid of your own shadow during design.”

     --Greg Hudson, Subversion developer


meesham
973 posts

Ultimate Geek


  #642952 19-Jun-2012 09:25
Send private message

BuffyNZ: 
When the 'I dont recognise the person' situation came up it was dealt with in a slightly different way.


You release the hounds?

dimsim

848 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted
Lifetime subscriber

  #642955 19-Jun-2012 09:26
Send private message

Jaxson:
TinyTim: CCTV = great for getting pictures of the top of the intruder's cap visor. Not so good for getting evidence.


That's the deal, you either go with dummy camera's as a deterrent, or quality cameras to give you solid evidence after an event.  There's not much point at all playing with anything in between.  If you're after real ones you may also need to provide adequate lighting to get a worthwhile detailed shot.


I agree, it totally depends on what you want to see. For example the Ubiquiti Aircam produces a good enough image to be able to read a number plate during the day and will email you an image of any motion detection so you know what's going on. Its good enough to know if its your neighbour flogging your grapefruit or a lite fingered delivery guy but not good enough to standup in court.

TinyTim
1042 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

  #642962 19-Jun-2012 09:36
Send private message

dimsim:
Jaxson:
TinyTim: CCTV = great for getting pictures of the top of the intruder's cap visor. Not so good for getting evidence.


That's the deal, you either go with dummy camera's as a deterrent, or quality cameras to give you solid evidence after an event.  There's not much point at all playing with anything in between.  If you're after real ones you may also need to provide adequate lighting to get a worthwhile detailed shot.


I agree, it totally depends on what you want to see. For example the Ubiquiti Aircam produces a good enough image to be able to read a number plate during the day and will email you an image of any motion detection so you know what's going on. Its good enough to know if its your neighbour flogging your grapefruit or a lite fingered delivery guy but not good enough to standup in court.


It's not so much a quality issue, but the intruders purposely try to hide their faces - keep the cap low etc. The police still don't know who tried to use my wife's credit card at a service station even though they have the recording. 




 

dimsim

848 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted
Lifetime subscriber

  #642964 19-Jun-2012 09:49
Send private message

TinyTim:
dimsim:
Jaxson:
TinyTim: CCTV = great for getting pictures of the top of the intruder's cap visor. Not so good for getting evidence.


That's the deal, you either go with dummy camera's as a deterrent, or quality cameras to give you solid evidence after an event.  There's not much point at all playing with anything in between.  If you're after real ones you may also need to provide adequate lighting to get a worthwhile detailed shot.


I agree, it totally depends on what you want to see. For example the Ubiquiti Aircam produces a good enough image to be able to read a number plate during the day and will email you an image of any motion detection so you know what's going on. Its good enough to know if its your neighbour flogging your grapefruit or a lite fingered delivery guy but not good enough to standup in court.


It's not so much a quality issue, but the intruders purposely try to hide their faces - keep the cap low etc. The police still don't know who tried to use my wife's credit card at a service station even though they have the recording. 


sure, so much of it depends on the environment your going to put it into.

In my circumstance I want to protect my rural property. To do this I need to keep track of vehicles coming and going as no-one will be walking here on foot. There inst a lot of motion but when there is I want to ensure the footage is of good quality, available remotely and protected so it too doesn't get removed along with my TV. :) And the most important part of all this is to catch them so they cant come back again.

oxnsox
1923 posts

Uber Geek


  #642977 19-Jun-2012 09:58
Send private message

TinyTim:
dimsim:
Jaxson:
TinyTim: CCTV = great for getting pictures of the top of the intruder's cap visor. Not so good for getting evidence.


That's the deal, you either go with dummy camera's as a deterrent, or quality cameras to give you solid evidence after an event.  There's not much point at all playing with anything in between.  If you're after real ones you may also need to provide adequate lighting to get a worthwhile detailed shot.


I agree, it totally depends on what you want to see. For example the Ubiquiti Aircam produces a good enough image to be able to read a number plate during the day and will email you an image of any motion detection so you know what's going on. Its good enough to know if its your neighbour flogging your grapefruit or a lite fingered delivery guy but not good enough to standup in court.


It's not so much a quality issue, but the intruders purposely try to hide their faces - keep the cap low etc. The police still don't know who tried to use my wife's credit card at a service station even though they have the recording. 


Mostly it's about Camera placement.
Installers put things where they aren't easy to tamper with, but easy to install.  Few folk will pay the install price to cleverly mount a camera at eye level so the view is recognisable.

A good install thinks about the captured image not about the camera viewing angles.

 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | ... | 10
View this topic in a long page with up to 500 replies per page Create new topic





News and reviews »

Air New Zealand Starts AI adoption with OpenAI
Posted 24-Jul-2025 16:00


eero Pro 7 Review
Posted 23-Jul-2025 12:07


BeeStation Plus Review
Posted 21-Jul-2025 14:21


eero Unveils New Wi-Fi 7 Products in New Zealand
Posted 21-Jul-2025 00:01


WiZ Introduces HDMI Sync Box and other Light Devices
Posted 20-Jul-2025 17:32


RedShield Enhances DDoS and Bot Attack Protection
Posted 20-Jul-2025 17:26


Seagate Ships 30TB Drives
Posted 17-Jul-2025 11:24


Oclean AirPump A10 Water Flosser Review
Posted 13-Jul-2025 11:05


Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7: Raising the Bar for Smartphones
Posted 10-Jul-2025 02:01


Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7 Brings New Edge-To-Edge FlexWindow
Posted 10-Jul-2025 02:01


Epson Launches New AM-C550Z WorkForce Enterprise printer
Posted 9-Jul-2025 18:22


Samsung Releases Smart Monitor M9
Posted 9-Jul-2025 17:46


Nearly Half of Older Kiwis Still Write their Passwords on Paper
Posted 9-Jul-2025 08:42


D-Link 4G+ Cat6 Wi-Fi 6 DWR-933M Mobile Hotspot Review
Posted 1-Jul-2025 11:34


Oppo A5 Series Launches With New Levels of Durability
Posted 30-Jun-2025 10:15









Geekzone Live »

Try automatic live updates from Geekzone directly in your browser, without refreshing the page, with Geekzone Live now.



Are you subscribed to our RSS feed? You can download the latest headlines and summaries from our stories directly to your computer or smartphone by using a feed reader.