Anyone had experience with Dahua security cameras?

Forums › Gadgets, robotics, home automation, electronics (including wearables) › Anyone had experience with Dahua security cameras?

Daverino

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#270478 11-May-2020 15:04

Hi All,

I’m currently looking for a few IP security cameras for home and am looking for any advice on my options. My budget is quite tight - I’d ideally be looking at $150 or less per camera (and I know quality is not going to be great in this range, but I’m not needing anything too fantastic). I’ve heard decent things about Amcrest cameras which I am told are just rebranded Dahua camera and looking at Dahua cameras on AliExpress these seem like they can be reasonably good value- but there is a lot of things I’m reading which is making me wonder whether going for cameras off AliExpress is a good option or not (lots of stuff about not upgrading firmware etc.).

Basically, I’ve seen this camera here https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32832960951.html?spm=a2g0o.cart.0.0.6e2e3c00ZytzUG&mp=1 and am wondering if there’s anyone with a bit of experience with Dahua cameras that can tell me if this is going to be decent?

Obviously I’m pretty new to this stuff and definitely not an expert so any advice or thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks in advance!

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#2481313 11-May-2020 15:15

How and where do you intend to use these cameras? The Dahua's are good but do require some setup.
Also remote acess is not as trivial. You would need to setup your network to support this via VPN etc.

Be careful purchasing Dahua's off AliExpress. Most of them are re-flashed with modified firmware. e.g. The link you posted is for a Dahua camera which contains Chinese firmware which has been re-flashed. If you update this in the future (and you will want to due to security patches etc.) it will default to Chinese again.

If you did want to purchase from AliExpress - check out Expire Technology. This is Andy - https://www.aliexpress.com/store/1200032?spm=0.8937474.0.0.2c6a2e0e3pNyTg who is reputible. He sell's Dahua OEM's so not branded but run the same firmware and is the same camera. He is widely know on ipcamtalk. He also ships via DHL so its in NZ in ~ 3-4 days.
He is on the pricey side though.

You mean $150 - is that USD or NZD?

The type of camera you purchase really depends on how and where you intend to use it. I've purchased ~ 15-20 cameras from Andy with no problems.

-- opinions expressed by me are solely my own. ie - personal

sbiddle

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#2481315 11-May-2020 15:15

I've installed lots.

Do NOT buy that camera. Like most on Aliexpress it's a hacked firmware model (ie it's Chinese market hardware with hacked firmare to give English menus). You will not be able to upgrade it, and should expect issues such as DST to not work.

If you want legit Dahua hardware either buy it locally in NZ, or if you're set on buying from Aliexpress, buy from Andy from Empire Technology

rp1790

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#2481330 11-May-2020 15:39

+1 on using Andy @ Empire Technology. I've used his cameras and the generic flashed ones as well and never had any trouble at all. Dahua for me are a step above Hikvision but to be honest you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference. I've actually bought a Dahua NVR off that store that you linked to and they were great but can't recommend Andy enough and he ships very quickly.

There is a LOT of work in getting any of these IP cameras going to any suitable sort of standard. In the long run you'll save a lot of money by going for a local packaged solution like the Armcrest camera/NVR bundles, or EufyCams.

neb

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#2481367 11-May-2020 16:59

sbiddle:
Do NOT buy that camera. Like most on Aliexpress it's a hacked firmware model (ie it's Chinese market hardware with hacked firmare to give English menus). You will not be able to upgrade it, and should expect issues such as DST to not work.

If you want legit Dahua hardware either buy it locally in NZ, or if you're set on buying from Aliexpress, buy from Andy from Empire Technology

Or get Amcrest ones, they're legit Dahua with the name changed for commercial sale. They're also cheaper than Dahua gear from resellers, and the support is pretty good. For Dahua even with a legit source, not the Aliexpress hacks, they only deal with resellers so you're going to get little to no support if you run into problems.

richms

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#2481389 11-May-2020 17:17

The hacked firmware ones are hit and miss. Mostly miss based on what a friend had arrive. NVR wouldnt work with the cameras because of a language problem, even tho both were set as english in the web UI, seller wouldnt help since they bought them at seperate times from the same seller they said that it wasnt compatible and that was the end of story as far as they were concerned.

Hacked firmware is also really really old, so all those patched holes in the current firmwares are probably still in it, and if you do inadvertantly upgrade them dont expect any help reflashing them back to hacked from the sellers since that is their way of making money, taking a $50 domestic market camera and turning it into a $80-90 exportable one.

Richard rich.ms

Gordy7

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#2481395 11-May-2020 17:22

I have no problem with the cheaper hacked cameras (with English) from aliexpress for DIY home use.

I have several 4MP cameras and they are ok for sending motion snap shots to cloud storage. You have to be prepared to do a bit of work to set them up.

With the cheaper cameras, as Steve says, do not modify the firmware. You can manage DST time ajustment twice a year if there is a problem.

Looks like you can buy 3 of the cheaper cameras for the price of a camera from Andy.

Gordy

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SirHumphreyAppleby

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#2481405 11-May-2020 17:37

Gordy7:

I have no problem with the cheaper hacked cameras (with English) from aliexpress for DIY home use.

Neither. Two prosecutions and a good picture of the woman who pinched our plant in the early hours this morning will hopefully lead to a third. Not bad for cheap cameras.

richms

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#2481422 11-May-2020 17:53

Another one that he found, was the h265 camera would list h265 in the UI, but was sending h264 out and turns out that the chinese model it was hacked from didnt do h265, that was only the english model. They seemed to copy the whole UI over but not realize that it didnt work.

Richard rich.ms

sbiddle

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#2481438 11-May-2020 18:09

The problem with the hacked cameras is many (but not all - I've built some of my own customer firmware versions for cameras as well) won't work on newer model genuine English NVR's. So if you get hacked cameras and a hacked NVR you're OK, but if you get hacked cameras and a newer model English NVR you may find the cameras don't work.

Andy's prices on Aliexpress are slightly higher than some others, but for volume they do come down considerably. You have to decide if you want a genuine English product or a hacked version.

If you are opting for a hacked camera and are only going to use it with a memory card or 3rd party software I would recommend flashing it with the latest Chinese software. This means you will have a Chinese GUI, but with any modern browser doing translations that is easy to get around.

Gordy7

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#2481443 11-May-2020 18:20

SirHumphreyAppleby:

Gordy7:

I have no problem with the cheaper hacked cameras (with English) from aliexpress for DIY home use.

Neither. Two prosecutions and a good picture of the woman who pinched our plant in the early hours this morning will hopefully lead to a third. Not bad for cheap cameras.

Saw your camera images on another GZ thread.

https://www.geekzone.co.nz/forums.asp?forumid=162&topicid=270470

I have also found that number plates do not show up well under IR light.

Number plates show up fine with day light.

Gordy

My first ever AM radio network connection was with a 1MHz AM crystal(OA91) radio receiver.

Mehrts

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#2481444 11-May-2020 18:28

I'm looking at install some cameras around my property too, so I'll be following this with interest.

What method of recording were you going for? Cloud based/SD Card storage/ NVR?

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Jiriteach

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#2481448 11-May-2020 18:37

Mehrts:
I'm looking at install some cameras around my property too, so I'll be following this with interest.

What method of recording were you going for? Cloud based/SD Card storage/ NVR?

Only limited Davis cameras offer cloud based recording of events. The majority of them are SD and NVR. Accessing this recordings do require access to your network and it’s not recommended to pinhole ports to these so it is something to weigh up if you after this.

The more consumer friendly cams might be an option if you require simply easy access.

-- opinions expressed by me are solely my own. ie - personal

Mehrts

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#2481455 11-May-2020 18:57

I'm keen on local storage, even thought about re-purposing a spare pc as an NVR if needed.

I've got plenty of 802.3at PoE capability already, so it's a case of identifying which cameras & recording setup to go for. I'm comfortable with tricky setups, I tinker with all sorts of computer & tech related things in my downtime.

I've never had any experience with security cameras, so keen to listen and learn before diving in.

SirHumphreyAppleby

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#2481456 11-May-2020 19:04

Gordy7:

Saw your camera images on another GZ thread.

I have also found that number plates do not show up well under IR light.

Number plates show up fine with day light.

That camera is configured to pick up plates on the other side of the road. We got a better shot of the plate (can read the three digits) when the car turned around a few minutes earlier, but the headlights obscured the features of the vehicle.

Plates visibility can be improved significantly by using a lower shutter speed, but you lose other detail to motion blur. A dual camera setup would work better... we upgraded to 803.at recently, so we could potentially add another camera on the cable.

ANglEAUT

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#2481499 11-May-2020 20:54

What about browser plug-ins & cross platform compatibility?

All three of these listed below seem to require some IE specific plugin

Are they usable on Mac or Linux & in other browsers?

Please keep this GZ community vibrant by contributing in a constructive & respectful manner.

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