Reddit reviews Hikvision DS-2CD2032-I CCTV POE 3MP Bullet IP HD Security Network Camera, 4mm

If you're looking for a single camera solution, you can save yourself a hundred bucks and get one of these: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00G7GMEOG/ref=ox_sc_act_title_3?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3OLC87AHTILXN. It has the added benefit of being both weatherproof and higher resolution.

It doesn't come with the dropcam web server, but it does provide its own. If you're tech savvy, you can expose that securely.

Also, if you point the dropcam out the window, you will need to turn off the IR, or you will see nothing at night (see my point about window mounting in the post). As far as I can tell, dropcam doesn't support this.

Oh, and nice snark.

Could be these?.

Obviously can't tell for sure if its the same (time stamp looks the same though) but we use them at my work and they have similar video quality, and night vision. Priced pretty decently, too.

I've got the Hikvision DS-2CD2032-1 (http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00G7GMEOG). It's a great quality camera for the money. It was a bit of a pain to get set up (it comes set to a fixed IP address that is in a different subnet to what most people would usually use) but once running it works great. I'm using it indoors and the picture quality is good. I would imagine it works fine outdoors. It does night vision but I haven't really tried it out.

As others have mentioned you'll need to buy additional camera licenses if you want to hook up three cameras. Most of the larger Synology boxes come with 2 camera licenses so you just need one more.

Synology seem to be actively improving the camera software. Surveillance Station 7.1 was a big improvement on 7.0 (I had issues viewing from the mobile app in 7.0, all fixed in 7.1).

Others will probably chime in with off-the-shelf Lorex or Swann systems. Which are fine, too. My suggestion

1. Blue Iris ($40)
   
   
2. Blue Iris iPhone app ($10)
   
   
3. Cheap spare PC if you have one (free, hopefully)
   
   
4. Cheap PoE switch ($40-ish) - here is an example
   
   
5. 3x Hikvision or HDView bullets for the outdoor bullets. HDview Option 2. Hikvision Option 1. Hikvision Option 2.
   
   Make sure your lenses are the right side for the field of view. 3.6 or 4mm for longer, narrower, shots, and 2.6 or 2.8 for wider angles.
   
   
6. 2x domes. You can run domes or turrets. Hikvision. Cheaper Dahua.
   
   In any case, you should be able to get by spending $80/camera if you shop judiciously. That's $400 of cameras, $50 of software, $40 of switch, and hopefully a spare computer.
   

I recently purchased a Hikvision camera that was relatively easy to set up and install.

http://amzn.com/B00G7GMEOG

Update: After looking around a bunch of sites and thanks to /u/automatedlife, I've finally made a decision. This is probably my fourth time researching this before I could pull the trigger.

Cameras: Two mini 3pm Hikvision bullets: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00G7GMEOG/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Networking: I opted for POE for many reason, but primarily because I can do it myself without a contractor -- I also have the supplies on hand. Also, wifi wouldn't be as reliable. The POE switch I bought can scale to 4 cameras: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000QYEN1W/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

NVR: Repurposed my home server. It already has a bunch of drives, and I almost never use it to game anymore. Furthermore, it has plenty of disk and two network cards (one for the cameras and another for internet. If I were to have pulled the trigger today, I probably would have ended up with a refurb like this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA8XK46E2600 It's a better form factor than my current system ... and I'd still have my server in my office. Maybe later.

Anyway, I hope I can help at least one other person. I probably opened up 200 tabs throughout this whole investigation.

Edit: My out of pocket today was ~$100/camera @ qnt 2 and $50 for networking. Everything else I had on hand. My total was $250. If you need a computer, you'll probably be spending $500-$800 range, depending on what you get and how long you can wait around for a deal.

I've recently become a huge fan of the Hikvision cameras after buying one. Resolution is amazing and loaded with features.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00G7GMEOG/ref=cm_sw_r_other_awd_xaMxwbSR5KS8T

I also run Blue Iris from Foscam for my NVR and it works great. I have my recording database set in my Dropbox so it uploads to the cloud in case a thief were to steal/destroy my PC.

The Unifi cameras are decent, but the downside is that you are locked into their closed end system. If you wanted to add more cameras down the road, you'd have to use Ubiquiti cameras. (assuming you use their NVR or DVR software).

I put in a system for a client a few months ago. They wanted Pan tilt zoom for 2 of the cameras, so I found This one one made by Reolink, which worked out really well! The picture quality is fantastic and the price was very reasonable. I used a Hikvision bullet camera for behind the register as it didn't require PTZ functions.

They already had a VMware server, so I added 2 x 3TB drives in a RAID 1, created a Windows VM, then installed Milestone xprotect software (You can also look at Blue Iris). The whole setup works pretty well. Can view camera feeds via mobile app, or via website interface.

With a system like this, you can easily expand with any brand IP camera down the road, as opposed to being tied into one manufacturer.

For example:

• Hikvision - DS-7604NI-SE/P - Nvr 4ch 4-poe (up To 5mp)
  
  Hikvision NVR (network video recorder) with four POE (power over ethernet) ports will cost around $350 with hard drive. This is a NVR with remote viewing, no cloud needed.
  
  https://www.amazon.com/Hikvision-DS-7604NI-SE-Nvr-4-poe-Hdmi/dp/B00EHK7QVK
  
  Four 150 foot patch cables @ $15 ea.
  
  
• Hikvision 3MP night vision HD security camera $115 each (I own 12 of these, BTW)
  
  https://www.amazon.com/Hikvision-DS-2CD2032-I-Bullet-Security-Network/dp/B00G7GMEOG/ref=sr_1_1?s=photo&ie=UTF8&qid=1466912436&sr=1-1&keywords=ds-2cd2032-i
  
  
• Video review
  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-PKlncFoa8
  
  Hikvision cameras use the same imager chip as GoPro cameras; the video is clear and the hardware is reliable. (I have a sixteen channel Hikvsion with 12 cams, been using Hikvsion for three years).

Thanks for the suggestions! The camera I'm using is a Hikvision DS-2CD2032-I is rated at 30fps (1920 × 1080). Right now, it's running ~25fps, though it looks choppier than that.

I'll play with the settings and see what I can accomplish. Thanks again!

Honestly, it really depends on what you're trying to accomplish. A camera won't "protect you" from anything (unless it scares someone off, but a fake camera will do that just as well).

All it will do is give you evidence if something does happen...

If you get a cheap camera, you're not going to get anything that's really going to serve that purpose. All you'll get is blurry hard to see people with little resolution. If you want a camera that will be useful for actually identifying someone, while at the same time being wide-angle, you're going to need one that's at least full HD resolution.

And a good, outdoor, night-vision, bare full HD IP camera is going to cost you at least $150.

I like my HikVision cameras, but they're just bare cameras. If you want to record with them, you have to install a DVR or software that performs the same purpose, like Blue Iris.

http://www.amazon.com/Hikvision-DS-2CD2032-I-Outdoor-Bullet-Security/dp/B00G7GMEOG

I am doing research myself right now trying to figure out what will work best for a ~7 camera setup at my home. Here is what I have come across so far, hope it helps;

Most likely to buy;

TRENDnet

Microseven

HUACAM

Dahua

Dahua 2

Also considering;

Foscam

Foscam 2

Hikvision

if anyone goes with any camera system. always go with at least 3 meg ip cam's. this way you can actually tell things more then a general description. if you have ever seen those crappy videos shown on tv or screen shots on the news. they are from crappy camera's. even 1080p isnt a very good picture when you zoom in.

i always suggest hikvision camera's.

you can see many youtube videos. these are not the us version but work and will save you a couple hundred a camera. you just need a POE switch and a computer you can use to store the video.

Try the Hikvision cameras on Amazon.

Hikvision DS-2CD2032-I Outdoor HD 3MP IP Bullet Security Camera 4mm https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00G7GMEOG/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_5aRBub0JG78SS