Security Cameras

hitbit

I am looking to install a 4 camera outdoor security system to my home and would welcome any advice and or suggestions preferably from members who have systems themselves.
I think it would need to be a wired system as I have a wireless alarm, cordless phones and a wireless home network any of which might interfere with a wireless camera system. I would need the cameras to work in darkness or low light.
I would need a system which allowed the cameras to " sequence " on a tv.
I don't want to spend a fortune.

hitbit

hiscan

got a quotation before xmas for 8 cameras with monitor and hard drive for 4000 itsa wired system this might be a bit cheaper now because i got the electrician to first fix the wirng for me(its a new house)
its also wired to the televison in the living room so you could check outside anytime
that was from a company in galway
hope this helps

Martyr

gee, 4000 is a bit steep..
you can get 4 camera/with 1 monitor dvr kits for around 600 euro..but i've been told you could get 1 for 50.

it seems like there are alot of cowboys around at the moment, and you need to be careful how you spend your money.

hiscan

he told me the cameras are 250 each???

Martyr

hmm, can you get an inventory of everything that was installed?
you'd need make,model number - if thats not available, perhaps a serial number.
then we could lookup online how much they cost to buy..must be fancy cameras for 250 euro each. - took a look on ebay, and the most expensive dvr kit i could find was 1500 euro

That included:

• 4 High Resolution, Colour Day / Night CCD IR Night Vision, Dome Cameras
• 4 High Resolution, Colour Day / Night CCD IR Night Vision, Cylinder Cameras
• 1 TRIPLEX, 16 Way, 320GB Digital Video Recorder with CDRW & Networking
• 1 17" TFT Flat Panel Monitor - Active Matrix LCD
• 8 Composite Plug and Play Camera to DVR Connecting Leads (Power & Video)
• 2 Switch Mode Camera Power Supplies (Enough to Power to ALL Cameras)
• 1 Composite to VGA Converter Unit with Connecting Lead
• 2 CCTV Warning Signs - High Quality Screen Printed on Exterior Grade Plastic
• 1 Installation Accessory Pack - Rawl Plugs, Screws & Clips
• 1 Easy to Follow Installation Instructions - you will be up and running in no time !
• FULL 12 Month UK Warranty ! - (See our Warranty Section)
• UNLIMITED use of our Helpline - Before and After Any Purchase

this same kit was advertised for 1000 euro couple of weeks before...

anyway, 4000 euro sounds like you could possibly have been ripped off by those type of cowboys i mentioned.

hiscan

havent installed anything yet joe that was the quotation they gave me when they came out to price the house for me,they showed me where id need cameras so i got my sparks to first fix it for me,i havent moved in yet so i have plenty of time to shop around
any recommendations appreciated and also thanks for your research joe

CptSternn

4000 is VERY high. Check out Maplins as well - they have all sorts of security cams - from the DVR setups to just a single cam - and all of their packages are under 2000.

I know two mates who just got cam systems (4 cams) with DVR/networking controllers setup in their businesses - with installation and everything it was under 1500...and that was still high IMHO considering the equipment they got was all bought from Maplins and the total cost of hardware was under 1000 and it only took yer man an little under hour to get it up and running.

probe

hiscan wrote: »

got a quotation before xmas for 8 cameras with monitor and hard drive for 4000 itsa wired system this might be a bit cheaper now because i got the electrician to first fix the wirng for me(its a new house)
its also wired to the televison in the living room so you could check outside anytime
that was from a company in galway
hope this helps

Are 8 cameras enough? After all they are installing 500,000 additional CCTV cameras in London for the Olympic Games - in a country that already has the highest density of CCTV cameras per capita on the planet. One camera for every four visitors to the Olympics.

How many people might pass your house over a 24 hour period?

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/03/05/olympic_biometric_screening_plan/

.probe

hiscan

probe wrote: »

Are 8 cameras enough? After all they are installing 500,000 additional CCTV cameras in London for the Olympic Games - in a country that already has the highest density of CCTV cameras per capita on the planet. One camera for every four visitors to the Olympics.

How many people might pass your house over a 24 hour period?

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/03/05/olympic_biometric_screening_plan/

.probe

its the way the house is designed he reckoned id need one on each soffit box to cover all angles its a house thats stepped at the front with a conservatory at the back,i might get some other quotes and see what they come up with

Carlosthejakal

hitbit wrote: »

I am looking to install a 4 camera outdoor security system to my home and would welcome any advice and or suggestions preferably from members who have systems themselves.
I think it would need to be a wired system as I have a wireless alarm, cordless phones and a wireless home network any of which might interfere with a wireless camera system. I would need the cameras to work in darkness or low light.
I would need a system which allowed the cameras to " sequence " on a tv.
I don't want to spend a fortune.

hitbit

Just got a 2 camera DVR system installed recently from BORSATEC
two outdoor colour cameras in dome style with BW nightvision, very impressed so far I can change tv stations when the door rings to see who is outside.
check out their website google should do it

Carlos

gerryk

Check out ZoneMinder.
You can get good, cheap video capture cards & cameras off eBay.
A cheap server from Dell will set you back about €600.
You could easily get a good security system together, including such fancy things are movement sensing text alerts and so on for less than €1000.

I have built a few, so if you need a little help just ask. (A bit of Linux knowledge would help, or, if not, a willingness to learn a little)

khye

There are an almost unlimited number of security systems available nowadays....

A lot depends on what you want to get from the system, this will determine the cost at the end of the day.

If you are recording/storing the camera footage, then the number of cameras you setup will play an important factor in determining the storage space needed.

If you are prepared to use less cameras, then you use less storage space, which will in turn allow you to record in higher detail.
(Higher detail = more space being used to store the video)

however if you decide to use a larger capacity storage device (500Gb for example) you can then record with up to 16 cameras in high quality and still have space to spare.

If you are using a DVR recorder (or PC card) then you should also be concerned with the compression being used on the device.

Traditional digital CCTV recorders use MJPEG compression which is basically a long sequence of photos combined together to form a video.
This is good but it takes up a lot of space and can be very hard to view remotely due to its large bandwidth requirements.

The newer compression standards (MPEG4 and H264) compress the video in a much more economical way, allowing you to use up less storage space and has the additional benefit of being optimised for internet transmission.
(you basically get more frames per second when viewing MPEG4 video over the internet)

As more and more people are installing home CCTV, the prices are dropping, and the technology is getting better and better.

The sky is the limit really.....

shangralia

hitbit wrote: »

I am looking to install a 4 camera outdoor security system to my home and would welcome any advice and or suggestions preferably from members who have systems themselves.
I think it would need to be a wired system as I have a wireless alarm, cordless phones and a wireless home network any of which might interfere with a wireless camera system. I would need the cameras to work in darkness or low light.
I would need a system which allowed the cameras to " sequence " on a tv.
I don't want to spend a fortune.

hitbit

How did you get on with youre outdoor security system ? Any advice for others ?

Light Olive

Especially the price !

KoolKid

Zombie thread.