Opinions ? - Security Camera System at Costco

[R_Bert]

All,

 

My folks are thinking about picking one of these up - http://www.costco.com/Q-See-16-Channel-960H-Security-System-with-2TB-HDD-and-16-900TVL-Cameras.product.100125610.html

 

Any opinions, thoughts, advice, & experience with these?

 

Thanks,

 

Bert

[10-Ring]

I'd go with this one http://www.amazon.com/Channel-Surveillance-Security-Waterproof-included/dp/B008UD0EUK/ref=sr_1_11?s=security-surveillance&ie=UTF8&qid=1424381551&sr=1-11&keywords=home+video+surveillance+system You will save a little money even after you purchase a HDD to put in it plus you won't be giving money to those dirty liberal no guns allowed posting hippies over there at the Costco.

[cj0e]

Initial thought, having repaired, set up, and expanded a few camera systems at work...

 

16 cameras are going to chew through 2tb in a hurry if you're recording full resolution at 24fps. How much video do you need to maintain?

 

What are you monitoring? Do you need remote access to the video? Do you have a secure place to hide the DVR/NVR? Are 16 bullet cameras really the best solution, or would you rather have a range of camera types (bullet, wide angle, 360 dome, etc)?

[R_Bert]

Initial thought, having repaired, set up, and expanded a few camera systems at work...

 

16 cameras are going to chew through 2tb in a hurry if you're recording full resolution at 24fps. How much video do you need to maintain? 72 hours (give time for retrieval if out of town)

 

What are you monitoring? < 1 acre, house, adjacent 30x40 secured barn, Attached pole-shed, near-field property. Do you need remote access to the video? My brother is tech geek, so probably. Do you have a secure place to hide the DVR/NVR? yes. Are 16 bullet cameras really the best solution, or would you rather have a range of camera types (bullet, wide angle, 360 dome, etc)? I am sure at least 2-3 would be eventually changed.

 

and...Thanks

Edited February 19, 2015 by R_Bert

[Spook]

Not knowing what they want to cover, I'd recommend you consider wireless cameras. I have a couple of Belkin cameras that work great for my application (in home).  But they are dependent on the network as they use the internet to store recordings when activated and for remote viewing/alerts. Just a thought.

[Fourtyfive]

Dropcam

[cj0e]

Alright,

 

I'm no expert on CCTV's but I did stay in a Holiday Inn Express once in my lifetime and I was also tasked with maintaining/upgrading/expanding some of ours at work. So here's an amateur's response!

 

****Wall O' Text Warning!****

 

How much video do you need to maintain? 72 hours (give time for retrieval if out of town)

 

The 16 cameras with 2tb storage will probably just get you a bit more than the 3 days or so since the Q-See says it records at 15fps (live view at 30). It uses H264. Should be ok here.

 

What are you monitoring? < 1 acre, house, adjacent 30x40 secured barn, Attached pole-shed, near-field property. Do you need remote access to the video?

 

As far as the area you described goes, the cabling that comes with the unit likely won't be sufficient for your longer runs. The good news is, that cable isn't terribly expensive. It's RG59 siamese cable. If you're handy with terminations, you can make your own. Or you can buy some premade. Whatever works for you.

 

I've never run the stuff outside - we convert to fiber for our exterior home-runs and convert back at the recorders (but that mess is expensive). Tthey're anywhere from 100 to 1500+ foot runs. So, no idea what you're gonna need to do for your outdoor runs cables. I'd probably bury em in conduit and mark on a map of the property where I had cable. Your call again!

 

Do you need remote access to the video? My brother is tech geek, so probably

 

Good luck. The home networking modifications aren't that bad, but viewing through a browser can be difficult to impossible. They claim support for IE, Firefox and Chrome and Safari - but people have complained on many a forum as well as retail sites in reviews about IE issues. If you're using anything after ie8 it's iffy. After IE9 - it's a solid nope. The mobile apps supposedly work - but I've not used them.

 

Do you have a secure place to hide the DVR/NVR? yes

 

Good. This is important no matter what product you go with!

 

Camera types etc?   I am sure at least 2-3 would be eventually changed.

 

Really think through your needs here. Draw a map of the property and every major angle that needs to be watched. When we mapped our home, we found that the 16 we thought we needed could be cut to 6. This is with a house, a shop, a barn and a side lot - all total about 2 acres. Some areas we didn't care if we saw or didn't see people, others we do. Same at my workplace (where we have systems all over the place. We watch the points where we have access to items/equip/personnel, wide angles cover the areas we don't have under direct surveillance.

 

Finally, the ultimate question: Is the Q-See system good? Answer: It's a mixed bag.

 

Things we're almost sure of:

A. It's a rebranded system - consensus is it's a Dahua. Dahua branded is arguably slightly higher quality than QSee, but barely, They're slow to update software/firmware... it's even slower for QSee to push theirs (have to rebrand/modify to match their "look").

B. HIKvision is another OEM in this range - they make for Swann and Lorex, as well as their own. Similar story as the Dahua/QSee story. (Some have said that Dahua is the OEM for HIKvision- I can't verify).

 

Things I've learned about QSee over a couple years of lurking on some other forums/general knowledge re CCTV systems:

1. High resolution - Don't be fooled, it is 480i. Not really that great (considering the megapixel cams avail now), but sufficient for most people. It certainly isn't bad.
2. Durability/Lifespan: Mixed reviews. Some say it's good - but plenty complain of DVRs rebooting every 5 minutes for no reason, ghosting issues (could be poor cable shielding or shoddy electronics in the box). Camera lifespan - most common complaint about QSee cams is that the "infrared" NV mode goes out after a few months. Not the end of the world, but not great if you're relying on it. NV distance is not going to be what's claimed. Probably 1/2 that for motion/general shapes, getting a positive ID on something caught on camera, maybe 15-25 feet.
3. Support after purchase: Good luck. 2 weeks to a month for responses for repair (RMA) and a decent wait for the replacement. Not sure how Costco Concierge works - but hopefully it's better than dealing directly with QSee.

TL;DR: If it were me I'd skip the QSee unit and go with something else.

 

But it would be highly custom and tailored to my needs. It would be more costly. And I'd be spending wayyy more storage (with an integrated backup option, mirrored raid, and maybe a NAS)

 

ULTIMATE answer: If this is a budget issue, the option of a CCTV system is ONLY possible because of this price, and you have a real need - it's better than nothing. Cameras can be upgraded as finances allow/as they break, and the DVR can as well as time and money allows or becomes necessary. You won't go to an IP/Megapixel system easily from this setup, but you likely don't need one. Most people don't.

 

PS: if you don't have to go wireless for the outbuildings, don't.

[R_Bert]

a whole lot of very useful feedback  -- THANKS!!

[jgradyc]

My neighbor bought a Lorex system. I think the Q See is made by the same company. My neighbor LOVES his system, especially the ability to access the live feeds on his smart phone. 

 

My impression is less favorable.

 

The system had 8 cameras, but it was limited to how many could be recorded at high res at a time. I think he could get two set for high res and the rest had to be set at low res in order to record them all.

 

The wide angle cameras made everything more than 20 feet away pretty blurry. You could tell if it was a car or a pickup at his driveway, but that was about all. As far as identifying a person, forget about it unless he walked up to the camera and mugged for it from less than 20 feet away. In short, it seemed like a waste of money to me. Perhaps there is some value to being able to see all those locations when he's home. Of course, he could just look out the window...

[UncleJak]

I bought from supercircuits. They were great. That is my two cents.

[justinjr21]

I bought from them one of the swann systems with the ptz camera with it. That one camera will take place of 2 just by placing it right. Like what was said before you might be better off determining your locations and then getting the correct cameras for those areas. My system came with bullets but I had to get a dome to keep the wire from getting messed with. Bullets are good if they can be high enough not to be messed with. The networking can be done fairly easily but I am a IT engineer so that was the easiest part for me. The most PITA part was running the cabling. If you need a longer run and can have power close by using a cat5 balun to siamese will work for those longer runs.

[wewoapsiak]

I try to drop this link in whenever someone brings this topic up,  http://www.networkcameracritic.com/  This guy has done a lot of research on different cameras, NVRs, etc.

[alpnst]

I am currently using 2 of the Lorex systems.  The NVR 8ch HD IP system.  I personally wouldn't install anything that requires a separate power supply and most budget camera systems require that.  I went with cameras that are POE or power over Ethernet.  This allowed me to make one long run of cat 5 cable to a POE switch and have that on a battery back up.  Then I branch 4 cameras from there and the other 4 are powered right off the NVR box.  With both on battery back ups and my router I am able to monitor remotely even if power is lost.  It is more expensive then what you are looking at and a 16ch version will be well over 2 grand, but my opinion is do it right the 1st time.

 

I agree with the above poster about wireless cameras.  Don't use them.  They are great to keep an eye on the kids, but are not real security systems.  Are you going to spend $100 on a battery back up for each wireless camera?  If so you could have just bought a nicer system.

 

MM

[Dustbuster]

Super circuits is a good prosumer way to go 16 cams requires a decent DVR, avoid wireless, go w rg59 Siamese cable always. Avoid cat5 , if you need someone in mid tn to pull cable for you or help pm me.