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So, after many, many years of no or little crime in my area we have had a “snooper”. Other areas of town have also reported the same guy being caught on their cctv.
Last night someone relieved me of a bike, left a bos bmx in part exchange!!!!
So MrsT is now a wee bit spooked and after talking about this possibily happening she wants cctv.
I’m sure it’s been done in the past but what’s out ther?
Blink
Ring
A.N.Other?
Swann, from Costco. Pick the system/size etc that suits your needs best. All budgets covered and the app is pretty good.
Seen the Swan systems elsewhere 👍🏻
Ring for us.
Easy to set up and cheap.
Depends how much you want to spend (factor in on-going costs to this as well, especially for 'smart' systems that pretty much require a subscription to their service) and what compromises you can live with.
I ended up with 2 x 6MP Hikvision PoE cameras linked to a DVR, rather than going down the wireless stick on camera route. I like not having to worry about batteries or whether the footage is recording properly and that I can access it for free (for about 20 days anyway, after that I need to download the footage from the DVR if I want to keep it). It records 24x7 to which gets around any issues with motion detection lag (or it failing to detect at all).
That said it did cost a fair bit (around £800 installed) and at night the picture still isn't really good enough to be able to ID someone unless they're stationary for a second or two.
I got mine due to on-going issues with an ex and have already provided the police a couple of sections of video which they've been able to act off (they seemed pretty impressed with the footage but the main one was in daylight where the quality is much better). If one of the main reasons you're getting a system is to be able to provide evidence for the police to ID someone you need to be aware of how ropey it can be even on a decent system (at night or if the person moves quite quickly).
We have six Neo cams, covering house, workshop & garden. Get movement alerts to my phone, they record to memory card and the cloud. Cheap to use and easy to set up etc..
Can watch it all from my phone anywhere...
[url= https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48379056271_593508b49b_c.jp g" target="_blank">https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48379056271_593508b49b_c.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/2gH6iVR ]Neos[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/brf/ ]Ben Freeman[/url], on Flickr
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJAjCrb4kRI
Swann worked for me too. Reasonably priced and set it up myself without any issue.
had it over 18 months and still going strong
We got Blink cameras during Prime day.
Have 4 cameras covering various places with no major issues. One camera does have a fault but it is being replaced by Blink within the next couple of days.
Ring seem to be very popular.
I'd also look at proper ground anchors and re reinforcing locks n hinges.
We have six Neo cams, covering house, workshop & garden. Get movement alerts to my phone, they record to memory card and the cloud. Cheap to use and easy to set up etc..
Do you not find the alerts with Neos to be very sensitive?
I had one set up in the garage and it would send a noise alert when the neighbours kids walked past the garage and the wind would cause movement alerts as well.
The cameras seem good, especially for the price, and I'd grab a couple more for the house if it wasn't for all the false alarms.
Did you not find the alerts with Neos to be very sensitive?
yes, turned them right down on some of the cameras, which seems to work ok. All depends where it is and what it sees. Apparently if you pay for the premium service you can filter on parts of the image, eg screen off part of the view if it gets too much passing traffic etc.
They work brilliantly eg.g. when we were away, every time our neighbour's daughter popped in to feed the cats, we could watch her in real time. Felt a bit creepy, but did demo that it worked very well. She was super diligent with them, so I've upped her wages (without telling her we were watching).
Anyone got any experience of battery powered wireless systems? Would be the best for my situation as routing cables around the place might be difficult. I could mount them higher up on the higher roof eves, but then the viewing angle would be such that it might make identifying anyone difficult. Would be much better if I could mount the cameras lower down to try to get a good shot of any intruders face.
I've recently bought the blink xt2 system, 3 cameras for 200 quid, and no on going subscription costs. The cameras are fully wireless and they reckon the batteries should last 2 years of normal use.
They do the usual thing of detecting motion and then recording a few seconds of whatever triggered them. You can also watch and listen live and do two way talk. You can set areas of the picture to ignore for purposes of motion detection.
For the money they seem pretty good. I've got one mounted on a tree in the front garden pointing at the front of the house, one on the kids swing in the back garden looking at back of the house and one in the porch acting as a front door camera.
Might get some more cameras to cover other areas, they seem good so far.
Ring works well for me.
Also, as this seems pretty low level stuff, why not speak to the neighbours and set up a neighbourhood watch style WhatsApp group? It has worked really well for us over the last few years with everybody watching out for each other and flagging any suspicious activity. It also makes you a lot more confident to intervene and challenge someone if you know there are 3 or 4 others on their way to back you up (which in practice has never been needed as the prowlers have just b888ered off when approached).
we got a couple of these for £20 each
really easy to set up, alerts & live stream to phone all work really well
https://www.amazon.co.uk/ICAMI-Security-Surveillance-Waterproof-Detection/dp/B01N0BB0PJ
Thanks guys. Spoke to a sparky mate who has recently installed and set up some Hikvision systems on industrial premises. Think I will go with that.
The snooper has been caught thanks a number of people catching him on camera.
I like timbogs idea, a lot of elderly people in my street(inc us!!!!!!)
More importantly than cameras, it is alarmed?
What’s the point in having a nice picture of the thief for prosperity? Personally I couldn’t care who they are, Id prefer my bike not to go in the first place
I would have recommended Blink right up until this week.
One of ours has started eating batteries in about 2 weeks. No more than usual activity recorded. The other one is still on first set of batteries 6 months in.
Sadly the whole lot has to go back to Amazon which means I'm also on the look out for a new system...
Had the original Arlo for several years. Hardware is good. Wireless good too. Change batteries every six months.
Software has been flaky but has worked well generally.
Still going strong after 4/5 years.
If you are going for Hikvision make sure you get the proper Hikvision rather than their budget HiLook range, you won’t see the Pro Hik listed for sale to general public so ask for a quote, use an authorised seller to obtain full warranty and UK support. Opt for the newer larger sensor G1/G2 Darkfighter or even “ColorVu” camera options for better nighttime performance.
For more accurate event notifications enable the Smart event rather than motion detection, here you can set up digital tripwires and intrusion zones, you could also add facial detection.
Look at the Acusense range for the most accurate detection modes.
Footflaps.
I know where you live
I know how you built your shed
And now I know your security arrangements...
All from stuff you've posted over the years.
All from stuff you’ve posted over the years.
Great, please come and nick all my 26" MTBs so I can buy some modern ones with the insurance payout...
Yuck no thanks.
I can't get rid of any of mine despite regularly leaving the door unlocked!
😁
Big Ton sells CCTV systems John, worth dropping him a message.
Anyone know if this - https://www.safe.co.uk/products/ezviz-husky-air-hd1080p-wifi-outdoor-camera.html - can get connected up to a Google account? Parents are thinking they need something in an outbuilding and this looks good, but would be good to have this hooked in to the Google Account so I can check it as well as them (they have a Google Hub thing with a screen so I'm hoping it can be connected to that so it can be viewed from in the house).
We have had an Arlo 2 Pro system for a year now and it has been great. Geofencing is reliable and the scheduling works well. Batteries tend to last about 3-4 months depending on how often they are triggered, image quality is decent. Expensive but no ongoing costs.
Looked again recently and the new Blink XT2 look like a decent alternative for a lot less but not sure I'd trust their battery life claims.
Well, the Blink XTs have gone back to Amazon and I've been refunded so I need a replacement now.
I've just found the Swann Wireless system on Curry's website. They are mains powered but use a wifi connection to your router and onwards to the Swann app.
Look like a good compromise and I can install them without drilling holes allover the house.
So, have any of the STW crowd got experience of the wireless swann stuff?
Thanks
Actually, does anyone have any links to how to get started at making a smart home? Ideally with Google Home but just what kind of things are needed for lights, security and heating...
Might be doing a house shuffle myself and thinking doing some smart home stuff could be good, so need to read up.
I'm apparently the sage for the folks outbuilding security and I know nothing about it, so any help would be appreciated so I can read up on stuff.
Bit of an update...
Ordered the powered wireless CCTV camera system from Swann. It arrived last night and I have to say it seems pretty good.
Set up took minutes and I've stuck one in the garage until I can get them mounted on the walls outside. No issues with wireless signal. Good pictures.
Will report back once properly installed.
We went wired, 4K 8MP cameras:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07NMHK665/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
More pain/hassle to install the wiring compared to wireless, but no issues now changing batteries etc. Easy to set up and picture quality is brilliant. Still playing around with the motion sensing zoning. Mobile app is great too.
4-camera setup currently with a spare 4 channels on the HD for future expansion.