Home CCTV cameras on budget

JasonM

JasonM

JasonM

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Seeking some help and advice on home CCTV cameras, this is really for my Uncle who has a budget of around £250-300. I’ll outline the requirements below.

1) 4 camera’s would be preferred, at least 2 need to be outdoor / water resistant.
2) Ability to view over the internet from Web browser and Smartphone.
3) Need audio on at least one of the cameras.
4) Record ability onto integrated HDD.

I’ve been looking at the SWANN DVR-1260. Only issue it appears the cameras are video only. Would it be possible to source cameras separate that would have audio built in and connect to the SWANN box?

http://www.swann.com/uk/swdvk-412602f

Happy to consider any other make / solution providing it’s in budget. Any advice appreciated.
 
majnu said:
If you can get HD-SDI the quality is so much better than the 650TVL you get with the Swann.
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Yep but his budget is £300, not £1000.

If you Google for "Swann hack" you'll find that most of these cheap DVR's have been compromised.

Buy/Recycle a cheap laptop, some let you add a second HD
Put something like iSpy on it, or one of the other free packages
Nab a couple of IP cameras off eBay


I got a reasonable IP camera for under £30 and a nice one for £70.


Four cameras sound a bit overkill, if you put them low down you'll get a better picture.

Budget £30 for an additional IR light (controlled by a PIR) closer to the area being covered.

940nm IR is invisible to the eye.
 
Hi there,

Am abit of a home cctv cam expert, self taught, I run a set of 720p HD IP cams that can be had for £40ish each...........cheap and do the job perfect, also totally weather proof and night vision, no point in buying expensive brand names AT ALL, makes no difference to security.

Whats the computer situation? if one available, wack ispy on there (free), llink the cams, job done..................to make it extra secure i run the cctv with crashplan on so its constantly backing up footage as its filmed to an unlimited crashplan account........giving me backups forever, and also if the pc and cams are nicked i still have the footage (takes about 2 mins to back up on mine from actual filming time, but i do run fibre pro broadband)............... also the pc is so secure and hidden in the house it would take way longer to physically find it.

All systems run with UPS power supplies giving around 40 mins of run time should the leccy go off.
 
bitslice said:
Yep but his budget is £300, not £1000.

If you Google for "Swann hack" you'll find that most of these cheap DVR's have been compromised.

Buy/Recycle a cheap laptop, some let you add a second HD
Put something like iSpy on it, or one of the other free packages
Nab a couple of IP cameras off eBay


I got a reasonable IP camera for under £30 and a nice one for £70.


Four cameras sound a bit overkill, if you put them low down you'll get a better picture.

Budget £30 for an additional IR light (controlled by a PIR) closer to the area being covered.

940nm IR is invisible to the eye.
Click to expand...

Hd sdi doesn't need to cost that much if you know what you're looking for.
 
No point in spending any money if the quality is crap as the images will be useless, you would be better off securing the premises to prevent theft and break ins in the first place. Prevention is better than cure, or rather a lengthy legal process where you probably won't get your stolen property back.
 
I have a Foscam FI8910W which we use as a baby monitor but it's actually great for security. App is very stable and has updates released every month or two. Cameras all have motion detection/alerts etc. You can enable/disable sound and also a microphone from the app. You can pre-program pan/tilt sequences from the excellent GUI.

Actually just reading up about their latest HD offering and has inbuilt SD card reader which is an excellent option IMO.
 
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Combat squirrel said:
Hi there,

Am abit of a home cctv cam expert, self taught, I run a set of 720p HD IP cams that can be had for £40ish each...........cheap and do the job perfect, also totally weather proof and night vision, no point in buying expensive brand names AT ALL, makes no difference to security.

Whats the computer situation? if one available, wack ispy on there (free), llink the cams, job done..................to make it extra secure i run the cctv with crashplan on so its constantly backing up footage as its filmed to an unlimited crashplan account........giving me backups forever, and also if the pc and cams are nicked i still have the footage (takes about 2 mins to back up on mine from actual filming time, but i do run fibre pro broadband)............... also the pc is so secure and hidden in the house it would take way longer to physically find it.

All systems run with UPS power supplies giving around 40 mins of run time should the leccy go off.
Click to expand...

What cameras are you using?
 
Mark M said:
What cameras are you using?
Click to expand...

Combat squirrel said:
Hi there,

Am abit of a home cctv cam expert, self taught, I run a set of 720p HD IP cams that can be had for £40ish each...........cheap and do the job perfect, also totally weather proof and night vision, no point in buying expensive brand names AT ALL, makes no difference to security..
Click to expand...

I wana know as well, have a spare server with 12TB for CCTV

CHEAPEST i've found on eBay UK

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/720P-ONVI...-/271378110893?pt=UK_CCTV&hash=item3f2f6559ad
 
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IP cameras are cheaper on dealextreme,
I'll try and get some pics of my cheapest one this weekend.

USB ones are great for daytime use or with an IR light.


The FI8910W isn't external I believe?
Although internal SD cards on some cameras could avoid the need for a DVR.
 
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Mark M said:
What cameras are you using?
Click to expand...

Lisapete said:
I wana know as well, have a spare server with 12TB for CCTV

CHEAPEST i've found on eBay UK

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/720P-ONVI...-/271378110893?pt=UK_CCTV&hash=item3f2f6559ad
Click to expand...

Hi chaps,

Well, now iv looked , a couple of them are 'indoor' but I use one inside my shed and one outside, but its undernearth a large overhang of the shed roof so is impervious to rain, has lasted all winter no problems

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/720P-960P...260936144?pt=UK_CCTV&var=&hash=item27dff27fd0

As for the external ones I cant find the buy the deal in my history so must have bought it elsewhere.

This isnt the one I have but here is a 720p outdoor for £36

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/720P-1MP-...-/261474358538?pt=UK_CCTV&hash=item3ce116150a
 
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We use a company at work called adata (i am a cctv installer)
They sell qvis stuff, pretty good quality..
I recently installed a 4 camera DVR with a 1TB HDD on my house, with 2 x 700TVL external dome cameras, a 4 camera psu and cables, got it all for £210..... Bear in mind though i got that at cost and installed it myself
Did this because some t*** keeps nicking the lead of my and the neighbours bay window and canopy

The system itself supports ddns, so i can see cameras wherever i am and have internet access

Not sure if adata sell to public etc, would have to ask at work..
But if not if you can find a qvis system, i recommend them
 
Its definitely possible to do this cheaper if you have the patience to set things up yourself.

The key of course is, all you are doing is buying yourself time. Anyone who wants to really really steal something, will steal it, it is just a matter of how long, and how many attempts it takes.

I've just paid a little under £30 delivered for an IP Camera with WiFi - NOT HD - which was as close to plug and play as possible - to act as a baby monitor indoors. Has all the IR stuff so works brilliantly in the dark. It has a speaker and has a microphone, but quality is hardly stellar. No surprise as an equivalent out of the box solution from BT/Philips or whoever which said 'Baby monitor with video and smart phone !!!1111' costs closer to £200 with this capability.

I think a hidden laptop in the loft and crash plan backups on a regular basis with some open source software will suffice.

If you want to go further than that, consider UPS for your modem, networking, cameras, and the laptop.

If you want to go further than that, just get several big dogs.
 
Combat squirrel;26479700 [url said:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/720P-960P...260936144?pt=UK_CCTV&var=&hash=item27dff27fd0[/URL]
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Hi there,

I bought myself one of these to give it a try. Unfortunately it didnt come with the power adaptor however i had some 12v adapaters lying around so used those.

However there is no manual and the software is failing to install..

Is there a way i can check if this is working or a manual online or could you tell me what software you are using?

Thanks.
 
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