Choosing the right security camera

[brucecampbell]

I want to install 2 or 3 security cameras outside my house and business but don't know where to start.

1. What are the benefits in choosing something which integrates with C4?

2. I have a DSC alarm system connected to C4 with the IT100 using the Cinegration driver - is there any benefit in integrating the cameras into the existing alarm system?

3. The requirements I think I want:
    IP rated for outdoors.
    WiFi would be easiest, each camera would need to connect to a different WAP
    I want an image emailed and/or pushed to several phones when motion is sensed (possibly only when the alarm is armed)  
    Image clarity to help identify car license plates and see faces is the goal.
    I might also want video recorded and available for playback - a week or two storage is probably enough.  The video would likely only ever be needed if the instant image show something dodgy, so constantly overwriting old videos is probably ok.  I don't want to go to the expense of a full on NAS drive and I don't wish to pay ongoing support for a cloud host.
 

Would really appreciate any help here.

Thanks.

 

 

[wnpublic]

The C4 camera integration is not great.  You can see camera feeds on your touchscreen and in the app, but the higher resolutions are not well supported..  You will not be reviewing motion events, etc. there - you will be using the camera system's native app.

A lot of dealers will steer you to Luma because it has OVRC integrated, but it is junk.  Unifi Protect is good, and there is a good third party driver in C4 for it that will give you motion events, etc. that you can program off of.  But that is a POE system, most of the good camera systems are.

[CTMatthew]

It doesn't sound like your application would benefit from a Control4 integration in any way. The most popular reasons for integrating cameras are for easy viewing from C4 tablets, integration with intercom features, and potentially programming system events off motion or boundary crossing etc. 

It sounds like you need a pure security system that meets your surveillance needs first and foremost. 

So choose a camera system that does what you need first and then worry about integration if it adds convenience for you.

(I'm personally using UniFi Protect and love it, but hardly ever view the cameras in Control4)

[TundraSonic]

You need to start w/ a DVR and then look at integration between the DVR and C4. We tried numerous (Dahua, Blue Iris, Unifi, and Synology). For us Security Spy was the overwhelming winner for both capability and reliability. 

The Security Spy C4 driver gives you some nice capabilities to see the cameras on C4 touchscreens like having the front door cam come up when the doorbell rings.  

[eggzlot]

Agree with @TundraSonic to pick a NVR platform first.  

I am very happy with Blue Iris.  Though it integrates with C4 it is not required.  Blue Iris can do all the push / email notifications you want.  A cheap Refurb Dell PC will do the trick and now you have access to 1,000’s of cameras that you can mix and match.  

There are free and paid drivers for BI integration into C4.  Though most say the only integration is seeing a camera in Control4 that is incorrect.  With the paid driver I can do other things - the one big thing I do is have various cameras recording during various states.  For instance I have 2 indoor cameras that only record when the alarm is going off.  How does Blue Iris know that?  Blue Iris has 7 “sessions” or something and in each session you can pick which cameras are recording 24/7, which are recording snap shots, which aren’t recording, etc.  So let’s say “Session 5” is my alarm state, so when my DSC alarm is triggered, C4 tells BI to move to “session 5” and now my indoor cameras (and others) are recording.  When I am not in session 5 (alarm off, armed to stay or away) my indoor cameras are not recording.

[brucecampbell]

6 hours ago, CTMatthew said:

It doesn't sound like your application would benefit from a Control4 integration in any way. The most popular reasons for integrating cameras are for easy viewing from C4 tablets, integration with intercom features, and potentially programming system events off motion or boundary crossing etc. 

It sounds like you need a pure security system that meets your surveillance needs first and foremost. 

So choose a camera system that does what you need first and then worry about integration if it adds convenience for you.

(I'm personally using UniFi Protect and love it, but hardly ever view the cameras in Control4)

Thanks, I tend to agree, I don't really see any need for integration with C4
I don't have any touch screens, I do not have an intercom, nor will I ever need either (never say never...)

I will check out the UniFi range.

[brucecampbell]

5 hours ago, eggzlot said:

Agree with @TundraSonic to pick a NVR platform first.  

I am very happy with Blue Iris.  Though it integrates with C4 it is not required.  Blue Iris can do all the push / email notifications you want.  A cheap Refurb Dell PC will do the trick and now you have access to 1,000’s of cameras that you can mix and match.  

Thanks, will check out the Blue Iris range.
Not sure I will bother with any NVR though, not looking to spend on a whole security recording system.
I think the free 7 day cloud storage some cheaper cameras offer might be fine for what I want.

 

[eggzlot]

4 minutes ago, brucecampbell said:

Thanks, will check out the Blue Iris range.
Not sure I will bother with any NVR though, not looking to spend on a whole security recording system.
I think the free 7 day cloud storage some cheaper cameras offer might be fine for what I want.

 

there is no range with Blue Iris.  It is software that runs 24x7 on your PC.  There are many threads on other forums that show the specs needed, but a ~$300 refurbished Dell PC is usually more than sufficient for a set up with 4-6 cameras.  Since it is ONVIF Compatible you can literally use 1,000's of IP cameras.

If you want cheap Wifi look at Foscam or Amcrest.  Most even have built in SD storage.  Even with wifi you still need to give them power so at that point if you can get ethernet its better to do PoE for the more reliable network connection

[Amr]

Amcrest are great cams, 4K and 4KAI versions are incredibly affordable 

[cjh]

11 hours ago, Amr said:

Amcrest are great cams, 4K and 4KAI versions are incredibly affordable 

I have multiples of the amcrest IP5M-T1179EW-28MM and IP8M-2496EW-V2. They integrate w c4 and our amcrest nvr. Quality is excellent both day and night. 

[brucecampbell]

16 hours ago, Amr said:

Amcrest are great cams, 4K and 4KAI versions are incredibly affordable 

I've failed to find any New Zealand retailer for Amcrest, however there appears to be options on ebay and amazon, so will look into it.

A couple of cheap brands in our local shops are:
ReoLink
Swann

 

[alanchow]

Amcrest is mostly rebadged Dahua

[fleon]

I also recommend Reolink - very inexpensive and have very good zoom lens.   I also have used the amcrest ones.  Yeah, they are repackaged, but if you need a good zoom, they have a $300 PTZ with a huge zoom. 

For an NVR, I'm using a Synology box with 80TB.  26 cameras and running amazingly well.   Lousy C4 integration, but I kind of gave up on that working with any camera reliably. 

 

[brucecampbell]

On 11/12/2021 at 6:33 PM, alanchow said:

Amcrest is mostly rebadged Dahua

Thanks Alan, I've found a local site for Dahua, I'll look into them.

 

[brucecampbell]

On 11/12/2021 at 11:32 AM, cjh said:

I have multiples of the amcrest IP5M-T1179EW-28MM and IP8M-2496EW-V2. They integrate w c4 and our amcrest nvr. Quality is excellent both day and night. 

What does the C4 integration give you?

I'm specifically looking for a couple of outdoor cameras which can send me screen shots of motion sensed ONLY when my alarm is armed.
I have a DSC panel integrated, so if I can get camera which integrate, I can potentially do what I hope for??

 

[South Africa C4 user]

2 hours ago, brucecampbell said:

What does the C4 integration give you?

I'm specifically looking for a couple of outdoor cameras which can send me screen shots of motion sensed ONLY when my alarm is armed.
I have a DSC panel integrated, so if I can get camera which integrate, I can potentially do what I hope for??

 

You should be able to.  

I push and / or email snapshots to myself under different circumstances (e.g. gate stuck open for more than a minute, 2 movements sensed within my driveway within a minute if none of the following are open: gate, garage, front door.  This is turned off for the hours that the gardener is working etc.)

[alanchow]

Our Dahua driver will allow you to send push notifications with snapshots whenever you want.  Just do it in programming.

[brucecampbell]

1 hour ago, alanchow said:

Our Dahua driver will allow you to send push notifications with snapshots whenever you want.  Just do it in programming.

Does this driver work with Amcrest - ie: if I were to buy direct from Amazon instead of sourcing 'Dahua' here in NZ?
Cheers.

 

[alanchow]

1 hour ago, brucecampbell said:

Does this driver work with Amcrest - ie: if I were to buy direct from Amazon instead of sourcing 'Dahua' here in NZ?
Cheers.

 

Yep we tested on a few amcrest units as well.