3841 or 5442?

dnns

n3wb
Oct 17, 2021
10
4
EU
Hello,

I am currently looking for four cameras for outdoor surveillance. Height of the cameras would be about 2-2.5 meters.

There are so many models on the Dahua website, it's easy to lose track.

Now I have two different models in the shortlist:
IPC-HFW3841T-ZAS
IPC-HFW5442E-ZE


or alternatively as Eyeball
IPC-HDW3841T-ZAS
IPC-HDW5442T-ZE

Where is the difference between the two models? The 3841 has 8MP, the 5442 has 4MP.

And where is the different between 5442E-ZE and 5442H-ZE?


Maybe someone can help me?


Thanks a lot
 
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The right camera for you is very subjective based on your use case, location, lighting available etc. . Start reading here and you'll find lots of good info to help you decide:
 
Do not chase MegaPixels. More megapixel is not necessarily better. The thing to look at is sensor size. Camera Sensor size, bigger is general better Sensor Size Chart A 1/1.8 is much better than a 1/2.8 .

The next most important thing is lens size. Camera lens size the bigger number the more range the less FOV. . Which Security Camera Lens Size Should I Buy?

If possible use a turret camera , bullet collect spiders, dome collect dirt and reflect light (IR)

The current goto camera is the 5442.

IPC-T5442TM-AS-LED . Review IPC-T5442TM-AS-LED (Full Color, Starlight+) - 4MP starlight
.................... Dahua IPC-T5442TM-AS-LED review
IPC-T5442TM-AS ..... Review-OEM 4mp AI Cam IPC-T5442TM-AS Starlight+ - 4MP starlight+
IPC-HDW5442t-ZE .... Dahua IPC-HDW5442T-ZE 4MP Varifocal Turret - Night Perfomance testing -- variable focus 2.7 mm-12mm 4 MP Starlight
IPC-B5442E-ZE ...... Review - OEM IPC-B5442E-ZE 4MP AI Varifocal Bullet Camera With Starlight+ -- variable 2.7mm-12mm bullet
IPC-B5442E-Z4E .... bullet 8mm-32mm variable focus zoom 4MP
 
heres an email alert group at 90% resolution of 5442's.
1st and and last one are your choice, the ZE. I've not spent any time zooming it or focusing on one particular thing. 2nd one is a 6mm with a 1/1000 shutter at night. 3rd one is a 2.8mm
Cam10.20211017_082127_310102525.jpgScreenshot 2021-09-20 212111.pngScreenshot 2021-07-10 004350.png
 

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here is a 5MP Dahua ( Amcrest) on a 1/2.8 sensor. needs more light to be bright enough in the garage. so I've got some settings tweaked to brighten the image.
Cam17.20211016_224746_209900075.jpg
 
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I'd say the 5442 will outperform the 3841 for one simple reason. The sensor size of the 5442 is significantly larger and it is a 4MP. The 1/1.8" sensor it has is the best combination for a 4MP resolution.

The 3842 is a 1/2.8" sensor, significantly smaller than the 1/1.8" sensor. The 1/2.8" sensor is good on a 2MP camera. An 8MP on that same sensor will require four times the amount of light to produce a reasonable video at night, which is when it is most important.

The short story is to chase sensor size, not megapixels unless the location is lit up like a baseball stadium for a night game.

Quick guide -

The smaller the lux number the better the low light performance. 0.002 is better than 0.02
The smaller the "F" of the lens the better the low light performance. F1.4 is better than F1.8
The larger the sensor the better the low light performance. 1/1.8" is better (bigger) than 1/2.7"
The higher the megapixels for the same size sensor the worse the low light performance. A 4MP camera with a 1/1.8" sensor will perform better than a 8MP camera with that same 1/1.8" sensor.

720P - 1/3" = .333"
2MP - 1/2.8" = .357" (think a .38 caliber bullet)
4MP - 1/1.8" = .555" (bigger than a .50 caliber bullet or ball)
8MP - 1/1.2" = .833" (bigger than a 20mm chain gun round)
 
Last edited:
Has anybody put a 2mp on an 1/1.8 sensor? Is that even a thing?
 
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I don't think so. An 8MP on a 1/1.8" sensor wouldn't be a really good combination, although thinking about it I think Dahua might have them. 8MP needs a 1/1.2" sensor to be truly effective at night. Then again with the new dual lens camera, IR and conventional cameras in one box, that combines, "stitches" both images color can be maintained at much lower light levels without all the usual blur and noise problems.
 
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Early on there was a 2MP "ultra" series starlight camera from dahua with 2MP on 1/1.9". But it was substantially more expensive than regular 2MP starlight cams with the 1/2.8" sensor.
 
Hello,

I am currently looking for four cameras for outdoor surveillance. Height of the cameras would be about 2-2.5 meters.

There are so many models on the Dahua website, it's easy to lose track.

Now I have two different models in the shortlist:
IPC-HFW3841T-ZAS
IPC-HFW5442E-ZE


or alternatively as Eyeball
IPC-HDW3841T-ZAS
IPC-HDW5442T-ZE

Where is the difference between the two models? The 3841 has 8MP, the 5442 has 4MP.

And where is the different between 5442E-ZE and 5442H-ZE?


Maybe someone can help me?


Thanks a lot

welcome @dnns

If you need low light image capture, ( for example at night ) .. then go with the 4MP cameras with a 1/1.8" sensor.
 
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Thanks a lot guys!
Then I would probably prefer the HDW5442T-ZE. An identical Bullet is significantly more expensive - however why?!

Now I was told elsewhere that the IPC-HDW5831R-ZE would be better than the 5442T-ZE?
Anyone have experience with this? But it only has a 2.5" sensor.
 
Whoever elsewhere told you an 8MP on the 1/2.5" sensor shouldn't be giving advice...they are under the belief that more MP is better... The 2MP version of that varifocal will kick this 8MP camera butt all night long.

It is simple LOL do not chase MP - do not buy a 4MP camera that is anything smaller than a 1/1.8" sensor. Do not buy a 2MP camera that is anything smaller than a 1/2.8" sensor. Do not buy a 4K (8MP) camera on anything smaller than a 1/1.2" sensor. Unfortunately, most 4k cams are on the same sensor as a 2MP and thus the 2MP will kick its butt all night long as the 4k will need 4 times the light than the 2MP... 4k will do very poor at night unless you have stadium quality lighting (well a lot of lighting LOL). Starlight, ColorVu, Full Color, etc. are simply marketing terms, so don't be sold on those names.

My neighbor was bragging to me how he only needed his four 2.8mm fixed lens 4k (on a similar sensor size) cams to see his entire property and the street and his whole backyard. His car was sitting in the driveway practically touching the garage door and his video quality was useless to ID the perp not even 10 feet away. Meanwhile my 2MP varifocal optically zoomed in to the public sidewalk provided the money shot to the police to get my neighbors all their stuff back. Nobody else had video that could provide anything useful, other than what time this motion blur ghost was at their car.

The bullet is more expensive because it is larger so there is more material in it and I believe also has a few more options to add input/output devices.
 
The current goto camera is the 5442.

IPC-T5442TM-AS-LED . Review IPC-T5442TM-AS-LED (Full Color, Starlight+) - 4MP starlight
.................... Dahua IPC-T5442TM-AS-LED review
IPC-T5442TM-AS ..... Review-OEM 4mp AI Cam IPC-T5442TM-AS Starlight+ - 4MP starlight+
IPC-HDW5442t-ZE .... Dahua IPC-HDW5442T-ZE 4MP Varifocal Turret - Night Perfomance testing -- variable focus 2.7 mm-12mm 4 MP Starlight

For a 5442 bullet, I followed the thread to the Loryta Smart 4MP Ultra Low Light Starlight+ on Amazon. I assume this is a Dahua that is rebranded? This will be my first camera - am I better off getting a Dahua from a distributor for support reasons?
 
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