So I've been doing more camera research since coming to this site and have been getting some helpful advice. I was pretty much set on getting the IPC-HDW4231EM-AS given the great low light performance. However I came upon the IPC-HDW4830EM-AS 8mp 4K camera and found it enticing. The sensor is slightly larger at 1/2.5" vs 1/2.8" but is also cramming more megapixels in there. Also it is only DWDR compared to true WDR on the 2mp brother. So am I taking a large hit low light quality chasing the megapixel race? I've seen people say that 2mp is all you need and any more that only worsens low light without giving you that much better picture. Am I crazy for having 4K lust and should stay "settled" with a solid 1080p setup? Also I'm not factoring cost in the scenario so just assume the price difference is negligible.
4K 8mp vs 1080p 2mp
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fenderman
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actually you are setting for the 4k....its much worse in low light and at night....
mat200
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So really the question is 4K vs starlight 2MP?
imho the answer depends on which is more important - day time and more details OR low light.
Here is a sample image and video of a better light scene:
Any 4k cameras (or > 2MP) with good night Image Quality?
imho the answer depends on which is more important - day time and more details OR low light.
Here is a sample image and video of a better light scene:
Any 4k cameras (or > 2MP) with good night Image Quality?
Nice video. The low light isn't too bad though I'm guessing the 2mp will be better. I suppose low light is more important as crimes are more likely to happen at night. It may be a few years for an affordable 4K camera with good low light too.
Maybe I should put the 8mp at the front door as most criminals will probably be trying anywhere else at night. And what about in combination with motion sensor lights? Would in that case low light would be less important and therefore a higher megapixek should be used since if someone is triggering the camera they are also triggering the light?
mat200
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Depends. Package thieves and others like to hit during the day - hopefully when people are out of the house working. The 4K camera during the day should give you a 2x increase in ID range vs a like FOV 2MP / 1080p camera, or the same ID distance as a 2MP / 1080p camera at 1/2 the FOV.
The starlight line is really nice for low light views.
I liked marku's suggesting of installing BOTH... really like it. Unfortunately budget and other concerns probably will force many of use to pick one compromise over the other.
I would consider a possible mix, perhaps even having 2 cameras covering any critical area.
If your front porch is well lighted that would work well, although if the subject is close to the camera you may actually get enough pixels already with a lower res camera at that spot to ID them.
Motion activated lights would also help during that period - note though test it with your camera setup to see what sort of possible issues may occur with your cameras flipping back and forth from color to B&W mode.
mat200
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Whoa! How convenient! Now I'm thinking for the front there should be at least one 8mp flanked by maybe 1-2 starlights facing forward near the sides of the house.