My standard welcome to the forum message.
Read Study Plan before spending money
Cameras are for surveillance to get information for after the fact.
Please read the
IP Cam Talk Cliff Notes and other items in the
IP Cam Talk Wiki. (read on a real computer, not a phone). The
wiki is in the blue bar at the top of the page.
Read
How to Secure Your Network (Don't Get Hacked!) in the wiki also.
Quick start
1) If you do not have a wired monitored alarm system, get that first
2) Use Dahua starlight cameras or Hikvision darkfighter cameras if you need good low light cameras.
3) Start with a good variable focus camera, so you test for the correct lens,lighting, camera placement.
4) use a VPN to access home network (openVPN)
5) Do not use WIFI cameras.
6) Do not use cloud storage
7) Do Not use uPNP, P2P, QR, do not open ports,
8) More megapixel is not necessarily better.
9)
Avoid chinese hacked cameras (most ebay, amazon, aliexpress cameras(not all, but most))
10)
Do not use reolink, ring, nest, Arlo, Vivint cameras (they are junk), no cloud cameras
11) If possible use a turret camera , bullet collect spiders, dome collect dirt and reflect light (IR)
12)
Use only solid copper, AWG 23 or 24 ethernet wire. , no CCA (Copper Clad Aluminum)
13)
use a test mount to verify the camera mount location. My test rig: rev.2
14) (Looney2ns)If you want to be able to ID faces, don't mount cams higher than 7ft. You want to know who did it, not just what happened.
15) Use a router that has openVPN built in (Most ASUS, Some NetGear....)
16) camera placement use the calculator...
IPVM Camera Calculator
17) POE list
PoE Switch Suggestion List
18) Camera Sensor size, bigger is general better
Sensor Size Chart
19) Camera lens size the bigger number the more range the less FOV. .
Which Security Camera Lens Size Should I Buy?
20) verify your camera placement, have a friend wearing a hoodie, ball cap and sunglasses looking down approach the house, can you identify them at night ?
21) DO NOT UPGRADE your NVR or camera unless you absolutely have a problem that needs to be fixed and known what you are doing, if you do you will turn it into a brick !!
