Are Unify cameras good?
- Thread starter Ihadablackdog
- Start date
Yeah, I found a calculator on one of the hdd manufacturers websites (might’ve been Seagate) and it was way below his estimate. Although I didn’t know what sort of bitrate and fps I should be aiming for, after all, it’s the quality of the recording that’s important.
I’ll update when we’ve got feedback from the 2nd company.
I’ll update when we’ve got feedback from the 2nd company.
Most of us have found that the 4MP need 8192 bitrate, especially the Dahua 5442 series.
Most of us run 15 FPS.
But it is the shutter speed that will dictate whether you get blur and motion. A higher bitrate and 60FPS does nothing for that if the shutter is running 1/10 or 1/3 LOL. Needs to be minimum 1/30 but preferable much higher, like 1/60 to 1/250.
But the faster the shutter, the more light is needed and thus the image gets darker, so it is a balance. And the cheaper end cameras that either do not let you set parameters or the camera overrides user settings to provide that nice bright static image are the ones that suffer from motion blur and ghosting.
Most of us run 15 FPS.
But it is the shutter speed that will dictate whether you get blur and motion. A higher bitrate and 60FPS does nothing for that if the shutter is running 1/10 or 1/3 LOL. Needs to be minimum 1/30 but preferable much higher, like 1/60 to 1/250.
But the faster the shutter, the more light is needed and thus the image gets darker, so it is a balance. And the cheaper end cameras that either do not let you set parameters or the camera overrides user settings to provide that nice bright static image are the ones that suffer from motion blur and ghosting.
So I had the other company come and look last week. More confidence in them as they installed our house alarm 20yrs ago and maintain it for us.
They said they could run the cable though the walls instead of external trunking and also that a months footage would be approx 1TB for each camera.
Annoyingly the quote didn’t specify the model numbers of the cameras or recorder, so I’ve asked for that info. It does say they are HD 2.8mm 5mp cameras with 40m IR. On the day he said they would be turret cameras and I think he said Dahua, but waiting for confirmation….it seems the guy that deals with the cctv quotes isn’t in the office much. They are IP cameras.
As far as the price is concerned, it’s £1000 cheaper than the Unify quote from the other guy, I suspect a fair chunk of that is that the cameras are probably cheaper to supply.
They said they could run the cable though the walls instead of external trunking and also that a months footage would be approx 1TB for each camera.
Annoyingly the quote didn’t specify the model numbers of the cameras or recorder, so I’ve asked for that info. It does say they are HD 2.8mm 5mp cameras with 40m IR. On the day he said they would be turret cameras and I think he said Dahua, but waiting for confirmation….it seems the guy that deals with the cctv quotes isn’t in the office much. They are IP cameras.
As far as the price is concerned, it’s £1000 cheaper than the Unify quote from the other guy, I suspect a fair chunk of that is that the cameras are probably cheaper to supply.
biggen
Known around here
- May 6, 2018
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Whatever they install will probably be not what we recommend here. But, nearly anything hard line will be better than wifi cameras except if its a "camera kit in a box". A lot of those camera kits you can buy at the hardware store use proprietary wiring and aren't PoE compatible. So you do need to find out the exact model of cameras so we can verify.
At the very least, if they use a regular IP camera, then you will have ethernet cabling run for you so that in the future, if you decide to upgrade cameras, all the wiring will be done.
At the very least, if they use a regular IP camera, then you will have ethernet cabling run for you so that in the future, if you decide to upgrade cameras, all the wiring will be done.
Since the are 5MP, that is telling me they are probably on the 1/3" or 1/2.8" sensor, so they will not perform well at night and you would be better off with a 2MP on a 1/2.8" sensor.
Left Coast Geek
Getting comfortable
I had a couple UVC-G3 cams. Camera was physically a nice package, well integrated mount, properly weather proof without needing a junction box, compact... The night vision was ok but not great but much of that was due to having a bright obvious IR illuminator, the Unifi Video software NVR was very easy to use and configure, had good motion capture.
I dumped the whole thing when Ubiquiti decided to drop all support for the software NVR and tried to force you to buy their own hardware NVRs.
I dumped the whole thing when Ubiquiti decided to drop all support for the software NVR and tried to force you to buy their own hardware NVRs.
I bid on a job early this year and they specked Unifi, I did get the job. Installed about 50 cameras in a large office building, Not a big fan! The software is really nice but I do not think they are worth the money. The customer was happy with the installation but not so much with the quality of the cameras. I have a feeling they will be replaced with Uniview cameras in the near future
I don't think there bad cameras, I just think the price is way to high for what you get. They are very easy to set up even if you have little or no experience setting up cameras. I sell A lot of camera systems and can't see how anyone can make any money off installing them because of the cost of there equipment. If you could use onvif cameras with there systems than maybe I would be interested in trying them. I have been a Uniview dealer and have sold thousands of cameras and recorders and have very little problems with any of there products. usually when something goes down it's a hard drive. a lot of guys here like dauha , I have no problem with them at all. Most of the systems are rebranded HIK, dauha, etc... When you get down to it they are pretty much all the same
So a week after asking for the model numbers of the cameras and recorder and getting fobbed off by the receptionist that she will ask the guy for the details….and then not getting back to me, I asked if “the guy” could call me.
Surprisingly he did!
He said he would send over some spec sheets, which have just arrived.
They originally told me they use Dahua kit, but the info they sent is branded “cognitio”….is this the same as Dahua? The spec sheets say “www.qvis.co.uk” on them, is this the manufacturer instead?
The camera model is COG-5MP-IPC-TUR3-FW and the NVR is COG-NVR-4K-2AI-8BB (originally quoted for a 4 port nvr but i asked him to quote for an 8 port instead).
Surprisingly he did!
He said he would send over some spec sheets, which have just arrived.
They originally told me they use Dahua kit, but the info they sent is branded “cognitio”….is this the same as Dahua? The spec sheets say “www.qvis.co.uk” on them, is this the manufacturer instead?
The camera model is COG-5MP-IPC-TUR3-FW and the NVR is COG-NVR-4K-2AI-8BB (originally quoted for a 4 port nvr but i asked him to quote for an 8 port instead).
The cameras on their page sure look like Dahua, but those cameras spec'd are 5MP on a 1/2.7" sensor, so not an ideal MP/sensor combo.
Ask them to send you a screenshot of the camera GUI so you can see if it looks like Dahua or not.
Ask them to send you a screenshot of the camera GUI so you can see if it looks like Dahua or not.
Thankyou. Do you think they will give a reasonable result or does the image sensor size pretty much make it crap!
They will struggle at night unless you have a ton of light.
And they are 2.8mm cameras, so IDENTIFY will be useless much beyond 10 feet. If that meets your ID needs, then that is fine. But if you are hoping to ID beyond that, those cameras will not do it, nor will any 2.8mm regardless of the MP/sensor combo.
And they are 2.8mm cameras, so IDENTIFY will be useless much beyond 10 feet. If that meets your ID needs, then that is fine. But if you are hoping to ID beyond that, those cameras will not do it, nor will any 2.8mm regardless of the MP/sensor combo.
That is a dilemma….I want to cover a wide area with each camera, but I am having two at the front, one on each end of the house looking inwards etc.
I understand there are therefore compromises….
What would be a better spec, 3.5 camera (or whatever is 1 up from 2.8) with less mp or bigger sensor.
I might go with this spec, but now I know the range they use I can possibly tweak it a bit.
I understand there are therefore compromises….
What would be a better spec, 3.5 camera (or whatever is 1 up from 2.8) with less mp or bigger sensor.
I might go with this spec, but now I know the range they use I can possibly tweak it a bit.
So I've done some digging...they reckon cognitio is the same as Dahua (re-branded I guess).
The model they are recommending is COG-5MP-IPC-TUR3-FW which I think is the same as Dahua DH-IPC-HDW3541TMP-AS-0280B ( Dahua 5MP IR Fixed Lens Eyeball WizSense Network Camera (White) )
I saw on another thread that 4MP on a 1/1.8 sensor is good (ignore the 2.8 lens), so this one: DH-IPC-HDW5442TMP-AS-LED-0280B ( Dahua 4MP WDR Fixed Lens Eyeball AI Network Camera (White) ) but I cant find any cognitio 4MP cameras with that size sensor, only this one COG4C-IP-TUR-F ( Cognitio 4MP Full-Colour Fixed Network Turret Cameras ) with 1/3" and COG4C-IP-AI-TUR-FW ( Cognitio 4MP AI Full-Colour Fixed Network Turret Camera ) with 1/2.7" sensor.
So my questions would be, is the 5442 above better than the original (5MP) cognitio one...does it lose anything important? Also, if they cant get that camera, would either of the cognitio 4MP cameras be better than the original 5mp one? I'm assuming the 4MP with the 1/2.7" sensor would be better due to less pixel count?
Is the main improvement night time? Is there much difference in good light?
The model they are recommending is COG-5MP-IPC-TUR3-FW which I think is the same as Dahua DH-IPC-HDW3541TMP-AS-0280B ( Dahua 5MP IR Fixed Lens Eyeball WizSense Network Camera (White) )
I saw on another thread that 4MP on a 1/1.8 sensor is good (ignore the 2.8 lens), so this one: DH-IPC-HDW5442TMP-AS-LED-0280B ( Dahua 4MP WDR Fixed Lens Eyeball AI Network Camera (White) ) but I cant find any cognitio 4MP cameras with that size sensor, only this one COG4C-IP-TUR-F ( Cognitio 4MP Full-Colour Fixed Network Turret Cameras ) with 1/3" and COG4C-IP-AI-TUR-FW ( Cognitio 4MP AI Full-Colour Fixed Network Turret Camera ) with 1/2.7" sensor.
So my questions would be, is the 5442 above better than the original (5MP) cognitio one...does it lose anything important? Also, if they cant get that camera, would either of the cognitio 4MP cameras be better than the original 5mp one? I'm assuming the 4MP with the 1/2.7" sensor would be better due to less pixel count?
Is the main improvement night time? Is there much difference in good light?
sebastiantombs
Known around here
Thank-you.
So the only other thing I'm wondering is about the AI features (whatever that actually means)....
They told me the cognitio can differentiate between people/cars etc and only send alerts when either of those are detected, and not cats etc. A mute point, as I probably wont use alerts anyway, but things like where it can detect when someone steps over a line etc, are those things done on the camera or the nvr? Does the 5442 do those things?
I'm going to ask if they can get the dahua camera and what the price difference is. I would also hope that it is compatible with the NVR they quoted as I think that is just a re-brand, although if I go all dahua cameras it would make sense to get the equivelant dahua NVR.
So the only other thing I'm wondering is about the AI features (whatever that actually means)....
They told me the cognitio can differentiate between people/cars etc and only send alerts when either of those are detected, and not cats etc. A mute point, as I probably wont use alerts anyway, but things like where it can detect when someone steps over a line etc, are those things done on the camera or the nvr? Does the 5442 do those things?
I'm going to ask if they can get the dahua camera and what the price difference is. I would also hope that it is compatible with the NVR they quoted as I think that is just a re-brand, although if I go all dahua cameras it would make sense to get the equivelant dahua NVR.
sebastiantombs
Known around here
The 5442 can differentiate cars and people using IVS and a new firmware with improved SMD, Simple Motion Detection, is on the immediate horizon as well. Have a look at these reviews -
Review - Loryata (Dahua OEM) IPC-T5442T-ZE varifocal Turret
ipcamtalk.com
Review - OEM IPC-B5442E-ZE 4MP AI Varifocal Bullet Camera With Starlight+
ipcamtalk.com
Review-OEM 4mp AI Cam IPC-T5442TM-AS Starlight+ Turret
ipcamtalk.com
Review IPC-T5442TM-AS-LED (Turret, Full Color, Starlight+)
ipcamtalk.com
Review: IPC-HDBW5442R-ASE-NI - Dahua Technology Pro AI Bullet Network Camera
ipcamtalk.com
Review - Loryata (Dahua OEM) IPC-T5442T-ZE varifocal Turret
Review-OEM Loryta IPC-T5442T-ZE Varifocal 4mp camera (Dahua)
IPC-T5442T-ZE Varifocal from @EMPIRETECANDY 4MP WDR Turret Varifocal Network Camera Review unit courtesy of Andy (@EMPIRETECANDY) in exchange for a fair and honest review. Andy's ipcamtalk store: link Andy's AliExpress store: link Andy's Amazon store: link Price Approximately US $200.00...
Review - OEM IPC-B5442E-ZE 4MP AI Varifocal Bullet Camera With Starlight+
Review - OEM IPC-B5442E-ZE 4MP AI Varifocal Bullet Camera With Starlight+
All, thanks to Andy (@EMPIRETECANDY ) we have a new 4MP AI camera for testing. This camera has been provided by Andy in exchange for a fair and honest review. This camera is using the OEM model number of IPC-B5442-ZE which is the equivalent of the Dahua IPC-HFW5442-ZE for reference. The IPC-B...
Review-OEM 4mp AI Cam IPC-T5442TM-AS Starlight+ Turret
Review-OEM 4mp AI Cam IPC-T5442TM-AS Starlight+
Dahua OEM IPC-T5442TM-AS from EMPIRETECANDY 4MP WDR Turret AI Network Camera Review unit courtesy of Andy (@EMPIRETECANDY) in exchange for a fair and honest review. Andy's ipcamtalk store: link Andy's AliExpress store: link Andy's Amazon store: link Price Approximately US $160 Link to camera...
Review IPC-T5442TM-AS-LED (Turret, Full Color, Starlight+)
Review IPC-T5442TM-AS-LED (Full Color, Starlight+)
Dahua OEM IPC-T5442TM-AS-LED from EMPIRETECANDY 4MP WDR Turret AI Network Camera Review unit courtesy of Andy (@EMPIRETECANDY) in exchange for a fair and honest review. Andy's ipcamtalk vendor forum: link Andy's AliExpress store: link Andy's Amazon store: link Andy's Email: kingsecurity2014...
Review: IPC-HDBW5442R-ASE-NI - Dahua Technology Pro AI Bullet Network Camera
Review: OEM IPC-B5442T-ASE-NI 4MP Pro AI Starlight Full-color Fixed Bullet
Many thanks once again to Andy @EMPIRETECANDY we have for testing the OEM IPC-B5442T-ASE-NI 4MP Starlight+ Full Color bullet. This camera has been provided by Andy in exchange for a fair and honest review. This is a fixed 3.6mm bullet (Pro AI) series with the 1/1.8” sensor. It has no built in...
Thanks, I'll look at those properly later. Noticed that not all have the LED's like the one I have seen, does this mean the one I linked to doesn't use IR, only ambient light etc? Is this something to avoid?