I think Hikvision has been cracking down on it? Also, the Hikvision turrets aren't varifocal, which would explain the cheaper price. We also don't know how they perform yet, so the fewer dollars might be appropriate after tests are run
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Yes, that's why I mentioned the missing varifocal and microphone.
Nayr tested both the varifocal and fixed lens Dahua 2MP Starlights, the day time pictures with the fixed lens were definitely better. Notice the night comparison with them each using their own on board IR - the varifocal has a "hot spot" in the centre with less coverage on the outer edges. There's another night shot with them both using the fixed lens' on board IR which vastly improves the varifocal's picture. When I had mine set at about 80 degrees the edges of the scene were in total darkness. I'm guessing the lens situation is similar to DSLR cameras- you can find cheapish fixed fast lenses that give excellent results, but zooms in the same price range usually have comparably poor image quality.
I've moved a 2.8mm 4MP Hikvision into the spot where the varifocal Starlight was and overall I get more useful night footage because the IR spread across the FOV is more even.
Bottom line - everyone has different priorities, so each person needs to weigh up what they value more. While I want better low light capability I don't want the day time detail to take a big hit. I've moved the 2MP varifocal Starlight to another position where it's zoomed fully and is covering a long walkway between the house and a high fence. It works very well there. I'm also leaning towards Hikvision due to my NVR being made by them.
I'll try to get a comparison done with the 4MP Hikvision, 3MP Ultra-low light Hikvision and Dahua 2MP varifocal Starlight. The Starlights have an "auto" setting where they determine the shutter speed- I want to compare them all at the same known speed. (1/25 sec as that seems to be the best compromise I've found for exposure vs motion blur on moving subjects.)
