Good camera for DIY doorbell cam?

[diydoorbell]

I'm planning to build a doorbell camera with all the features I've wanted and none of the ones I don't want (no phoning home / dependence on cloud servers).
I think the beast way to get what I want is to run most of it on a microcontroller (the speaker / mic for 2 way audio, button tied in to chime), but use a regular security camera and take it apart to put it in a different housing - a smart doorbell housing I'll 3d print. I won't have any trouble with the audio or chime, but I'm hoping for suggestions on a camera.

What I'm looking for is:
- something that will fit in a reasonably small form factor, say no more than 2x3 inches and < 1 inch thick (I don't care how big the regular camera housing is, as long as it can be taken apart and the board & lens will fit)
- PoE, no wifi
- wide angle lens both horizontal and vertical, ideally 180 degrees or even 210 (to be able to see packages left at doorstep)
- mainly care about daytime performance, outdoor porch light could be turned on at night to illuminate
- doesn't need to be super high quality - anything over 2mp would be plenty
- under $100, ideally under 50

I've looked through a few of the top recommended regular cameras here but the trouble I have is that they all seem pretty big physically, I don't want to buy one and take it apart only to find out most of the space is actually used by electronics and it'd be too big.

 

[eggsan]

How you are planning to access the video/audio when someone press the door button?

 

[eggsan]

just to understand how you will interact with the person at front door (iphone, PC, monitor, etc.)?

 

[crw030]

I personally like the double eyeball (some call it "boob cam") as a door/package camera. Dahua and Hikvision both have options where the camera and electronics are separated, check out IPC-HUM8431-E1 and corresponding lens options.

 

[eggsan]

for a diy under $100 budget, you should consider a mini-ip board camera. But most Chinese models works with P2P servers, not sure if it allows for local network setup. In that case, instead of PoE, look for 12Vdc over cat5, since you will need to power the mic and speaker.

 

[diydoorbell]

How you are planning to access the video/audio when someone press the door button?

I'm going to make an android app to display the video & audio, but connecting directly to a machine I'm using to run other home automation stuff. I'm a programmer with some knowledge of electronics so I'm not too worried about interacting with it.
I'd like to have the doorbell camera connected to my blueiris instance too though, it seems a waste to have a camera and not record it.

Mini IP board camera: this sort of thing seems like what I'm looking for. Going from the first search result 5MP 1080P IP Board Camera Module IR-CUT HD CS Lens ONVIF iPhone View seems like it's got the right features: small, ONVIF output, ethernet (you're right about it taking 12v though, but that's not a problem). I don't know much about cameras though so no idea about whether that's good or not. And I'd need one where I can swap out the lens to be a wider angle.

 

[diydoorbell]

I personally like the double eyeball (some call it "boob cam") as a door/package camera. Dahua and Hikvision both have options where the camera and electronics are separated, check out IPC-HUM8431-E1 and corresponding lens options.

That's pretty cool, I didn't realize there were ones with the electronics separate from the camera. It'd make installation a bit tricky though, since I already happen to have an ethernet run to the doorbell, I'd need to drill holes to run their specific cable through.

 

[alastairstevenson]

Mini IP board camera: this sort of thing seems like what I'm looking for.

If you're looking for bare board cameras there is a massive choice on Aliexpress, and also from manufacturers selling on their own sites.
I've had a few from here, for example - and been pretty happy with their customer service - IP Camera Board
It's also possible to buy ethernet cables with a PoE convertor in the cable as an alternative to a PoE board where space is tight.

 

[eggsan]

I'm going to make an android app to display the video & audio, but connecting directly to a machine I'm using to run other home automation stuff. I'm a programmer with some knowledge of electronics so I'm not too worried about interacting with it.
I'd like to have the doorbell camera connected to my blueiris instance too though, it seems a waste to have a camera and not record it.

Mini IP board camera: this sort of thing seems like what I'm looking for. Going from the first search result 5MP 1080P IP Board Camera Module IR-CUT HD CS Lens ONVIF iPhone View seems like it's got the right features: small, ONVIF output, ethernet (you're right about it taking 12v though, but that's not a problem). I don't know much about cameras though so no idea about whether that's good or not. And I'd need one where I can swap out the lens to be a wider angle.

that board looks perfect for your particular application. It connects through your local lan, and yes, you need to change the lens (CS mount) for a wider fixed angle. Even thou you may design a separate 2-way audio interface, if using the one-way microphone-in/speaker-out, included with the unit, request the seller to provide the audio-in/audio-out pin-out location, if available. But in case is not provided, normally is a 3-pin mini connector (audio-in/audio-out/ground). Just connect to the app, press the mic icon while transmitting audio from your iphone, then trace the signal with small 8 ohms speaker at the mini terminal connector (or an oscilloscope, if available). At the final stage of your project, you may still need to add amplification for the mic/speaker. Good luck with your interesting project and keep me posted of your progress.

 

[diydoorbell]

If you're looking for bare board cameras there is a massive choice on Aliexpress, and also from manufacturers selling on their own sites.
I've had a few from here, for example - and been pretty happy with their customer service - IP Camera Board
It's also possible to buy ethernet cables with a PoE convertor in the cable as an alternative to a PoE board where space is tight.

Nice source. Here's what I'm thinking:
2mp starlight board, it's got ethernet and mic in & speaker out, looks perfect: IPCB-3516XS290 1/2.8" 2MP 1080P Sony WDR IMX290 Hi3516CV300 H.265 IP Starlight Security CCTV HD Camera Module board
185 degree field of view lens: FE1.7-M12-5MP-F2.0 185 Degree F2.0 FIXED IRIS 1/2.5" CCTV Lens IR 5.0 Megapixel FIXED LENS M12 x 0.5 Mount Type For CCTV Camera
attached with this holder M12 Lens Holder/housing 20mm hole distance

And to your point eggsan, looks like it'd do 2 way audio and I'll just need to hook up a microphone and speaker (and yeah maybe some custom amplification). Seems like for the hardware I'll only need to handle the button press of the doorbell.

 

[silencery]

Just throwing out some ideas:

• IR lighting for low light conditions.
• RFID authentication
• SIP client
• Onboard flamethrower

 

[giomania]

I would suggest you rename the thread to “FrankenBell“



Mark


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