Have a small Pizza restaurant that I want 8 cameras installed. Typically use a NVR system but figured I would give BlueIris a try. Looking for a camera suggestions from the following link for the 8 cameras. Appreciate the feedback! Want something good so I can check up on the store when I am remote. I am not always at the store so nice to have a good system to check up when I am not there.
I'd suggest that you contact Andy from EmpireTech. He's a member here and has great pricing and support. He is also more familiar with the types of cameras used in a situation like yours. Also realize that you can run an NVR and Blue Iris for redundancy if you choose. Both do require some setup, fine tuning, of cameras to produce the best possible image. Video surveillance, contrary to popular opinion and Hollywood myth, is not a plug and play situation.
I'd suggest that you contact Andy from EmpireTech. He's a member here and has great pricing and support. He is also more familiar with the types of cameras used in a situation like yours. Also realize that you can run an NVR and Blue Iris for redundancy if you choose. Both do require some setup, fine tuning, of cameras to produce the best possible image. Video surveillance, contrary to popular opinion and Hollywood myth, is not a plug and play situation.
To identify someone with the 2.8mm lens that is popular, someone would have to be within 13 feet of the camera, but realistically within 10 feet after you dial it in to your settings.
My neighbor was bragging to me how he only needed his four 2.8mm fixed lens cams to see his entire property and the street and his whole backyard. His car was sitting in the driveway practically touching the garage door and his video quality was useless to ID the perp not even 10 feet away.
Here are my general distance recommendations, but switch out the Dahua 5442 series camera to the equivalent 2MP on the 1/2.8" sensor or equivalent Hikvision works as well.
5442 fixed lens 2.8mm - anything within 10 feet of camera OR as an overview camera
5442 ZE - varifocal - distances up to 40-50 feet (personally I wouldn't go past the 30 foot range but I like things closer)
5442 Z4E - anything up to 80-100 feet (personally I wouldn't go past 60 feet but I like things closer)
5241-Z12E - anything from 80 feet to almost 200 feet (personally I wouldn't go past 150 feet because I like things closer)
5241-Z12E - for a license plate cam that you would angle up the street to get plates up to about 175 feet away, or up to 220 with additional IR.
49225 PTZ - great PTZ and in conjunction with an NVR or Blue Iris and the cameras above that you can use as spotter cams to point the PTZ to the correct location to compliment the fixed cams.
You need to get the correct camera for the area trying to be covered. A 2.8mm to IDENTIFY someone 40 feet away is the wrong camera regardless of how good the camera is. A 2.8mm camera to IDENTIFY someone within 10 feet is a good choice OR it is an overview camera to see something happened but not be able to identify who.
Main keys are you can't locate the camera too high (not on the 2nd story or above 7 feet high unless it is for overview and not Identification purposes) or chase MP and you need to get the correct camera for the area trying to be covered. A 2.8mm to IDENTIFY someone 40 feet away is the wrong camera regardless of how good the camera is. A 2.8mm camera to IDENTIFY someone within 10 feet is a good choice OR it is an overview camera to see something happened but not be able to identify who. Also, do not chase marketing phrases like ColorVu and Full Color and the like - all cameras need light - simple physics...
If you want to see things far away, you need optical zoom, digital zoom only works in the movies and TV...And the optical zoom is done real time - for a varifocal it is a set it and forget it. You cannot go to recorded video and optically zoom in later, at that point it is digital zoom, and the sensors on these cameras are so small which is why digital zoom doesn't work very well after the fact.
Most of these are going to be indoors. The main objective will be to check up on team members, and obviously review footage in case of a break-in. The parking lot isn't big but like you said, probably best to get a good camera to look at that.
Thanks to everyone for their suggestions. I reached out to Andy and was offered the following. The second seems good. Question for the members, are these Chinese versions or it's safe to use in Canada? I would be looking at buying about 6-8 of them.