Love the IPC-HDW5231R-Z - now what?

[Dseg42]

So I am not sure what move to make next after purchasing the IPC-HDW5231R-Z from @EMPIRETECANDY .
Quick question, on the AliExpress description for this camera, it doesn't actually say "Starlight" anywhere, so is this a Starlight camera?
Love the camera, just not the price. I need about six more, so 6x $170 = over $1k so I was looking for something more cost effective.

Now I am looking at the IPC-HDW4431C-A from either E&M Tech Center Store or A Plus Electronics since they are only $50, with fixed lenses not being a problem. They also 4MP vs the 5231 being 2MP for some reason but I keep seeing these Chinese models suck though? Plus these things say 35-60 shipping days? Would probably just go to eBay...

Was also looking to get the IPC-HFW5231E-Z12 to play with for license plates which is a 5.3mm-64mm
But is almost the same price as the IPC-HFW5231E-Z5 but is only 7mm-35mm.
Am I missing something between the two cameras?

Anyways, I am a fan of the turret style so if anyone else has recommendations for a cheaper fixed turret camera, let me know. But if we are only talking about $30-$40 cheaper per camera, I might just stick with the varifocal (IPC-HDW5231R-Z). I did find the IPC-HDW4231EM-AS which is $130 with a 3.6mm lense, that could save me about $300 in total.

I was also starting to wonder if I should try a higher MP camera.

 

[fenderman]

do not buy the china models ..they are not well built and not firmware upgradable...4mp is not better than 2mp..
the 5231 is a starlight.....see the dahua website.

 

[DavidDavid]

You could save $50/camera and get the fixed lens IPC-HDW4231EM-AS, i think they come in a few different zoom levels.

 

[SquareEyes]

Those fixed focals kick ass, if you know your lens requirement. Personally I think they perform slightly better than the vari.

 

[fenderman]

Those fixed focals kick ass, if you know your lens requirement. Personally I think they perform slightly better than the vari.

a fixed lens can never be a perfect fit..you are always going to capture more than you need...with vari you dont waste any pixels...

 

[DavidDavid]

I'm ordering a pair of them next week as well to add to my three 5231 Starlights.

 

[SquareEyes]

If sized appropriately you may slightly overshoot the the target but for the money and sharpness the fixed focals give, I am prepared to waste a few pixels.

Now if Andy would start stocking fixed in anything other than 3.6mm, it could be a win win situation.

 

[DavidDavid]

They should be available in 2.8, 3.6 and 6mm...does @EMPIRETECANDY not have all of those available?

And it totally depends on what your watching with them. I got the varifocals for real important locations and am getting the fixed lenses for areas that i literally just want to be able to look at when not at home.

 

[SquareEyes]

Apparen

They should be available in 2.8, 3.6 and 6mm...does @EMPIRETECANDY not have all of those available?

According to Andy I am the only one who has ever asked for the 6mm. These would be awesome for doorway approach cameras.

 

[Dseg42]

Thanks for the feedback everyone.
I will probably pick up two more IPC-HDW5231R-Z and two IPC-HDW4231EM-AS with 2.6mm lenses for sides of the house if Andy has them.
Then the IPC-HFW5231E-Z12 and a chinese camera to test.

I have two side BI questions. Do I need to adjust camera resolutions to get them the same size boxes on the BI viewer?
Also, I have BI working on my iPhone but does it have a remote viewer for a web browser?

 

[aristobrat]

I have two side BI questions. Do I need to adjust camera resolutions to get them the same size boxes on the BI viewer?
Also, I have BI working on my iPhone but does it have a remote viewer for a web browser?

I think that the only thing that affects the size of the boxes in the BI viewer are the Layout settings. If you right-click on a camera, then click Layout, there are some options there. I don't understand them all, so I've just goofed around until I stumbled across something that worked for my setup.

To view remotely from your iPhone, the web piece for BI has to be configured. So it sounds like you've already done the hard part. Whatever you have setup for the WAN configuration in the iOS app is what you'd type into a browser to get it to connect. If you haven't seen it already, check out the BI subforums. One of the moderators here wrote a different web interface piece that's easy to install that looks 100x better than the stock BI web interface, IMO.

 

[Dseg42]

I think that the only thing that affects the size of the boxes in the BI viewer are the Layout settings. If you right-click on a camera, then click Layout, there are some options there. I don't understand them all, so I've just goofed around until I stumbled across something that worked for my setup.

To view remotely from your iPhone, the web piece for BI has to be configured. So it sounds like you've already done the hard part. Whatever you have setup for the WAN configuration in the iOS app is what you'd type into a browser to get it to connect. If you haven't seen it already, check out the BI subforums. One of the moderators here wrote a different web interface piece that's easy to install that looks 100x better than the stock BI web interface, IMO.

Thanks - Yeah, I think I found it here:
I made a better remote-live-view page