Newbie with questions - surprise surprise

[pschmehl]

TL;DR: I have some questions about two cameras. Skip to the bottom.

I hate that things have gotten to the point that I even need to consider security cameras, but there you go. (I'll spare you the details, but we have not yet been broken into or had anything stolen - neighbors have.) I just installed motion detector lights in my driveway and back yard. I bought a dash cam for my car. Now I'm researching security cameras.

I live in a place where the likelihood of bad guys being around is very low. I'm on a cul-de-sac with a brook behind my house, so criminals tend to avoid places like mine. Still, in today's world, you can't be too careful. So I decided it might not be a bad idea to have a camera for the driveway, for two reasons. Our car is parked in the driveway. (My 1948 Chevy show winner is in the garage.) And my house is on the alley where you have to turn 90 degrees to exit. Even if I never have a problem, I may catch someone driving by who messed with my neighbors.

So I bought two Blink cameras. I installed one in our entryway, which is well protected from the weather, and one outside the garage in a well protected location. (Yes, I knew that was not recommended use.) Now, I'm not a novice when it comes to networking and computers, so I managed to get it working even though there was a problem with the firmware and the manufacturer offered to replace it. (After I got it working, the firmware updated automatically and fixed the problem.) But, after two or three days I quickly decided that battery powered cameras were a bad idea. The range of the Blink cams was less than 25 feet (at my house - they claim 100), so the garage cam only worked some of the time, and the Sync Module keep failing and having to be reconfigured to get it working again.

I then began researching. (I've read a ton of posts on this forum.) I've made several decisions.

1. I don't want to pull ethernet all over the house, punch holes in the walls and install jacks to get everything working.
2. I also don't want wires hanging out of the ceiling, so I'd have to do the jack installs if I went that route.
3. I don't want cameras all over the house. This isn't Fort Knox. I want one for the front door and one for the driveway.
4. I don't want an NVR. I don't have room for it and I don't want a monitor to watch all the time.
5. I want something simple to install and maintain.
6. I want something that will alert me when it detects motion, take pictures and/or video and then go back to sleep or at least allow me to ignore it.
7. I'm not too concerned about night vision, because the lights will come on when motion is detected.
8. I don't care about audio or alarms, so long as I can be notified on my iPhone 6.

So, wireless it is. (Yes, I know you guys don't think wireless is the way to go, but that's my call.)

After much research, I have purchased a Skybell camera for the front door. It's American made, connects to the existing wiring for my doorbell and should work well enough to give me more information than I presently have. I should have no problem installing that and getting it up and running.

That leaves the decision for the driveway camera, and that's where I need some help.

I've narrowed my choices down to two cameras:

1. A Ctronics bullet cam
2. A Hikvision dome cam

I have some questions about these cameras.

1. I searched the forum for any information about Ctronics cams and found nothing. Are these decent cameras? How is the support? Keep in mind excellent night vision isn't critical since the flood lights will trigger on motion. However, a car passing by would not trigger the lights. They would be about 25 feet away from the lights and the camera.
2. I'm leaning toward the Hikvision, because some on this forum have recommended them.
3. Of these two, which would you buy?
4. Should I consider another one?
5. Which is better? A 4mm lens? Or a 6mm lens? (I've learned that bigger isn't always better.)
6. The camera will be mounted to a board at the top of the garage opening and the wires will go through the board into the attic.
7. Do cameras normally come with everything you need to connect them? Or do you have to provide the source of power? (IOW, you can't just plug it in to an outlet.)

 

[PSPCommOp]

If you haven't heard of CTronics on here, there is most likely a reason for it. Although Hik have their flaws, at least they are reliable and alot of people here can provide feedback on them with any issues. Depending where you order from you can also get support directly from the vendor. I'd recommend Nellys, or message MilkIsBad on here and order some LTS cameras. Same thing as Hik and you'll get support.

I'd also suggest the turret over the dome. Less IR bleed at night, and although you say nightvision doesn't matter, they can get smudges over time that skew the picture or cause "sunbursts" which can cause issues even in daylight. 6mm will most likely give you better picture/facial recognition. You'll lose the amount of area you can cover but that isn't a big deal as long as it still covers the important points.

Yes the cameras will come with two ways to power. Hik can be PoE or 12v. Usually its easier to use PoE so you don't have to run a separate wire but you need an NVR or PoE Switch for that to work. Obviously you will need to provide your own cable. If you haven't worked with it, look up ways to terminate ethernet cable. There are plenty of videos and web sites that you can find online if you search. I'd recommend Cat5e as its easier to work with and for the bandwidth of IP cameras, there isn't much benefit over Cat6 which is more expensive and stiffer then Cat5 which can make it a bit more difficult to run.

 

[pschmehl]

Thanks. I'll PM MilkIsBad. Well, I guess I won't. Hopefully MilkIsBad will see this and respond. I can't PM - too few posts.

 

[PSPCommOp]

Don't expect that to happen. Post in a few other threads, it only takes five, then PM him.


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[pschmehl]

I'm going to post some pictures so you can see what I'm trying to accomplish.

This is the part of the view the camera should have. You can see the edge of the carport at the top of the picture:



This is another part of the view the camera should have. The alley turns 90 degrees beside my driveway:



I think from my fence to the alley is no more than 60 degrees or so. From the fence to the edge of the house here would be 90 degrees.

This is shot of where I plan to mount the camera. It's a 6" board that is the header to the garage opening. (It looks gray in the photo.) As you can see, there's an outlet right there, so I can wire from that to an outlet in the attic for the camera.



This is another option. I could mount the camera from the soffit, but I'd probably want to reinforce that with a board in the attic, because the soffit is 1/4" plywood.



Am I correct that the header is a better option for mounting a camera?