Please help with IP3M-943 replacement

[somebody]

Trying to do my homework but it's been overwhelming, especially since our main front camera went down right before we have an extended leave.

Using BI and we had an Amcrest IP3M-943 connected over ethernet. 1/3" CMOS sensor, 2304x1296, B+W night with IR, 2.8mm lens, F2.0. Says it's a 100* FOV but it appeared greater than that.

Nothing complicated, just recording 24/7. It covered a broad range from the upper corner of our home spanning from the front door porch over to the edge of our property, concentrating on the driveway. Definition appeared decent but then I don't know a whole lot about this and what would be considered good.

I'm at a lost when trying to find a replacement. I see all of these 'Night-color-vision' AI cameras with bright LEDs when all I want is something simple that works well.

I'm barely familiar with the frustrating setup of Amcrest as I have a total of 3 cameras including one which is an ASH. Once running, they've been doing really well and I don't have any drops. PC is dedicated and CPU usage is low around 20-30% continuous.

I am open to other brands and am thinking an upper price point of $180 if that is possible. Since most negative things happen at night in our neighborhood, I think low-light performance would be the most important. Also important is a wide field of view. Our other cameras claim 103* but the IP3M covered wider than them so not sure where the discrepancy is.

Thank you!

 

[sebastiantombs]

Here's a list of the current got to cameras and a quick guide regarding resolution versus sensor size to achieve good night vision.

The smaller the lux number the better the low light performance. 0.002 is better than 0.02
The smaller the "F" of the lens the better the low light performance. F1.4 is better than F1.8
The larger the sensor the better the low light performance. 1/1.8" is better (bigger) than 1/2.7"
The higher the megapixels for the same size sensor the worse the low light performance. A 4MP camera with a 1/1.8" sensor will perform better than a 8MP camera with that same 1/1.8" sensor.

Disclaimer - These sizes are what the manufacturers advertise and may, or may not, be the true size of the sensor in the camera.
720P - 1/3" = .333"
2MP - 1/2.8" = .357" (think a .38 caliber bullet)
4MP - 1/1.8" = .555" (bigger than a .50 caliber bullet or ball)
8MP - 1/1.2" = .833" (bigger than a 20mm chain gun round)

The 5442 series of cameras by Dahua is the current "king of the hill". They are 4MP and capable of color with some ambient light at night. The 2231 series is a less expensive alternative in 2MP and does not have audio capabilities, no built in microphone, but is easier on the budget. The 3241T-ZAS has similar spcs as the 2231 and has audio. There are also cameras available from the IPCT Store right here on the forum and from Nelly's Security who has a thread in the vendors section.

Again, courtesy of Wittaj -

The Importance of Focal Length over MP in camera selection

At the urging of several folks here, I created a thread to show the importance of focal length and how focal length can be more important than megapixels (MP). I mentioned some of this in the post regarding The Hookup’s latest video demonstrating different cameras, including one sold from a...

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The 5442 series of cameras by Dahua is the current "king of the hill". They are 4MP and capable of color with some ambient light at night. The 2231 series is a less expensive alternative in 2MP and does not have audio capabilities, no built in microphone, but is easier on the budget. The 3241T-ZAS has similar spcs as the 2231 and has audio. There are also cameras available from the IPCT Store right here on the forum and from Nelly's Security who has a thread in the vendors section.

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Budget Dahua Cams or china alternatives under $100?

Well here we go. I dont see anywhere more approriate to discuss this. Ive been messing around with putting together a cctv system for close to 3 years now. Ive bought everything i needed and also bought 2 cheap cams from a third party seller on walmart. Those cams cost me a grand total of $50...

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[wittaj]

+1 above!!!!

Those are budget cameras on a less than ideal MP/sensor ratio. This sensor size works well for 2MP and lower, not above. And then placing them in the "upper corner" means all you will know is what time it happened. And then these cameras are wifi, so they will bug out at the wrong time, especially if you are using 3-4 of them.

I started with the four 2.8mm cameras and I was like "I can place one on each corner of the house and see my whole property and the whole neighborhood." A newbie loves the wide angle "I can see the whole neighborhood" of the 2.8mm fixed wide angle lens. I LOVED IT WHEN I PUT IT UP. I could see everything that would be blocked looking out the windows.

It is easy to get lured in to thinking the wide angle "see the whole neighborhood" because you are watching it and you see a neighbor go by and you are like "Look at that I can tell that is Heather out walking." and "Yeah I can tell our neighbor 4 down just passed by". Or you watch back the video of you walking around and are like "yeah I can tell that is me".

Little do we realize how much WE can identify a known person just by hair style, clothing, walking pace, gait, etc.

Then one day the door checker comes by. Total stranger. Totally useless video other than what time the door checking happened.

Then you realize that this wide-angle see the whole neighborhood comes at a cost and that cost is not being able to IDENTIFY who did it. These 2.8mm wide angle cameras are great overview cameras or to IDENTIFY someone within 10 feet of the camera. At 40 feet out you need a different camera.

And like most, I stuck these wide angle cameras on the 2nd story to be able to see even more, which then means any IDENTIFY distance is lost vertically. Someone needs to be within 10-13 feet to identify someone with a 2.8mm lens. A camera placed 16-20 feet up means the entire IDENTIFY distance is lost in the vertical direction. You will get a good shot at the top of the head and that though LOL.

So then we start adding more cameras and varifocal cameras so that we can optically zoom in to pinch points and other areas of interest to get the clean IDENTIFY captures of someone. While the varifocals are great at helping to identify at a distance, they come at a cost of a reduced field of view, just like the wide-angles are great at seeing a wide area, but they come at the expense of IDENTIFY at distance.

In addition to the above and great advice from @sebastiantombs, please read my thread he linked that shows the differences between a 2.8mm focal length trying to IDENTIFY at distances beyond what one should (more than 10-15 feet at night).

 

[somebody]

Here's a list of the current got to cameras and a quick guide regarding resolution versus sensor size to achieve good night vision.

Holy smokes, thank you Sebastian! Lots to review in a very short amount of time so hopefully I make the right choice.

 

[looney2ns]

Pretty much can't go wrong with this camera.

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ipcamtalk.com

 

[somebody]

+1 above!!!!

Those are budget cameras on a less than ideal MP/sensor ratio. This sensor size works well for 2MP and lower, not above. And then placing them in the "upper corner" means all you will know is what time it happened. And then these cameras are wifi, so they will bug out at the wrong time, especially if you are using 3-4 of them.

Thank you and I appreciate your notes but the wide angle and upper corner aren't because I want to view everything, it's just what I'm stuck with for camera placement that just happens to also work really well.

I used to sell networked CCTV systems to major corporations and prisons about 20 years ago and had to study layout, subject capture and deterents but the tech has drastically changed of course. I didn't need to study the cameras themselves as much as I did the layout, network and wiring integration. I've studied our layout and options hard, including finally tracking down my home plans from the builder after about 15 years. It's the only place I can run power and an ethernet cable to (no wifi) a camera with no exterior runs and cover the driveway and front door at the same time while also obtaining a WAF (Wife Approval Factor) which is the most important aspect. Thankfully it's only about 12 feet up.

I'd also like to have another camera on the other corner of the house but it's just not possible. Besides, we've had unknown visitors at night, who thankfully didn't do anything, but they were identifiable as the vehicles and front door are not far from the camera, ~15-25 feet away.

 

[wittaj]

You don't need power and Ethernet if you get a non wifi cam - the power goes thru the ethernet cable.

As long as you think your cameras at a high install get you what you need, that is all that counts. But a dark yard is different than a lit up prison.

We would love to see the images you got of the visitors and the height of the install! Maybe you are doing something better than the rest of us...

There are always ways to run wire and meet WAF lol

 

[somebody]

Pretty much can't go wrong with this camera.

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IPC-T5442T-ZE Varifocal from @EMPIRETECANDY 4MP WDR Turret Varifocal Network Camera Review unit courtesy of Andy (@EMPIRETECANDY) in exchange for a fair and honest review. Andy's ipcamtalk store: link Andy's AliExpress store: link Andy's Amazon store: link Price Approximately US $200.00...

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I had seen that included with Sebastian's post and appreciate you highlighting it. I went ahead and pulled the trigger on the fixed lens version, T5442TM-AS 2.8mm and am excited to get it. Hopefully I don't have any issues installing.