Review - TOP-201 Super Mini 720P HD IP-Cam (The Cheapest IP Cam So Far !!)

[truxntrax]

Hi,

Cable ordered.

Here is my firmware pre the attempted flash.

Hopefully we can write a guide for others at the end of this.

Likely a couple of days before the delivery gets to me- I will message as soon as it comes. (May be able to borrow one from work sooner, hopefully)

Thanks

 

[dui]

exploring the General_HZXM_IPC_HI3518E_50H10L_S38_V4.02.R12.20150116_ALL.bin file we can see the file structure as follows:

the contents of the Install file are as follow:

// 本升级包适合的硬件列表，以及升级命令序列。


// 升级包的可信任性应该得到保证，否则设备有被hack的可能。


// 升级包的可信任性应该得到保证，否则设备有被hack的可能。


{// 升级命令序列，必须按顺序执行。升级命令包含标准的shell命令和特殊的用于烧写


// flash分区的burn命令。


   "Commands" : [
      "burn u-boot.bin.img boot",
      "burn custom-x.cramfs.img custom",
      "burn romfs-x.cramfs.img romfs",
      "burn user-x.cramfs.img user",
      "burn web-x.cramfs.img web"
   ], // 设备列表成员的格式为[设备类型，硬件版本]
   "Devices" : [
      [ "HI3518E_50H10L_S39", "1.00" ]
   ]
}

and the contents of InstallDesc file as follows:

{
   "UpgradeCommand" : [
      {
         "Command" : "Burn",
         "FileName" : "u-boot.bin.img"
      },
      {
         "Command" : "Burn",
         "FileName" : "u-boot.env.img"
      },
      {
         "Command" : "Burn",
         "FileName" : "custom-x.cramfs.img"
      },
      {
         "Command" : "Burn",
         "FileName" : "romfs-x.cramfs.img"
      },
      {
         "Command" : "Burn",
         "FileName" : "user-x.cramfs.img"
      },
      {
         "Command" : "Burn",
         "FileName" : "web-x.cramfs.img"
      }
   ],
   "Hardware" : "HI3518E_50H10L_S39",
   "CompatibleVersion" : 1,
   "Vendor" : "General"
}

when we have serial port connected then a 'cat /proc/mtd' command will show the partition table

 

[truxntrax]

My TTY to usb converter is now here. Will be ready to move to the next step tonight. Will be connecting from a Ubuntu 14.04 laptop. Do you guys know what connection settings I need to connect?

Many thanks

 

[dui]

Try the following (found on another site):
camera board's RX to TTL adapter's TX and so on.
Plug adapter to a computer and set speed to 115200 bauds (115200 8N1) without hardware flow control.

 

[truxntrax]

I now have tty access to the cam.

 

[lojix]

I've been following along here. I'm glad to know there is some support being developed if the need for recovery arises.

 

[raceboy]

Hello.
Im new in this forum. My English is not so good And i have one question about those cheap ip cameras. I owned cheat ip camera (Kavass IP 720p). Product model of board is Ipc_hi3518c_50h10l_s38 as i see on 雄迈百科. System is V4.02.R11.00002510.10010. The problem is that when i put it on the latest firmware...the ONVIF is gone. (On old firmware was onvif on 8899 port). There's no more 8899 port if i look up with putty (netstat -la). Is it posible to enable onvif?

thanks

peter

 

[raceboy]

here's capture:

and caputure of netstat:

 

[raceboy]

yes this is the version of firmware that i upgrade. older one was from 2013. and has open 8899 port. is it posible to get older firmware or edit new one? or if i can upgrade firmware from similar camera?

 

[raceboy]

ok. thanks a lot. i hope that is possible enable onvif on that camera

 

[truxntrax]

I can confirm that the instructions and upgrade.img file work as directed. My camera is now unbricked and booting as normal.

Thanks Don and others who helped.

 

[raceboy]

hello.

thanks for support. i tried this firmware with date 2014.11.10 but ONVIF don't work neither. but i found on internet another firmware with firmware date 2014.09.05 (General_HZXM_IPC_HI3518C_50H10L_S38_V4.02.R11.20140905_ALL.bin) and ONVIF works!

 

[dui]

The range of module board configurations built on top of the four versions of the Hi3518 chipset, come with various interface terminals. Some allowing more peripheral connection than others. The board in the TOP-201 is not as 'optioned' compared to some others available. I recently purchased another variation of this camera which has this board below.

...as you can see, it offers a fair bit more in the way of adaptability. I was happy with this one because I want to hook a mic up to it for added audio stream.

Hi,

one of my cameras has an identical board to the above, can you recommend a good mic for this please?

And would the connections be as follows:
PCB AUDIO GND -> MIC GND
PCB AUDIO IN -> MIC +VE
PCB AUDIO OUT -> MIC AUDIO OUT

many thanks in advance.

 

[madmas]

Dear TheUberOverLord,
Can you tell me which player I need to use for open *.h264 files. I'm trying to use VLC, Windows Media Player and other, but I can't open these files.

 

[dui]

VLC works fine, are you using the correct link?

 

[madmas]

I'm opened the folder, where CMS is stored a video files and try to open these video files.

 

[lojix]

Hi,

one of my cameras has an identical board to the above, can you recommend a good mic for this please?

And would the connections be as follows:
PCB AUDIO GND -> MIC GND
PCB AUDIO IN -> MIC +VE
PCB AUDIO OUT -> MIC AUDIO OUT

many thanks in advance.

You're welcome

I simply used a mic that I had laying around, left over from another project. I got it from DX a while ago, but it's the same as the one shown below.

Audio pick up MINI CCTV Mic Microphone for CCTV Camera Audio Surveillance/CCTV Audio Cable/Audio Receiver for Security Cameras-in Microphones from Consumer Electronics on Aliexpress.com | Alibaba Group

The specs say the input voltage is 6V-12V, but the mic will operate sufficiently on the 5V output of the board.

The image above shows how I placed the mic inside the enclosure, connected to the board. The placement of the mic will obviously depend on the enclosure being used and how you can wire it up. If using a tiny enclosure like the Top-201 has, the mic may need to be appended to the exterior of the casing.

I made a small, discrete hole in the side of the enclosure to allow better pickup for the mic, but these mic's are extremely sensitive and can pick up very low volume noise, as such it can also pickup some unwanted audio noise. But for the purposes of capturing audio within range of the camera, these mics do a much better job than you will find that come pre-built with many cheap IP cameras.

I also made a connector using a standard 3 pin motherboard/breadboard type connector so it can be easily detached from the board if needed. The wires are shielded by some heat-shrink tubing and a couple dots of hot-glue keep it all in place.

Once the mic has been connected, be sure to enable audio from the camera configuration UI, as shown below. By default, it will likely not be enabled if the board did not come with a mic attached.

This is a great, inexpensive and simple mod for anybody with a similar IP camera module

 

[dui]

Thank you for your detailed reply, however I can't see the pictures you have attached.

 

[bls]

I'm a hardware, rather than a software, person however have several of these cameras working just great stand alone and with BI, but have a question as to how one updates the firmware exactely. I saw where this can be done via the TTL serial interface, but it appears it can also be done by logging into the camera using IE, selecting Device config / Advanced settings / Upgrade which to me seems a much easier and safe way. If so, after selecting Upgrade what is the file name that I should Browse for? I tried using "General_HZXM_IPC_HI3518E_50H10L_S38_V4.02.R12.20150116_ALL.bin", which didn't work of course. I'm guessing I need to extract the files inside the .bin first, and select one of them, but have no idea what one or what I actually need to do. Can someone with much more software expertice please give step-by-step instructions how to upgrade the fireware for those of us with much to learn yet.

 

[bls]

I've already confirmed the hardware version etc. and downloaded the most current firmware which was this "General_HZXM_IPC_HI3518E_50H10L_S38_V4.02.R12.201 50116_ALL.bin" file. Now what? Is this the file the browser interface Update page wants me to browse to? I tried that but it said the update failed.