Small budget

[cibrd0wn]

I'm looking to get started with a system $600 or less. Need 5 cameras at least to start. I would like to future proof as much as I can and get a 4k NVR with at least 8 ports POE. What would be recommended? The starlight cameras blow my budget but I understand they are the best.

I was looking at the deal on Amazon as I believe it is a Dahua rebrand.

Amazon.com : Revo America Ultra 8CH 4K H.265 NVR, 2 TB Surveillance Grade HDD, Remote Access, with 6x 1080p Indoor/Outodor IR Bullet Cameras : Camera & Photo

 

[looney2ns]

Buy the Dahua starlight turrets, put an SD card in each. Dahua Starlight Varifocal Turret (IPC-HDW5231R-Z)
Buy a POE switch.
You are now in business, and can watch the recorded video from the SD cards via laptop or desktop.
Then build up your system as funds allow.

Buy once, cry once.

 

[mat200]

I'm looking to get started with a system $600 or less. Need 5 cameras at least to start. I would like to future proof as much as I can and get a 4k NVR with at least 8 ports POE. What would be recommended? The starlight cameras blow my budget but I understand they are the best.

I was looking at the deal on Amazon as I believe it is a Dahua rebrand.

Amazon.com : Revo America Ultra 8CH 4K H.265 NVR, 2 TB Surveillance Grade HDD, Remote Access, with 6x 1080p Indoor/Outodor IR Bullet Cameras : Camera & Photo

Hi cibred0wn -

hmmm .. Those do not look like Dahua cameras to me - the shell looks different. Also, I would avoid kits which have lower resolution cameras as they have very short ID distances due to wide FOV ( angle ) cameras.

If your budget is tight look at looney2ns suggestion - or if you can afford a little bit more take a look at the following, and plan to add a couple of those Dahua starlight models to this set to give you better night time views in the darker or more critical locations:
FYI - Some local Costco B&M have a Lorex / Dahua OEM 4K 6x camera kit and 8 port NVR for $800

ALSO IF you need to ID someone in your setup - you may need more cameras than you imagine - as often the actual ID distance surprises us as being significantly shorter than it is.

The above kit is a far better deal than the one you posted - the Revo cameras are 1080p - thus 2MP and while I was unable to find the FOV specs - if they have the same FOV ( 88 deg ) as the 4K cameras in the lorex kit above - the ID range would be 12.5 feet!! Meaning to get a good ID image - spec is 100ppf - the cameras would need to be placed within 12.5 feet of the subject / suspect. The 4K / 8MP lorex / dahua oem camera in the kit above has an ID range of 25 feet during the day. At night this decreases significantly, and thus you want to augment this with a couple of starlights.

Look for notes from @giomania - he's done a great job.
Dahua Starlight Varifocal Turret (IPC-HDW5231R-Z)

Also
Please feel free to check out the notes I made which are a summary of a lot of the reading I've been doing here,:
Looking for some advice and direction!

Lots to learn, and I am still learning.

Have fun setting up your system.

 

[pcdo78]

I'm new here and learning too. Fixed starlights would be $120 so x5 would be exactly your budget of $600. Get a used POE switch on ebay like this:

CISCO SF302-08P 8 Port 10/100 POE Managed Switch WORKING FREE SHIPPING | eBay

Maybe do as looney2ns says for now.

Then wait a month to save up for an NVR:

Dahua DHI-NVR2108HS-S2 NVR For IP Security Camera H.264+ 8CH 6MP 1U P2P (NO POE) | eBay

And throw in a cheap 2TB hard drive you may have sitting around. Maybe that would work?

 

[fenderman]

I'm looking to get started with a system $600 or less. Need 5 cameras at least to start. I would like to future proof as much as I can and get a 4k NVR with at least 8 ports POE. What would be recommended? The starlight cameras blow my budget but I understand they are the best.

I was looking at the deal on Amazon as I believe it is a Dahua rebrand.

Amazon.com : Revo America Ultra 8CH 4K H.265 NVR, 2 TB Surveillance Grade HDD, Remote Access, with 6x 1080p Indoor/Outodor IR Bullet Cameras : Camera & Photo

That is a crap kit...
Fakespot | Revo America Ultra 8ch 4k H 265 Nvr 2 Tb Surveillance Fake Review Analysis
look at the dahua starlights turret..if money is tight buy the fixed lens..can be had for 100...

 

[DavidDavid]

The hype around this particular camera is well deserved; if you want the highest return out of your investment in video surveillance, you want the best quality and performance you can afford.. therefore when these dont fit your budget, you need to expand your budget or save your money

This line right here is what tipped me over the edge to build my system slowly with good cameras as i could afford them. Bought parts over a 3 or 4 month period. Very glad I did.