stuck on a fence between IPC-HDW4231EM-ASE and IPC-HDW5231R-ZE

[1.21 jiggawatts!]

from doing some reading on the forum, the starlight IPC-HDW4231EM-ASE and IPC-HDW5231R-ZE are the best dahua turret cams for observing things at night as of now.

i'm leaning more towards IPC-HDW4231EM-ASE because it costs less and i only need the view a 2.8mm would provide. in terms of picture quality, especially at night, would the IPC-HDW4231EM-ASE and IPC-HDW5231R-ZE perform exactly the same, only exception is the zoom ability on IPC-HDW5231R-ZE?

i bought a couple of 8MP IPC-HDW4831EM-ASE thinking "wow! 4K!" but i guess it's not the quantity of megapixels that count.

 

[guykuo]

Get the IPC-HDW5231R-ZE. Its varifocal capability gives you better flexibility for getting view angles just right. A fixed 2.8 mm lens won't let you crop out extraneous surroundings. A little zoom in gives extra resolution for material of interest. Sure, it will seem nice to get a wider view, but you will later wish you had a tighter zoomed setup. Imagine the first time you actually need to identify someones face and the picture simply isn't tight enough for sufficient detail.

Don't assume you will always use a camera in its original location. The vast majority of my cameras have migrated from one location to another as new cameras arrived and coverage desires changed. A varifocal lens lets you redeploy to a new location and still dial in the perfect view angle. Those 2.8 mm lenses see a wide angle, but yield too little detail when it actually counts. I foolishly started with 2.8 mm lenses and I'm writing to keep you from making the same mistake. Most of my 2.8 mm bullets needing longer replacement lenses before ultimately being replaced with zoom capable units. Should have started with varifocals and zooms!

If cost difference between the two is THAT much a factor, you actually have no choice. In that case, you don't need advice but only reassurance that your only choice is ok.

If you have a choice and wish experienced advice, make a longer term, smart choice. Select the varifocal!

 

[aristobrat]

from doing some reading on the forum, the starlight IPC-HDW4231EM-ASE and IPC-HDW5231R-ZE are the best dahua turret cams for observing things at night as of now.

If you don't need a microphone or two 1080 feeds, there's a newer 2231 model Starlight turret that's varifocal.

Like @guykuo, I also started with a 2.8mm fixed lens camera, and it turned out to be a mistake. The wide view was great, but the detail of everything past 20 feet was meh. I eventually found a use for it, but it wasn't for what I had originally purchased it for.

If you haven't already, take about 15 minutes and play with the IPVM Camera Calculator V3. Enter your address for the location and it should pull up a Google map. You can add a camera to the Google map, change the brand, place the camera around the exterior of your house, and see what the image quality should look like. If you go with a 2.8mm fixed lens 4231, make sure the image quality of the test person is good enough more than 20 feet away from the camera.

 

[looney2ns]

Study the cliff notes in the Wiki at the top of the page.

 

[tigerwillow1]

Before I add a new camera I borrow an existing one to test the view for a few days. If a fixed focal length works out, I prefer that to save the money, have a smaller camera, and no focus issues. All of my fixed cameras are either 3.6 or 6mm. I can't imagine using a 2.8, even though they appear to be very popular.

 

[Nitedaze]

My lot is about 1/2 acre and although alI have the motorized focal length (2mp, starlight) on all cameras they all sit at 2.8. Although it is true I can't get licence plates from the street but it's beyond the 40' range. Just ordered a couple of 8mp 2.8's from Andy to compare. They are Starvis CCD's but not starlight .06/.3 vs .006/.05 min illumination. I think they use imx274LQC (didn't confirm) but that's getting off topic. If I'm able to zoom in enough to capture plates, vehicle badges etc. then it's best of both for my situation.

 

[looney2ns]

My lot is about 1/2 acre and although alI have the motorized focal length (2mp, starlight) on all cameras they all sit at 2.8. Although it is true I can't get licence plates from the street but it's beyond the 40' range. Just ordered a couple of 8mp 2.8's from Andy to compare. They are Starvis CCD's but not starlight .06/.3 vs .006/.05 min illumination. I think they use imx274LQC (didn't confirm) but that's getting off topic. If I'm able to zoom in enough to capture plates, vehicle badges etc. then it's best of both for my situation.

Please read and study this LPR