Way overpriced, why should I pay for BI subscription renewal?

CrazyAsYou

CrazyAsYou

Getting comfortable
Mar 28, 2018
270
283
England, Near Sheffield
So it’s coming up to that time of year again that my BI subscription is due for renewal and I’m simply not sure I can justify the extortionate price tag of £29.72.

I’m struggling to see what I’m paying for each year, the developer keeps releasing new versions that I have to spend time installing, there are near constant new features that I have come to grips with, I have to keep reading the release notes for all the things he keeps fixing and improving, if there are issues I have to email him and then read his response.

You’d think for £29.72 Ken would pop round my house every few days and do all this for me, maybe even make me a cuppa tea while he is here.

I think I’ll shop around and see if I can find CCTV software with a little more value for money, can anyone recommend anything?
 
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A quick net search turned up the following:

www.phenomsecurity.com

15 Best IP Camera Software Of [current_year] - Security Cam Viewer

We reveal the top 15 free / open source and paid video management software that for Windows pc /server or Linux or Mac that you can use with either a DVR or NVR
www.phenomsecurity.com www.phenomsecurity.com

20+ Best Free IP Camera Software [2025] – Movavi

In this article, you’ll find the best free security camera software. Watch your security camera footage using IP camera software for free.
www.movavi.com www.movavi.com

fixthephoto.com

11 Best IP Camera Software in 2025

If you’ve decided to protect your important objects and set IP camera to watch after them, you’ll need a good IP camera software to install. In this article you’ll read about the most popular surveillance programs, learn their pros, cons and distinctive features.
fixthephoto.com fixthephoto.com

www.thesmbguide.com

Business Security Camera Software - Top Surveillance Options

Learn more about security camera software for small businesses. Includes pricing and frequently asked questions about security software.
www.thesmbguide.com www.thesmbguide.com

BI is used by many with a great support base here on this site. Plus many stay with one version (no upgrades) for years. Or until a major upgrade fits their needs.

A second option is to use a dedicated NVR and its built in software. NRV (16 camera POE) prices range from $350 to $750 USD plus another $225 USD for a 6 TB hard drive. i.e. Dahua

Many NVR's are setup for two drives. Thus add another $225 for the second drive if more storage is needed. A 10 TB comes in at $280 USD each.

Good luck on finding a solution that fits your needs.
 
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wittaj said:
If people open the link, they will see he is kidding (at least that is how I took it LOL). A little Brit humor.
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I’m absolutely kidding, sorry if some of you don’t get the British sarcasm type humour. For the record I think BI is amazing, I’ve been using it for years personally and also install/support it for four other friends/family – I’m grateful for all the work Ken puts in and also the low price, I’d happily pay triple the price and still think it was great value.
 
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Having grandparents from GB I saw the sarcastic humor right off the bat.
 
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wittaj said:
Is it April Fool's already lol.

You won't find a better deal than Blue Iris.
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HAHA .. that was the exact same thing which just ran through my mind, word for word. I mean the entire rant is written as though it's meant to be tongue in cheek. I thought surely, you jest. :smoking:


EDIT: haha .. ok, I just finished reading to the spoiler. Phew .. thought we had a live one there for a second.
 
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Very good post :) nothing like a bit of sarcastic humour :lmao: and I agree mostly except for the support/email part. Interestingly I was getting a bit sick of minor bugs in Blue Iris so ran Milestone alongside it for a few days, just to see how it compared again. In general use Milestone is very solid, I like some aspects, low CPU usage for one, but, for quick glances at recent events it doesn't touch Blue Iris, also the iPhone App is poor, stable and easy to use but just poorly featured. The Blue Iris iPhone App is very easy to use and so quick to look at recent events, motion etc.

Blue Iris is great value, even so it still hurt when I renewed this year, mainly due to the average support but primarily the attitude of staff responding to emails. Bitter sweet one for me especially when I recommended and setup systems for others.

Hopefully Blue Iris will continue to improve in all aspects, I have been using it for probably 3 years or more now and it has worked well.
 
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@CamCrazy, how many cameras on your BI system?

Most vendors of like software charge a base price for their software, then an additional per camera licensing charge to start. Annual renewal is a per camera charge for entitlement to only nvr software upgrades. HOWEVER, any support is available ONLY through authorized resellers, which incurs its own charge.

Rest assured, the hurt you currently perceive pales compared to any comparable solutions available.
 
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SpacemanSpiff said:
@CamCrazy, how many cameras on your BI system?

Most vendors of like software charge a base price for their software, then an additional per camera licensing charge to start. Annual renewal is a per camera charge for entitlement to only nvr software upgrades. HOWEVER, any support is available ONLY through authorized resellers, which incurs its own charge.

Rest assured, the hurt you currently perceive pales compared to any comparable solutions available.
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I've got 12 cameras at the moment, and yes, I know, Milestone equivalent would be massively more expensive. But with that being said, I would pay good money for a solid system between Blue Iris and Milestone. I am not keen on subscriptions, got enough already and pretty sure Milestone for 12 cameras would be circa £700-1200 depending on variant, but if that was a once only payment for the camera licenses, I would potentially pay it for my ideal system. Happy to pay a sensible amount annually for updates and support. Fully aware Blue Iris is a giveaway price almost and it has so far worked well for myself and others.
 
CamCrazy said:
I've got 12 cameras at the moment, and yes, I know, Milestone equivalent would be massively more expensive. But with that being said, I would pay good money for a solid system between Blue Iris and Milestone. I am not keen on subscriptions, got enough already and pretty sure Milestone for 12 cameras would be circa £700-1200 depending on variant, but if that was a once only payment for the camera licenses, I would potentially pay it for my ideal system. Happy to pay a sensible amount annually for updates and support. Fully aware Blue Iris is a giveaway price almost and it has so far worked well for myself and others.
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You are very confused. Blue iris is not subscription based. Your license is good in perpetuity. You dont expect free updates for life do you? If you do, there is one vms that provides updates for life but its not free, nothing is - its front loaded into the per camera license fee. Nxwitness sold in north america by digital watchdog as ipvms. While they used to be cheap at around 70 bux a camera, the license is now about 120 per cam. If 30 bux for blue iris updates is too much for you, I dont see how you are willing to pay 1200...fyi, if you use blue iris with substreams for matrix view and motion processing, it will use the same cpu as milestone - that is how milestone has the low cpu.
 
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