Check Lorex

Post #439,404 by scoenye 6/30/21 8:21:44 PM 6/30/21 8:21:44 PM Reply	Check Lorex Not sure if they do the doorbell thing these days but they do have "local" remote access. DynDNS goes through their servers. That said, while the cameras work fine, the software is something else. The last unit I worked with (model 316 IIRC) was borderline useless with all cameras connected in a busy environment. That was ~2015 so hopefully some improvements have been made.
Post #439,408 by crazy 7/1/21 9:01:55 AM 7/1/21 9:01:55 AM Reply	That's a serious assortment of hardware. https://www.lorextechnology.com/promotions?gclid=CjwKCAjwz_WGBhA1EiwAUAxIcfKBpq5dha7tiG3M2Nj9Ap03VkQ_lxg4t9Lx5cbcqLevMknjQNl0ExoCsUUQAvD_BwE Got any specific package that they have that you want to point me to. I can't even figure out the differences in the cameras. I want sound if I can have it. Maybe eight cameras on a 16-channel system so I can expand it if I want to later. Quality on the image of course, want the best I can have.
Post #439,414 by scoenye 7/1/21 8:23:36 PM 7/1/21 8:23:36 PM Reply	Know what you want it for The main distinction of the cameras is the connection: ethernet or coax. The networked cameras take power over ethernet and can be connected via a switch. The coax cameras need power injectors (power cable is molded to the signal cable) and a port each on the DVR Lorex's choice of PSUs used to be poor. (One is supplied per 4 cameras. They degraded within a couple of years and caused signal interference. Luckily, they used the same size power plugs as Linksys did for their SoHo switches - I had a truckload of those.) Decide on that and the rest of the equipment follows suit. IIRC, our unit had 1080p cameras. That was fine for our indoor application. In general, daylight cameras are no good after the lights go out. Even with LEDs in the bezel, it becomes near impossible to make out anything useful. Night vision cameras in turn have their issues in daylight. (Cameras without IR filters have a red cast, amplified light cameras blow out, ...) 4K video takes up 4x the space as 1080 so if you do get 4K cameras, get a correspondingly larger HDD. (16 motion activated 1080 cameras in a place that was active from 5AM to 10PM filled up 500GB in ~ 3 days.) The doorbell cameras have two-way communication but they come with an Alexa tie-in and I can't say if that is a requirement or not. https://www.lorextechnology.com/security-camera-systems/N-y3hmf0Z2o0h5aZ1k4k1skZ9ei7q9Z1wtg35h?Nrpp=50 This list narrows things down a bit based on the preferences you listed. (Network cameras as I think the system is more flexible and less bulky than the coax setup.) Most cameras can do 30fps - that also eats storage.
Post #439,422 by crazy 7/2/21 8:29:51 AM 7/2/21 8:29:51 AM Reply	Thanks for the education I'm waffling on local versus cloud-based storage. Can I have both without vendor lockin? If I'm 100% local then someone can steal my server that's got the storage. So I'd like the cloud backup. On the other hand I'd like it to be a generic cloud-based account type of thing rather than a security vendor specific application. On the other other hand is this an overthink? I'm not an IT guy anymore. Just get my vendor lock and and take my punishment and move on.
Post #439,426 by InThane 7/2/21 4:01:40 PM 7/2/21 4:01:40 PM Reply	Nextcloud I'm running a Nextcloud instance (which uses WEBDAV for uploads/downloads) on an old fanless PC next to me, attached to a 14tb drive I picked up at a steal. Because I'm too lazy to actually write a backup script and handle Amazon Deep Freeze or whatever the fuck it is, I have a subscription to Crashplan, which backs up everything to their cloud however often I'd like it to. Now, if you want to go simpler, just get a SMB share set up on a Linux box, then do the same thing with Crashplan backing up the targeted folder. Ceterum autem censeo pars Republican esse delendam.
Post #439,427 by scoenye 7/2/21 8:01:04 PM 7/2/21 8:01:04 PM Reply	I think these can go both ways i.e. if you're tired of the cloud, get a local controller and rehome the cameras. All you stand to lose is past footage. I'd be more worried about the cameras hanging out on the internet without knowing if anything can get to them. That's how the Mirai botnet came about. A local network video recorder is small and can be easily concealed (a secondary PoE switch can power+ connect the cameras so the only lead to the NVR is a single Cat5 cable.)
Post #439,416 by a6l6e6x 7/1/21 11:02:12 PM 7/1/21 11:02:12 PM Reply	NY Times Wirecutter section has a security camera article of interest. It is here: The Best Security Cameras for Your Home Alex "There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there has always been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that "my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge." -- Isaac Asimov
Post #439,417 by pwhysall 7/2/21 1:23:23 AM 7/2/21 1:23:23 AM Reply	I find the Wirecutter's recommendations to be generally reliable... ...for all sorts of things. Their recommendation for kitchen scissors was absolutely spot-on, for example.

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