Any recommendations?

[Ben Bullen]

I'm sure there are actually loads of reccomendations on here already, but my situation is quite specific so any advice most welcome!

I've currently got an old SWANN cctv system in operation at my house, but it's a little rubbish now in all honesty. The resolution is really bad and, although it keeps a recording, I would like remote access on my phone to monitor the house whilst I'm away.

We're currently having an extension built so now it an excellent time to upgrade! But upgrade to what? I've got a synology rackstation which runs my home entertainment. Obviously it could be used as surveillance station too, but I'm not convinced it's the best way to go? Not to mention the fact that it only comes with a license for one camera so if I want 8 then that's a lot of licenses!

Would it be better to keep the two separate? If so, what system should I look at in order to give me access remotely?

I should also add, the biggest headache I've got with this is that, because we live in the middle of nowhere with terrible landline broadband, our broadband is provided by a 4G router and SIM from THREE. That means I'm not on a fixed IP - nor can I get one without spending a lot of money per month on a different SIM (which also wouldnt' give me unlimited data) So I'm stuck with THREE at the moment... Can it be done using DYNDNS instead?

In terms of camera resolution, 720p should be ok I think, although 1080p would be nicer!

Thanks in advance for any advice...

Ben

 

[Phil]

Hi Ben,

Lots of queries there, here are some comments to ponder for starters:
Synology boxes are good - their Surveillance Station application is a very serious effort at a CCTV solution.
Your box actually provides 2x free licences, but still I agree it always feels like a high price to add/manage more cameras.
I highlighted one of their recent Tutorial videos, if you're thinking of using Video Motion Detection then they do it as well as anyone / better than most:
https://forum.use-ip.co.uk/threads/synology-surveillance-station-setup-video.1282/

You have the advantage of already owning the Synology.
But will need to allow for HDD capacity for your CCTV.

If you are buying new (don't already have a Synology box) then it's hard to beat the value of an NVR from the likes of HikVision or Milesight. NVRs also tend to provide POE power for the cameras.

Free Apps are available from each manufacturer for either a Synology based solution (DScam) or an NVR.

2MP/1080p is setting the bar fairly low in 2017.
We play with up to 8MP/4K daily.
I've recently been capturing test footage with the Milesight mini-PTZ 2MP; that camera worked really well, it managed the light very well and delivered good video around the clock, but when you reviewed the recordings you could see that 2MP was now at the low end of the spectrum for IP CCTV and providing good evidence.

Turret cameras tend to be our GoTo for home solutions:
(now available in 3, 5 and 8MP variants)

When last I looked, Synology had not tested and made the 8MP available from the dropdown selection, but the 5MP was. You'll need to check at www.synology.com bottom of the page for compatibility.

For mobile routers, 4G, etc I always refer enquirers to experts in that area - 4G Router | 3G and 4G Router Solutions | M2M 3G & 4G Routers
(they can sort you out with a suitable data package for remote CCTV access, and a fixed IP address)

 

[Ben Bullen]

Thanks for the reply. Sorry for not replying sooner.

How much of a broadband connection could I get away with if I simply wanted to look occasionally at cameras rather than stream constantly? Would 1.5-2mb connection work? I'm just wondering if that's the best solution to go down rather than getting another 4G router and static IP SIM. If the cameras were, say, 4mp ish?

 

[Phil]

I have remote accessed customer's cameras / sites with uplinks as poor as 0.5Mbps.
The performance isn't great obviously, but it will work.
NB It is the uplink speed you need to be concerned with. The cameras / NVR are serving you from site via that uplink to the internet.

 

[Ben Bullen]

Thanks Phil. I think that might be the solution we'll try. I've just watched the video on turret cameras. I like them a lot! One question is can they be mounted vertically on a wall or do they need to be mounted via a wall mount bracket such as the DS-1272ZJ?
The other question is that when it comes to PoE, do I need to get the electrician to install Cat5e or Cat6 cable? Or doesn't it matter?

 

[Phil]

You can mount turret camera directly to a wall.
You do need to bear in mind that ideally you'd want some cavity/space to make your weatherproof connection to the camera's pigtail lead. If you're on a thin wall e.g. a wrinkly-tin warehouse structure, it's easy enough to drill a hole through and make the connection indoors. The same tends to apply to mounting them on soffit/fascia boards.
If you're fixing the camera to a solid wall, then it's normally best to use the corresponding junction box (shown in the Frequently Bought Together section on the camera's product page).
If you wish to 'look along the wall' that you are fixing the camera to, as often happens when you want to cover patio doors or similar, then we recommend you use a wall-mount arm and mount the camera pendant-style under the arm. This allows you much better adjustment of the view covered, simply because you are a little off the wall and can rotate the camera on the bracket to cover the doors/windows in the wall.

You can use cat5e or cat6 cable.
cat5e is sufficient.
cat6 has a higher bandwidth capability, but is slightly more expensive.
Although cat5e is sufficient, many people take the view that whilst they're getting the job done they might as well pay a little more and future-proof their installation.

 

[Ben Bullen]

Ok, I've got a bit more to learn it seems!
So if I were to (eventually) install 8 IP cameras, do I need a separate injector for each camera? Is there not an 8 port injector that covers the lot? Does a POE switch provide power injection instead?

 

[Phil]

At 4, 8, 16 cameras most people would use an NVR (Network Video Recorder).
Normally the NVR provides POE power to the cameras.
Just a single network cable between the NVR and the camera provides power AND makes the data connection.
e.g.
Hikvision DS-7604NI-K1-4P | 4 Channel Network Video Recorder ¦ use-IP Ltd
Hikvision DS-7608NI-I2-8P 8 Channel Network Video Recorder
Hikvision DS-7716NI-I4-16P 16 Channel Network Video Recorder ¦ use-IP Ltd
(other variants available too)

Some recent Explainer videos at our YouTube channel: