# Security Camera Help?



## pumpkin11 (Oct 31, 2020)

i am a very "tech savvy" person when it comes to computers, but i dont know much about security systems or cameras,

i am looking at buying 3-4 cameras to put outside around my home, they must be wireless, and i want them to record to my phone or computer only when motion is detected,

any suggestions?


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## Mike Milam (Mar 3, 2017)

I have "Blink" brand. Wireless and with the app on my phone I can look in anytime I want. In order to view on my PC I had to download a third party utility. You can adjust them for how long to record when activated and the trigger distance.

I didn't choose this brand. It was a Christmas gift from my granddaughter.


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## pumpkin11 (Oct 31, 2020)

Mike Milam said:


> I have "Blink" brand. Wireless and with the app on my phone I can look in anytime I want. In order to view on my PC I had to download a third party utility. You can adjust them for how long to record when activated and the trigger distance.
> 
> I didn't choose this brand. It was a Christmas gift from my granddaughter.


can you just view them? or can you record?


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## Mike Milam (Mar 3, 2017)

pumpkin11 said:


> can you just view them? or can you record?


If someone breaks the sensor distance, it records. You can adjust the amount of time it records. You can also adjust the quality of the recording. The one thing I liked about this system is there is no monthly fee to anyone. They are powered by lithium batteries. Mine have been up for a year now and I haven't had to replace a battery.


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## Half-fast eddie (Sep 19, 2020)

I have a Ring at the front door. Works ok, with caveats. If you don’t have a power source it runs off a rechargeable battery. Battery seems to need recharging every 3 months ... awkward. Two ways to connect the data: wireless wifi or hard wired. It does 5g on hardwired, slower and weaker service on wifi.


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## huesmann (Aug 18, 2011)

Half-fast eddie said:


> I have a Ring at the front door. Works ok, with caveats. If you don’t have a power source it runs off a rechargeable battery. Battery seems to need recharging every 3 months ... awkward. Two ways to connect the data: wireless wifi or hard wired. It does 5g on hardwired, slower and weaker service on wifi.


 5G is generally connoted to be either 5th generation cellular, or 5GHz WiFi, neither of which are hardwired.


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## Half-fast eddie (Sep 19, 2020)

Ok hue ... did some checking and remembering. I could not get my Ring to connect go my 5g connection. It has a stronger signal, and of course faster speed, so that’s why i wanted to use it. Could not be done. Verified with Ring literature. It turns out that some of the newer models will use 5g, but the most popular models (lower cost) will not. I didn’t want to spend big bucks on the camera, i think i spent about $100 and that was enough.


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## huesmann (Aug 18, 2011)

5G Wifi is faster but has shorter range. 2.4G is the opposite, but has fewer issues with structural penetration than 5G.


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## J. V. (Jun 1, 2007)

Mike Milam said:


> I have "Blink" brand. Wireless and with the app on my phone I can look in anytime I want. In order to view on my PC I had to download a third party utility. You can adjust them for how long to record when activated and the trigger distance.
> I didn't choose this brand. It was a Christmas gift from my granddaughter.


I saw these on Costco.com. That was going to be my question. I want to view from PC and smart phone. I also want to record.
What is the third party app?
I did not know they were motion activated?


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## Half-fast eddie (Sep 19, 2020)

I can view my Ring from a iphone, tablet, or computer. And it is supposed to send an alert when the motion detector senses activity, but i have that part turned off. If you sign up for their service, they record the images.


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## Mike Milam (Mar 3, 2017)

J. V. said:


> I saw these on Costco.com. That was going to be my question. I want to view from PC and smart phone. I also want to record.
> What is the third party app?
> I did not know they were motion activated?


Third party app is "Bluestacks" I found it googling how to view Blink on my PC. 
Yes, they are motion activated. You wouldn't want them recording all the time.
The app on my phone notifies me when they activate.


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## taylorjm (Apr 11, 2013)

The biggest problem you will find is the motion detection. Most cameras will alert you for motion, but they can't distinguish between a tree moving, a cat moving, or a person. False alarms are the worst and you basically quit checking the cameras because it wastes so much time. Placement is critical. You need to point them only at what areas you want to see, like a front porch, and not include the front yard where trees will set it off. A few years ago I bought wifi cameras that had human detection. They aren't available anymore but they are the best I've ever had. They only send notifications if a person walks by and ignores anything else. I would search for wifi cameras with human or humanoid detection on Amazon and see what comes up.


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## Half-fast eddie (Sep 19, 2020)

On the Ring cameras, you have a very good tool built in that allows you to define the detection area. It’s one of the things they got right.


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## taylorjm (Apr 11, 2013)

Half-fast eddie said:


> On the Ring cameras, you have a very good tool built in that allows you to define the detection area. It’s one of the things they got right.


Actually I just installed a new ring camera at my parents to watch their side door. No matter what the motion settings, the neighbors cat sets it off all the time.


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## Half-fast eddie (Sep 19, 2020)

If the cat walks in the detection zone its going to record.


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## taylorjm (Apr 11, 2013)

Half-fast eddie said:


> If the cat walks in the detection zone its going to record.


That's why I commented to look for cameras that offer human detection. They are out there. They take the alert photos and send them over the internet to a server that analyzes it and determines if it's a human. If not, no detection, if it is, it notifies you.


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## tung256 (Nov 1, 2013)

is there a reason you want wireless? they are highly unreliable.
they are better than nothing but POE IP camera system using CAT5 cables is the way to go.


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## diyorpay (Sep 21, 2010)

We have a Eufy doorbell. It works very well. Impressive 'picture' and adjustable view, even at night. It is battery run, but if you mount near where old doorbell wires are, transformer will keep battery fully charged. This was after researching the popular brands that seem to have many issues. Eufy can be set to human detection or all motion. Events are stored on a hub that hard wires into your router. Hub also does a variety of doorbell chimes. Most IoT devices today work on 2.4 frequency only. Eufy montra is no cloud storage so everything is stored on your own equipment (the hub, your phone etc). Higher privacy, security. So we added a Eufy 2K Pan & Tilt wifi camera for indoors. It takes a card so we put in a 128 mb micro for storage. No cloud storage as well. Sends events to phone etc. Lastly added a Eufy electric wall socket switch which we turn a lamp on/off by schedule or with the app. All sold by Amazon too.

So this Eufy stuff is owned by Anker, a sizeable company that makes robotic vacuums better than the popular brands. Also speakers, scales and other products.

Because we research a lot before purchase explains why our other IoT products are Lux Kono wifi thermostat and Schlage Encode Smart wifi Deadbolt.


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## J. V. (Jun 1, 2007)

tung256 said:


> is there a reason you want wireless? they are highly unreliable.
> they are better than nothing but POE IP camera system using CAT5 cables is the way to go.


Yes. Much easier to install. Running cat5 or cat6 to each area I want to watch will be a bear of a job.
I have never looked at wireless until now. 
But I am still open to wired cameras as it looks like they are more compressive? Better?
BTW. Cat5 or Cat6?


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## tung256 (Nov 1, 2013)

J. V. said:


> Yes. Much easier to install. Running cat5 or cat6 to each area I want to watch will be a bear of a job.
> I have never looked at wireless until now.
> But I am still open to wired cameras as it looks like they are more compressive? Better?
> BTW. Cat5 or Cat6?


wireless are prone to interference. also, with many cams, it will slow your wifi networks. image quality will never be as good because it's a lot of bandwidth pumping out 4K resolution. gotta be extra sure your wifi network is robust everywhere you plan to install wifi cams.
i have no issues with cat5e for 4K cameras. i suppose if it's a hassle, might as well future proof with cat6 for 8K cameras available within 3 years for consumers.


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## Mike Milam (Mar 3, 2017)

Not pushing Blink wireless, but I have never had a problem with mine over the year they have been up. I had a dog sitter for three days a couple months ago and checked in on her from time to time and no problems. Oh, my cameras are all outside, lol.


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## J. V. (Jun 1, 2007)

Thanks @tung256


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## Nik333 (Mar 1, 2015)

I bought Samsung cameras about 5 years ago. I've been very happy with them. They were put up by knowledgeable people. First was retired law enforcement. He faced the cameras toward the doors and windows, or actually past them. Picture a square outside wall of house and the cameras were in each corner facing the doors and windows. Here, we can't face a neighbor's backyard, otherwise everything is possible.

The second time was by a professional installer. Btw, if you hire someone be careful of scams. This installer took special effort to cover the most likely area of entry by a burglar, which was the back. I have 10 cameras and he used 8. Two on each side of the house.The weak point was the wires or cables but only after a few years.. If the camera doesn't seem to work it is usually the wires. I opted not to have wireless. It was a truly filthy job for him to set the wires in place. Old house.

I'm not super computer savvy but I found it easy to set up on the computer & easy to use. I opted not to have motion detection because everything set it off. The recorder/receiver seems to hold an enormous amount of footage. I still have footage from 5 years ago.

Even having the cameras up but not on, yet,made a big difference. You can see people avert their heads as they ride by on their bikes. I wonder why?


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## Let it Snow (Feb 23, 2019)

Wireless cameras are OK but you need a power source or batteries. They also use WiFi bandwidth and can slow down your system. If you experience a slowdown, you can install a second, dedicate wireless router for the cameras. POE (power over ethernet) with Cat5 or Cat6 is a far superior camera system. POE means that the power comes from the NVR (network video recorder) thought the Ethernet wire, Cat5 or Cat6. No batteries, no other power source. Look at Lorex 4K POE camera systems. They are one of the easiest to setup, will record to a hard drive and include an app for phones, tablets and computers. No monthly fee.


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## DIYTucson (Sep 9, 2017)

i have a mix of Wyze (inside) and Reolink (outside). Both are wifi. The Reolink are battery with solar panel charging. The Wyze is plugged into phone charger brick. All work very well over 2.4 Wifi. The Reolink with the solar panels allow me to setup camera anywhere and relocate if needed, no wiring to consider. Also have a Ring for the from door. Prefer the Cameras over the Ring. All are viewable from my phone. All cameras have options for SD card file storage.


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## pumpkin11 (Oct 31, 2020)

DIYTucson said:


> The Reolink are battery with solar panel charging.


thanks,

that is what i am looking for, no wiring


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## huesmann (Aug 18, 2011)

Wyze does have outdoor cams now; I assume they run off some kind of rechargeable battery.


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## DIYTucson (Sep 9, 2017)

Of the two types of cameras I have, Wyze and Reolink, I'd buy more Reolink. My Wyze is inside, Reolink are outside. Ive had better relaibility with Reolink. Wyze has had several network uptime issues in the past. Wyze are cheap and they are branching into all types of products. Reolink is just cameras.


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## pumpkin11 (Oct 31, 2020)

DIYTucson said:


> Of the two types of cameras I have, Wyze and Reolink, I'd buy more Reolink. My Wyze is inside, Reolink are outside. Ive had better relaibility with Reolink. Wyze has had several network uptime issues in the past. Wyze are cheap and they are branching into all types of products. Reolink is just cameras.


so what kind of an app or program do you need on your phone?


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## DIYTucson (Sep 9, 2017)

Reolink has their own app for iPhone and I'm sure they have one for Android. They also have viewing programs for Apple and Windows desktops. I use the Iphone app and can see live video and short recorded clips with the app. If you install SD card in the cameras you can set the record length and playback the event. 
Wyze has the same features.


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## pumpkin11 (Oct 31, 2020)

ShakkaTing said:


> Here are my babies! Bought em like one week ago, still didn`t unpack and launch
> No time
> 
> View attachment 640844


Nice, I would like to hear your review of them after you install them


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## raylo32 (Nov 25, 2006)

I agree with Eddie most times but not on this. The Ring motion detect is a mess. It may work OK for some particular installation scenes but not all and certainly not mine. I have one that is dialed down to the minimum sensitivity and minimum zone on my stoop and set for "humans". It goes off constantly... neighbors kids on their driveway next door (outside of the defined zone), cars driving by during the day outside of the zone, other miscellaneous stuff. It gets so annoying I have to snooze it. I really just need to turn off the motion detect and just use it as a visual deterrence. I have other far better cams for the security stuff.



Half-fast eddie said:


> On the Ring cameras, you have a very good tool built in that allows you to define the detection area. It’s one of the things they got right.


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## Deja-vue (Mar 24, 2013)

I'm going to chip in, don't know if anyone cares.
Here it goes:
I have installed Security Cameras for some 25 years, and trust me please when I say:
*Costco Cameras are junk.*
[I am a Costco member and buy a lot there, but no more Cameras.]
*Wireless Cameras are junk.*
How many times would you like getting up on a Ladder to replace or re-charge those Batteries?
Besides, they can't possibly deliver the Bandwidth or Picture quality a good System requires.

If you rent a Home or Apartment, ok, go ahead and get the Costco Cams or any wireless Cams.
But if you own your own Home, don't save money on a solid 4K Cat6 NVR Camera System.
Why would you not want the very best for your own Home?

Here is a sample of one of my 8 year old 2K Cameras:




Which Cameras do I use for myself and my Customers?




__





Home


Find quality products, great customer service with U.S. based technical support from the best security systems store!




www.gwsecurityusa.com




Cheers,


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## Old Thomas (Nov 28, 2019)

We have Reslicam from Amazon. They take line voltage and include a two head floodlight. They use WiFi and have a micro SD card that records events if you are cheap like me and don’t want to pay for their cloud storage. We were away and I checked the live cams and noticed footprints in the snow. I reviewed events and someone in an orange Jeep drove in, knocked on both doors, peered in the window and then left. I reported it to the Sheriff’s department and my wife posted still shots on social media. Later the dog catcher contacted my wife. He said it was his assistant, they found a fog and wondered if it was ours. They were bombarded with calls, including from the cops. He very politely ask my wife to take down her media postings and promised to never make a call with a personal vehicle again.


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## pumpkin11 (Oct 31, 2020)

Deja-vue said:


> I'm going to chip in, don't know if anyone cares.
> Here it goes:
> I have installed Security Cameras for some 25 years, and trust me please when I say:
> *Costco Cameras are junk.*
> ...


Thanks for the info,

So are those the cameras you recommend? Do your wire them with cat5/6? Are they POE?


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## Deja-vue (Mar 24, 2013)

pumpkin11 said:


> Thanks for the info,
> 
> So are those the cameras you recommend? Do your wire them with cat5/6? Are they POE?


Yes, I am using GW security Cams now exclusively, they are all wired via Cat6 and hooked up to a POE Switch that comes with the System.
They have a wide Variety of Cameras, even License-plate Cameras that are very cool indeed.


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## kintehat (Nov 3, 2021)

I don't remember which cameras were installed at our place, we had them installed by the security company along with the alarm system. Having a security system in your apartment or house can deter a criminal from trying to break into your home. Of course, some burglars are brave or stupid enough, but that's what security is for. One time when we were on vacation, and my husband's mother was left watching the house and our pets, someone started banging on the house door. Mom knew it was burglars because they began to pick the lock. She immediately called security, and the guys from 'link removed' were there in three minutes and stopped the intruders.


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## Half-fast eddie (Sep 19, 2020)

raylo32 said:


> I agree with Eddie most times but not on this.


I am hurt. Crushed. 
But you’re not wrong. Results vary.


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