I think this is the right forum. If not, mods feel free to move it.
We are looking to buy some security cameras for our home. Here’s what we are thinking of so far.
8 cameras more or less. Some inside and some outside so preferably wifi.
Add to above a doorbell cam.
Some sort of cloud storage. What’s the sense of having the files saved on your home computer when they steal your computer?
Along with that an app where you can monitor the cams on your phone.
Not sure about a service. What does the $15 - $30 per month really get you?
Along with that, I’d prefer to buy my cameras straight up rather than pay 3X the price (or worse rent) from the alarm company.
Vivant seems to be the big name out there. Aside from the scam of someone stealing a Vivant sign and coming to your door (not falling for that), what should I know about them?
Anyone who can guide me in getting started for what I’m looking for? Any questions I should be asking?
For the doorbell, we have a regular doorbell already wired up. I was thinking of the low-end Ring Video Doorbell wired with the chime. Anyone have it and can give me feedback?
Do you want a monitored system or just something cloud based?
I went with the Honeywell instead of the Ring as i don’t trust Google more than I have to and i don’t have to pay monthly fees. Simplisafe is worth a look and I am considering the Lorex systems as a DIY option.
I went with Wyze cam. Their version 3 camera really has impressive color night vision. The do provide some limited cloud storage for no monthly fee. It’s intentionally crippled but still helpful. You can add a SD card which allows continuous recording which is great if the cam is in a hard to steal location. However finding the clip you want from the SD card is not that easy if you use the smartphone interface.
But they also have a pay for service. For $2/month/cam (cheaper with an annual plan), you can get decent cloud storage and alerts such as person, vehicle, or some other things such as delivery IIRC.
I used a combo of the free service and their annual plan, I’m also grandfathered into free person alert on any cam. I have some cams with SD in hard to get to locations and also hidden.
So for your $15-$30/month you can get service for 7-14 cams (cheaper with annual), with sound, motion and/or AI alerts (also smoke and CO detector) and cloud storage.
it depends on what you’re looking for.
Most camera makers these days offer some kind of cloud storage, usually for a fee. But you should also be easily able to find cameras that send images or video to e-mail, which gives you a free permanent record.
The popular home systems that typically get the most buzz (Arlo, Nest, Wyze) don’t seem to offer resolution better than 1080p (2.1 megapixel), which is suboptimal, especially if you want detail like license plates. 5 mp is the minimum I’d accept.
Might be worth checking out Amcrest and Reolink.
We have a conventional security system right now and I am considering switching to a cloud-based internet-connected system but have not made any decisions yet. Simplisafe is the one that got me thinking about it but also Ecobee looks interesting.
Cameras are fine but the point of a security system is to prevent intrusion, not to identify the one who stole your car/TV/jewelry after they get away. If they steal your computer then your security system failed. Cameras can be a deterrent but you really want perimeter control. Our entry doors are alarmed and we have glass-break detectors. It has a phone line connection so that if the perimeter is breached it notifies a call center, and if we don’t respond to a phone call from the call center, they call the police. If the phone line is disconnected from outside the alarm goes off. I have not done enough research to know if the newer options can do any of this. We pay about $30 a month for the call center monitoring.
Amazon owns Ring.
Google owns Nest.
My mistake. Also why I went with the Honeywell. Both Nest and Ring are subscription based after a trial period are they not?
The Skybell goes straight to my phone.
I don’t know the full details but I have a Nest camera and there is a subscription cost to transmit recordings directly to their cloud storage. Based on what storage costs, it’s overpriced. But if you need to look at a recording more than a few hours old that’s what you have to do.