Swann Day/Night CCD Cameras x 4

· 4 Swann day/night indoor/outdoor 1/4” Sharp SuperHAD sensor CCD cameras

· 30 infra-red LEDs for powerful night vision up to 66ft (20m)

· Sturdy weather resistant casing for use outdoors or indoors

· 50ft (15m) BNC white cables x 4
#1- 1/4" Sharp CCD to me is junk, the Sony CCD is far better, and a minimum of a 1/3" CCD for better light processing. #2- 20m for the IR is basic halved to 10m, if you read some of the post on this will explain why. #3- weather resistant, no IP rating, this just means that if rained on will not effect the outside of the camera, if it is a downpour, it will leak and short out.

#1 it's fake day/night
#2 1/4" CCD has less surface area to gather light on
#3 Sharp doesn't make the SuperHAD?
#4 IR on the camera scream junk potential
#5 lack of specs! No TV lines, no effective pixels no nada, huge red flag
#6 Not even a focal length specified (6mm cause i have pulled enough)
#7 Fixed focal length, this combined with no focal length discribed all but assures a poor outcome.
#8 It's not so bad for $40 but for $150 you can do much better
#9 No light sensitivity numbers even though they would be BS anyway.
#10 I'll question the sturdiness of it's mount, really just so I can have 10 things though.

They only gave me 4 specs! Usually I question the validitiy of the specs but in this case they just didn't provide any.

Thanks for the reply, not that I didn't believe you guys, but an answer stating "why something is no good" or "why something else is better" is much more useful and credible than just trashing it because it comes from a warehouse and has an aggressive price.

Thanks

Phil

They are typically NOT day/night cameras. They are sold as such in many cases buyt they are typically just Color cameras with Infrared. The same goes for any brand, not just Swann or Q-See. TRUE Day Night cameras have an automatic removable IR Cut Filter.

Also, Sharp Chips give awful images among other issues.

And SuperHAD is a Sony Trademark, typically only found in Sony Chips.

Without complete specs I wouldnt touch it.



Hardly. When dealing with any brand cut that back by at least 1/4 and also that rating would then only be for Indoors (its typical marketing hype), outdoors you can then cut that back even more, and if its a wide area like a yard, with no reflective objects within that distance, then its not going to do a whole lot and thats when you will have that crappy grainy image at night.


So is my $5 watch. :)


These are typically RCA width cables that can easily pick up interference, they are not for professional installs, or even for high res cameras. Its a gamble so professionals wont use that for their clients as it costs money to go back and do it again.

Otherwise, its just a DIY kit, you get what you pay for, they try to keep it simple and cheap, which is what their market is.

I'm somewhat of a newbie to this forum. I signed up in March, and it seems the activity has picked up a bit since then. I hope the trend continues.

I started out with a Costco Q-see package for my house a couple years ago. I can't speak for Swann, but from what I've read on specs, reviews, and info from sites like this I doubt there's much difference among any of the bargain-basement import brands.

It's really "cool" to be able to watch what's going on around the house. I know who's outside while I'm surfing the web. I can see who let their dog poop in my yard and didn't clean it up, and I know which neighbor drops trash on the sidewalk as they walk from their car to their house. I've even recorded some taggers and also a felony committed in front of my house, though not enough evidence (license plate) to do any good for the cops.

Honestly, the quality is very poor. The DVR doesn't do all it's supposed to do. The motion sensing is a complete joke at night. The manuals are just terrible attempts at translation. The hard drive gives an error every now and then. Upgrading the firmware can kill the DVR. Customer service is non-existent. The cameras started out crappy and then got worse. I had one mounted where the body (not the lens or sensor) was exposed to the sun, and its image slowly went bad within a year.

What's nice is that these systems are modular. You can replace any component depending on need and budget and see instant benefits. I've upgraded 2 cams to a PTZ dome and a much better D/N cam. Right now I am on the hunt for a better DVR. I'll end up spending a lot more than I set out to spend, but the price/performance quotient in this industry is what it is and, like most, I've had to adjust my expectations to reality. Eventually I'll have replaced the whole system, but at the same time I don't think it was a waste of money. I got my feet wet without breaking the bank and I got a lot, though not all, of the benefits that I was looking for.

Interesting post.
I hope it gets better and thanks to Professionals comments and advice giving us valuable information.
I also recommend to check out the Amazon's user comment. I believe those are amateurs and DIYers, which in general commented Q-See product in many different ways. Some comments also give us some examples of application and their usage experience.