buy HIKVISION NVR and cam from china ALIEXPRESS

[tim36 0]

Hello,

 

Anyone here have bought HIKVSION cam or NVR from

China Security Monitoring Wholesaler on ALIEXPRESS. The name of the contact there is Melinda. They are legit ? and how it work for support / warranty ?

 

She quoted me:

 

DS-7608NI-SE/P 255 $ US (same as lorex)

DS-2CD2032-I 138$ US

 

so for a HIKVISION KIT like lorex it will be 807 $ US + shipping.

 

Advantage of this: you get the cams with 3MP, you can choose the lens (4mm, 6mm and 12 mm) and it will work with the NVR (you will got all the settings)

 

She also suggested me to buy DS-2CD3232-I5 for outdoor. ( seem to not support POE) what you think of the camera ? (strange IR)

 

http://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/DS-2CD3232-I5-Hikvision-camera-HD-IP-Camera-Network-IP-camera-w-IR-POE-IP66-3MP/904067_933654714.html

 

For NVR I will ask her others prices.

 

On ezcctv.com i can see that the

 

DS-7608NI-SE-P-8 (lorex) is 40 mpbs and can support 8ch 720P (real-time) 4 CH @ 1080P (real-time) and 2 CH 5MP (non real-time)

 

On other web site i can see that the

DS-7608NI-SP is rated at 8 ch @ 20 Mbps ( look like the swann model - dont know why it rated less that the 7608-SE-P - processor seem bigger)

DS-7708NI-SP is rated at 16 ch @ 20 Mbps (excl HD)dont know what that mean.

DS-7616NI-SP is rated at 16 ch @ 40 Mbps

DS-7732NI-SP is rated at 32 ch 80 Mpbs

 

What i dont understand with HIKVISION NVR is that all series (76 - 77 - 96) seem to share all the same bandwidth depending of the channel.

20 Mpbs for 8 ch, 40 Mbps for 16 channel and 80 Mbps for 32 channels. Even the lower end 7608NI-SE-P is rated at 40 Mbps, Does it make sense ?

 

Which NVR you suggest for 4-6 3mp cam.

 

Thanks.

[buellwinkle 0]

The problem with them that I see is they give you a false low price but charge ridiculous prices for shipping. $109 for shipping a tiny camera via DHL. Check out DSD, they charge more for the camera, but realistic shipping prices, but the combination of the two will be a lot less expensive. Also, what form of payment do they take?

 

Also, not 100% sure, but the NVR supports only 1080P resolution.

[tim36 0]

I was thinking that the shipping will 100-125 $ for 4 cam and 1 nvr.... i will check with DSD.

 

For NVR, them see to support 5mp recording on the spec sheet.

I dont know if it will better to use a computer to build a custom NVR with a software. Any know a mfg. who make I/O for input/output alarm board to fit in a computer and a NVR soft that will support it.

 

Maybe the cheapest way is the to keep the swann 4 cam 1080p kit, but you are limited to 2mp with NVR, you loose some extra config. They locked some settings from HIK stock firmware

[buellwinkle 0]

I see why they are sooo expensive on shipping, it's because they are in Hangzhou so they are shipping from mainland China which is crazy expensive. Most camera resellers are in Shenzhen which borders HK, they send it by courier to HK and the shipping is less expensive.

 

Did they quote you the lower price on shipping, because if you add up the prices, even for slow EMS shipping for 4 cams and an NVR was about $400.

[f13dfx 0]

Sorry......I'm drawing blanks right now. Who & where is DSD located? Website? Thanks

The problem with them that I see is they give you a false low price but charge ridiculous prices for shipping. $109 for shipping a tiny camera via DHL. Check out DSD, they charge more for the camera, but realistic shipping prices, but the combination of the two will be a lot less expensive. Also, what form of payment do they take?

 

Also, not 100% sure, but the NVR supports only 1080P resolution.

[buellwinkle 0]

dsd cctv dot com. They are in Shenzhen so shipping is cheaper. Maybe show Tina the price on Aliexpress and see if she will match it.

[tim36 0]

Buellwinkle,

 

I send her a email for more NVR price and for a shipping quote for 4 cam and a NVR. I hope I will hear of her tonight.

 

Do you know any online dealer for HIKVISION in north america ?

 

I called HIKVISION and they to me the sell to distributors like ADI and TRI-ED. You have to be a security compagny to buy from them.

 

I suppose the price will be higher this was. HIKVISION ----> ADI -------> LOCAL CCTV business ----> CUSTOMER.

[buellwinkle 0]

What happens is they OEM cheaper than they sell to Tri-Ed or ADI, but if you buy an OEM version, the support comes from someone else, not Hikvision, so yes, you will pay more for a Hikvision USA camera with USA factory warranty. How much I don't know since I don't have accounts with ADI but I should considering they spam the heck out of me.

[JF1980 0]

I bought 6 DS-2CD2132-I domes from Melinda via AliExpress, everything arrived as promised, and her communication was prompt and helpful.

 

The cameras arrived a couple of days ago, but I was on holiday so have only just had the chance to test them yesterday. All but one worked perfectly out of the box and I was very impressed with the PQ, SW and generally snappy response of the on board NVR SW. The one camera I have an issue with keeps saying 'parameter error' when I try and change the IP address, everything else seems to work (including video). I suspect I need to reflash the firmware so just emailed Melinda, as I can't find a copy on the HIKVision sight.

 

DSD were competitive for the bullet, but approx $50/unit more expensive for the Dome. They also had a couple of weeks lead time, so I went with Melinda in the end. You may want to contact her about the shipping, as it seems they have some flexibility for larger orders, she dropped mine significantly.

 

In terms of payment, I went through AliExpress, so was able to pay by credit card. If you go direct that's obviously not an option (Bank Transfer).

[JoeyJoey 0]

 

Advantage of this: you get the cams with 3MP, you can choose the lens (4mm, 6mm and 12 mm) and it will work with the NVR (you will got all the settings)

 

She also suggested me to buy DS-2CD3232-I5 for outdoor. ( seem to not support POE) what you think of the camera ? (strange IR)

 

http://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/DS-2CD3232-I5-Hikvision-camera-HD-IP-Camera-Network-IP-camera-w-IR-POE-IP66-3MP/904067_933654714.html

 

That does support POE, there is model that doesn't, as mentioned in there sale page, it has a 'D' near the end of the part number.

 

This dome camera looks good. No IR light bleed.

http://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/Free-shipping-Day-Night-Dome-Network-Camera-DS-2CD3332-I-support-POE-power-supply/420258_939540379.html

[DMESSER 0]

Hi all,

 

I too have recently purchased hikvision cameras from aliexpress/melinda and have to say i had a better buying experience than i get sometimes in my own country (UK), communication was excellent and she updated me every couple of days on the status of my order for two cameras ( 1 dome, 1 bullet ).

Links:

http://www.aliexpress.com/item/Hikvision-camera-DS-2CD2132-I-Network-IP-camera-3MP-Mini-dome-Camera-w-3D-DNR-DWDR/852257797.html

http://www.aliexpress.com/item/DS-2CD2032-I-Hikvision-camera-Network-IP-camera-w-IR-and-IP66-HD-IP-Camera-3MP/814476650.html

 

I received the two cameras in good time and they were packaged well. Tested them both, and they work great. Great 3MP image and really clear, good contrast, colour and white balance, 720p & 1080p, look fantastic, best cam on market for the price i think. Even better since i paid less via aliexpress. Only down side to buying from china for me is the documentation is in Chinese and onscreen day of the week is in chinese, easily solved though. English docs online and just simply turn day of week off so it only displays time and date.

 

Will in future have at least 5 of these cams in total and will buy a Koukaam Ipcorder NVR to record and playback etc.

 

Remember that you may have to pay import and other taxes upon delivery to your address. i only paid £18 VAT ($28) ( Value added Tax). And saved £150 overall compared to buying them from UK.

 

Hope this is helpful to someone, thanks.

 

P.s. I beleive that these cams are marketed as SWANN HD-820 in the USA.

[JoeyJoey 0]

Only down side to buying from china for me is the documentation is in Chinese and onscreen day of the week is in chinese, easily solved though. English docs online and just simply turn day of week off so it only displays time and date.

 

You can flash the newer firmware on to the cameras that gives it multi language support, including English.

 

A downside/risk is if something goes wrong, or if it doesn't work out of the box, do you ship it back to China/HK, Hikvision directly?

 

Remember that Aliexpress is not a store, it is a collection of stores, like ebay but with fixed prices. You bought yours from "China Security Monitoring Wholesaler".

 

Curious if anyone has one of the dome with separate lens/ir units, like this one:

http://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/DS-2CD3332-I-3MP-Hikvision-camera-w-POE-Network-IP-camera-Mini-dome-Camera-w-3D/904067_934098971.html

The DS-2CD3332-I isn't really on the Hikvision site, the DS-2CD2332-I is though.

 

I wonder how the DS-2CD3332-I operates and if the firmware is in English?

[MaxIcon 0]

Someone recently posted that they tried to flash their Chinese day-of-the-week camera with firmware from the European site and got a "language mismatch" error. Don't know any details, though.

 

I'm interested in their EXIR rectangular lensed IR technology. It seems like a good idea - focus the IR output into a rectangular shape that presumably matches the sensor, so you don't get either the spotlight effect so many cameras have, or wasted IR outside the image area.

 

Lenses always cut the available light compared to the naked LED, but often not by much. In theory, you'd need a different LED lens to match the camera lens, as the whole idea is to match the IR output with the field of view, but I don't know if they take it that far.

 

I'm looking forward to hearing more about these EXIR cams.

[mroek 0]

Someone recently posted that they tried to flash their Chinese day-of-the-week camera with firmware from the European site and got a "language mismatch" error. Don't know any details, though.

I also received my Hiks today, from the same Aliexpress supplier. Mine are brand new, manufactured in July, and they all have the new style waterproof pigtail. They were delivered with the leaflet in Chinese, but that's irrelevant for me

 

They also have the latest v5 firmware, but unfortunately the week/day display is in Chinese on mine also. It isn't very important, but it is a bit annoying, as everything else is English, like it should.

 

I'm unsure if I should try flashing the European firmware or not. The version number is exactly the same as the one that is installed on the cameras.

[rayt 0]

as great as the aliexpress price is, i'm not sure i would give up easy returns and 90 days to find if anything is wrong, routinely costco will extend the return period as a courtesy as long as it is within a warranty period.

[mroek 0]

as great as the aliexpress price is, i'm not sure i would give up easy returns and 90 days to find if anything is wrong, routinely costco will extend the return period as a courtesy as long as it is within a warranty period.

Well, since I am living in Norway, I don't have many alternatives, and certainly no Costco. Returning stuff to China is of course more or less a no-go, so I am just taking a roll of the dice. Simple as that.

[mroek 0]

Oh, and for the record, I tried applying the European firmware, but I got the "Language version mismatch" error also. Didn't corrupt anything, though.

[Dan G 0]

I too got my four cameras from Melinda at Aliexpress. Even with the cost of shipping, the overall cost was less than Costco. I got the real Hikvision cameras with the lenses I wanted. The total time from order to arrival was ten days.

 

The only downside is if they do not ship with the 5.0 software, the English or European updates won't work. This happened to me. I searched everywhere for the correct Chinese updates but never found them. I finally e-mailed Melinda and she obtained the Chinese 5.0 Raptor update from the factory and forwarded it to me. The update worked perfectly.

 

I cannot speak highly enough for her customer service.

[afschmitt 0]

For those looking for the Chinese version of the 5.0 firmware for the Raptor platform, I think I found it on the Korean Hikvision site but I'm not sure since I don't have any cameras on the Raptor platform. I really need the Chinese version of the 5.0 firmware for the TI365 platform. Anyone got it?

 

http://hikv.co.kr/home/sub_0401_view.aspx?sn=85

[mroek 0]

I too got my four cameras from Melinda at Aliexpress. Even with the cost of shipping, the overall cost was less than Costco. I got the real Hikvision cameras with the lenses I wanted. The total time from order to arrival was ten days.

 

The only downside is if they do not ship with the 5.0 software, the English or European updates won't work. This happened to me. I searched everywhere for the correct Chinese updates but never found them. I finally e-mailed Melinda and she obtained the Chinese 5.0 Raptor update from the factory and forwarded it to me. The update worked perfectly.

 

I cannot speak highly enough for her customer service.

I agree that her customer service is great.

 

My cameras did ship with the V5 firmware, but it is still not possible to flash them to the European version, like you seem to indicate.

In fact I have also asked her about that, and she said that it is impossible to "convert" these cameras to Europen (or US) versions.

[SectorSecurity 0]

Im thinking I may give these guys a try, seems most have had a good expience, and I just checked the same camera at ADI was almost 250$ more, wont give product names or prices.

 

May work well for customers looking to save that are willing to wait, but for my corporate customers I will continue to use ADI as I like to walk in drop the broken equipment on the counter and say call me when the new one is in.

 

And my account rep is good looking too

[SB_Jim 1]

Well, living in Norway does pose a challenge. It's too bad you don't have a connection in the US to purchase and ship to you. BTW, the return policy at Costco on these NVR / DVR / camera systems is ONE YEAR - not 90 days.

[rayt 0]

Well, living in Norway does pose a challenge. It's too bad you don't have a connection in the US to purchase and ship to you. BTW, the return policy at Costco on these NVR / DVR / camera systems is ONE YEAR - not 90 days.

 

hmm if the 90 day return does not apply to this, then you pretty much have a lifetime return, just that after too many of those, costco will blacklist and cancel your membership. I know certain costco items have a 90 day return, but everything else, you can return it anytime.

[zikronix 0]

the cctv cams dont fall under the 90day return policy.

[buellwinkle 0]

Well, living in Norway does pose a challenge. It's too bad you don't have a connection in the US to purchase and ship to you. BTW, the return policy at Costco on these NVR / DVR / camera systems is ONE YEAR - not 90 days.

 

Living in Norway should not hamper the happiness of Costco that many of us in the U.S. and Canada enjoy. There's a service the will provide you a U.S. address and then re-ship the products wherever you want them shipped - http://www.shipito.com/