Doug
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Registered: 8th Oct 03
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Morning guys,
I have a question relating to CCTV systems. A friend has a requirement to install some CCTV on a farm after a recent robbery.
Cost is an issue so I wanted to get some comments about the systems you install yourself. I know that Maplin sell a decent selection:
http://www.maplin.co.uk/cctv-and-security
But I am loathed to buy from them as I know I can get better for cheaper elsewhere.
I think the ideal system needs to have the following features:
3-4 Night Vision Cameras (Must be weather proof and last a while!) – Probably should be HD?
Easy to use control box with a decent amount of storage
Monitor to see the 4 cameras on screen – possibly look to hooking this up to a TV in the near future rather than a stand alone monitor.
The system ideally needs to be able to run off mains and also a backup power supply as the mains can be a bit iffy on the farm.
The criminal side of me thinks that WiFi cameras would be pointless as surely you can just use a jammer to interrupt the transmissions. Should we look at a cabled solution?
I await any response even if it’s just to recommend a certain system over another!
Cheers,
Doug
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John
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Registered: 30th Jun 03
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Costco have a 4 camera Swann kit just now with 1 pan tilt camera and the box for £400.
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Gary
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Registered: 22nd Nov 06
Location: West Yorkshire
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You get what you pay for with CCTV. I've installed some cheap camera and re-installed them a few month later because they wernt up to the job. Especially if you want IR cams
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AndyKent
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Registered: 3rd Sep 05
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If they're really worried about security get a specialist firm in rather then some cheap of the shelf kit.
Will get infinitely better results and someone on hand to sort it out if there's any problems
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John
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Registered: 30th Jun 03
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Not sure you'll get better results. It's just a couple of camera's and glorified video recorder.
How good the cameras and software are, mainly the software, is dependant on how much you spend.
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Rob_Quads
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Registered: 29th Mar 01
Location: southampton
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quote: Originally posted by AndyKent
If they're really worried about security get a specialist firm in rather then some cheap of the shelf kit.
Will get infinitely better results and someone on hand to sort it out if there's any problems
Getting a pro in will get you better results than a cheap kit BUT it will cost you a fortune more. Getting a pro in won't necessarily get you any better results than if you do a bit of research and get decent kit (still saving a chunk over the pro).
It all comes down to what you want to do i.e. identify a face @10m etc? Read a number a plate. These will decide what quality of camera you will need.
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Doug
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Registered: 8th Oct 03
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Thanks for the response guys!
I think that the cost will be a definite issue. I can image that a company will charge £1000 minimum to install a 4 camera setup. I can probably manage to install the same thing for £400-500 depending on the technology used.
Would something like this be a passable setup?
http://www.cctvdirect.co.uk/products/Silver-Enforcer-Vandal-Dome-4-Camera-Package.html
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Nismo
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Registered: 12th Sep 02
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From what he's wanting to spend, the maplin kits will do the job.
The criminals stealing from farms will not go to the hassle of jamming wireless signals.
All the farms that I have worked with in the past have had theft due to there own negligence, vehicles stolen because the keys are left in them etc...
You can get some APC UPS starting at £40 each, they should see 20mins of backup power per device.
If you were to get a professional in to quote, then I'm more than happy to send one of our sales guys out, but expect at a minimum 1 camera to come in at around £900+vat starting price, then add the software and hardware on top of that.
We did a farm a few weeks ago, 2 cameras, server, wireless kit & cabling £2970+VAT.
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John
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Registered: 30th Jun 03
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quote: Originally posted by John
Costco have a 4 camera Swann kit just now with 1 pan tilt camera and the box for £400.
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Rob_Quads
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Registered: 29th Mar 01
Location: southampton
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I doubt that Maplin kit will be able to capture a number plate. if it doesn't its pretty useless as security for a farm I would have thought.
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John
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Registered: 30th Jun 03
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Costco kit also streams to phone as well btw.
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Nismo
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Registered: 12th Sep 02
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Nah the marlins kit won't capture any plates, will need to go upto 3megapixel for that.
License plate cameras that we sell start at around £1500, need specific cut filters to block out headlights etc...
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noshua
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Registered: 19th Nov 08
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My Granddad has a wired CCTV kit from Maplins, that streams to the phone as well.
From what I saw when setting them up you won't be able to read the number plate from a car, even in the day.
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Doug
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Registered: 8th Oct 03
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I wonder if it is even worth the effort if you are not going to be able to record the number plates :-\
For arguments sake, which kit would you choose out of these two (John, I assume this is similar to the costco kit?)
http://www.maplin.co.uk/500gb-pro-security-system-with-smartphone-control-dome-cams-and-live-streaming-532738
http://www.maplin.co.uk/500gb-4-channel-securix-h.264-network-dvr--4x-ccd-cameras-and-iphone-app-477048
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John
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Registered: 30th Jun 03
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That's very similar, better because it has the 2 pan tilt cameras, i'd go for that one.
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John
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Registered: 30th Jun 03
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Ahh wait, 2 are for indoor use.
Costco ones are all outdoor.
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Hammer
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Registered: 11th Feb 04
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In my very limited experience thus far (we've started selling CCTV systems in the past 6 months) external cameras are pretty shite and prone to damage unless they're high end. We use Norbain but I don't know if they are distributors to the industry or not.
Depends what she is after I suppose. If it's a small farm and she has a set budget an off the shelf solution is probably best but we wary of false economies.
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