Smart outdoor security cameras in SA?

[Saba'a]

Did you order direct from their website? Did you use DHL I seem to remember you have shipping issues.

Yes direct from reolink.

Shipping was due to one being sent via Singapore Post. I suspect due to costs since they paid.

Just ensure its via DHL and at least 2. My replacements, 2 x 810s, were ordered 23 May and left Dubai this morning.
Picked up 25 May and on its way here.

Delivery by Monday but might be delivered tomorrow as customs already paid?

 

[Saba'a]

I ordered 5 of the 420s now and forgot to add a shipping instruction to use DHL.....too much red wine. I submitted a support ticket now to update my order. How responsive are they?

No they'll send 5 cameras via DHL.

Otherwise just write to [email protected] and confirm shipping.

They fairly responsive. Longest response time for me was 24 hours. Usually respond within a few hours.

Personally happy with their customer service. Refunded me for missing 810 camera and sent 2 810 cameras I ordered via DHL.

Pre-covid my first single camera, a Argus 2 with solar panel, was sent via DHL.

Battery is efficient. This morning on 98%.

 

[jdido87]

Yes direct from reolink.

Shipping was due to one being sent via Singapore Post. I suspect due to costs since they paid.

Just ensure its via DHL and at least 2. My replacements, 2 x 810s, were ordered 23 May and left Dubai this morning.
Picked up 25 May and on its way here.

Delivery by Monday but might be delivered tomorrow as customs already paid?

What am I looking at roughly for Customs Duties for this order. I got a $17 discount through the Honey add-on in my browser so the total work out to R2800 or $193.

 

[jdido87]

No they'll send 5 cameras via DHL.

Otherwise just write to [email protected] and confirm shipping.

They fairly responsive. Longest response time for me was 24 hours. Usually respond within a few hours.

Personally happy with their customer service. Refunded me for missing 810 camera and sent 2 810 cameras I ordered via DHL.

Pre-covid my first single camera, a Argus 2 with solar panel, was sent via DHL.

Battery is efficient. This morning on 98%.

I did submit a support ticket last night. They confirmed it will be sent via DHL due to weight.

I need to find a POE Switch now and run the cable so long. Is it best to just buy long flyleads or make up my own cables. I have never done it before.

 

[Saba'a]

What am I looking at roughly for Customs Duties for this order. I got a $17 discount through the Honey add-on in my browser so the total work out to R2800 or $193.

It seems very inconsistent. I paid R360 for the 2 x 810 cameras.

I'd say budget R150 per camera. Seems average.

 

[Saba'a]

I did submit a support ticket last night. They confirmed it will be sent via DHL due to weight.

I need to find a POE Switch now and run the cable so long. Is it best to just buy long flyleads or make up my own cables. I have never done it before.

Personally I'd just buy off shelf OR ask a place to make leads to your size. I usually nowadays keep a few standard size cables.

Try to keep distance for network cable at max 30m. Also ensure you buy the correct poe standard. Not a passive poe switch (from hdcabling). I made that mistake. Still have it at home.



For POE switches check with @Smokey mcpot.

He had/has 2 new ubiquiti poe switches:
Es-8-150w
Es-16-150w

But Scoop has cheap ones. https://scoop.co.za/catalogsearch/result/?q=scoop+poe+switch


I bought from TA an 8 poe port Tenda for R829.

Check this out on takealot: Tenda Switch 9-Port Ether 8-Port Poe

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I have new 5 port (4 poe port) Tenda switch and an older 8 port (4 port poe) which I used. But I'm in Gauteng.

 

[Neuk_]

Have you tried other ports? I'm assuming its a POE camera? Perhaps the port if fried and not the camera itself?

Yep, what I did was move the LAN cable for this specific IP camera to another port and checked for the lights but nothing and I tried another IP camera's LAN cable in the faulty IP cameras port and the lights came on. There are a few other checks I can try like testing for power at the camera, swapping camera's around, etc. I have a feeling that the camera itself is the issue but any ideas will be welcome.

 

[Milion]

Hey guys, in my neighbourhood we have been experiencing a few instances of petty theft recently. We have all added a few beams to our alarm systems and that seems to have worked, no issues since then. I am thinking of adding a few cameras for peace of mind. My alarm guy suggested Dahua cameras but after doing some research I am considering the Reolink 810A. Will probably get 4 of them to start. The picture quality seems to be good and it has person and vehicle detection. Should I get the Reolink NVR as well or look at getting a pc to record with Blue Iris. I'm not very tech savy but I can do some research and figure it out.

 

[powermzii]

Hey guys, in my neighbourhood we have been experiencing a few instances of petty theft recently. We have all added a few beams to our alarm systems and that seems to have worked, no issues since then. I am thinking of adding a few cameras for peace of mind. My alarm guy suggested Dahua cameras but after doing some research I am considering the Reolink 810A. Will probably get 4 of them to start. The picture quality seems to be good and it has person and vehicle detection. Should I get the Reolink NVR as well or look at getting a pc to record with Blue Iris. I'm not very tech savy but I can do some research and figure it out.

I have the 410s - have had them for about 6 months and absolutely no issues. Running Blue Iris on an old 4th gen i7 Dell PC. If you are to get Blue Iris try get one with a 6th or 7th gen Intel processor. Hoping to get 2 more 810s to add to my network for certain spots that need decent zoom capable cameras. Shout if there are any questions you might have and i can do my best to answer

 

[Milion]

I have the 410s - have had them for about 6 months and absolutely no issues. Running Blue Iris on an old 4th gen i7 Dell PC. If you are to get Blue Iris try get one with a 6th or 7th gen Intel processor. Hoping to get 2 more 810s to add to my network for certain spots that need decent zoom capable cameras. Shout if there are any questions you might have and i can do my best to answer

Thanks, will do some research regarding PCs and Blue Iris. Is there any advantage of going the pc route over the Reolink NVR.

 

[powermzii]

Thanks, will do some research regarding PCs and Blue Iris. Is there any advantage of going the pc route over the Reolink NVR.

Never used an NVR myself but i like the expand-ability and optionality of a PC. I also use it to run PLEX , Home Assistant and the Unifi Controller. It DOES mean a single point of failure though so there's that. Blue Iris also requires a (paid for) license but also means you can use different camera manufacturers - not sure if the Reolink NVRs allow you to do the same

 

[Saba'a]

Thanks, will do some research regarding PCs and Blue Iris. Is there any advantage of going the pc route over the Reolink NVR.

I considered buying the Reolink NVR a number of times and other NVRs but prefer the PC ability to upgrade.

With an NVR risk of being stuck with reolink and hardware limitations. My understanding is also that NVRs will block me streaming to Google Homes but could be wrong. Now with cameras linked to PC I can stream to any chromecast tv or google home hub.

But of course pros are ease of use and compatibility.

 

[jdido87]

Gents how long were your orders in processing?

 

[Saba'a]

Gents how long were your orders in processing?

Arrived today from placing order on 15 May 2021.

Shipped on 23 May and arrived 28 May 2021.

 

[Saba'a]

Tenda POE switch

For Sale/Trade Item 1: Tenda Switch 9 ports with 8 POE Age and condition: Bought mid May 2021 Do you include packaging: Yes Warranty: TA since new Reason for selling: Got opportunity to buy a Gigabit switch Price: R700 Negotiable: No Location: Pretoria East Shipping or collection: Shipping at...

r.tapatalk.com

Some POE switches for sale

 

[Neuk_]

Yep, what I did was move the LAN cable for this specific IP camera to another port and checked for the lights but nothing and I tried another IP camera's LAN cable in the faulty IP cameras port and the lights came on. There are a few other checks I can try like testing for power at the camera, swapping camera's around, etc. I have a feeling that the camera itself is the issue but any ideas will be welcome.

Yesterday I was up the ladder on the roof to check the CAT5E cable for the affected camera and the cable was fine, I rechecked the PoE ports with other camera's and all was fine, so I tried to manually reset the camera but nothing brought the camera back online and there were no visible signs of it being on I had resigned myself to putting in an insurance claim as a new camera would be around R2.5k when I checked the camera's this morning for an unrelated reason and I see the camera is now online and streaming to our NVR and HikVision apps. I have no idea how or why, if it was something I did or didn't do but it is working again.

 

[TipCy]

Just wanted to ask what backup power options people are using for their reolinks/POE cameras for when load shedding hits and how long your backup power lasts?

 

[Saba'a]

Just wanted to ask what backup power options people are using for their reolinks/POE cameras for when load shedding hits and how long your backup power lasts?

Have an inverter for whole house. Normal loadshedding uses about 20% of battery.

In addition, in case DB tripped (when loadshedding ends it happens about 20% of the time) I linked routers and modems plus key APs to small backup UPS's

Check this out on takealot: VIZIA WiFi UPS 38,000mWh 5/12/12V Mini DC Backup Battery Power

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South Africa's leading online store. Fast, reliable delivery to your door. Many ways to pay. Shop anything you can imagine: TVs, laptops, cellphones, kitchen appliances, toys, books, beauty & more. Shop the mobile app anytime, anywhere.

www.takealot.com

And

PSS DC-B300C 7800mA

2x PSS B300C 7800mAH DC UPS 12V

Item: 2x PSS B300C 7800mAH DC UPS Age: 1 year Price: R300 each not negotiable. Payment Method Accepted: Cash, EFT, GeoPayment Warranty: No Packaging: Not original Condition: Excellent Location: Cape Town, Northern Suburbs Reason: No longer using Shipping: At buyers risk and expense, add R100...

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that last the 10 odd minutes to switch on DB. In past before inverter they lasted the 2 hours of loadshedding.

 

[maumau]

In this thread theres been posted colour shots by reolink at night. If you getting black and white, no adequate external lighting?

Any case I switched from 2mp hikvisions to 5mp and soon 8mp reolinks. Guess about preferences and needs and budget

Ultimately the cameras are irrelevant for security purposes. My armed response, external beams, burglar bars and internal PIRs to cover bulk of inside at night are the core. Good external motion detection plus smart wifi lighting a critical element for me personally.

Cameras simply to verify alarm false or not to determine response required.

I've resisted outside beams because of false alarms. There are plenty of hadedas and cats in the area that set off neighbour's sirens and it drives me crazy.

Our house is 20 meters back from the road so I'd like to use POE cameras with human recognition as security instead of beams.

If that's a bad idea I'll research Takex and see if they have human recognition........ but then it's an issue with wiring and, and, and ..... PLUS they're off during loadshedding whereas POE cameras will continue working because the router's on a backup supply.

We already have a passive covering the driveway and it works well but I'm loathe to spend a fortune on passives and then not arm them for fear of false activations.

EDIT: perhaps 1 x POE camera and a couple of beams?

 

[Saba'a]

I've resisted outside beams because of false alarms. There are plenty of hadedas and cats in the area that set off neighbour's sirens and it drives me crazy.

Our house is 20 meters back from the road so I'd like to use POE cameras with human recognition as security instead of beams.

If that's a bad idea I'll research Takex and see if they have human recognition........ but then it's an issue with wiring and, and, and ..... PLUS they're off during loadshedding whereas POE cameras will continue working because the router's on a backup supply.

We already have a passive covering the driveway and it works well but I'm loathe to spend a fortune on passives and then not arm them for fear of false activations.

EDIT: perhaps 1 x POE camera and a couple of beams?

I have outside wireless external beams. Been running now 2 years already with no battery changes thus far.

I do experience false alarms but seldom. But cameras are there to check if a false alarm or not via recording.

You can set the sensitivity of the alarms and of course consider placement. There are different types of beams 180° or 90° to limit what area covered.