Tempted by Axis
I've bought some Axis cameras from eBay in the distant past just to try out. What I remember is that the software feels like it's 3 decades old, but the stream quality is amazing (for a given resolution). I have mostly Unifi Protect cameras, as well as several Annke right now. I'm tempted again by second-hand Axis cameras such as the AXIS P3367-VE with the hood.
Now, in general, because I live in FL where either sun or spiders make outdoor cameras a bad idea, I've stayed away from them. But these cameras have a shroud that covers the top half. Is this sufficient to help dome cameras go from a bad idea to a good idea?
I also notice they don't have built-in IR so would need to figure out an external means for illumination since it gets quite dark on my property at night.
Anyone have similar thoughts and issues with IR?
Comments
From our point of view as software developers, Axis are great. They have always been very good about supporting open standards and publishing technical information, making the task of integrating their cameras very easy. They make high-quality products that are reliable, and we very rarely encounter users having problems with them. Yes, they can be a bit on the expensive side, but the higher cost is often worth it.
The P3367-VE is a nice camera, though you may also like to look at the newer P3267-LVE, which offers higher resolution. Yes, they will need separate IR (or visible) lighting for night-vision, but this will allow you to achieve much better images at night compared with built-in IR illumination (due to the higher power of separate illumination, and the fact that it won't light up bugs/dust/rain close to the camera, which is a common source of false-positive detections at night). The shroud will certainly help with sun glare issues.
How does the average home owner do separate IR lighting?
There are plenty of decent inexpensive options on Amazon such as this one or this one. Mount it at a location/angle that will illuminate the scene that the camera is pointed at, but doesn't illuminate the space right in front of the camera itself. The only tricky thing would be running the power cable, but how difficult this will be depends on the install location, availability of nearby power, and your experience with these kinds of tasks. It may be worth hiring an electrician to run the cables for the camera(s) and illuminator(s) if you are not comfortable doing this yourself.
I've used the second of Ben's recommendation with an Axis camera - works great. My only complaint is that the small power supply the IR vendor supplies can burn out and may be under amped for the light itself.
The company sells extension power cables as well, which was necessary in my case and now that I type this is probably directly related to my opinion on the power supply.
I get much better range and no dome reflection casts. also this setup is in a temperate rain forest and the bugs are not all over the camera.
Axis started the IP camera revolution and owned it for a long time. But you can only make Plastic cameras that are 720p with no IR and then charge an arm and a leg for them for so long before people figure it out. Almost every other vendor makes better cameras with better specs for way less money. The last time I tried to do a job with Axis, they told me that my $30 thousand dollar camera order would take 5 months to fill. I laughed at the guy and have never called them back. I installed Hanwha instead. Why buy a junk used Axis camera from eBay when you can buy a brand new high resolution all metal camera with built in IR for around $130 US, from several vendors including Dahua and Hanwha?
Why buy a junk used Axis camera from eBay when you can buy a brand new high resolution all metal camera with built in IR for around $130 US, from several vendors including Dahua and Hanwha?
Because the lens seems superior and the video stream technology seems better? I guess that's what I'm wondering. I've owned just about every brand of camera, but never compared apples to apples. It just seems that a 1020p stream from an Axis camera looks better to my eye than a 4k stream from a Reolink. It's not the metal housing or IR integration responsible for that.
Anyway, sounds like you have good first-hand experience so I appreciate the opinion.