Customer Reviews

D-Link DCS-6620 10/100TX PTZ Dual Codec 0.05 Lux Optical Zoom Internet Camera

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

There is an entire series of these cameras produced by Dlink, which can be grouped into one product line. This being the most expensive of the line, would have the least reviews and exposure. Read about the others before buying.

I was just called to a new client site last week that has 11 cameras installed.
Of the 11, half at any given time will drop off the network and/or lock up. He was continually calling his exiting tech guy who performed the install to reset them and eventually called me in because he wasn't getting in his own words "what he paid for".

I've used netstumlber and a few other apps to verify the wireless network health, which in my opinion is very good. At the farthest point, I am still receiving 92% signal with a non-enhanced Linksys router. Other devices on his network are problem free; the issues are isolated to the cameras.

Short of recommending the client box them and send them back for a refund, I've emailed DLink for any opinions or aftermarket "fixes". They are running the latest firmware. I've tried to pick a few up on E-Bay to at least test them in a controlled environment, but spending $400 per camera when there are obvious problems would not be something I would be willing to invest in. It would be something I would be interested in since if they do work as promised, I could recommend them to future clients.

My credentials, ex-NYPD officer and instructor, CCNP/CCDP CISSP, have a 10+ year networking business serving major Brokerage houses in Manhattan and have a smaller business auditing networks, recommending network security, and wireless solutions.

I will follow-up if Dlink provides an actual solution. AIM is my username above if anyone has jumped this hurdle.

FOLLOW-UP
10 days have passed and not a peep back from DLink Tech support. Considering that the inquiry was for a $6500 total DLink purchase which was detailed in the e-mail, it would lead someone to believe that selling is important, support is not. I called their sales line and someone immediately picked up. Sorry, Ford Motors in 1908 wouldn't have survived if their Model-T failed to start "most" of the time.

The cameras were boxed up and sent back. I was able to pull a few down and place them in a controlled environment for testing. Of the 3 I tested, 1 locked up within 24 hours. Not a good score. Still they also are trying to get into the infrastructure market with hubs, switches, and larger corporate items. I support over 40,000 users on my main account and their line is one I can't recommend.

Waiting for DLink. Not too confident they will get back to me.

I am 100% satisfied with this camera. This camera is worth every penny. I installed it to monitor my store and when I show the image quality to my friends who have surveillance systems in their stores/offices they are simply astonished!. The range of motion is extremely useful and you HAVE TO SEE the Zoom to belive it!. You can check the skin pores of the people if you want ;) (I'm not kidding here!); It's impressive, you can read the reports your employees are writing TOTALLY CLEAR. The 2 way Audio support is also amazing, I can pick up almost every speech of my 700 Square Feet Store, and when I'm traveling (and when i'm at my office too) I can use the camera like an IP Phone.
You Name It, the Camera excels it: Image Quality, Sound Quality, EXTREME ZOOM, Low Light Image Quality, Motion Detection (and maybe a dozen more useful functions I can't remember at this moment or haven't got the time to learn).. This camera has it all...

Update: April 2009.

Still working flawlessly almost Non-Stop for all this years, and to this date, I haven't seen something comparable (in image quality, integrated web-server, two-way audio) installed here in my country, for a technology product to be up to date for all this years, seems that D-Link really made a future-proof product!.

This camera is a great novelty item. The picture is good, the optical zoom is nicer than just digital zoom, but it can not be considered worthy for serious surveillence. The unit does not have enough horsepower to deliver stable video when there is a lot of movement in the picture. What you get is a video image that pauses for a second or two, or three, while the audio continues (showing that the communications link is not the problem.

There are bugs in the firmware which have not been addressed. One specific bug can be seen when moving the camera to a defined location. Once the new position is reached the camera does not take the zoom level into account so camera movements are either too small or too large for the defined zoom level.

The steps between the zoom levels are much too large. The motor noise that can be heard when zooming in or out shows that the stepper motors are moving quite a bit. The result is that the camera zooms in or out quite a bit, while having more granularity would be so much more useful.

In summation, this is a great novelty item. This is an affordable entry level comsumer grade PTZ camera. It's a lot of money to pay for a buggy product that does not seem to have much support from the manufacturer.

This camera seems pretty good from the specs, but buried in the description is that you can view the images with Internet Explorer only! It turns out that it uses an ActiveX control for showing the video. Do these people think it's still 1998? There are people at my work using Macs and Linux machines, and there is no way for them to access the video feed. Haven't these people ever looked at YouTube? It's possible to have open standards that work across different platforms, and not rely on antiquated technologies like ActiveX.

You may want to think hard before you buy this or any other expensive Dlink product.

I purchased my dlink 6620 1.5 years ago. The camera has developed a CCD imaging problem that always places 'purple' diagonal lines at the top of the screen.

I wanted to try and have my $700.00 6620 fixed. I called Dlink and their tech support gave me an RMA procedure. I was then informed, later via EMAIL that my 6620 was out-of-warranty. I knew this and the Tech support people knew this! Yet they gave me an RMA number. I was ready to ship it back but decided to call Dlink again.

The RMA department told me that the technical department never checks if a product is in warranty. What a way to run a company. Dlink also said that they have no repair department, they just exchange (refurbished) cameras, if under warranty.

I then asked the RMA department if they would sell me a refurbished unit. They said NO. I then spoke with customer service. They said maybe I could buy a refurbished unit for up-to 75% of the original price. I was later informed, via EMAIL, that this was not allowed.

So the message is DO NOT buy Dlink cameras if you need them to work beyond the warranty period!

The RMA department Email is below:
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Hi Jim its out of warranty and we wont be able to service it. You could speak to as many Technicians but we still cant service your Product.


Thank You
J T
RMA
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I have a DLink DCS5300 that has worked well - no problems, easy to install, etc. I purchased the DCS6620 as an upgrade for the Zoom capability. The DCS6620 image worked well through the security software provided by DLink, but would not work through the web browser interface - not even on my local network. The snapshot image worked fine, but the live feed did not show up at all - just a black box. If you plan to use the security monitoring software, the camera gives a great image, the zoom is high quality and the camera should perform as advertised. If, however, you want to use a web browser to access the camera, be cautious - you might have issues. DLink technical support was able to access the camera and control it (tilt, pan, focus, etc.) from the web, but they were not able to get an image. They decided is was not a port issue, suggested it was a hardware issue with the camera and they recommended I return the camera and get a replacement. The replacement had the same issue. I don't know what is wrong, but I think it is probably something to do with the required ActiveX Component, the browser and the more complicated 2way communication involved with this camera. I was surprised at problems with this model. I remain satisfied with my DCS5300.

I have used 5300G for a few years now. The main problem is that the cameras periodically hang and the only way to fix the problem is to power cycle them. The motion detection is a bit hit and miss but once detected the e-mail notification etc. works well. I purchased the DCS6620G because of its optical zoom. The picture quality is exceptional and the zoom works well but is somewhat jerky. The network scan feature is really usful especially if you use a network repeater or have neighbors with a WiFi network. Avoiding conflicting channel settings is a great help. The main problem I have encountered is the camera hanging requiring a power cycle to reset the camera. A real annoyance if the camera is monitoring an unattended premises. I switched to using Panasonic cameras and these work reliably and to date I have not experienced a single hung camera. If you get a black screen then look at your port fowarding. The D-Link cameras all need THREE ports opening. If you fail to open the port used for video you will get a blank screen. I am surprised D-Link tech support did not spot this! But then again the D-Link Tech Support is lacking it so many areas one should not be surprised. I would never buy another D-Link camera!

I bought 3 of these and also bought about 14 of the 5300 model. These more expensive cameras with an optical zoom lens seemed to be good at first but they all eventually failed in the same way. The video has gone completely black on all three after about a year. The audio stil works and I suppose I could still use them as a 2-way comunication device, but that expensive color video with zoom is now useless. I tried running one again today just in case... but no luck. Same problem. Looking on the web I see that others have the same problem. This is the most expensive d-link product that I have bought and most disapointing. I was hoping that someone out there may know a way to fix them but I have not seen an answer on the web.

I have a DCS-6620G and DCS-5300G. They both developed minor problems shortly after the 1 year warranty ran out. The DCS-6620G ethernet port failed and the DCS-5300G pan capability failed. I called DLink tech support and they told me that they will not repair these products or exchange them after the warranty, and that there are no authorized service centers. I escalated through 3 levels of tech support and then to US customer support and was given the same story and no way to get them repaired. The customer service lady stated that this was their policy on all products. They expect you to discard your $800 camera and buy another one. I recommend you don't buy any DLink product costing more that $100 - $200 as they are not very reliable and are disposable once they fail.

I had three DCS-6620's and all three broke down within 1 to 2 years. I took them apart and they all have the same problem. The small plastic motor gear that runs the focus wears out and the teeth brake off. The gear is plastic and looks like it cost 5 cents. The camera has auto focus so depending on your lighting condition the focus may run several times per day. And it is just a matter of time before this gear breaks. One camera broke after 1 year as the autofocus ran more where I had it and the 2nd/3rd broke down around 2 years. Once it breaks you can throw your $400 camera away as the picture is just blurred without focus. I recommend not buying a Dlink DCS-6620 if you need the camera to last more than 1 to 2 years!