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Technical Details
Style: DVR only
- Advanced H.264 Video Compression
- CIF Real-Time Recording (30FPS per channel x 8 cameras = 240FPS Total) / D1 Recording Option (7.5FPS per channel x 8 cameras = 60FPS Total)
- Stream Live Video Directly to a remote PC, iPhone, iPad, Android, or other Supported Smartphone Running Windows Mobile Pro or Symbian on 3G Networks. Trigger Email Alerts on Motion Detection Events
- Backup important video from the DVR to a PC or Flash Drive
- Pre-Installed 500GB Hard Drive;DVR Supports up to 8 Security Cameras
Product Details
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Product Description
Style: DVR only
From the Manufacturer
   Gain peace of mind while you are away by remotely monitoring and managing your surveillance system 24/7 via the internet using a PC or a supported 3G smart phone. Plus you can receive instant email notifications when unusual activity is detected. |  500 GB SATA Hard Drive  CIF / D1 Recording Options  Remote Monitoring  Email Motion Alerts  Connect up to 8 Cameras | |
FeaturesDVR 8 Channel H.264 DVR with 500GB Hard Drive | ||
| 500 GM Hard Drive Size Record and store video footage from up to 8 cameras on the pre-installed 500GB SATA A/V hard drive. The amount of footage that you can save on the hard drive before needing to over-write footage will depend on the recording and resolution settings you select during setup. This system can support a hard drive upgrade of up to 1TB SATA hard drive. | Recording Resolution Select CIF or D1 recoding depending on your preference. CIF provides real-time recording and smooth video playback [30 frames per second per channel at a playback resolution of 352x240]. While D1 records at a slower frame per second, but allows a larger video image size, which can be useful for the recognition and identification of people and objects [7.5 frames per second per channel at a playback resolution of 704x480]. | Remote Monitoring Remotely monitor and manage your home or office 24/7 from anywhere around the world via the internet using a Windows PC or a supported 3G Smartphone, including iPhone/iPad, Android, Blackberry OS 5, and Windows Mobile Pro. Enjoy additional peace of mind by receiving instant email alerts with snapshot images when motion is detected, when the hard drive is full, or when and if video loss has occurred. |
| Connect up to 8 Cameras Connect up to 8 surveillance cameras using BNC video connections with the option for the cameras to be equipped with audio. | Three Viewing Modes Select from 3 different viewing modes:
| Rour Recording Modes Select from 4 different recording modes:
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| H.264 Compresson H.264 Compression minimizes file size in order to maximize the hard drive’s recording time, as well as transfer video for viewing over the internet. | ||
| Convenient Backup Backup video files from the surveillance system to a PC, Flash Drive or USB Hard Drive in order to free-up space for new video while retaining important footage. | ||
| Display Resolution When watching video live, the display resolution is 704x480. When playing back previously recorded video, the resolution will depend on the recording settings selected during setup. | ||
Connects to a Monitor
| Three Search Options Quickly find previously recorded video by searching in one of three ways:
| Additional Specifications
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| Navigation Menus The user-friendly interface, along with the accompanying mouse and remote control, make moving through the program menus a breeze. | Multi-Tasking Functionality The multi-tasking feature allows up to five functions to occur on the system at one time: record video, watch live video or playback video, while also monitoring and managing the system remotely, and also backing up files. | |
SpecificationsCompatibility Works with Windows and Most 3G Smart Phones | ||
| Operating Systems Compatible Operating Systems: Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7 (MAC OS not supported)  | Internet Browsers Compatible Internet Browsers: Internet Explorer (IE), Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox (with IE Plug-In)    | Mobile Phones Remote Monitoring on a Supported 3G Smart Phone - stay in touch on the go! Instantly view live video, one camera at a time on 3G networks. Supported Smart Phones: iPhone, iPad, Android, Blackberry OS 5, Running Windows Mobile Pro 6.0, 6.1, 6.5 Operating System, Running Symbian Operating System.       |
SpecificationsWhat's Included | ||
System
| Accessories
| Manuals & Software
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Additional InfoSupport Free Lifetime Tech Support from Q-See's Newly Renovated Support System | ||
| ||
Product Description
This 8 Channel DVR is apart of Q-See's superior line up of DVRs. This multi-functional DVR serves as an extra pair of eyes when you are away from your home or business. The QS408-5 uses the latest technology with H.264 video compression, providing excellent image quality while using minimum hard drive space. This DVR is great for connecting to a VGA, LCD, or a TV to get crisp, clear images. You can conveniently manage multiple cameras from anywhere in the world with remote internet monitoring. Have the peace of mind of knowing your product includes free lifetime technical support!
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
195 of 208 people found the following review helpful
Style Name:DVR only|Amazon Vine™ Review
(What's this?)
I bought my first q-see DVR (digital video recorder) about 3 years ago right here on amazon.com. It was known as a "PENTAPLEX" which meant you could do 5 things at the same time - record live video from multiple channels, backup the hard disk, view video remotely over the internet, view video locally on a TV set, and search through recordings to find out who took your recycle bin full of cans. Pentaplex and Triplex are names given as to how many activities the unit can do simultaneously.
That unit is still running after driving the neighborhood drug dealers out of their rent free abandoned home (and having them arrested numerous times - it povided key evidence of license plate numbers, video of drug deals going down, spousal abuse -- you name it the police department got it. For that matter the PD could log in over the internet to check up on who was there if they wanted to)
I live on a 2 block long road full of modern quiet 4500 sq ft homes, and across from me was a 60 year old 931 sq ft original house that had become the neighborhood drug hangout - a place to go smoke a bowl, ride your motorcycle through the front door of the house and out the back, to hook up with the homies, etc. It definitely did not fit in - the crime rate rose - the house adjacent to the drug house was robbed 5 times in 3 months. Both me and my next door neighbor installed MONITORED alarms and we formed our own neighborhood watch. His was a .357 and mine was a 9mm.
The Q-see was instrumental in getting rid of the trash. It provided numerous photographic enlargements of license plates, video evidence used in court to convict the individual squatting there, and more 30 second drive by drug deals than I could count, happening every 3-5 minutes right in front of my house.
I installed 8 cameras covering every angle possible, 2 PTZ (pan-tilt-zoom - like the casino's use) domes that I could controll remotely over the internet to see what is going on if I was not home, and motion detectors, microphones - all of this was OVERT meaning it was blatant that you were on camera if you came nearby - I had to put up a sign because legally I could not record voice without notifying the people (video is OK) due to wiretapping laws that are outdated, so I put my sign on the 60 year old tree in front of my house warning people they were under video and audio surveilance. In 3 months we had the dealers out, the rightful owners back, they had to demolish the house because it was so badly damaged, and then they built a brand new 4500 sq ft home in keeping with the neighborhood.
About Q-see
Q-see brings the $12,000 DVR that the casinos use to catch card cheats down to the price a homeowner can afford. I recommend any home first install a MONITORED alarm system and make it BLATANT that one is in place (big bell box outside in a conspicuous place) - this will rid yourself of 90% of the crime because criminals know where to look for these and when they find them, they walk on to your neighbor's house to rob instead. After an alarm comes video evidence of WHO did WHAT and WHEN with PROOF. Q-see gives you this.
What do all the numbers mean? What is H.264?
When dealing with video (which is inherently analog) and you go to digitize it, you would normally find yourself swamped in data, because video is 30 pictures per second, each 740x480, full color (or b&W at night with IR vision cameras). Imagine a 1.3 megapixel camera taking 30 pictures per second - your memory card would be full in a couple minutes at the most.
The broadcast industry faced the same problem when the FCC mandated that they "go digital" recently - there was not enough room on a channel to put raw high definition television. So they did what we do on our PCs when we have a bunch of files - they compressed them. This process is known as coding and decoding and is abbreviated CODEC for those of us who dont like to type alot. MANY codecs exist - divx, h.264, h.263, mjpeg, etc. H.264 however crams the best quality picture into the smallest amount of disk space. It's used by the satellite providers to give you more channels than they could without it. Best of all, it's free. No royalties to pay.
You're going to hear alot about frames per second. 1 video channel is 30 frames per second. That's for one camera. If you have 8 cameras, then it 8 times 30 or 240 frames per second that your 8 camera DVR must record (if you want smooth free flowing video like you are accustomed to on TV) - now you don't need free flowing video - you can cut from 30 to 15 frames per second and still get reasonably smooth video. The point is that any DVR has a limit as to how many FPS (Frames per Second) it can record. You get to decide which cameras get the best picture, and which ones only take 2 pictures per second (as an example) if you do not have 240 frames per second.
The second number to throw at you is resolution. VGA is 640x480 and is about VHS quality. HD is 1920x1080 and will blow your mind after being accustomed to VGA quality video (blu ray is done in HD as an example) In the world of surveilance video - the more pixels you choose to record, the less time you can record on a disk. So they invented QVGA - which stands for quarter vga - they divide a VGA screen into 1/4ths and you are left with 320x240. That's cell phone size video - and when you see it blown up onto a big screen tv set it looks pretty bad. Another standard is CIF which is 352x288 pixels - better than qvga, but not as good as VGA (about VHS or the old video standard).
What I like about this product is you can configure how much quality you assign from the product's ability to record to each camera. That way the cameras for areas where people are standing (front door for example) take 3 frames per second of CIF or VGA quality video. The cameras that cover high speeed motion - the street with cars zooming by or the sidewalk with bicycles, they can record at 30 frames per second for smooth video. Again - for 8 channels you need 240 frames per second to record all 8 channels at full framerate (30 FPS).
The good news!
The 408 from q-see supports 240 frames per second, so every camera can have full motion video. Cameras 1 and 2 are special though, as they are sampled at a higher resolution called D1 or 702x408 pixels (sure beats CIF) while cameras 3-8 are recorded at CIF resolution. I've been getting by on JUST CIF for 3 years, so this is a step up!
Can I Install it? Is it legal?
I am not an attorney, so this is not legal advice, but from what I found on the net, you can record video of your property without giving notice. However, this product can also record audio. To do that you must put up a sign in a conspicuous place that tells passers by that video and audio surveilance is in use - then you are compliant with all the laws.
Can you install it - probably if you can wire an 8 track player into your 1977 buick. Here's what you need to know.
1 - everything you will need is on amazon.
2 - I've reviewed most of it so read my reviews
3 - my email is in my profile so if you get stuck email me
4 - every camera needs 2 things - a video connection and 12 volts to run the camera. x 8 cameras and you will want a 12 volt power panel like the one I reveiwed here: Q-See QS1018 12 Volt 12 AMP Power Distribution Panel Connects 18 Cameras
5 - should you decide to record audio, you will need 1 - a microphone for each channel (8 of them) 2 - a mic to line level amplifier (about $20) 3 - some microphone cable. This gets into recording gear - the sennheiser C2 is a good deal since you get 2 mics in a set, 4 sets would get you 8 mics, and they are very sensitive - able to hear a whisper at 100 feet. But they need preamps. ART Tube MP Microphone Preamp Here's just one example - it will only handle one microphone, and costs more than the mic, so you might look around for 8 channel preamps beause the microphone needs 48V to run itself, and it gives you a very low level output on a XLR connector (3pin pro stuff) - and you need to amplify that .007 volt signal to about .700 volts (100x or 20dB for those who speak dB) to run the line level inputs of the 408. Of course you could opt to just have 2 microphones.
6 - what's this I hear about night vision - it it that expensive military stuff? No. How night vision works is when the sun goes down a sensor tells the camera to turn on a whole bunch of IR LEDs (infrared light emitting diodes) - these look to have a dull red glow to you, but 36 of them shining into your front yard is like a 1000W light turned on. Best part is the subject walking through can't tell - the infrared spectrum is beyond what us humans can see - so it still looks dark, except on your camera, where although its black and white, it is fully detailed with facial recognition possible.
7 - How about motion detection - can these replace those alarm motion sensors. The answer is: it depends. Inside, I'd say yes, but outside, I'd say no. The reason is that IR is not visable to HUMANS, but BUGS love the stuff, especially spiders who spin webs over your camera lenses where it's nice and bright at night. And that spider will trigger any motion detector - even if you kill off all the spiders, the number of flying insects that love IR light is amazing. Every night I capture about 50-80 bugs flying through a motion capture zone.
8 - what is a motion capture zone? Read more ›
That unit is still running after driving the neighborhood drug dealers out of their rent free abandoned home (and having them arrested numerous times - it povided key evidence of license plate numbers, video of drug deals going down, spousal abuse -- you name it the police department got it. For that matter the PD could log in over the internet to check up on who was there if they wanted to)
I live on a 2 block long road full of modern quiet 4500 sq ft homes, and across from me was a 60 year old 931 sq ft original house that had become the neighborhood drug hangout - a place to go smoke a bowl, ride your motorcycle through the front door of the house and out the back, to hook up with the homies, etc. It definitely did not fit in - the crime rate rose - the house adjacent to the drug house was robbed 5 times in 3 months. Both me and my next door neighbor installed MONITORED alarms and we formed our own neighborhood watch. His was a .357 and mine was a 9mm.
The Q-see was instrumental in getting rid of the trash. It provided numerous photographic enlargements of license plates, video evidence used in court to convict the individual squatting there, and more 30 second drive by drug deals than I could count, happening every 3-5 minutes right in front of my house.
I installed 8 cameras covering every angle possible, 2 PTZ (pan-tilt-zoom - like the casino's use) domes that I could controll remotely over the internet to see what is going on if I was not home, and motion detectors, microphones - all of this was OVERT meaning it was blatant that you were on camera if you came nearby - I had to put up a sign because legally I could not record voice without notifying the people (video is OK) due to wiretapping laws that are outdated, so I put my sign on the 60 year old tree in front of my house warning people they were under video and audio surveilance. In 3 months we had the dealers out, the rightful owners back, they had to demolish the house because it was so badly damaged, and then they built a brand new 4500 sq ft home in keeping with the neighborhood.
About Q-see
Q-see brings the $12,000 DVR that the casinos use to catch card cheats down to the price a homeowner can afford. I recommend any home first install a MONITORED alarm system and make it BLATANT that one is in place (big bell box outside in a conspicuous place) - this will rid yourself of 90% of the crime because criminals know where to look for these and when they find them, they walk on to your neighbor's house to rob instead. After an alarm comes video evidence of WHO did WHAT and WHEN with PROOF. Q-see gives you this.
What do all the numbers mean? What is H.264?
When dealing with video (which is inherently analog) and you go to digitize it, you would normally find yourself swamped in data, because video is 30 pictures per second, each 740x480, full color (or b&W at night with IR vision cameras). Imagine a 1.3 megapixel camera taking 30 pictures per second - your memory card would be full in a couple minutes at the most.
The broadcast industry faced the same problem when the FCC mandated that they "go digital" recently - there was not enough room on a channel to put raw high definition television. So they did what we do on our PCs when we have a bunch of files - they compressed them. This process is known as coding and decoding and is abbreviated CODEC for those of us who dont like to type alot. MANY codecs exist - divx, h.264, h.263, mjpeg, etc. H.264 however crams the best quality picture into the smallest amount of disk space. It's used by the satellite providers to give you more channels than they could without it. Best of all, it's free. No royalties to pay.
You're going to hear alot about frames per second. 1 video channel is 30 frames per second. That's for one camera. If you have 8 cameras, then it 8 times 30 or 240 frames per second that your 8 camera DVR must record (if you want smooth free flowing video like you are accustomed to on TV) - now you don't need free flowing video - you can cut from 30 to 15 frames per second and still get reasonably smooth video. The point is that any DVR has a limit as to how many FPS (Frames per Second) it can record. You get to decide which cameras get the best picture, and which ones only take 2 pictures per second (as an example) if you do not have 240 frames per second.
The second number to throw at you is resolution. VGA is 640x480 and is about VHS quality. HD is 1920x1080 and will blow your mind after being accustomed to VGA quality video (blu ray is done in HD as an example) In the world of surveilance video - the more pixels you choose to record, the less time you can record on a disk. So they invented QVGA - which stands for quarter vga - they divide a VGA screen into 1/4ths and you are left with 320x240. That's cell phone size video - and when you see it blown up onto a big screen tv set it looks pretty bad. Another standard is CIF which is 352x288 pixels - better than qvga, but not as good as VGA (about VHS or the old video standard).
What I like about this product is you can configure how much quality you assign from the product's ability to record to each camera. That way the cameras for areas where people are standing (front door for example) take 3 frames per second of CIF or VGA quality video. The cameras that cover high speeed motion - the street with cars zooming by or the sidewalk with bicycles, they can record at 30 frames per second for smooth video. Again - for 8 channels you need 240 frames per second to record all 8 channels at full framerate (30 FPS).
The good news!
The 408 from q-see supports 240 frames per second, so every camera can have full motion video. Cameras 1 and 2 are special though, as they are sampled at a higher resolution called D1 or 702x408 pixels (sure beats CIF) while cameras 3-8 are recorded at CIF resolution. I've been getting by on JUST CIF for 3 years, so this is a step up!
Can I Install it? Is it legal?
I am not an attorney, so this is not legal advice, but from what I found on the net, you can record video of your property without giving notice. However, this product can also record audio. To do that you must put up a sign in a conspicuous place that tells passers by that video and audio surveilance is in use - then you are compliant with all the laws.
Can you install it - probably if you can wire an 8 track player into your 1977 buick. Here's what you need to know.
1 - everything you will need is on amazon.
2 - I've reviewed most of it so read my reviews
3 - my email is in my profile so if you get stuck email me
4 - every camera needs 2 things - a video connection and 12 volts to run the camera. x 8 cameras and you will want a 12 volt power panel like the one I reveiwed here: Q-See QS1018 12 Volt 12 AMP Power Distribution Panel Connects 18 Cameras
5 - should you decide to record audio, you will need 1 - a microphone for each channel (8 of them) 2 - a mic to line level amplifier (about $20) 3 - some microphone cable. This gets into recording gear - the sennheiser C2 is a good deal since you get 2 mics in a set, 4 sets would get you 8 mics, and they are very sensitive - able to hear a whisper at 100 feet. But they need preamps. ART Tube MP Microphone Preamp Here's just one example - it will only handle one microphone, and costs more than the mic, so you might look around for 8 channel preamps beause the microphone needs 48V to run itself, and it gives you a very low level output on a XLR connector (3pin pro stuff) - and you need to amplify that .007 volt signal to about .700 volts (100x or 20dB for those who speak dB) to run the line level inputs of the 408. Of course you could opt to just have 2 microphones.
6 - what's this I hear about night vision - it it that expensive military stuff? No. How night vision works is when the sun goes down a sensor tells the camera to turn on a whole bunch of IR LEDs (infrared light emitting diodes) - these look to have a dull red glow to you, but 36 of them shining into your front yard is like a 1000W light turned on. Best part is the subject walking through can't tell - the infrared spectrum is beyond what us humans can see - so it still looks dark, except on your camera, where although its black and white, it is fully detailed with facial recognition possible.
7 - How about motion detection - can these replace those alarm motion sensors. The answer is: it depends. Inside, I'd say yes, but outside, I'd say no. The reason is that IR is not visable to HUMANS, but BUGS love the stuff, especially spiders who spin webs over your camera lenses where it's nice and bright at night. And that spider will trigger any motion detector - even if you kill off all the spiders, the number of flying insects that love IR light is amazing. Every night I capture about 50-80 bugs flying through a motion capture zone.
8 - what is a motion capture zone? Read more ›
22 of 23 people found the following review helpful
Style Name:DVR only|Amazon Verified Purchase
I just installed this in my home with my 5 existing cameras and I must say that I am extremely impressed with this sub $200 system. It even has some features I wouldn't expect it to have. Specifically, FOUR audio in ports. Thats just unheard of even in much more expensive systems. Usually they only have one or two audio ins.
Support for ALL smart phone operating systems is EXCELLENT. QSee has written a dedicated app "Meye" for each phone (Android, iPhone, Blackberry, Windows Mobile, Symbian, sorry no WP7) It's VERY fast at streaming to my Android. It all went together so easily I just couldn't believe it. I bought this expecting to have to hack it here and there to get it to do what I want.
As the very diligent reviewer above said, this is not a $3k security system, but it is more than plenty for any small to medium sized area. You're not getting HD quality bank security footage with this thing, but man does it beat getting up to go see who's at the front door...or anywhere else around the house for that matter. All I do is flip to channel 3 on any of my TV's or hit the Meye app on my phone (its almost instant!).
A note:
Setup was easy for me because I'm moderately tech savvy. For network viewing, I had to fiddle with my network configuration due to the limitation on the DVR's IP address configs. If you want to use a static IP it needs to have all 12 digits for some reason. I couldn't get it to work with something like 192.168.1.5 (it needs like 192.168.100.005). Consider using a static IP for devices that broadcast such as this one to assure you don't loose signal because your router decided to reset...
Support for ALL smart phone operating systems is EXCELLENT. QSee has written a dedicated app "Meye" for each phone (Android, iPhone, Blackberry, Windows Mobile, Symbian, sorry no WP7) It's VERY fast at streaming to my Android. It all went together so easily I just couldn't believe it. I bought this expecting to have to hack it here and there to get it to do what I want.
As the very diligent reviewer above said, this is not a $3k security system, but it is more than plenty for any small to medium sized area. You're not getting HD quality bank security footage with this thing, but man does it beat getting up to go see who's at the front door...or anywhere else around the house for that matter. All I do is flip to channel 3 on any of my TV's or hit the Meye app on my phone (its almost instant!).
A note:
Setup was easy for me because I'm moderately tech savvy. For network viewing, I had to fiddle with my network configuration due to the limitation on the DVR's IP address configs. If you want to use a static IP it needs to have all 12 digits for some reason. I couldn't get it to work with something like 192.168.1.5 (it needs like 192.168.100.005). Consider using a static IP for devices that broadcast such as this one to assure you don't loose signal because your router decided to reset...
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Style Name:8 CMOS Cameras
**VIDEO REVIEW EXTENDED** Search y-tube for my channel, dfizzbom, and watch an almost eight minute extended review. Multiple vids covering the package, a camera mount hack, and how to setup the multi client software. Hope this will help all those interested in this system!
Did a ton a shopping- this is a great deal. What you're really buying into with this package is an 8 channel dvr with pre installed hard drive, and the cables. This is the heart of the system. The cables are of typical quality and are fine. The dvr, from all that I have tweaked upon setup, is outstanding. This dvr rivals that of a much more expensive dvr we use at my employment where I monitor another camera system- MUCH more expensive. The dvr in this package is very capable. Big points for that. Note- I used a 15" LCD computer monitor via VGA and setup menus and cameras are perfectly sized. A 19" monitor is great, but not absolutely needed. Another note about resolution choices per channel. This dvr, greatly so, also includes HD-1 [half D1] as a choice on ALL channels too! So actually, from lowest resolution to highest, you have the choice of CIF on all channels, HD-1 on all channels, and D1 on the first two channels if you want that. HD-1 is a very nice step up from CIF and since all channels support it, it's really great. That's a nice feature in this dvr.
The cameras is where you get into 'starter' kit. They are capable. They do very well in daylight. They can be tweaked in the dvr to have perfectly acceptable color representation and if you're not happy, you can also make them black and white. All doable. Face recognition is very very good in daylight, and I have my cams temporarily placed two stories up. The live feed has perfect real time movement- not studder steps in live mode. Where the cameras fall a bit short is angle of view and live picture quality at night. 53 degree angle can be fine if you're pointing straight out into the back yard from second story. But point it down to a space you want to cover, and the angle gets tight. Don't expect to cover the entire side of the house below from the peak of the roof when pointing down to the ground. Better to mount one camera under a first floor eve and side swipe the whole area for full coverage. The night vision does it's job too. I have mine pointing down to a doorway below from a second story window temporarily. The patio has an eco bulb for added light. The picture is grainy and would not make for easy identification. But, when I install the camera properly- under the first floor eve swiping that door area, it will crisp the image up and be fine. Proper placement and added light is a big plus at night. But remember, these are really starter cams and although they seem capable, obviously the cameras is the area that you'll look to upgrade over time. And that's fine- you get going right away with 8 acceptable cameras, beautiful thing. Since I'm using only five, I have three extra to put in line should one or more break, while I wait for replacements. That is the biggest reason I got double the channels and cameras I needed, not to mention the extra cables too.
Remote veiwing works. I have no plans for mobile phone viewing presently, but remote pc veiwing is what I wanted and it works. It takes some studying to get a grip on how to do it. It's not hard if you read up. I SUPER HIGHLY recommend viewing this wonderful free video crash course-
wifi-wiz.net
It's an integral part of setting up remote viewing for any consumer. Read and watch everything there, especially the ip cam section, and you'll be all set. I can offer a couple of tips quickly. Do not forward port 80. You won't be lucky- internet providers block that port and mine does as well. Avoiding that will save time and hassle. I forwarded port 89. Also, q-see manuals and vids suggest only TCP connection type setting in the router. In my experience, you need choose 'both'- TCP/UDP. One last tip- after initailly setting networking in the dvr to DHCP and after reboot, set it to STATIC and reboot. Then enter the new static IP of the dvr into your router and all should be fine. If you have a traditional simple cable modem [non-combo modem/router] and a router, the process will be much easier for you. Remote viewing is excellent. All three pc's have downloaded and show the remote view no problem. That's what I wanted mostly- to keep an eye on my home while I'm at work.
You can try, but you won't find an 8 channel system with hard drive installed and EIGHT cameras included for this price anywhere at the moment. Don't miss the deal.
Did a ton a shopping- this is a great deal. What you're really buying into with this package is an 8 channel dvr with pre installed hard drive, and the cables. This is the heart of the system. The cables are of typical quality and are fine. The dvr, from all that I have tweaked upon setup, is outstanding. This dvr rivals that of a much more expensive dvr we use at my employment where I monitor another camera system- MUCH more expensive. The dvr in this package is very capable. Big points for that. Note- I used a 15" LCD computer monitor via VGA and setup menus and cameras are perfectly sized. A 19" monitor is great, but not absolutely needed. Another note about resolution choices per channel. This dvr, greatly so, also includes HD-1 [half D1] as a choice on ALL channels too! So actually, from lowest resolution to highest, you have the choice of CIF on all channels, HD-1 on all channels, and D1 on the first two channels if you want that. HD-1 is a very nice step up from CIF and since all channels support it, it's really great. That's a nice feature in this dvr.
The cameras is where you get into 'starter' kit. They are capable. They do very well in daylight. They can be tweaked in the dvr to have perfectly acceptable color representation and if you're not happy, you can also make them black and white. All doable. Face recognition is very very good in daylight, and I have my cams temporarily placed two stories up. The live feed has perfect real time movement- not studder steps in live mode. Where the cameras fall a bit short is angle of view and live picture quality at night. 53 degree angle can be fine if you're pointing straight out into the back yard from second story. But point it down to a space you want to cover, and the angle gets tight. Don't expect to cover the entire side of the house below from the peak of the roof when pointing down to the ground. Better to mount one camera under a first floor eve and side swipe the whole area for full coverage. The night vision does it's job too. I have mine pointing down to a doorway below from a second story window temporarily. The patio has an eco bulb for added light. The picture is grainy and would not make for easy identification. But, when I install the camera properly- under the first floor eve swiping that door area, it will crisp the image up and be fine. Proper placement and added light is a big plus at night. But remember, these are really starter cams and although they seem capable, obviously the cameras is the area that you'll look to upgrade over time. And that's fine- you get going right away with 8 acceptable cameras, beautiful thing. Since I'm using only five, I have three extra to put in line should one or more break, while I wait for replacements. That is the biggest reason I got double the channels and cameras I needed, not to mention the extra cables too.
Remote veiwing works. I have no plans for mobile phone viewing presently, but remote pc veiwing is what I wanted and it works. It takes some studying to get a grip on how to do it. It's not hard if you read up. I SUPER HIGHLY recommend viewing this wonderful free video crash course-
wifi-wiz.net
It's an integral part of setting up remote viewing for any consumer. Read and watch everything there, especially the ip cam section, and you'll be all set. I can offer a couple of tips quickly. Do not forward port 80. You won't be lucky- internet providers block that port and mine does as well. Avoiding that will save time and hassle. I forwarded port 89. Also, q-see manuals and vids suggest only TCP connection type setting in the router. In my experience, you need choose 'both'- TCP/UDP. One last tip- after initailly setting networking in the dvr to DHCP and after reboot, set it to STATIC and reboot. Then enter the new static IP of the dvr into your router and all should be fine. If you have a traditional simple cable modem [non-combo modem/router] and a router, the process will be much easier for you. Remote viewing is excellent. All three pc's have downloaded and show the remote view no problem. That's what I wanted mostly- to keep an eye on my home while I'm at work.
You can try, but you won't find an 8 channel system with hard drive installed and EIGHT cameras included for this price anywhere at the moment. Don't miss the deal.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Half way home
The unit came late with software problems and a missing remote control. The supplier is slow to respond ever thought they say that HAD? Read more
Published 9 days ago by Lonley DVR
Pretty Satisfied..
The system was extremely easy to install. The clarity on the cameras was very good, however I was hoping the movement was a bit more than available. Read more
Published 17 days ago by ChuckEPT
Garbage
I think all the good reviews for this product must be written by q-see's marketing team. This product is just worthless garbage. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Kyle
Very disappointed
I ordered this camera and had it professionally installed. What the ad does not tell you is that a Q-See installer can be requested.
I used someone else. Read more
I used someone else. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Susan Perry
Great starter. Not for capture if you need details.
Being a user and installer of many higher brand cameras and dvr's, I only needed something small and cheap for my home. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Mike Dibble
great stuff
works great, shows crystal clear, no problems at all!
so i have to buy a third set, how do i get a discount?
so i have to buy a third set, how do i get a discount?
Published 1 month ago by Joey Cellular Unlocking
Security Equipment
This was purchased to monitor a small business and we couldn't be happier. The quality is great and the product is very easy to use. Read more
Published 1 month ago by shop talk
Satisfied purchase
I purchased this product on the reviews of others who have bought it. Upon receiving my cameras and additional wiring I hooked the camera up and tested before I installed them. Read more
Published 1 month ago by lleb1268
Just what I needed.
It's the perfect set up for my home. The night vision is better than I had expected. The visibility at night is actually great up to about 60 ft. Read more
Published 2 months ago by C. Maldonado
Awsome Kit
I bought the 8 channel Q-See with 4 CMOS cams, 1 day shipping. It was at my door in under 24hrs! Setup was fun, no rocket science needed! Read more
Published 2 months ago by SECURITYdude
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