ZOSI 1080P Hybrid 4-in-1 HD TVI/CVI/AHD/CVBS 1920TVL 2.0MP CCTV Camera Home Security System 80ft Day/Night Vision Metal Waterproof Housing For 960H,720P,1080P,5MP,4K analog Surveillance DVR

2 out of 5 stars! I used to have a couple of Foscam units, but this package is far more advanced. There are two important points to remember: 1) You must start the setup process with a monitor and mouse connected directly to the DVR so that the initial setup and hard drive formatting can be completed. You won't be able to do it over the internet. 2) One of the eight cameras in my collection was missing. As an amateur radio operator (KG0WX), I felt comfortable investigating because the cameras do not have any anti-tampering features. I discovered a bag of silica drying agent inside the housing to prevent fogging, but it had knocked the main connector off the camera board, and the O ring seal was around that board instead of in the housing's groove. Easy fix! The LED board is a common Ebay item that can be replaced when the LEDs begin to fail after a few years. The night vision is twice as good as that of the Foscam (which was already impressive). With full illumination, these will illuminate roughly half of a typical yard, and a lit cigarette will resemble a road flare! TCP 37777, UDP 37778, and HTML 80 should all be set up as port forwarding in your router. Once I did that, it came to life, and when I connected a monitor to the VGA port, I was blown away by the system's sophistication and features, such as the ability to specify where the motion detector will or will not look in the camera's view. Not for the non-techie, so if you don't know what TCP/IP stands for, you might want to hire a Nerd to help you get this online. I also noticed on my now-repaired camera 8 that the cable had no strain relief in the mount, so if you tug on it, it might unplug inside the camera.

Lyric Cain

| Apr 05, 2021

As a result, I went out and bought a security camera system to put around my house. For a variety of reasons, I've decided to send it back to Amazon. But, in terms of price, you can't really complain because it's a good deal. So I thought black cameras would look nice on my house, but I was mistaken; white cameras will definitely blend in better. The cameras are, in fact, weatherproof. br>br>However, you should read the instruction manual first. It expressly states that the cables must be kept dry and protected from the sun. All of your camera wires must be run through conduit as a result of this. Because I have a mobile home, I must use conduit unless the cables are run in the attic. Installing a hard drive in the DVR was incredibly simple; the holes and everything lined up perfectly, which surprised me given the system's low cost. I was using an old hard drive from my gaming PC, and the formatting went off without a hitch. br>br>The cameras are 720p and have adequate night vision. When it's raining but there's still some visibility outside, it looks like it's snowing. To be honest, I was hoping for the cameras to be able to read license plates. These cameras are unable to read license plates in any way. As a result, I'm going to experiment with higher-resolution cameras, like 1080p. I'm hoping that higher resolution will allow me to see more clearly. br>br>While the software itself has some useful features, the setup process is horribly inefficient, requiring you to click on everything with a mouse. The software itself has become obsolete and is no longer functional. Because Google and several other email providers have upgraded their security, trying to set up emails is now impossible. br>br>As a web designer, I went to my cPanel and set up an email address with one of my domains. By doing so, I was able to get the email function to work. I wanted to set up security cameras that would alert me if there was any movement. An email would be sent to me. In the event that my DVR was stolen by burglars, the photograph attached to the email would be used for law enforcement purposes. However, the image I used has a resolution of 352x288 pixels, which is very low. Attempting to use email as a backup for records is rendered useless as a result of this. br>br>I was never able to successfully install the remote viewing app. I created a no-ip account and waited 24 hours for it to be verified. No- IP takes a while to activate. I was still unable to log in using the app after successfully installing no IP on the system. I attempted to install the app on both my Android smartphone and my desktop computer with no success. Both efforts were unsuccessful. I attempted to set up the software for more than two days, putting in at least 12 hours of effort. br>br>If you only want to monitor your home from afar, this system is for you. However, if you want remote access, you'll need to invest in a more expensive system with up-to-date software. software that keeps track of time I'm a big fan of the system. But all I need is remote viewing access. So I can keep an eye on things even if I'm not in town.

Ermias Jefferson

| Mar 26, 2021

The cameras are crystal clear, and the night vision is excellent. They do, however, switch back and forth between day and night (IR) at dusk. When the IR LEDs turn on, it produces a loud click. The on/off switching can happen hundreds of times before the camera decides it's dark enough to stay in IR mode permanently. The same thing happens in the morning, and it can even happen during the day if it's cloudy. Because the click is so loud, you can't use these cameras indoors without driving everyone insane. Worse, each time the camera switches from day to night mode, it can trigger a motion detection alert; multiply the number of cameras you have by 100 on/off cycles, and you'll get the number of motion detection alerts (emails/texts) you'll get every evening and morning (so the constant phone beeping will keep you awake at night and wake you up in the morning). This is all a hoax. br>br>Motion detection is completely non-invasive. it is useful As a result, this DVR is useless as a security system. If there is a change in light, the motion detector will go off. This means you'll get a motion alert if the IR LEDs flash on and off repeatedly at night/morning (this can result in thousands of alarms per day), if there's a reflected light flash (from passing people/cars, reflections, shadows, clouds, etc. outside the camera viewing area), if a shadow cast within the viewing area moves, if a bright area gets darker/lighter, etc. Basically, any even instantaneous change in lumi As a result, you won't be able to stop the false alarms from continuing. Detecting actual motion does not work either. br>br> The DVR lets you specify the area within the camera view where motion should be detected (ostensibly to allow you to ignore areas where motion might occur but shouldn't cause an alarm—i. e. People walking down the street, cars driving down the street, trees moving, shadows, and so on). Nothing will be detected if the entire area is cleared (as expected). However, if you set any area to detect motion (even a single square far away from anything), any motion anywhere will be detected (so the software is essentially useless – it's just an on/off switch). There is a sensitivity adjustment (the broken English instructions are unclear as to what this does or whether 1 is the most sensitive and 8 is the least sensitive, or vice versa). It doesn't matter if there isn't any documentation because the sensitivity adjustment has no effect (you can set it to whatever you want and the results will remain the same). The bottom line is that you either get no motion alarms (if no sensitivity squares are set) or any motion anywhere will trigger an alarm (whether you have one square or the entire screen covered). It's nearly impossible not to have shadows (at some point during the day), bushes/trees, sidewalks, roads, and other objects within the camera's viewing area, and all of these will trigger the motion detection. No matter what sensitivity zones or levels you set, even a single leaf moving anywhere will cause a false alarm. Surprisingly, despite all of the false alarms caused by the Earth's rotation causing shadows to move, leaves rustling in the gentlest of breezes, light reflecting off cars driving by outside of the camera's view, and IR day/night switching, large objects such as people walking directly in front of the cameras and waving their arms/jumping up and down rarely set off an alarm. As a result, you won't be able to use the motion detection alarm on this DVR to send you an alert/alarm/email (i. e. to receive notifications when a package is delivered, someone approaches a door, and so on). You can't use motion detection to start recording (so you'll have to keep recording all the time). The only way to spot activity is to manually scan through all of the recorded video on a regular basis. br>br>With the exception of the cameras constantly switching between day and night, I believe all of these issues are software-related. I updated my boxes because Zosi provides firmware updates. Unfortunately, the new software exacerbates the problem (doesn't anyone bother to do even the most basic testing/QA anymore?). Also, be aware that when you upgrade the firmware, you will lose everything. If you spent hours setting up alarms, recording schedules, sensitivity zones, and other features (and it will take hours if you have multiple cameras), you'll have to start over every time the firmware is updated. br>br>As a bonus, the documentation is non-proprietary. existent or in a stuttering version of the English language Even if you never read documentation (which I rarely do), there are a few things you should be aware of: You can find some documentation and YouTube videos online, but they all have the same problem, such as when a setting has a range, is it increasing or decreasing with larger values, and so on. Despite the fact that I've been doing hardware and software engineering for decades and have worked on some of the most complex electrical, computer, and networking systems, it took me an inordinate amount of time and trial-and-error to figure it out. It took a lot of trial and error to get the software and hardware to work together. You'll need to configure network connections, change port forwarding on your router, and install phone and PC apps (this is standard for an Internet server, so if you're not comfortable doing this with little or no instruction, you'll have issues). Furthermore, you must configure the device directly through its interface (it is not possible to do so remotely via an app or web interface). Because of all the camera cable runs, the DVR will most likely be located far away from a desk/monitor, which means you'll be standing in a closet for hours setting it up. Furthermore, many of the features (such as searching for activity) are only available through the DVR interface. As a result, you won't be able to review video on your computer, phone, or tablet (which means more time standing in the closet). This is far from a plug-in situation. and-play! br>br>Then there's Zosi Support; given the mixed reviews, I did my best to test my first box before installing it (i. e. All of the cameras were plugged in, basic settings were verified, and the cell phone and PC apps were tested, among other things). I then physically installed all of the cameras (a time-consuming process that included running cables, mounting, and other tasks), only to discover the aforementioned functionality issues once they were in use. Furthermore, while the VGA connector worked with a computer monitor during initial testing, the HDMI output did not (the output is all pink, as others have reported – a bad pin). Because of the numerous issues (false alarms, configuration settings that have no effect, HDMI not working, etc. ), I assumed the DVR hardware was malfunctioning and contacted Zosi (via their support web page and email exchanges). Support from Zosi starts with a robo-assistant. After providing proof of purchase, model number, serial number, and other information, you will be asked to send photos of the box and the problem (good luck photographing false alarms). Following that, you'll have a series of email exchanges describing the problem and debating its cause, followed by requests for additional photos. Following that, you'll have several email exchanges about the resolution. It will take 1 minute for each conversation. After 2 weeks of debating, taking photos, testing software versions, and exchanging model/serial numbers, etc. , I was able to return the box (I paid for shipping and no RMA number was provided—so you return the box at your own expense with no guarantee that it will be replaced and with no recourse). In the end, I was given a new box. Unfortunately, it suffered from the same issues (bad HDMI (which I confirmed with multiple cables), unusable motion detection, and so on). The DVR will set you back $48. br>br> It's useless until they fix the software issues, and you'll waste days trying to figure it out (the time you waste is worth far more than the box's value). The IR switching issue may be solved in Zosi's newer (36 LED) cameras (I'm not sure). These cameras, however, cannot be used in populated areas. Although noisy outdoor environments and sufficient distance from people may mask the issue, all of the on/off switching is likely to cause the cameras to fail prematurely (and is probably not good for your electric bill, either).

Iris Oconnor

| Apr 18, 2021