Best alternative to HikVision?

[Phil]

All things considered I want to replace my Hik Vision system. The Kit is good, the software is poor, and I'm afraid Hik Vision like Huawei is not a supplier I want to deal with any more. Anyone like to make a suggestion?

I decided to start a new thread, because it is a little off-topic from the thread in which @tonyv asked this question.
And, I suspect it may be a popular topic ...

We recently created a new shop category for NDAA Compliant IP Cameras (and NVRs, etc.).
To cut a long story short, these are devices that use no components from China (NDAA is a USA regulation).
If you navigate to that page and expand the manufacturers in the left hand list - you will see that currently ten brands are represented.
That shop category has been very carefully curated by our team to be correct e.g. not all items from all the brands listed are NDAA, but those that appear in this category ARE.
To be entirely confident in that took a fair amount of communication with manufacturers (some were clearer than others).
Many manufacturers historically used components from China in their products - those ranges that have the components from China, or those that are assembled in China will not appear in that NDAA category.

We (@Jake Hulks @Kyle @Dan) are gaining hands-on time with these manufacturers' products.
e.g. yesterday they were configuring our demo cameras recently purchased from Honeywell and provided me with positive feedback about GUIs, firmware, responsiveness, portals, updating, etc.

There is a lot to learn.
We don't have the answers, yet.
But please feel free to ask

 

[David]

@Phil, I've been thinking of consolidating my 2 old NVR's into 1 x 16 channel NVR and moving away from Chinese products. Ideally the NVR does not need PoE ports.

 

[Dan]

Hi @David

If you are looking for a replacement NVR-based solution that is non-Chinese we would probably recommend Vivotek (Made in Taiwan).

Their ND9425P 16 Channel PoE Network Video Recorder supports a plug-in free browser solution which means it is fully functional on modern browsers like Chrome & Firefox, it also has a clean & modern browser GUI that makes menu navigation easier, and it is also one of the few 16-channel NVRs that support any kind of RAID option (supports RAID 0 & RAID 1).

The NVR does have PoE ports but the reality is that 16-channel NVRs and below are regarded as small system NVRs and almost always include PoE ports.

Another pro point of Vivotek is their software solution, for many years their VAST2 software has been very popular and they have just recently announced the latest version of this software now called VAST Security Station (VSS), you can read more about this software in the new VSS thread that was added to the forum today.

Other options to consider would be Hanwha (XRN-1620B2), Honeywell (HN30160200), and IDIS (DR-2516P).

 

[tonyv]

I've been testing the use of a synology nas box (happened to have one for backups) and was most impressed. IP cameras only

 

[Phil]

We have long been fans of Synology's NAS boxes.
They make solid hardware, and essentially sustain it as 'evergreen technology' through yearly updates

They continue to improve their Surveillance Centre functionality, such that it is now (has been for some years actually) a good all-round CCTV solution.

Synology also 'plays nicely' with Windows, Macs, Android, IOS etc.
And most modern browsers.

IMO they have yet to produce a great NVR - they've had a couple of attempts (two generations if you like) but each has had limitations.
Their NVRs are distinct from their NAS boxes essentially because they have monitor connections, but also because the NVRs ship with more camera licences.

NAS boxes ship with two FOC camera licences, and therein lies the rub - additional licences are approaching £50 per camera, and that added cost (say £300 to get to 8 cameras) puts you in a similar ballpark to purchasing a dedicated NVR.


But, there is no doubt that Synology NAS boxes are 'nice to live with'

FWIW I chose a Synology router for home, and no regrets - that too is easy to maintain / keep secure / has never let us down [thumbs up].

 

[Phil]

New from Eastern Europe - Ajax, of Ukraine, have long been a provider of alarm systems / components.
I recall somebody raving about how nice the GUI for those is, and how easy they are to set up.
Ajax are now offering NVRs and cameras:

NB - we are not sure whether you can access with a browser, nor whether you can record continuously.

 

[Phil]

BTW - Synology recently launched their own cameras:

BC500 and TC500 | Synology Inc.

Bullet and turret IP cameras

www.synology.com

 

[Phil]

Mobotix announced some new turret cameras in their Move range on February 1st.

Interesting because:

• European brand with a great pedigree
• IP67
• IK10
• Built-n microphone
• NDAA
• 5Yr Warranty
• Compatible with modern browsers

Currently 2MP and 5MP fixed, and 2MP and 5MP motorised 2.7-13.5mm zoom (Mobotix call it vari-focal on their pdfs, but the lenses are motorised / remotely adjustable via the network).

We have added product pages for these new turrets here:
Mobotix IP cameras | Mobotix network CCTV cameras from a UK supplier

Also interesting, they have beefed-up the 8-camera and 16-camera Move MX-S-NVR1 NVRs at this time too e.g. they have doubled the installed RAM for better performance (new model designation 'B' product pages for these will appear as soon as we can get the updated pdfs).

We have ordered cameras and an NVR to test.

Watch this space.

 

[rickwookie]

Unlike Hikvision, UniFi protect adds new features (that actually work!) to their Protect platform on a seemingly monthly basis. It’s a shame their platform is so closed (no 3rd party camera support at all) and the Pro cameras are so expensive. There’s no doubt in my mind also that the picture quality from a 4K Hikvision ColorVu is vastly superior to that of a UniFi G5 Pro, for example. However using the Protect iPhone app and comparing it to the Hik-Connect app, it’s just embarrassing for Hik just how bad HC is! Think real-time image scrubbing on the timeline to locate events. AI detections that actually work and not only present as markers on the timeline, but also as a list of animated thumbnails for easy identification.

 

[JB1970]

Unlike Hikvision, UniFi protect adds new features (that actually work!) to their Protect platform on a seemingly monthly basis. It’s a shame their platform is so closed (no 3rd party camera support at all) and the Pro cameras are so expensive. There’s no doubt in my mind also that the picture quality from a 4K Hikvision ColorVu is vastly superior to that of a UniFi G5 Pro, for example. However using the Protect iPhone app and comparing it to the Hik-Connect app, it’s just embarrassing for Hik just how bad HC is! Think real-time image scrubbing on the timeline to locate events. AI detections that actually work and not only present as markers on the timeline, but also as a list of animated thumbnails for easy identification.

I like Unifi equipment but like Hikvision it's not without its firmware issues; their community forum is full of posts about issues introduced after updates. To be fair I only use the UDR (Dream Router) but one of their updates killed off the LCD display on it as it did for many others (no fix a year later). It's interesting to hear your comments on the Unifi camera image quality; I had often wondered what they were like as I've seen them discussed over on the Hubitat forum. I don't really have any issues with Hik-Connect. For me it generally works great for notifications, they're on the timeline and can be filtered to show events only (only some models allow this) and I don't need high speed scrubbing.

 

[rickwookie]

Just as an update, this suddenly makes the UniFi range a LOT more appealing... UniFi Dome & Turret Security Cameras - Ubiquiti