NVR for mix of camera brands

G

geoguz

n3wb
Oct 4, 2021
10
1
EU
I have a mix of cameras and concerned about which NVR to get from which vendor, as I expect problems when trying to connect cameras brand different than the NVR brand.

I actually need to connect these 6 POE cams to a new NVR, 2 x Dahua (SD49225XA-HNR, Z12E ), 1xUniview PTZ 5MP, 3 x HikVision (DS-2DE3A400BW-DE, DS-2CD2347G2-LSU/SL)

Shall I consider BlueIris (or similar) and dedicate a PC for it and use client apps to access from also MAC-?, iOS devices, or take the risk with choosing a dedicated NVR (preferred option providing client apps are solid to use or at least from web even on mac OS)?

Tried the SD card approach 256Gb per cam, nerve recking when trying to access from non-PC browsers these camera web UI's as nothing works, as they need Windows or still ancient IE. :(. Why IE from such vendors in 2022 is beyond me..

Have the option for Synology Surveillance Station, should I even attempt that route?

Any tips/advise appreciated for which NVR model to consider.

Thanks.
 
geoguz said:
I have a mix of cameras and concerned about which NVR to get from which vendor, as I expect problems when trying to connect cameras brand different than the NVR brand.

I actually need to connect these 6 POE cams to a new NVR, 2 x Dahua (SD49225XA-HNR, Z12E ), 1xUniview PTZ 5MP, 3 x HikVision (DS-2DE3A400BW-DE, DS-2CD2347G2-LSU/SL)

Shall I consider BlueIris (or similar) and dedicate a PC for it and use client apps to access from also MAC-?, iOS devices, or take the risk with choosing a dedicated NVR (preferred option providing client apps are solid to use or at least from web even on mac OS)?

Tried the SD card approach 256Gb per cam, nerve recking when trying to access from non-PC browsers these camera web UI's as nothing works, as they need Windows or still ancient IE. :(. Why IE from such vendors in 2022 is beyond me..

Have the option for Synology Surveillance Station, should I even attempt that route?

Any tips/advise appreciated for which NVR model to consider.

Thanks.
Click to expand...

Hi @geoguz

In general, if you want to get the best performance from an NVR you want to match the cameras to that same OEM and same functionality ( i.e. AI, tripwire, smart this, smart that .. )

Since you have cameras from various OEMs, many of our members would go with something like Blue Iris VMS on a PC .. ( Windows )
 
In theory basic functionality across camera brands should work (ONVIF standard), but things like on camera motion detection or line crossing detection will be trouble. To get full functionality setup is also often more complicated. The biggest challenge is not mixing brands but mixing products from the same company intended for different regions. Hikvision and Dahua each have products that are sort of region locked and if you mix and match it won't work at all.

If you want to mix and match cameras your best option is to use some flavor of VMS software on a PC.
 
mat200 said:
i.e. AI, tripwire, smart this, smart that ..
Click to expand...

Wondering if by using Blue Iris one would lose such smart features, tripwires etc, unless there is some similar option from BI? I assume simple line crossing should be available from BI. (Have not yet tried demo, since I need to prep the h/w for it).
 
Yes, better use BI or 3rd party software to manage the system. NVR can do work under onvif, can use a NONE POE NVR, maybe easier, don't use poe NVR,
will have lots of troubles.
 
I use BlueIris on a PC. I started out using Surveillance Station on a QNAP NAS but found it was not as powerful as BI.

But there are several folks here that are quite happy with Synology Surveillance Station.

If you already have that loaded, you could give it a try. You could also run the BI free trial version and compare the two.
 
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I also have a mix of IP cameras that I've had since the 2000's. I started with old FOSCams, and added a few other brands when the newer FOSCams became dependent on their own app and wanted me to download a plug-in for their cameras. I don't like going with just one brand, as then I get locked-in an can't leverage better cameras from another company later.

A lot of people like BlueIris, and I must say that there is a lot of good going for that product. Unfortunately, when I tried it, I wasn't able to finish figuring it out and getting it set up in my limited free time before my 1 week trial of the product ended, so I instead figured out how to get iSpy's Agent working on my PC for my cameras. I chose iSpy because it is free for a DIY solution and only charges if you want to get premium services, like using their app to access your cameras and recordings, I didn't have a limited week to determine if it would work for me, and I also found a way to access my cameras via my browser using ZeroTier One.

Overall, I recommend downloading and trying some of the current NVR options, like iSpy Agent, Blue Iris, Zone Minder, etc. Just make sure that you can allocate adequate time to get a decent feel for tools with any limited trial periods. ;-) And, be sure to read the fine print for the EULAs. My brother recently gave me a couple of solar cameras that, thus far, only seems to work with iCam+, and that app's EULA has clauses in them regarding not crossing China's ruling party. (Seriously!?!)
 
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samplenhold said:
I use BlueIris on a PC. I started out using Surveillance Station on a QNAP NAS but found it was not as powerful as BI.

But there are several folks here that are quite happy with Synology Surveillance Station.

If you already have that loaded, you could give it a try. You could also run the BI free trial version and compare the two.
Click to expand...
Synology also have troubles, not work very good. BI is much more smoothly.
 
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