Sample night image quality - DS-2CD2032-I
- Thread starter perpetual nomad
- Start date
That's consistent with the turret version of that camera, which I have. That looks pretty good to me.
Think those look fantastic. Better than without ambient light running on built-in IR which would give you some center vision. With your house / porch lights on, you have edge image to edge clarity there.
Oh NICE! I keep my garage lights on 24/7--I even have tape on them. Prior to getting my hikvision, my other cameras absolutely required the ambient, but it's not so crucial now. I've been looking for things like the dark-sensing light sockets, but most of them are horrendously reviewed. The ones you just showed here are well reviewed and not too pricey. I figured honestly though with my 2 X 60 W equivalent CFL (actual wattage about 1/4 of that) I'm only burning around $3/month to keep them on 24/7 anyway. Still, they look silly during the day. Bulbs like yours would save me a small touch of money.
fenderman
Staff member
- Mar 9, 2014
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If you have a wall switch that controls those lights there are superb http://www.amazon.com/Honeywell-Eco...412184806&sr=8-1&keywords=gps+timer+honeywell
program your gps coordinates and you can set the timer to 70 min +/- on or off relative to sunrise sunset.
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I love gadgets like that. I am still raving about my garage door monitor I got years ago. Just has a receiver in my bedroom to blink if I left the door open
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There exist screw in socket adapters which have an ambient light sensor, they're only a few $, as long as the bulb socket is protected from weather. It does raise / extend the bulb by about the length of the socket, but allows you to use any bulb incl LEDs (rather than the all in one CFL - which is still a neat idea, didn't know they existed)
Another thing I didn't know existed! The things you learn on a coffee break!
When did they release those? Not something my regular big box hardware stores carry.
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fenderman
Staff member
- Mar 9, 2014
- 36,891
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The earliest amazon reviews are from the end of 2010 so its roughly around then. These switches require a neutral wire, some old construction do not have it. This switch will also not work with a three way setup..they do have a similar model that supports three way but for some reason it requires a decent load (I think 100w or so) to work properly…This unit works with low wattage led and cfl just fine. Another interesting thing about the unit is that it uses a capacitor as a backup for power outages, so you never have to worry about replacing a battery....Another thing I didn't know existed! The things you learn on a coffee break!
When did they release those? Not something my regular big box hardware stores carry.
I like the idea of these, but the reviews for them on amazon are not consistently good, whereas the honeywell switch above has received excellent reviews overall.
The ambient light sensors that you can buy from big box stores that combine w/ an existing bulb -- I tried several flavors of them, and all of them failed miserably and were returned to Home Depot. The integrated Phillips bulbs have been fantastic.
Another thing I didn't know existed! The things you learn on a coffee break!
When did they release those? Not something my regular big box hardware stores carry.
Home Depot/Lowes have them. Not the Honeywell ones but they do have them.
nayr
IPCT Contributor
the problem with ambient light sensors is people tend to put bright ass lights on them which then reflect back and make em think its daytime
ambient light sensors work best for ambient lighting (who'd guess!?), day/night sensors are a lil more reliable but can still be subjected to same problem without filtering specifically for sunlight, which makes them less usefull indoors.
timers that calculate sunrise/sunset through GPS location are the most reliable you'll find.. I have one in a light switch in a hallway that should have 2 switches at each end, but instead has one in the middle.. timer turns hall light on every night at around sunset and then back off at some random offset after bedtime, provides a tiny bit of security while away. BEWARE, you need a neutral wire in your switchbox for those to work, its not common to have them in some parts of the country. (I didnt have one, had to pull one in from a nearby outlet)
Edit: Buy CREE LED Bulbs from Home Depot; work much better outdoors.. turn on instantly in cold and survive weather much better (Compared to CFL/Incandescent)... also suck less power and the warm color looks just like an incandescent... top quality available locally.
ambient light sensors work best for ambient lighting (who'd guess!?), day/night sensors are a lil more reliable but can still be subjected to same problem without filtering specifically for sunlight, which makes them less usefull indoors.
timers that calculate sunrise/sunset through GPS location are the most reliable you'll find.. I have one in a light switch in a hallway that should have 2 switches at each end, but instead has one in the middle.. timer turns hall light on every night at around sunset and then back off at some random offset after bedtime, provides a tiny bit of security while away. BEWARE, you need a neutral wire in your switchbox for those to work, its not common to have them in some parts of the country. (I didnt have one, had to pull one in from a nearby outlet)
Edit: Buy CREE LED Bulbs from Home Depot; work much better outdoors.. turn on instantly in cold and survive weather much better (Compared to CFL/Incandescent)... also suck less power and the warm color looks just like an incandescent... top quality available locally.
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nayr
IPCT Contributor
to go further off topic, CREE LEDs also dim, so they work well with dual bright fixtures that go from dim to full bright w/motion, I prefer this kind of outdoor lighting and it helps the cameras at night.
I've not looked at Cree recently, but Home Depot is now regularly selling the philips 60 W equivalent flat led bulbs for under $7. I have a few and despite looking silly they are nice and also dim. Only been out for several months and are well reviewed on amazon, too. They are my go-to now on new bulbs. The problem is the stupid collection of CFL i built up is still going. I'd like to avoid buying CFL again, though. I think they were kind of a shameful mark in the history of consumer lighting and only served to bridge the gap to LED. I know LED is a tiny market still but it's exploding.