Wanted Cctv?

sleepali

Unfortunately, where I live has recently suffered from a spate of break ins in the surrounding shops & cars.

I am looking to install some kind of colour day/night security cameras that switch on whenever there is movement and can be linked to my PC.

I am a little unsure as to what the set up/cost would be and would appreciate some help and advice as to what to buy and how to set it all up.

My PC is downstairs and I would like 2 cameras, one at the back of my property and one at the front (upstairs) and to give very good quality pictures so that, if necessary, they could be given to the police as evidence.

Thanks in anticipation.

gizmoleeds

https://www.maplin.co.uk do a lot of CCTV and that kind of stuff. They do it for businesses so you would be getting professional stuff. Otherwise Argos do some (but I think they're all video-based, although there is one which can switch your video on/off when it senses motion).

Otherwise any webcam be used as a CCTV device (although they wouldn't be waterproof so would need putting in the window). They would come with short cables but maplin or https://www.dabs.com will probably be able to sell you a USB extension lead.

Also, bear in mind that if you want good quality pictures then you will need a lot of hard disk space. You might want to look at that 300gb hard drive over on the grabbit board.

sleepali

Thank you for taking the time to search for this info for me

gizmoleeds

sleepali wrote:

Thank you for taking the time to search for this info for me

Didn't really do any specific searching - I use both shops regularly and so have a good idea of what they sell

smcicr

you might also want to consider some high powered lighting to go with this - i'd guess that the web cams won't be that great in terms of quality and lighting that is also keyed to movement will help on that front. the other option is to look into video / dv camera's. not sure on pricing etc but the resulting capture would probably be substantially better and you wouldn't have to worry about extra drives for the pc etc - just buy a box of tapes and rotate them on a weekly basis or what have you.

shelly

Just to let you know. If you intend to use CCTV footage as evidence to prosecute someone you must put up signs in the vicinity of the cameras to warn the criminals you are watching and recording them. Sounds absolutely ridiculous but its true. My friend found out the hard way. She recorded a guy breaking into a neighbours car and stealing the stereo but the recording couldn't be used against the criminal as they hadn't put up any signs warning him he was being watched. Invasion of privacy they call it. Why we should warn criminals is beyond me....its not like they knock on our doors to warn us they are going to rob us....


HTH

gizmoleeds

smcicr wrote:

you might also want to consider some high powered lighting to go with this

Some of the CCTV cameras in Maplin have bright infra-red lights on them - we can't see the lights but the camera can.

gk172

sleepali wrote:

Unfortunately, where I live has recently suffered from a spate of break ins in the surrounding shops & cars.

I am looking to install some kind of colour day/night security cameras that switch on whenever there is movement and can be linked to my PC.

I am a little unsure as to what the set up/cost would be and would appreciate some help and advice as to what to buy and how to set it all up.

My PC is downstairs and I would like 2 cameras, one at the back of my property and one at the front (upstairs) and to give very good quality pictures so that, if necessary, they could be given to the police as evidence.

Thanks in anticipation.

We had very similar problems to you, windows getting smashed and the cars getting vandalised and we went here which is local to us and paid £350 ish 8 years ago for 1 black and white camera which had a focus to the other side of the road and then a colour one which focused to the kerbside and covered both the cars and frount door where the damage was done, also included we had the box the cameras plugged into and could be viewed via a tv and we used to record onto video and the cameras used to switch with motion so basically covered anything that was to happen.

But it was our local police that let us down, we had a bunch of yobs call for our daughter and then started playing up to the camera and then throwing things at the windows and shouting and swearing but the police came out and watched the tape and there answer to us was - they didnt break anything:mad: so we cant do anything and that was after telling them of the previous damage, so it might be worth contacting your local office and asking them about evidence and will they accept footage from the recordings, also ive heard digital footage is dismissabe in court due to the fact it can be altered, hence we went for the box through the video as it shows time and date and we use 3 hour tapes on long play and just kept swapping them. But check with police first just incase you fork out hundreds for something they wont accept, unless you still want it for your own piece of mind.

tweeter

shelly says " If you intend to use CCTV footage as evidence to prosecute someone you must put up signs in the vicinity of the cameras to warn the criminals you are watching and recording them". Half these guys can't read so they wouldn't know. The guy next door put a dummy camera up and its been quieter and this is worst part of Fulham.

Tony_H_3

Colour cameras do not like the dark & the ones that do are very expensive, the range on IR cameras (as sold in places such as maplins) is about 4 useful metres. Reflective surfaces such a glass will blind an IR camera. Good lighting is essential for colour cameras.

Click Here the GCA420 is an excellent entry level cctv camera & combined with Click Here Trust 814PCI will enable you to record via your PC. There are much better cards available some which include audio but again slightly more pricey.

HTH

Nik_Essex

We got a couple of wireless USB CCTV cameras from flyonthewall.uk.com.
The receiver for the camera just plugs straight into your USB port and the software starts recording any footage from the cameras whenever it senses motion.

www.flyonthewall.uk.com