WXforum.net
Weather Station Hardware => Weather Web Cams => Topic started by: ocala on November 25, 2021, 10:11:55 AM
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Been looking and looking for outdoor cams but just can't find something that looks dependable.
What I want is something solar/battery powered and wireless. Plenty of those on the market but when you dig into specifics then I find issues.
Been looking at Amcrest, Arlo, Reolink, Wyze, Nest Cam etc. Actually the only one that looks like a keeper is Zumimall. I never even heard of this one but looks like it might work. Most of these are good cams but the issue seems to be with the associated app to view them. Also finding something with a warranty longer then a year is hard. I mean if it's outside 24/7/365 it's going to take some abuse. Maybe I'm asking too much, I don't know. Just curious what you guys use and what you have had long term success with.
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I never owned a web camera until I bought my first one from Reolink. I think their App and Client software are very good and I have no problems downloading and viewing video. Software has good versatility and allows you to view and download video at different resolutions.
They offer a 30-day money back guarantee, two-year warrant, and free shipping. I got an additional six months of warranty by registering within 30 days of purchase. Look at their deals and flash sales.
I started out with their RCL-511W 5MP Dual-Band WiFi Security Camera and loved the video quality. But it requires power and the motion detection isn’t very good because it does a frame-by-frame compassion and gets confused by changing light conditions like sunlight/car lights and at night by bugs and dust particles. Love everything about this camera except the motion detection.
So, I purchase an Argus 2 which meets your requirements of solar/battery powered and wireless. The motion detection is passive infra-red (PIR) and works like most outdoor motion detection lights but the detection range is less than the 30 feet they claim. Since its battery powered its off until it detects motion and it takes a second before it starts recording. It doesn’t take much sunlight to recharge the battery. It has good versatility and will probably to most of the things you want it to do.
I've been very happy with my Reolink cameras. I've had the RCL-511W for a year without problems with my Minnesota winters. I bought the battery powered Argus 2 this spring so it hasn't had a chance to go though our winters yet.
Argus 2 recording:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/eftrl95qo8q51b5/11_12_21%20-%20Buck%20Side%20Yard.mp4?dl=0
Night video of my Argus 2 and RCL-511W cameras. Starts with the Argus 2 and switches to the RCL-511W.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/h6e18h1jzilomu8/2021_11_22%20-%20Deer%20Side%20%26%20Front%20Yards.mp4?dl=0
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Hi worach,
Some great videos...
I see that there are Black Friday deals today at Reolink.com/ca with the Argus 2 camera and solar at $C87.44 Black Friday Sale 2021 | Deals on Security Cameras & Systems – Reolink (https://reolink.com/ca/flash-sale/)
Trying to do some quick reading and understand what all is needed but not a lot of details.
Is the camera and solar panel all that is needed? I've downloaded the App.
Thanks,
Paul
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Yes, that kit is what I purchased. Just yesterday I bought another Argus 2 from the refurbish section.
You should find all the information you need here. Ask any questions you may have and I'll try to answer it for you.
https://reolink.com/product/argus-2/
Right under the top picture there's menu selection as follows.
- Overview
- Comparison
- Accessories
- Video
- Specs
- FAQs
- Review (960)
Added Edit: You need to get a MicroSD card to store video. I bought this MicroSD from NewEgg.com. It will handle extreme outdoor condictions.
https://www.newegg.com/sandisk-64gb-microsdxc/p/N82E16820173221?Item=N82E16820173221
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I bought three of those Argus. Nice cameras and they never run out of battery power.
Just they are no good to upload periodic images for like my weather sites. Since battery and solar run they do not have an FTP function, not meant to be powered continuously.
But they are Dead Awesome with Alexa.
I got one of the Reolink POE Models that I will use to get my West Weather view going.
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I ordered the Argus 2 as seems a good price and free shipping. Now the unknown... duty and taxes #-o
Thanks worach,
Paul
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I've been keeping an eye on Reolink. I wanted to buy a 12mp camera system from them, but with chip shortage, that didn't happen. I'm signed up for their mailing list. They gave me a promo deal on their new Duo camera. I got a shipment email just today.
https://reolink.com/product/reolink-duo-poe/
I'm going all POE for my cameras. The reason I liked this unit was because it has 150 degree view without any fisheye effect. It stitches 2 cameras into one. I won't be able to mount it until spring as it's too cold here in ND already. But I'll probably play around with it by sticking it in a window for now. My plan is to use IP Timelapse to get it to my site.
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I've been keeping an eye on Reolink. I wanted to buy a 12mp camera system from them, but with chip shortage, that didn't happen. I'm signed up for their mailing list. They gave me a promo deal on their new Duo camera. I got a shipment email just today.
https://reolink.com/product/reolink-duo-poe/
I'm going all POE for my cameras. The reason I liked this unit was because it has 150 degree view without any fisheye effect. It stitches 2 cameras into one. I won't be able to mount it until spring as it's too cold here in ND already. But I'll probably play around with it by sticking it in a window for now. My plan is to use IP Timelapse to get it to my site.
I like the idea of no fisheye effect and being able to cover just about my whole yard. Plus they have that version in wireless. More pricey but oh well. Might have to pull the trigger on that one. Been going back and forth over what cam to get. Soo many to choose from.
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Hi,
I am now running six (6) Reolink RLC-511W 5MP Wireless IP cameras utilizing IPTIMELAPSE for still and timelapse images FTP'd to my website at https://csraweather.net These cameras are not solar powered and do need to be plugged-in to 110v outlets.
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I received my Duo camera and plugged it in. What they didn't tell you is that there are two separate streams, two cameras in one housing. It's not stitched together as a single image/stream.
Debating on whether I'll keep it or not. I think IPTL will support 2 cameras. Just a question if I want two views in the same general direction. Probably not. I'd rather one camera east, one camera west.
I've emailed Reolink about a return. We'll see what they say, then I'll decide.
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I got the Argus 2 in yesterday but haven't been able to get it connected and have sent a support ticket to Reolink. Their booklet talks about making changes to encryption method of the WiFi network and other things which I am not about to do...
I don't yet have the Micro SD card and wonder if that is the reason. Any thoughts?
p.s. no duties and no taxes on arrival =D>
Enjoy,
Paul
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I bought one of these. Argus 3 Pro.
https://reolink.com/us/product/argus-3-pro/#specifications
So far so good. No issues and Paul it connected fine. No SD card either. I even shut down my router to see if it would reconnect and it did. If this one works out I may get one for the front of the house. Even has a time-lapse feature which is kinda cool.
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I received my Duo camera and plugged it in. What they didn't tell you is that there are two separate streams, two cameras in one housing. It's not stitched together as a single image/stream.
Debating on whether I'll keep it or not. I think IPTL will support 2 cameras. Just a question if I want two views in the same general direction. Probably not. I'd rather one camera east, one camera west.
I've emailed Reolink about a return. We'll see what they say, then I'll decide.
I did a lot of research on that one but ultimately went with another one.
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It's not a bad camera by any means. But I can get 2 of their RLC 410's for about the same cost. I'm hoping they'll let me exchange it for 2 of those.
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So is 5Mp the same as 2K, 4K, etc, or is that just a larger screen size? This stuff is confusing. :?
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2K should be about 4 MP.
4K about 8.3
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2K should be about 4 MP.
4K about 8.3
Right. The cam I just bought is a 4MP 2K. So is there a 5MP 2k or 4K? Specifically what is 2K versus 4K.
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4K is 4 times 2K
5MP is in between.
https://hometheater.vegas/what-do-the-1080p-2k-uhd-4k-and-8k-resolutions-mean/
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I submitted my support ticket to Reolink this afternoon and received a telephone call at 11:00 pm our time - probably late Saturday morning overseas somewhere. Victoria was excellent and patient as she walked me through the process to connect the camera to WiFi. I couldn't have done it without her on the other end of the call. None of that process was with the instructions included in the camera box. She also answered several of my questions on how to use the app and client software, and do the settings. Very pleased with the support.
Now to see what the camera can do.
Enjoy,
Paul
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My first Minnesota winter with a couple of battery operated Argus 2 cameras. Temp got down to 5°F, and they were all recording and reporting without problems. One thing that did stop working is that its too cold for the solar panel to recharge the battery, and that's a big issue. Batteries seem to last a couple of weeks without charging so I may need to bring them into the house to recharge.
Spec states operating temperature is -10°C to 55°C (14°F to 131°F). So it will need sunshine and warm enough temperature to recharge the battery.
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That's odd. I never knew cold weather affects the panels ability to charge. Just thought it needed sunshine or even a cloudy day to charge.
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More a problem with cold battery than cold solar panel.
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More a problem with cold battery than cold solar panel.
Just assumed that with todays technology that wouldn't be an issue. I wonder if Davis users in cold climates have the same problem.
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I sort of wonder too as my Argus 2 that is even shadowed half the day runs all winter if sun is out. It takes many days of heavy obscuration to knock it out.
But the panel should not be any trouble due to simply cold.
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This doesn't seem right to me because it seems too long, but I saw one of Reolink's support articles stating that it takes the solar panel 3-4 days to fully recharge a cameras battery if the camera is off or in standby mode and within working temperature/humidity standards. Mine doesn't have any problems keeping a full charge if the conditions are right.
How Long Does it Take to Fully Charge the Batteries for Reolink Battery-Powered Cameras
https://support.reolink.com/hc/en-us/articles/900000438403-How-Long-Does-it-Take-to-Fully-Charge-the-Batteries-for-Reolink-Battery-Powered-Cameras
Please note that the charging time for all Reolink Battery-Powered cameras is greatly affected by the charge environment temperature.
- Normally it will take about 4-5 hours to fully charge the battery-powered camera under environment temperature 10 ℃- 30 ℃
- It will take about 6-8 hours or more time to fully charge the battery-powered cameras under environment temperature 30 ℃- 45℃
- It will take about double of the time to fully charge the battery-powered camera under environment temperature 0 ℃- 10 ℃ than the normal environment temperature
- It will not charge the battery properly once the environment temperature below 0 ℃ or over 45 ℃
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Another question for those in the know. Just bought this.
https://reolink.com/product/rlc-811a/
Hopefully it will be here in time for xmas. Putting it 35 feet up on my antenna tower right by my Davis anny. Also have the injector and outdoor rated RJ45 on it's way. One thing I was reading about was lightning. Being in Florida we get our share. The antenna tower has been hit before. Actually took out my Weather Monitor 2 years back. Would mounting the camera to a piece of wood and then attaching that to the tower help in a strike to the tower. Didn't want to use wood but other then a piece of thick plastic I don't know what to use. I guess if I could find a small piece cypress that would work too. Or, would that camera become toast regardless of what I use to attach it with.
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I don't think it'll matter. High voltage will jump great distances just to get to your mast. A few inches of wood won't matter. It's all luck if it gets fried or not.
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I just got the Reolink RLC-410W. Anyone know how to set it up to use the same file name every time it FTP's an image to my server? I want it to overwrite the same file every time. My old Foscam could do this, but not seeing any option in the Reolink set up.
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Ocala, PaulMy:
Is the Reolink camera an IP, no need to send everything to a central server somewhere in the ether, type camera?
My Hikvisions had sort of a built in stream generator, all I needed to do to look at them was to use a browser to look at their IP address.
My one (lower res, very old) Axis is the same way, with perhaps a bit more guts built in with what appears to be a web site generator on board, with quite a lot of control, and again if the internet connection with the world were to drop, I can still see images and video from that camera, too.
I know the big selling point now for a lot of the cheapie cameras from the Big Box stores is to do motion analysis and allow you to check on the cat or back yard or whatever from anywhere in the world. But you must send vid streams to some unknown location to get that to happen.
Just curious as to what he Reolink cameras can do. Dale
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How to Access Reolink Product via Web Browsers
https://support.reolink.com/hc/en-us/articles/360003913793-How-to-Access-Reolink-Product-via-Web-Browsers
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Ocala, PaulMy:Is the Reolink camera an IP, no need to send everything to a central server somewhere in the ether, type camera?
Hi Dale,
I got the Argus 2 and this model is WiFi. I can view it from the Client program on PC or from the Relink App on phone or tablet.
Haven't figured out yet how to get the motion or surveillance to work. Then on to see what I can d with Sebecrec IPTimelapse.
Enjoy,
Paul
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Worachj and Paul:
Thanks for the info. I am going to try to update my cameras and toss all the cheaper stuff that requires the video to go through some proprietary server, and this looks like a reasonable option.
One Youtube discussion gave them a nice rating, while acknowledging if you want to spend megabucks you can get a better system, but this was good bang for the buck.
Thanks again.
(hey Worachj, I'm over east of you in Packer country in Eau Claire, WI) Dale
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I want to change some of my cams too. I have old Foscams. One is going bad.
Need better connections to the wifi
Dale-I was in EC yesterday. Made a FAST trip to pick something up for christmas. Just one of those crazy things. At least I had time to do it.
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I've only owned Reolink cameras and I've been happy with the three different versions I have (RLC-511w, RLC-810a & Argus 2). Their main use is to capture the critters wondering though my yard.
One thing I would be careful of is matching the capabilities that you want in a camera with the actual Reolink camera. They all act and do things a little bit different, from motion detection, app & Client options, image resolution, alerts, FTP etc. Everything can be very confusing so be careful what you purchase.
(Dale, grew up a Packer fan in a suburb of Milwaukee during the Lombardi era and went to school in La Crosse. I'm now rooting for the Vikings ... sigh. The Pack will win the super bowl this year if they have a healthy Rodgers).
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Maybe then the NFL will get their Rogers/Mahomes matchup
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@worachj,
I got the Argus 2 to see who is at front door and to capture motion for replay, and it was a pretty good Black Friday deal. I am having some support email with Reolink as I haven't seen any motion images nor playback.
The instruction manual I downloaded shows some different settings to my Client application and I have tried all the settings I've been able to see. Any quick suggestions?
Thanks,
Paul
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Paul;
Getting Email to work can be tricky but I love getting the alert with a picture. I had it working on a hotmail account but switched to gmail because they allow more Emails to be sent. Hotmail had a 300 daily limit, and gmail is over 500.
You have to make changes to the hotmail & gmail account to allow third party usage.
This is a important step to get Gmail to work.
https://support.reolink.com/hc/en-us/articles/360003525833-How-to-Allow-Less-Secure-Apps-to-Access-Your-G-mail-Account
Which email account are you trying to use?
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Pictures of my Gmail account.
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Thanks worachj,
Looks like I have some other issues... and maybe lack of basic understanding.
I get "Loading failed" when selecting Email and most of the other Settings menu options. Initially I thought it was because I didn't have a SD card installed but I added it about a week ago and no change.
Will need to dig further.
Enjoy,
Paul
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Seems like your camera is disconnecting from your network. To save battery power the camera will disconnect after no activity.
Try having the camera in Live View and not Playback mode and verify that on the left side panel that your camera is still connected. If if shows as connected, then keep hitting the retry button.
Just saw that the left side panel shows your camera as disconnected.
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I will get an 811 (I think) for Christmas to play with.
Let me be frustrated for a minute and people set me straight. We had IP type cameras with either built in web servers to show an image stream and be able to not only monitor the front yard (or for critters) or do an image grab, or save a video clip. Those were years ago. People used several different types of third party software to watch that stream and do for instance time lapse captures. I think one is Blue Iris. All this is whether or not you are on the web. What happened in the yard, stayed in the yard.
Now, it seems the big move is to have elcheapo cameras from Menards or Best Buy or Amazon that take a stream, send it to some cloud place, where their software can monitor for motion detection and a million other things that they, the company, deem important. You need to be on the internet to do it.
I have two HikVision cameras, one which will work with an old browser or their iMVS software to show the current video, and indeed do a capture or even a segment of action as a movie. Goodness knows if it is sending stuff to China without me knowing it (but that is another story about having some sort of outbound location software monitor which I wish was also available, for all sorts of stuff). Anyway all that seems to have vanished, unless this product line will let one do that. If I recall from reading the last few days, things like Blue Iris won't read the Reolink image stream, and you can't get frame captures to post to your weather page, nor get those neat time lapse videos automatically produced to upload or even upload to one's web page.
Am I wrong? Is this a step backwards, or doing ONLY as the big company wants us to do?
I'd think someone out there would still make a camera that worked with all the old software, and did the things that the users wanted.
Oh, whatever happened to HikVision? Was it really in China's back pocket and a sort of a security risk, or was that all hot air?
Dale
Oh, Chief David, you should have waved as you drove by!
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Drove past Menards HQ and went to a storage facility
800 Wisconsin St.
A Dew at Kwik Trip and home before traffic really got bad.
Bought a Ms. Pacman game for my wife.
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I haven't tried Blue Iris, but the camera software on my Asustor NAS will connect and control my camera (RLC-511w). So some third party software will still work.
Certain Reolink cameras will still work with Blue Iris, but not the battery operated ones.
https://reolink.com/blue-iris-ip-security-cameras/
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Night Video from my RLC-810a camera.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/5jwg8mii7uic3ay/2021_12_21%20-%20Three%20Deer%20Front%20Yard.mp4?dl=0
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Thanks for the real-user info.
That night shot you shared is very sharp and Is a great example of what the camera can do.
Thanks for that. Dale
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I've only owned Reolink cameras and I've been happy with the three different versions I have (RLC-511w, RLC-810a & Argus 2). Their main use is to capture the critters wondering though my yard.
One thing I would be careful of is matching the capabilities that you want in a camera with the actual Reolink camera. They all act and do things a little bit different, from motion detection, app & Client options, image resolution, alerts, FTP etc. Everything can be very confusing so be careful what you purchase.
(Dale, grew up a Packer fan in a suburb of Milwaukee during the Lombardi era and went to school in La Crosse. I'm now rooting for the Vikings ... sigh. The Pack will win the super bowl this year if they have a healthy Rodgers).
Gotta ask. How do you grow up a Pack fan during the Lombardi years and switch to the Vikings?
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Chief David:
I hope she doesn't read your posts!
I think I know where you were. And for Kwik Trips, there are so many here they far outnumber just about any other business. On the SE side of town we have three, yes three, within a 1/2 mile of each other. And go to a mile and I think there are now 8.
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@worachj,
I got the Argus 2 to see who is at front door and to capture motion for replay, and it was a pretty good Black Friday deal. I am having some support email with Reolink as I haven't seen any motion images nor playback.
The instruction manual I downloaded shows some different settings to my Client application and I have tried all the settings I've been able to see. Any quick suggestions?
Thanks,
Paul
I haven't tried the email notifs. Just went with the push. I will say their CS is very good. Have emailed back each time within a day.
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A long time hope of mine before I get brain rot is to have a camera mounted on my tower. I live in a heavily Oak tree woods, which were about 50' high when I moved here and now are 60 to 70' high. I had to trim some back and we dropped 7 last winter to keep them from overhanging the house, and were really encroaching on my ham radio tower.
The plan was to make some sort of box, run power to it, find some way to have a reasonably clear outlook to the west and watch, real time and via time lapse, incoming thunderstorms and sunsets, and if we ever get them again, aurora.
Now with some wireless cameras of good sensitivity and resolution, this seems still possible in the time I have (one never knows, does one?)
I have 60' of Rohm 65G and it is solid as a rock, but still don't like to be on it, and with my hand strength going, hire a young buck who like doing tree work with ropes and thinks this tower is like climbing a ladder.
My latest hiccough in the plan is my house windows need cleaning at least a couple times a year, with pollen and dust and wet surfaces with windy conditions collecting all sorts of stuff.
Unless I can come up with a wiper situation like the old Volvos had for their headlights, I may still be thwarted in having my eye on the sky.
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I will get an 811 (I think) for Christmas to play with.
Let me be frustrated for a minute and people set me straight. We had IP type cameras with either built in web servers to show an image stream and be able to not only monitor the front yard (or for critters) or do an image grab, or save a video clip. Those were years ago. People used several different types of third party software to watch that stream and do for instance time lapse captures. I think one is Blue Iris. All this is whether or not you are on the web. What happened in the yard, stayed in the yard.
Now, it seems the big move is to have elcheapo cameras from Menards or Best Buy or Amazon that take a stream, send it to some cloud place, where their software can monitor for motion detection and a million other things that they, the company, deem important. You need to be on the internet to do it.
I have two HikVision cameras, one which will work with an old browser or their iMVS software to show the current video, and indeed do a capture or even a segment of action as a movie. Goodness knows if it is sending stuff to China without me knowing it (but that is another story about having some sort of outbound location software monitor which I wish was also available, for all sorts of stuff). Anyway all that seems to have vanished, unless this product line will let one do that. If I recall from reading the last few days, things like Blue Iris won't read the Reolink image stream, and you can't get frame captures to post to your weather page, nor get those neat time lapse videos automatically produced to upload or even upload to one's web page.
Am I wrong? Is this a step backwards, or doing ONLY as the big company wants us to do?
I'd think someone out there would still make a camera that worked with all the old software, and did the things that the users wanted.
Oh, whatever happened to HikVision? Was it really in China's back pocket and a sort of a security risk, or was that all hot air?
Dale
Oh, Chief David, you should have waved as you drove by!
That 811 is on sale right now at Walmart for $83. Pretty good for a 4K with a 2 year warranty.
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I've only owned Reolink cameras and I've been happy with the three different versions I have (RLC-511w, RLC-810a & Argus 2). Their main use is to capture the critters wondering though my yard.
One thing I would be careful of is matching the capabilities that you want in a camera with the actual Reolink camera. They all act and do things a little bit different, from motion detection, app & Client options, image resolution, alerts, FTP etc. Everything can be very confusing so be careful what you purchase.
(Dale, grew up a Packer fan in a suburb of Milwaukee during the Lombardi era and went to school in La Crosse. I'm now rooting for the Vikings ... sigh. The Pack will win the super bowl this year if they have a healthy Rodgers).
Gotta ask. How do you grow up a Pack fan during the Lombardi years and switch to the Vikings?
Ya, my dad has disowned me :shock: . Just easier to follow the local sports team. I moved to Minnesota in 1982 when the Packers sucked, before Favre & Rodgers.
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A long time hope of mine before I get brain rot is to have a camera mounted on my tower. I live in a heavily Oak tree woods, which were about 50' high when I moved here and now are 60 to 70' high. I had to trim some back and we dropped 7 last winter to keep them from overhanging the house, and were really encroaching on my ham radio tower.
The plan was to make some sort of box, run power to it, find some way to have a reasonably clear outlook to the west and watch, real time and via time lapse, incoming thunderstorms and sunsets, and if we ever get them again, aurora.
Now with some wireless cameras of good sensitivity and resolution, this seems still possible in the time I have (one never knows, does one?)
I have 60' of Rohm 65G and it is solid as a rock, but still don't like to be on it, and with my hand strength going, hire a young buck who like doing tree work with ropes and thinks this tower is like climbing a ladder.
My latest hiccough in the plan is my house windows need cleaning at least a couple times a year, with pollen and dust and wet surfaces with windy conditions collecting all sorts of stuff.
Unless I can come up with a wiper situation like the old Volvos had for their headlights, I may still be thwarted in having my eye on the sky.
You seem like you have the same aspiration as me. Always wanted a cam on that tower to watch the storms roll in. Mine is supposed to be here on the 24th. Going to attempt to get it up to 35ft with a death grip on that tower. Putting the anny at 30 ft was nerve racking. Got the RJ45 and POE injector today. Will probably pick up a SD card tomorrow. That camera also has a time lapse feature. Looking forward to getting that set up.
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The one 4k that I can find on Walmart is the 810. $65, with 'good' reviews.
Is this substantially different from the 811?
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Replying to my own question: Even though I did a search for 811, I got nothing. then did search for 4k and found it. I guess I'm just not a good search string thinker.
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The problem with the Reolink cameras is that it won't let you name the file you are sending to an FTP server. It date stamps every file and the URL reference in HTML code needs to point to the same image file name. Has anyone found a camera that will do this? Basically, I want it to upload the same image name and overwrite the file on the FTP server each time, every 10 minutes.
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The problem with the Reolink cameras is that it won't let you name the file you are sending to an FTP server. It date stamps every file and the URL reference in HTML code needs to point to the same image file name. Has anyone found a camera that will do this? Basically, I want it to upload the same image name and overwrite the file on the FTP server each time, every 10 minutes.
There is a script that can rename the dated image file on your server to a fixed name. It is in the looong Hikvision thread Search Results (wxforum.net) (https://www.wxforum.net/index.php?action=search2).
Enjoy,
Paul
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Hi
There's some help here if you want to use Linux - I documented what I did when I did my Rasbperry Pi setup. You might be able to adjust it for your purposes. It's based on a Reolink IP Cam (RLC-511)
https://weather.net.nz/education/the-raspberry-pi-weather-stations/capturing-ip-camera-images-to-your-raspberry-pi
I produce a dated/time animation file and a jpgwebcam.jpg file to upload to my website (overwrites the last file created).
Here's the image:
https://www.huttweather.co.nz/pwsWD/image_popup.php?nr=wcam1
It's a great camera - I got the optical zoom feature so I could zoom in and avoid all the neighbours roofs! There is a bit of curvature on the horizon though which is the only dissapointing part, but I can live with it
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Its -7°F here this morning and my three battery operated Argus 2 cameras are all still working and recording, downloading and sending alerts.
But, and a big but is that the solar panel will not recharge their batteries unless the temperature is above 20°F. I had to bring one of them into the house and warm it up and recharge it. Luckily it was easy to reach and bring into the house.
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That is very strange that the solar panels won't put out voltage and current when cold.
I wonder if that has to do with the type of solar panel (if there are different types, I am not sure) because my ancient Rainwise Mark III both regular and long range panels will take a station with a marginal battery and give it enough boost when the sun hits them to let them work until maybe an hour after sundown in any temperature.
I will need to specifically do a diagnostics mode to see what the voltage is.
Dale
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GABBA
The information in the link on how to grab and IP camera image and send it you referenced in your last message is great.
While I just 'skimmed' through it, I did learn a lot already, and realize that the whole Rasp platform with the stuff provided is a really powerful setup.
I will study this more later and whether or not I'm bright enough at this stage of my life to bring this on line, it is EXACTLY what I would like to do.
I would be patting myself on the back if I'd been able to do the research and develop the code and sequence to do it reliably, but for now I'm pretty pleased others have done the work and were willing not only to share, but write the information in a way that is understandable. Thank you Dale
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Looks like my Argus 2 experiment has failed. I have it less than 20 feet from my modem/router. I get ok connection if I place it indoors in front of a window above the door, but no motion detection because it is behind glass. If I move it outside in front of that door window, less than 2 feet away, I can get motion detection, but the camera quickly loose connection and then won't reconnect. My WiFi is good throughout the house for all other devices. Reolink has been quite helpful but they say:
Thank you for your testing. I have understood the problem now. From your description. it seems that our camera can not meet the needs of this scene. I can not provide a better solution now. Terribly sorry for that.
They further say:
Are you willing to have a look at Wifi cameras like E series 510W, which do not use PIR detection? But the IR lights will reflect the glass and cause false alarms at night.
Are you willing to keep this camera by now?
Any thought on the E series 510W, or other suggestion for battery powered, motion detection and video recording?
Thanks,
Paul
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Hi Paul
You'll have no luck running a camera on IR at night behind glass. If you plan to do that without running the IR, watch for reflections. I had a setup like that and it turned out you could see half the inside of the house when the internal light was on!
Have you considered running a PoE camera? Something like the 510A, 810A, or 812A. You have to run a power cord to the wifi camera outside anyway, so why not run network and power in the same cable. Then you have a hard connection to the camera and no wifi issues.
Was there a reason you wanted to go down the battery route originally?
Cheers
Andrew
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20ft to the router shouldn’t be a problem. I wonder what’s going on there.
Found these router settings to be more effective for my Argus 2 cameras (I have 3).
Channel = Auto - Let the router decide which channel to use.
Channel Width = 40 MHz - Allows more data
If you can limit the wireless mode to n. (IEEE 802.11b/g/n)
Use WPA2-PSK for WIFI Security setting
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Paul the 2 Argus 3 Pro that I have connect just fine. Both are about 20--25ft from the router using 5G. Maybe try using the 2.4G channel. It has a longer range then the 5G.
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Maybe try using the 2.4G channel.
Thanks Dave, I know very little about network and settings, but it shows on my devices listing as WiFi 2.4G and I don't see any place to make changes on that.
Just strange that just walking with it through the door to outside and then it quickly looses connection.
I got a reply from Relink on other cameras and will be going through them. I like the Argus, just not suitable for my setup.
Enjoy,
Paul
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Is anyone using the Reolink Cams broadcasting them live to YouTube?
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Is anyone using the Reolink Cams broadcasting them live to YouTube?
No personal experience to share, but was curious and found these two links.
5 Steps to Stream IP Cameras to YouTube/FB & Set up RTSP URLs
https://reolink.com/stream-ip-camera-to-youtube/
Is Reolink Camera Compatible with Streaming on YouTube Live
https://support.reolink.com/hc/en-us/articles/360038791973-Is-Reolink-Camera-Compatible-with-Streaming-on-YouTube-Live
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Thanks! I've looked at those. Was wondering if anyone here went that route.
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Hi
I gave that one a go! If I remember correctly there is a 24 hour limit on the stream so it became a pain to reset everything up every day.
I did it using the Raspeberry Pi, and I documented what I did here:
https://weather.net.nz/education/the-raspberry-pi-weather-stations/use-your-raspberry-pi-to-stream-your-ip-camera-to-you-tube
There are versions of OBS for Windows or Mac if that is your flavour. I believe the screens and setup will be the same.
Yell out if you get stuck!
Cheers
Andrew
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Thanks Andrew.
I use OBS for my gaming streaming. I've got a Raspberry Pi laying around too. Curious about the 24 hour limit.
didn't think YouTube had a limit since i've seen other streams up for months on end.
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I like the Argus 2 but it was frustrating getting it up and running. But with Reolink support I am progressing.
The camera would connect if it was inside, but just a few feet outside and it would loose connection. I added another WiFi POD (previously provided by my internet service provider) and placed it close to where the Argus 2 is. I placed the camera outside but still very close to the door and POD and it now stays connected, at least for the past 24 hours. I will next move it a few feet higher and hope the connection still works.
On the Surveillance email issue, Reolink provide a link on how to set it up. I had the SMTP and port correct, but the password needs to be the Google 16-characters that you can obtain through GMail app. I now have this working.
Enjoy,
Paul
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I received my Duo camera and plugged it in. What they didn't tell you is that there are two separate streams, two cameras in one housing. It's not stitched together as a single image/stream.
I'm trying one of the Reolink Duo Cameras. I kind of like the idea of having a 150 degree span. The camera does a good job at aligning both channels and keeping the brightness between the two equal. I have two Sebec instances capturing each channel and then stitch them into a wide image on webpage.
You have to get used to the horizon distortion, because its a lot. Also the low light performance is pretty good.
(https://desertweather.com/DuoCam.jpg)
You can see live images on my cam page: https://desertweather.com/webcam.php (https://desertweather.com/webcam.php)
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Gave up screwing around trying to get the Nest Cam streaming on YouTube.
Got a Reolink RLC-410 5MP cam streaming to YouTube now 24/7 without much of a problem.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCmytbC1cnjoHlWJzH1Hj_w
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Gave up screwing around trying to get the Nest Cam streaming on YouTube.
Got a Reolink RLC-410 5MP cam streaming to YouTube now 24/7 without much of a problem.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCmytbC1cnjoHlWJzH1Hj_w
nice. night image looks good. Will have to look at it out tomorrow.
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Ocala, were you the one who tipped me off to the Reolink 811a cameras being on sale through WalMart?
I know it was around the Christmas holidays and maybe they were just trying to attract business, but want to eventually snab a couple more since these, for my purpose so far, are working well.
If it was you, did you just happen to see it, or is there some web site that lists good sales that I should be looking at for them sometime again?
Dale