Looking for Security/Trail Camera Options

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  • thperez1972

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    Because of issues with some delivery companies, almost exclusively FedEx, I'm looking for options for a security or trail camera to monitor the end of my driveway. The driveway is 400 feet so something that requires a plug is not feasible. I tried an inexpensive trail camera but it had some issues. I'm pretty sure the advertised trigger time was artificially low. And it seems to have crapped out, no longer capturing any video. I don't have a set budget for this but I'd prefer to not pay $200 for $100 worth of performance. Another option would be a battery/solar powered security camera like the one below. But at $140-170 for the solar powered configuration with a black silicone cover to keep it somewhat hidden. Does anyone have any suggestions or ideas? I have not checked the wifi strength that far from the house but a directional antennae may be a possibility. Although I'd prefer something that did not require wifi.

    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0786XGM8M/ref=dp_prsubs_1
    61BgGdkhsUL._SL1000_.jpg
     

    bowhtr1

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    Get a decent Trail cam that has a power jack. Make or buy a external battery pack. With it being that close to your house it would not be hard to change batteries every month. I would not go solar. Very hard and in some case's impossible to hide. Reconyx make some great cameras for security but the cost is up there. You could get Spartan Gocam to get pictures to your phone or computer as they are taken. I have 5 spartan Gocams and with the cheap battery packs I make last about 4 months. I currently have two moultrie for security at my house. The batteries last over 3 months and get thousands of pictures. I have them on 3 shot burst to insure a good picture.

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    thperez1972

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    No, battery changes and card swaps aren't an issue. I looked at a Reconyx and they are a bit (a lot) over what I'm looking to pay. Because of the location (no in a remote area) I'm not looking for an instant notification. I don't mind a more passive approach, seeing what happened after it happened rather than when it happened. The "problem" is with what seems to be a recent explosion in Chinese electronics availability, the market is filled with electronics that look good on paper. And there's a lot of brands so it's tough to find one that's reliable at a reasonable price. I have been looking at a couple of Browning models, the Spec Ops Advantage and the Dark Ops Pro XD. Both come in around the $200 mark, the top end of what I would consider reasonable considering the circumstances.
     

    AustinBR

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    Will FedEx not drive up your driveway and deliver to your front door?

    Have you considered lockers or possibly a mailbox service at a place like a UPS store?

    What types of problems are you having with FedEx? Is it the drivers or is it people stealing packages?
     

    bowhtr1

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    The spec ops extreme or advantage would be great. I have two of the special ops extreme cams that have fantastic video. Not the best for pictures. The dark ops pro xd is not worth the price. I returned the one i bought. The Stealth ds4k would be a good choice. Great pictures in the picture only mode. Great video also. I have 2 of them. The pic/video mode takes just ok pictures. In that mode the pictures are just frames from the videos so the megapixels are low.

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    thperez1972

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    Will FedEx not drive up your driveway and deliver to your front door?

    Have you considered lockers or possibly a mailbox service at a place like a UPS store?

    What types of problems are you having with FedEx? Is it the drivers or is it people stealing packages?

    It's the drivers. I've driven up to see the FedEx guy leaving the driveway but no packages were dropped off and there were no pickups scheduled. The official reason was a package was on the list but had inadvertently gotten left off the truck and the driver didn't realize it until he was at the location. In another incident, a package of promotional items for my wife's business was showing as delivered but was not at the location. We called and checked with the neighbors and looked all around the property with negative results. I called FedEx and instituted a trace. This was on a Tuesday and we needed the items for Friday so time was an issue. On Wednesday, the item showed up in the middle of the driveway about 25 feet from the road. I went down the the FedEx office and spoke to someone there. He pulled the records from that day and at the end of the driver's shift, about 4 packages with addresses within about a mile radius were marked as delivered within a span of a minute. Now I drive fast but I doubt I could manage that. When the drivers end their shift, their handheld device alerts them to packages that had not been delivered and asks them what they want to do with those packages, mark as delivered, mark as undelivered, stuff like that. I would guess rather than admit he didn't deliver them (or as the guy at the FedEx office stated, failing with honor), he just marked them as delivered and figured he would drop them off the next day.

    The spec ops extreme or advantage would be great. I have two of the special ops extreme cams that have fantastic video. Not the best for pictures. The dark ops pro xd is not worth the price. I returned the one i bought. The Stealth ds4k would be a good choice. Great pictures in the picture only mode. Great video also. I have 2 of them. The pic/video mode takes just ok pictures. In that mode the pictures are just frames from the videos so the megapixels are low.

    I'm more interested in video. How does the 4k video from the stealth compare to the 1080P video from the spec ops?
     

    AustinBR

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    Interesting. It seems like not ordering things with FedEx would be a lot cheaper and easier than fiddling with a camera. I personally try to use UPS for everything.

    If you want quality video, you could get a 500 ft extension cord for about 60 bucks and then bury it and set up a camera that is full-powered all the time.
     

    thperez1972

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    The spec ops extreme or advantage would be great. I have two of the special ops extreme cams that have fantastic video. Not the best for pictures. The dark ops pro xd is not worth the price. I returned the one i bought. The Stealth ds4k would be a good choice. Great pictures in the picture only mode. Great video also. I have 2 of them. The pic/video mode takes just ok pictures. In that mode the pictures are just frames from the videos so the megapixels are low.

    Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

    One thing I noticed looking at the spec ops and the stealth, the stealth is 4k but at 15 frames per second. Their 1080p is 30 fps. The spec ops has 1080p at 60 fps. In my case, the higher frame rate may win out. And the trigger time for video is also varied. A website called TrailCamPro seems to be pretty thorough with their testing. The video trigger speed of the stealth for video is 1.36 s. A lot can go by in 1-1/3 sec for my use. The video trigger speed of the spec ops for video is 0.46 s. I thing the spec ops may be my front runner for now.
     

    thperez1972

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    Dec 28, 2015
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    Interesting. It seems like not ordering things with FedEx would be a lot cheaper and easier than fiddling with a camera. I personally try to use UPS for everything.

    If you want quality video, you could get a 500 ft extension cord for about 60 bucks and then bury it and set up a camera that is full-powered all the time.

    Some companies don't give you the option or they have a contract with FedEx. I stay away from them when I can.

    I thought about an extension cord idea. Due to voltage drop, the smallest gauge wire I could run to get 110 volts at the end would be 8/2 with a ground and that seems to start out at about $1 a foot.
     

    bowhtr1

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    It's the drivers. I've driven up to see the FedEx guy leaving the driveway but no packages were dropped off and there were no pickups scheduled. The official reason was a package was on the list but had inadvertently gotten left off the truck and the driver didn't realize it until he was at the location. In another incident, a package of promotional items for my wife's business was showing as delivered but was not at the location. We called and checked with the neighbors and looked all around the property with negative results. I called FedEx and instituted a trace. This was on a Tuesday and we needed the items for Friday so time was an issue. On Wednesday, the item showed up in the middle of the driveway about 25 feet from the road. I went down the the FedEx office and spoke to someone there. He pulled the records from that day and at the end of the driver's shift, about 4 packages with addresses within about a mile radius were marked as delivered within a span of a minute. Now I drive fast but I doubt I could manage that. When the drivers end their shift, their handheld device alerts them to packages that had not been delivered and asks them what they want to do with those packages, mark as delivered, mark as undelivered, stuff like that. I would guess rather than admit he didn't deliver them (or as the guy at the FedEx office stated, failing with honor), he just marked them as delivered and figured he would drop them off the next day.



    I'm more interested in video. How does the 4k video from the stealth compare to the 1080P video from the spec ops?
    Daytime the spec ops is the best. At night the Stealth is better.

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