Hi folks! I thought I remembered seeing a thread about this, but it looks like it was almost five years ago, unless I didn't search correctly (entirely possible).

Does anyone here have experience with IP security cameras? I'm tasked with setting up a system for my family's church. They need three doors and a couple other areas monitored.

I'd prefer to find a solution that records to software on a PC instead of a separate DVR solution. Most of the DVRs I've seen require that the cameras be plugged directly into them, and I need to have them on the LAN due to how the buildings are wired. Plus, I'd just prefer it because there's already a computer on the premises that can act as the DVR.

I've been looking at different cameras until my eyes fell out. There's some really terrible cams out there, and some others that are quite nice. In general, we're looking for cams that are sub $300, preferably much less than that.

The two lines I'm looking at are the Foscams and some cameras from a company called Hikvision (which is one of the worst company names I've ever heard - though they're called Swann in US stores like Costco).

The primary advantage of the Foscam cameras is their flexibility. They have outdoor and indoor models. Wireless, wired, and POE models. And most of all they're the least expensive I can find for something that can record to a PC.

The Hikvision/Swann cameras, on the other hand, are far superior in overall quality (hardware and results). The video quality is fantastic, the bullet cameras are half the size of the Foscams, and the mounting brackets are supposedly much sturdier and better designed. These cameras are roughly half again (or double) the price of the Foscams.

The other big difference appears to be in how I record the data from these cameras. The Foscams have a pretty easy solution: an application called Blue Iris that installs on any old PC and talks to the cameras. I can set it up to record when motion is detected or just record around the clock. The Hikvision cameras, on the other hand, are harder to figure out. I can't tell what (if anything) I can use to record the video feeds from these cameras. I've found great instructions on how to record directly to a NAS, which is fantastic but apparently it will only work on something like a Synology NAS or one that can do NFS. I'm not sure if the church is going to be able to lay out that much for this setup, as much as I'd like them to do it.

The only other software I've found is something called XProtect from a company called Milestone. I like the look of it, but it looks like their software is sold through distributors, which I really don't understand. I can't buy it directly through them, I have to go with some local one-off security company. It's bizarre. They have a free version that seems like it'll work pretty well, but then I can't tell if I have to pay extra for mobile device functionality. Overall I'm turned off by this software.

Does anyone have other cams they like, and software DVRs?

The end goal is this: three to six IP cameras recording to a computer in the building, with the ability to monitor remotely (from a web browser or smartphone). I'm not wedded to any particular company at the moment.


*edit*
I just stumbled across some comments that seem to indicate the Hikvision cameras can work with Blue Iris, so that's a strong possibility at the moment, if I can't convince these folks to get a NAS. I'd still like to hear if anyone here has experience with IP security cameras (specifically IP cams).

I should mention that I looked at DropCam, but it's prohibitively expensive when you get up to multiple cameras. You get the benefit of off-site storage, but that storage is extremely expensive, and you can't keep it for more than either a week or a month, depending on how much you pay them. I'd prefer to store the content locally and back up to a cloud backup service or something.