Q-See QSC48030 High Resolution Weatherproof CCD Camera w/80ft of Night Vision (Color)
by Digital Peripheral Solutions
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Our Price: $150.00 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: Digital Camera See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
Buy this product at amazon.co.uk
for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Q-See QSC48030 High Resolution Weatherproof CCD Camera w/80ft of Night Vision (Color)
Customer Review: comparison of low and mid-range day/night q-see camera line
Summary: 4 Stars
Update 1-20-2011 This camera is still running strong - the only periodic maintenance is cleaning the lens on the front monthly. For the entry level camera it mounted easily and has performed for years with just simple windex used to clean the glass front lens. While the K540 and K550 have better picture quality and better night vision, this works quite well for my 50' front yard. I did finally spray the area around the camera with raid before cleaning the lens and that helped with the spider web issue - all of my IR cameras have a disproportionally large amount of spiders!
Update 12-20-2008: This camera has been running flawlessly except for mother nature. It seems that spiders like the infrared light at night (I'm not an insect person but I know some insects can see IR light). As a result they tend to make webs over the lit area at night. The spider being so close to the camera looks like you are being robbed by king kong to your DVR and thus makes all night tapes of spider web weaving which are fun to watch in 16X speed but the reality is you must clean the lens once a month to maintain good night vision. Daytime it is not a problem.
Update 5-15-2008: This particular camera has been running for about 2 months now and faces the street where we have had a drug problem. Last night it caught the evicted drug dealer breaking into his old house to retreive forgotten property when the police escorted him out the first time. Since our neighborhood watch had been warned that the home should be vacant I noticed the movement across the street, called 911, and 2 minutes later the former problem was cuffed and stuffed into the squadcar for criminal trespass, possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute, violation of a restraining order, violation of an eviction order, and breaking and entering. We'll see him again in 5-10 years. Does the camera work at 100 feet in pitch black conditions? Yes. But a human pair of eyes was needed to resolve a man at night. The sony can see it w/o the help.
Camera 1 Bad-guys 0
I bought both the bottom of the Q-see day/night camera line (this camera) and their mid-range unit (the 540 line resolution, 65 foot range for the night IR leds model Q-See QSB520SR Weatherproof Color High-Res Day/Night Camera Kit (540TVL) with 65-Feet Night Vision) I have them both hooked to a Q-see DVR recorder and there is a difference when I compare their pictures side by side on my DVR display. I hope these notes help people pick which one is best for their intended use.
This model is selling for $130 while the next step up listed above is $230 right now, however the prices vary almost daily
Pros ($130)
Cheapest day/night camera in q-see product lineup
LEDS provide a wide area of lighting that matches the lens field of view - this is well designed as some cameras I used have a problem witht the LEDS overshooting the field of view of the camera.
Comes with a really long cable (100 feet+) and it runs power plus video together
wide field of view lens covers a broad area without any fisheye distortion. For me this is about a 50' x 50' front yard
(cable is longer on this model than their more expensive model by about an extra 45 feet)
Cons ($130)
Lacks any zoom or focus control for the lens (present on the $230 version and up - the K540 and K550 which are really nice night cams)
not as good of a mounting bracket as the $230 version
washed out picture compared to the Sony image sensor in the $230 camera - it uses the super had sensor designed for security use, this is more of a camcorder 1/3" sensor which is good considering most of these cameras use 1/4" sensors. I think the difference is just that the K540 and 550 cameras have better quality (the super had sony sensors) which makes side by side comparisons evident.
more picture noise at night compared to the Sony image sensor camera.
Less resolution than the $230 camera - picture is not as sharp, but that is not important because the recorder only records at CIF resolution, so you don't get the 540 lines anyways!
Summary -
I'm really nitpicking here - these are all small differences that separate the low end, mid range, and their high end camera (which amazon did not carry when I purchased them - the high end is just the mid range with higher power LEDS and a higher price tag in the $300's). All of them do what they say - they give you a picture day or night. Unlike other day/night cameras these provide color at night if enough light is present or black/white if using the LEDs. I prefer the color from the Sony image sensor, and I like the adjustable lens on the sony based camera. Is it worth another $100? That depends. Both cameras work well and do what they say - it's only when you put their pictures side by side that the quality difference is noticable.
I think both cameras have a use which is why I bought one of each and put them in different locations. If the tradeoff is quality vs. having more views of a building, then the less expensive camera wins because you can cover more doors and gates using them. On the other hand, if you already have Sony cameras in your security system, the extra $100 will make the q-see sony based mid-range model blend into your existing system better. Having a choice and knowing what you get or give up is important which is why we post reviews. I'm happy with both of my cameras in their applications and I won't change them out. If I buy another camera, I would consider it's use to decide which model to buy. The zoom lens on the $230 model q-see camera is nice for a long driveway, but a wide view of a close porch would probably best be served with one of the $130 models. I chose to run the 100 foot cable over the roof of my house and enter through the back to the DVR system. NOTE none of the q-see cams have a microphone, yet their dvrs have an audio in for each video channel - the reason for this is that there are no laws broken recording video, but the minute you add audio you violate wiretapping laws in some states. You can counter this often with a sign conspicuously posted that states this area is under video and audio surveilance - now you are in the clear legally.
Customer Review: Great camera for night and day
Summary: 4 Stars
I initially bought a 4 pack camera kit by Swann Pc Dvr Camera Kit 4CH, which includes 4 cameras, 100 feet of cable, 9V power supplies, and the PCI DVR card (which Q-See sells the same model PCI card).
I was really disappointed with the night vision of the small Swann cameras.
Here's a shot from the Swann camera during the day:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/makotosan/3406335770/
And a shot from the same angle with the Q-See QAC48030
http://www.flickr.com/photos/makotosan/3406336236/
Notice the color difference, and the wider angle with the Q-See.
Here's the Swann at night, you can see why I'm disappointed with the Swann and happy with the Q-See. The night-vision range is very short, good for about 10 feet, and the camera is about 20 feet from the driveway:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/makotosan/3405524361/
Here's the same shot from the Q-See, which is advertised at 100ft:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/makotosan/3405524535/
The light in the bottom left is on with both photos, it's just the slightly different position and wider angle of the Q-see that makes it visible.
The cable that came with it was about 60' and was a bit too short to reach my PC that is the DVR server. Fortunately, the 100' cables I had from the Swann kit allowed me to extend it.
Also, the BNC connector on the camera is thick, requires at least a 1\2" hole, so be preparted to drill a big hole for the wiring.
The manual (if you want to call it that) had no mounting instructions. Took me a minute to figure out how the pieces went together to mount it.
It also comes with no mounting screws so be prepared to get those on your own. Fortunately, I had some screws and anchors laying around that worked.
Overall, for the price, I am very pleased. MUCH better night vision compared to cheaper cameras, the color is also much better even at night.
I plan on switching out some of my other out-door Swann cameras with better cameras such as this one in the near future.
Customer Review: Good camera for the money
Summary: 4 Stars
I bought 4 of the QSC48030 cameras about a year ago to use with the Q-See 4-input pci card and there are good and not so good points.
Pros -
(1) All cameras have worked continuously for a year without any failures.
(2) The cameras use very little electricity so a good battery backup unit can keep them going for a very long time.
(3) The infrared night vision works fairly well out to about 80 feet
(4) The picture quality in the daylight hours and partial daylight is very good. At night you have the normal black and white look as expected.
Cons -
(1) Q-See customer service will respond back to an inquiry but don't ask them any real questions ... they may tell you anything.
(2) The cameras have no focus mechanism and so everything is not in sharp focus and a person needs to be fairly close to the camera to get a clear picture that the police could use.
(3) At night, you may see some concentric whitish circles on the outside edges (of the image on the computer) which makes it almost impossible to make out any details of anything in that area. That made a couple of the cameras lose about one third of the coverage. The Customer Service people indicated that condition is normal with no explanation as to why two of the cameras did not have the same problem. As I said, they may just tell you anything. I found that the problem is a buildup of a haze and oily substance on the inside of the protective glass across the lens and LED's. I unscrewed the cover (had to use a auto filter wrench on 3 of them) and cleaned the inside and outside of the glass and used compressed air to blow off the lint. That fixed the problem. So why didn't the factory "experts" know about that??
(4) The cables that come with the cameras are very fragile and I would suggest you buy your own to save the hassle of having to redo the work of running cables in the attic.
Overall for a budget priced system that gives a fairly good output these cameras work fine but if you want to be able to focus and pan, and get a sharp picture, you will need to pay a few hundred more for each camera.
Customer Review: Works best in ambient light
Summary: 4 Stars
I bought one of these last year, and just bought another. While the quality has gone down I am still going to give this camera 4 stars. I did some experimenting because I was disappointed with the image quality of the camera I just purchased, but I have found that the image quality changes with the light situation. If you have a dark/no light situation or only a few path lights in the area then the night image is going to be grainy and you will get ghosting around the image and see only about 40 feet. If you have ambient light - say a street light on the other side of a tree, or a nearly full moon then the image will be crystal clear and you should get the full distance out of it.
Like another reviewer, I have found that spiders build their webs on the camera. I go out from time to time with a swiffer taped to a broom handle and dust off the camera. If the spider builds a web you won't see anything except the web since the night camera will focus on it. It also trips the motion detect so you could end up with a lot of useless files if you are recording.
Installation was easy. I didn't want to do anything more then bore through a wall so I did what the power company did with their wires and I ran the cord along the siding with holders. Then I went through the wall and sealed it. The camera mount attaches with screws, the cords are easy to figure out.
Recommended.
Customer Review: Sharp image. Bright at night. Some glare from the infrared LEDs but a bargain.
Summary: 4 Stars
I have been experimenting with a few low-end security cameras. This is the most expensive camera I have tried, and also the best. It has a very sharp image during the day, and is also surprisingly sharp at night. At night it suffers some from glare on the lens caused by the numerous infrared LEDs. But still, the LEDs provide a lot of illumination which overall is a good thing. This camera is definitely a step up from the SVAT CV31 Hi-Res Outdoor CCD camera. It is both significantly sharper during the day, and significantly brighter at night. Also, it does not suffer from the pinkish cast I sometimes see in the SVAT image during the day. The Q-See is also a more compact design and feels more solid overall. I am especially amazed by the bright color images this camera provides just before dark and just after first light. After dark, the camera switches to a black and white image. One minor gripe about this camera is that the mounting hardware can make it hard to hang the camera from the eves or the rafters in a manner that is less obtrusive. I figured out an improvised solution after some experimentation, but it was not as easy or quick as I would have liked. I have also tried various X-10 cameras and those really compare poorly to this camera. Unless you are really strapped for cash, go with this camera over other cheaper cameras and you will probably not be disappointed.