How Much Does One Have To Spend To Get Better Quality Than Hikvision? :)

Michael, is that your order of value from highest to lowest, with Avigilon providing least relative value? Please clarify.

There are a plethora of Hikvision cameras on Shodan for you to log into to see the quality.  Let’s see Axis offer that feature.

Video quality...many companies are close to to same in that regard if you remove all other factors. However, if you spend more for Avigilon you are getting many nice features and they aren't really related to video quality.

I just installed a system with H4 hardware with analytics. I may not care for the look of the cameras that much but the mounting system was very slick and very easy to install. With almost every piece having a metal tether to having a nice accessory to slide a terminated cable through the rubber boot creating a seal. The exterior domes are tethered to the mount and all you do is twist lock in place, allowing you to then tighten the captive screws. There is also a WiFi accessory for plugging into the camera for quick aiming purposes so the camera can be powered on and installed without needing a tethered connection or needing a corporate WiFi connection hoping that you get signal. I personally use two way radios, but the feature is nice. There are other nice install features.

I've used many Dahua and Hikvision mounts and I won't say they are bad mounts. However, most of the hardware is stainless and not captive. Lets go screw hunting...hope the screws don't fall. Oh crap, one fell...through the lift and into...a pile of stones. I try so hard not to drop them, but every now and then. Captive screws are helpful but Hikvision and Dahua pick and choose when they are going to use them. Putting rubber grommets on the back side of the screw doesn't count. That being said, they could be worse and I have installed worse. They could also not have mounting brackets at all for their cameras.

Avigilon's object analytics that's built into the cameras is nice and works fairly well. It sure helps for exterior cameras against simply using pixel motion detection. Plus it attempts to learn over time. I understand that Avigilon is end to end and these features are really locked into working with the software...but when you try to do end to end with Dahua or Hikvision even with their analytics it doesn't even compare. Software is everything. 

Axis also has some nice cameras that you can't get from Hikvision or Dahua. There is value in that and I know by paying a little more, I trust that I have a greater chance of Axis not having a common exploit or have firmware issues. And if they happen to have these issues, they have great support. They have written a patch for a slight issue we were having. That was a one day turnaround. They also offer advanced replacement with minimal support time.

Now, if we are simply talking about value, I value some of the things I listed above as I install cameras, design systems, service systems, and sell systems. Will the customer care if it's easy to install and will they even know about the firmware issues or the hacking issues or...probably not and probably won't care. They value image quality. Most of the time, they don't even know how good or bad playback is until they really need it. Then they WILL always complain if it takes more than a few steps to playback and then export.

This is all why I look at all these things and assume risks in certain installs. I still continue to install Hikvision, but I am by no means a fanboy, and I certainly will never lock myself into only selling one manufacturer's product.

With Hanwha Wave offering support for onboard camera analytic integration of Hanwha cameras, this will be another value. They essentially marry good software with good hardware and then build upon that. I'm excited to see where that leads.

 #4, thanks for your first comment. Please disclose your affiliation in the future, since you are a rep for them.

Related: Struggling Speco OEMs Dahua [Tested]

Isnt Speco mostly just OEMing Dahua now?  

Haven’t you ever built your own computer, dorm loft, etc?  Truman seems to have taken a deep interest in it.  If you like painting your house, there is no sense in hiring a painter.