Subscriber Discussion

Why Would Dahua Release This Video With A Really Poor Install And A Professional Voiceover?

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Kyle Folger
May 27, 2017
IPVMU Certified

I was looking for some information on the Dahua multi-sensor camera and came across this video.

The very first shot of the camera I was looking for was an image of a really poor install. They do sell a back box for this camera. Does this represent the type of installer Dahua would like to have installing their products. Is the Cat cable even outdoor/UV rated? It doesn't appear to be. I laughed when I first watched this video and saw that. It's generally the kind of install we come and clean up.

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John Honovich
May 27, 2017
IPVM

Yes, I find that strange too. On the other hand, this is the same Dahua who when their CEO resigned, did not realize it was worth telling anyone, so nothing surprises me...

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U
Undisclosed #1
May 27, 2017

New promo video featuring some extremely new products, but incorporated with photos of test products from over a year ago featured in a way that should never have met the public eye.

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Kyle Folger
May 27, 2017
IPVMU Certified

I fully get that they are photos of test products. However, I have seen way too many installs that are not product tests installed in the exact same manner. The other day I saw the Ubiquiti G3 mounted on the soffits of a warehouse style building. When it came to routing the wire, they just drooped it over to a hole in the building. I'm sure it works, but it looks bad.

The video should simply be re-edited and uploaded again. You could have taken shots from a trade show or gave the impression that it wasn't designed to be professional. However, when you go through the time to have a professional sounding voice actor and 3D models and professional product images and then have the "test" images, it doesn't send the proper message. It's not going to stop me from using the product, but I was surprised to see this. If I had been editing the clip, those images wouldn't have made the final cut.

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Armando Perez
May 27, 2017
Hoosier Security and Security Owners Group • IPVMU Certified

Because anything that hikvision does Dahua has to do immediately afterwards in a rushed fashion to a questionable standard?

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Armando Perez
May 27, 2017
Hoosier Security and Security Owners Group • IPVMU Certified

What? You dont use sticky tape wire straps outside?

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UM
Undisclosed Manufacturer #2
May 27, 2017

Wow, that is bad. Hopefully it's their building and just mounted for testing. 

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Kyle Folger
May 27, 2017
IPVMU Certified

I don't know if anyone caught this as well. I would like to see the full shot of this.

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Armando Perez
May 27, 2017
Hoosier Security and Security Owners Group • IPVMU Certified

That appears to be the camera used to grab the night vision shot they used. You know the one that looks out at the horizon and implies the or on this camera goes on forever with no distance limit...

 

It's at 0:54

 

Unless you're talking about the mounting.

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Kyle Folger
May 27, 2017
IPVMU Certified

Sorry, I should have clarified that I was referring to the mounting. However, I do always try to catch the sky in all my installs j/k (added j/k for clarity). I like the fact that this camera outputs a 180 degree stitched view.

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JH
John Honovich
May 27, 2017
IPVM

The most confusing aspect to me of that camera is that its total video resolution of the entire multi-sensor array is 3.4MP:

That's a very low resolution and also narrow FoV for ~$1,000 camera.

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Armando Perez
May 27, 2017
Hoosier Security and Security Owners Group • IPVMU Certified

I imagine that similar to a fisheye the sensor resolution and real world (cropped) image or usable image are different.

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JH
John Honovich
May 27, 2017
IPVM

Yes, agreed but when you only start with 6MP total (technically 6.22MP), that's half the problem. Stitching is useful but if the stitching causing losing nearly 3MP, for most, it is not likely worth it.

Compare competitively where 8MP, 12MP, 20MP, etc. multi-imagers have been widespread for some time.

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Armando Perez
May 27, 2017
Hoosier Security and Security Owners Group • IPVMU Certified

Yeah, I wasn't saying it was good, just trying to explain, lol.

UM
Undisclosed Manufacturer #5
May 28, 2017

I don't understand losing half of the resolution. the Hanwha PNM-9020V has 4x 2MP sensors but is specified as 7.2MP due to sticking. Maybe it has something to do with the aspect ratio of each sensor. Hanwha camera has each sensor in a 9:16 ratio instead of 16:9 or 4:3

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Kyle Folger
May 27, 2017
IPVMU Certified

The only thing I could think of was that they were trying to create a seamless stitch between the sensors and lost pixels by doing so. They could have probably started with higher resolution individual sensors. Our goal in using this camera was only for general overview with a wide horizontal FoV.

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Brian Karas
May 27, 2017
IPVM

Just to round it out, there is also the claim of detecting abandoned objects:

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UM
Undisclosed Manufacturer #2
May 27, 2017

I spoke to a source at Dahua who said,

"That camera is installed on a temporary structure that will soon be replaced by a new, permanent, facility. When we shot that video the cameraman - who's not in the security industry - had no idea what a proper install looked like and got the wire in the shot. Later the installer noticed we'd included it in the video and gave us some well-deserved grief. Please thank the community at IPVM for paying such close attention to our videos."

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Kyle Folger
May 27, 2017
IPVMU Certified

The clip should have just been left out. I wasn't really paying that much attention to Dahua videos. I was using YouTube's google search and trying to find what the actual shot's from the camera perspective was and this video popped up. Then I noticed it was published by Dahua USA. I typed in "dahua multi sensor". 

I got the information I needed from the video, but in the back of my mind i was also thinking about how Dahua is really trying to make a larger presence in the US market. I also thought back to one of the other videos, "Discover the Dahua Difference." I honestly think one of the best Dahua videos was getting people to pronounce the name properly. Years ago when I hadn't heard of Dahua before, I pronounced it like many others, "Da-hue-a." That was until I searched to find the proper way to pronounce it.

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U
Undisclosed #3
May 27, 2017
IPVMU Certified

Years ago when I hadn't heard of Dahua before, I pronounced it like many others, "Da-hue-a." That was until I searched to find the proper way to pronounce it.

Yes, and as much as I hate to admit it, I'm still not fully rehabilitated myself, and tend to backslide into "Da-hoo-ya" after a few libations...  Its embarrassing.  

What's worse I have inadvertently spread my folly to unsuspecting end-users and pros alike; now I can only cringe when they parrot it back to me.

So, I made this image my PC screensaver two months ago:

Though after so many years of silently mis-pronouncing it, I think it will burn into my monitor before it burns into my mind.

 

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U
Undisclosed #4
May 28, 2017

Almost everyone I hear say the name of Dahua's largest competitor also says it wrong.

Hikvision: the first syllable is a long 'I' sound, not short like everyone pronounces it.

Phonetically, it's HIKEvision, not HICKvision

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Kyle Folger
May 28, 2017
IPVMU Certified

I wouldn't care if it was supposed to be pronounced HICKvision. I just don't think any company would want to go by that pronunciation and I have never went by that pronunciation but have heard it pronounced that way by many. 

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U
Undisclosed #3
May 28, 2017
IPVMU Certified

Almost everyone I hear say the name of Dahua's largest competitor also says it wrong.

I guess we're lucky Geutebrück is virtually unknown in the US.  Or maybe that's why...

U
Undisclosed #1
May 28, 2017

Let's admit it... both companies have absolutely TERRIBLE names, and the Dahua logo is absolutely nonsensical.

Alhua it is.

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U
Undisclosed #3
May 28, 2017
IPVMU Certified

True. Though there are a few unintended benefits as well.

Any slammer can talk about Axis or Sony without giving away the game.

But... if you hear him say he prefers "alhua" or "hick", you know what you're dealing with...

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JH
Jay Hobdy
May 28, 2017
IPVMU Certified

I guess i dont understand the benefit of this camera. For the cost of this camera, you could get 2 or 3 4mp, have higher resolution and still have money left over.

 

Is this more for keeping vms licenses down?

 

BTW I just found out the other day most Dahua NVRs can only support 1 camera on IVS....

UM
Undisclosed Manufacturer #5
May 28, 2017

Jay,

Not only licensing but it saves a bunch of money on labor. One cat6  instead of two or three. Depending on how hard it is to run cable, it could be half the cost or more. Aside from the cost to end user, it will reduce the time on a job by several hours potentially, freeing up a technician faster to do a service call, etc, or telling the customer you can finish a job days sooner than your competitor. Also, one IP address to manage and less potential points of failure and maintenence. If you have a storm and you need to rent a lift to wipe a camera dome off, it is one vs 2 or 3. I'm assuming this is true for this Dauha camera as it is for the Hanwha similar camera in which I'm basing these statements on.

JH
John Honovich
May 29, 2017
IPVM

#5, all of those points are applicable to multi-imager panoramics in general but the issue with the Dahua one is that its effective video resolution is just 3.4MP, which for 2017 standards, for a new camera, is low.

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Corbin Hambrick
Jun 05, 2017

counter point

 -multiple points of failure also create multiple points of redundancy albeit with less coverage

- if you need to rent a lift the price won't change if it's 1 camera or 3 (or 10).

- time saving can't be very much if all 3 cameras were to go on same pole

So a few bucks less in cable, a few bucks less in labor and a few bucks less in licenses if that's an issue.

Yes a savings none-the-less but at what cost?  So not a no-brainer here...still would take some analyzing to determine the right solution given that camera was one of the options.

JH
John Honovich
Jun 19, 2017
IPVM

Dahua has fixed the installation problem, via the magic of editing:

Here is the new video:

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Armando Perez
Jun 19, 2017
Hoosier Security and Security Owners Group • IPVMU Certified

photoshop for the win!

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