Alternatives To Dahua and Hikvision 2020

By IPVM Team, Published Nov 09, 2020, 03:59pm EST (Info+)

[UPDATE: see most recent version - Top Alternatives to Dahua and Hikvision]

With the NDAA ban in effect and human rights sanctions against Dahua and Hikvision, one of the most common questions IPVM subscribers ask is what alternatives to those companies for low-cost offerings.

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We asked integrators, with 200 respondents answering:

For low cost, what manufacturer, if any, is the best alternative to Dahua and Hikvision? Why?

Inside this note, we:

  • Show the top 4 options picked by integrators
  • Which options have gained and lost
  • Dozens of integrator comments explaining who they picked
  • Show the honorable mentions

Top ***************

**** ************* ******** **** **** *% of *** ****:

  • ****** *** ***** ****** ** ~**%,
  • **** *** ******* ** ~*%
  • ******* ** *%.

**** ********* ******* (**** **** **%), while ****** *** *********. ******* ***** **** ***** ************ *******.

***** **** ***** ***********, * ***** segment ** *********** (~**%) **** **** did *** **** **** ************ ** use ** **** **** ****** *** not ******* ** *** ***-**** *****.

Hanwha ** **********

* ******* ** *********** **** ****** was ***** **** *********** ** *** cost *****/********* ****, ** **** **% in ****. *********** ********** ********* ******'* low-cost******* * ********** *************.

  • "* ****** **** *** *** **** products ******* ** ******. **** ****** have * ***** ****** ********* ** cover *** ****** ***** ***** ******* sets *** *** *** ** ** cameras ********** ** ****, ******** ***."
  • "** *** ******'* * ****** *******. They *** ***** *********** ** *** low-cost ******* ************* *** ***** *** quality *** ******* ** ******."
  • "****** - ****** ******* ****, *********** pricing, **** ******* *******."
  • "****** ***** ** **** * ****** cost ********* ***** ***** **** ***** L ******, *** **'* ********* ** near ********** ** ******* ****** ** price **** ***** *** *** *** involved."
  • "******-*******. ***** ****** ******** ******* *** a ***** ***** *** ***** ***** and ** *** ** * **** they *** *** **** *********. **** work **** ***** ***** *** *** offer ***** *** **** *** ***** a *** ** ********* *** ** not **** *********** ******** **** *** interface." [****: ****** ** *** *** 100% ****-*********. *** ******* ********* ************ *******]
  • "*** **** ** *** ************* ** are ***** ******. ** ***** * bit **** **** ********* *** * bit **** **** ******** *** ***** the ***** ** **** ** *** customers."
  • "******. **** ******* ** ** ********** price ***** ** ***** * *** L ****** *******. ** ** * "fair *****"."
  • "******, ***** ****. ******* ** ********** to ****, ** * ***** ***** point, *** **'* *** **** ********* for ***** **** **** ****. ***** products *** ***** *******."
  • "** **** **** ******. **** *** not ****** *** ****** ** ***** but **** **** ******* * ******* brand *** **."
  • "****** * ******, *** ** **** price/quality *****, **** *** * ******. Moreover * ***** ** ******** *** a **** **** ***** ******* *** RMAs"
  • "* **** **** ****** ** *****. They **** * **** ******* ** products *** ****** **** * ******** for **** ***** ***** ******."
  • "******, **** **** ******* *** *** cost ***** ******** ** *** ***** large ************* ** *** ********, ** our *******."
  • "******. **** ******* **** ***** *** field *******."
  • "****** - *********** ****** *** * full ******* **** ******* ****"
  • "****** ** ******** *** ******* ** terms ** ***** *** *******."
  • "******. ****** ***** ***** *** ***********."
  • "****** *** **** ** ** ** for ******* *** ***** ****."
  • "* ***** ****** *** * ****** offering ****** *** ***** *** **** are ********** ******"

Axis **** *************

********* *** **** ********* ************* ***** 2018, **** **% ** *%. **** commented **** **** *** *** ****** "low-cost" ******** ** ********* *** *****, but **** ****** (********** *) **** competitive.

  • "***** ** **** ********* ** *** federal **********, *** ********** *** **** an ***** *** * *****. * don't ** *** ****. * **** Axis *** ** ** ** ***** competitive, * **** **** **** ** M ****** *******."
  • "**** *** **** ******* *** * good ***********. ***** * ***** *** can ***** **** * ****** **** price ***** *** ****** ***********."
  • "**** *-****** ** ** *** **** as **'** **. ** ***** ************ is ***** ******* ****, *** ******** a ***** *** *****."
  • "**** * ******. **** **** * wide ********* ** *********** ****** **** factors *** ***** ******* ********* *******."
  • "**** ********* ****. *** ***** *** still ****." [****:**** *** ************ ********* ********, *** *** ******** ** ***** available *** *** **** **** *******.]

****** ********* **** **** ****** ** not *** ** ******* ** ***** and ** **** *****-****** **** ****** as ***** ***********.

  • "** **** ******* **** **** *** several ******* *** *** ** **** use **** *** ** * ******** won't *** *** ******* ** ********* we **** **** ******* **** ********** so ** ***'* **** ** ******* them ** *** **** **** *****'* an ***** ** *** ******* *********."
  • "**** **** ****. ** *** **** is *** **** ********* ***** ** the ******** **** ** ***** *** be * **** ***."
  • "** *** **** *** ******** *** we ***** *** * ****** ********* product **** *** ** ***** *** lines. ** *** **** ******* *** customers ***** ***** ********."
  • "**** ** *** **** *** **** reasons (***********, ****** *********** ****** *** range, **********) *** **** *** ***** is *** ****, **** *** **** expensive."

Uniview ** ********

******* ***** ** ******** ** *** with **** ** ~*%, ** **** 7% ** ****.

  • "*******, ** ** *** ******* ** price, *** **** *** **** ** terms ** ******* ******* *** ********. We **** ********* ** ******** * real ****** ****** ** ******* *********."
  • "******* - *** * **** ********* line ** ****** *** **** ****"
  • "*******. ***** **** ** *** ****** after ***** *** *********"
  • "******* ** **** ***** **** ** be **** ******* *** ****** *******."
  • "******* : ***** ** ** ***** solutuions , *** ****** *** **** good *******"
  • "*******. ******* **** ***********, **** *******, good ***** *******, ****** *** **** price ********* **** **** ***** *** Hik"
  • "******* ************* ****** *** *** ** the **** ******** ********."

Vivotek ** *************

********* ************ ******* ********* *************, **** <5% ********* ******* ** **** ** 7% ** ****, ***** ** **** and *******. **** *** ******** *********** were **** ***** *********.

  • "******* ** *** ** ** ** it ***** ** ** *** ***** side ** *** ********* ********** ****** with *********, *** ******* ***. **** may **** ************ ** ***** *** Hikvision"
  • "*******- *** **** ** *****, *********** cost, **** *********, **** **** *******."
  • "*******. ***** ** **** **** *** have **** *********** *******"
  • "*******, ******* ** * ****** ****** than *** *** *** **** *** still ** *** ********"
  • "*******. * **** **** ****** ***** them **** ********* *** *** ****."
  • "*******, ***** *** ****** ***** **** been * ****** ************* ******** *** they *** ***** * ***** ****** for *** **** ******. **** ***'* work ** *** ********* (****** ** fine) ** **** ** ******* ********. Have ** **** **** ** *** clear **** ******** **** *******."

Honorable ********

* *** ***** ************* **** ********* more **** ****, **************** ********,*********,*******, *** *** ******************.

Dahua / ******** ***** ****** ****** **** **** ****** ******

*** **** *****, ***** *** ********* still ****** *** *****'* ******-**** ****-****** option. ** ***** *** **** *** sanctions, *** ********* **** ******* ** ~50% ****** ****, *** **** *** challenged ** **** ** ***, ****, for *******,********* *** ******** ********** ** *******.

*******, *** ********* *** ***** ********* across *** ******* ***** *** ***** the ********* *** *** ** ********** as **** **** ** ******* ******, they *** ***** ***** ******* *** buyers ******* *** **** ********.

Comments (32)

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Buddy Mason

11/09/20 09:31pm

Big fan of OpenEye here! Great team to work with. We recently closed 177 Bank locations and they jumped on their concerns immediately to help us win it.

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Jason Crist

IPVMU Certified | In reply to Buddy Mason | 02/25/21 11:43am

We have had good success with their NDAA compliant product as well. Integration with Feenics is so simple and solid.

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Steve Stowe

11/09/20 10:12pm

Thanks for the update!

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Undisclosed End User #1

11/09/20 11:06pm

This is very welcome and timely information, but for a 4K outdoor application I don’t see any well-regarded vendors at the low end price point except Uniview. If I was already prepared to buy Axis or Hanwha (or Vivotek for that matter), I wouldn’t even consider Dahua/Hik. Dahua and Hik occupy the low end, that’s how I see them. So it’s hard to think of Axis/et al as “alternatives,” at least for 4K outdoor models. Am I missing something?

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Ethan Ace

IPVM | In reply to Undisclosed End User #1 | 11/10/20 04:29am

You aren't wrong. Most manufacturers outside of Dahua/Hik/Uniview do not offer low cost 4K cameras. Hanwha sells them only in their higher cost P/X series, but not the Q/L. Axis 4K starts near $1,000 (see our test Axis 4K Camera Shootout 2019), as do Avigilon and Bosch.

That being said, 4K is much less common than 1080p and 4MP, so these manufacturers are more focused on these resolutions. I would expect lower cost 4K to come at some point, but it's for sure been slow coming.

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Corbin Hambrick

In reply to Undisclosed End User #1 | 07/13/21 03:20pm

I would like to know what is driving the need for a "low end 4K" camera? Wouldn't a comparably priced high quality 1080p camera offer better results?

Am I wrong in thinking that there is a limited use case for a "low end 4K" camera? I would think: Limited budget client with a need for wider coverage area where there is very good lighting and/or lighting control but a need to zoom in to an area a bit during any investigation. ...but then again maybe two 1080p cameras would handle this just as well or even better at maybe a slightly higher price.

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Undisclosed Manufacturer #5

In reply to Undisclosed End User #1 | 11/12/21 08:45pm

Those $250 4K turrets that plague the market are snake oil. If you don't believe me, perhaps IPVM has or will in the future have a shootout against cheap 4K turrets and 4/5MP "mid-cost" cameras like Hanwha Q series or Vivotek, etc.

I'm betting they will be about the same price, but the cheap 4K turrets will have no overall utility better than the 5MP cameras. While the definition will be slightly better in the 4K turret, that pretty irrelevant benefit will be outweighed by poor WDR, low light, and color accuracy performance. This is true when you compare a high-quality 1080P camera with the cheap 4MP turrets that plague the industry. The price cut comes by using low-quality imaging sensors and optics. It's the weakest link in the chain premise.

What is missing is a good quality 4K camera in $400 - $500 price range. Those cheap 4K turrets are simply a marketing scheme like back in the analog days when 520 TVL was "better" than 480 TVL. As IPVM has pointed out countless times in tests and research papers, that resolution is one of the most exploited specifications.

4K cameras are best utilized to replace multiple analog or 1080P cameras to cover a large area. Second best is to get higher PPF for objects at longer distances while still maintaining a relatively wide field of view. The $1000 price tag of a quality 4K camera is still a major value if they are being scoped properly.

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Kris Tibbitts

11/10/20 04:19am

Anyone have an alternative to a camera with 5 mp, person and vehicle recognition, sd card capable (don't technically need an NVR), two way audio, flashing or solid illumination LED, siren and capability to view on an Echo Show or Fire TV at around $117? I get to sell these for $180 (pretty much price protected at that by the distributors public prices) and customers get what they expect out of any camera, useful alerts to their phone. Oh, and I can get a doorbell and wireless chime that integrate in the same app? None of these alternatives come close to that. I would loooove an alternative, but I just do not see that happening.

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Steve Stowe

In reply to Kris Tibbitts | 11/11/20 12:11am

What camera does that?

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Kris Tibbitts

In reply to Steve Stowe | 11/11/20 06:24am

Montavue (Dahua) MTT5102-AIAD. They are out of stock right now so they don't show on the website. Should be back in around October. They also have the flood lights that take an SD card and works with Echo Show and Fire TV. They do have the Smart Motion cameras in stock. They can only record audio and don't have the illumination LED. But they will still give accurate person/vehicle only notifications.

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Kris Tibbitts

In reply to Steve Stowe | 01/05/21 05:19am

They have actually replaced it for an 8mp now.

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Undisclosed Manufacturer #2

11/10/20 02:11pm

is the 5% number a typo?

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Ethan Ace

IPVM | In reply to Undisclosed Manufacturer #2 | 11/10/20 02:36pm

Do you mean this line?

Four manufacturers received more than 5% of the vote:

Can you be more specific as to why you'd think it's a typo?

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Undisclosed Manufacturer #2

In reply to Ethan Ace | 11/10/20 02:48pm

Does that mean that 95% responded with unique companies not 1 of which made it above .35% ? (if vivo is 7% 7% of 5% is .35%)

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John Honovich

IPVM | In reply to Undisclosed Manufacturer #2 | 11/11/20 12:02am

No, it means each of the 4 received over 5% of the total vote each. If Vivotek got .35 of 200 votes, it would imply they got 7/10th of one person, right?

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Undisclosed End User #3

11/10/20 02:27pm

We use a mix of Axis and Vivotek from a system management side the Axis cams M series wins fast firmware upgrades and the Axis tools allow you to schedule upgrades and do them in a batch or one at a time with 1 min downtime. Vivotek can take up to 15 min to upgrade and when you are mandated to have 24 7 recording this is an issue.

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David Liu

In reply to Undisclosed End User #3 | 11/10/20 06:39pm

Hello Undisclosed End User #3,

Thanks for the information. Could you share with us which specific VIVOTEK model(s) you use that take up to 15 min to upgrade? This is definitely not VIVOTEK standard and we will look into it immediately. Thank you very much!

David Liu

President of VIVOTEK USA Inc.

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Blake Murphy

11/15/20 09:54pm

Disheartening that we (LILIN) did not make the list of alternative suppliers. I know we could be more proactive with IPVM however I still thought some installers would know that LILIN supply a great deal of Taiwanese made, NDAA compliant products, including non-Hisilicon NVR's. Yes I am an employee LILIN

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John Honovich

IPVM | In reply to Blake Murphy | 11/15/20 11:05pm

I know we could be more proactive with IPVM

These are picks of integrators. We are reporting what the votes are. We tested Lilin this summer with mixed results but again that's not a factor in this list.

I've said this many times, I will say it again. Taiwan companies like Lilin, Vivotek, Geovision, etc. need to have more feet on the street locally, presence at distribution, etc. They greatly underinvest in sales and marketing.

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Blake Murphy

In reply to John Honovich | 11/16/20 12:04am

Hi John,

You are always fair in your presentation of editorial. Yes this is a member pole & as such it is our responsibility to get our name on members lips. It all comes down to the choices of where (available) marketing budget is spent & which expo's/shows we present at. Hopefully we will create a bit more of an impression on the industry in the next few years having just celebrated our 40th year.

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Corbin Hambrick

In reply to Blake Murphy | 07/13/21 03:26pm

Blake you might think about investing more time here on IPVM...offering to host something informative about your company/products, etc. Responding to more posts WITH INFORMATIVE INFO/VALUE and mention your company/product.

Side note as a primarily residential installer with a focus on Control4 automation we were introduced to Lilin through Control4, and have tried a couple of your products...but nothing marketing or product wise pulled us away from Axis......yet.

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Blake Murphy

In reply to Corbin Hambrick | 07/13/21 11:41pm

Hi Corbin, This past year has seen our head office add some more content & participate a bit more with IPVM. I will challenge our other branches to be more involved.

Axis are a hard competitor to beat with good products on many levels. I can only hope that LILIN's development re-twig's your interest & the marketing reaches you at the right time.LILIN are often first to market with products (Onvif support, 4K, 120fps, first to release 60M Full HD Ipcam & more). It's always the question of where to put R&D resources & marketing for any company. Hopefully we will provide the right solution at the right tie to grab you.

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Michael Miller

In reply to Blake Murphy | 07/14/21 12:06am

60M Full HD Ipcam

60M as in 60Megapixel?

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Undisclosed #4

IPVMU Certified | In reply to Michael Miller | 07/14/21 10:12am

60M as in 60Megapixel?

60M as in 60MetersIR.

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Jason Crist

IPVMU Certified | In reply to Blake Murphy | 02/25/21 11:45am

Never heard of you. This was a survey so apparently it many of us have.

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Blake Murphy

In reply to Jason Crist | 02/25/21 10:15pm

HI Jason, Un/fortunately we do not make the headlines as often as others do. I am an Australian representative. We have a wide range of functions, integrations & develop ahead of the competition. Please let me provide our US office contact details for your convenience; Address: 11836 Clark St, Arcadia, CA 91006, United StatesPhone: +1 626-930-1000

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Corbin Hambrick

In reply to Blake Murphy | 07/13/21 03:27pm

Get your US people on here and have them participate.

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Tim Warnock

07/13/21 07:29pm

Any opinions on Speco as an NDAA compliant alternative for HD-TVI installs? Use to use them in the analog days and they had a solid offering. I am looking for a good NDAA compliant HD-TVI solution to replace Hikvision's "TurboHD" products (HD-TVI).

NOTICE: This comment has been moved to its own discussion: Any Opinions On Speco As An NDAA Compliant Alternative?

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Jason Crist

IPVMU Certified | In reply to Tim Warnock | 07/13/21 07:47pm

I’ve used them in the past and will look at them again in the event that we sell that level of product. We’ve been using OpenEye for a more cost effective offering to our premium/enterprise

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Eric Taylor

Pelco Inc. | 07/15/21 01:38pm

Pelco has a new Value Series of cameras that we just released this month. They have solid image quality at an affordable price, and make a great alternative to Hikvision and Dahua. Both NDAA and TAA compliant. They are available at the larger distributors.

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Undisclosed Manufacturer #2

11/13/21 02:25am
What seems to be lost in this digital age obsessed with pixel count are the fundamentals of light. Requardless of the sensors, be it cmos, ccd, film, or the human eye. It takes time and area to "read" the light. The signal you get is based on the size of that pixel and the lens collecting the light on it. A larger physical sensor with the same pixel count can read in lower light and finish capturing the image faster. There are some good general web pages on light capture and some on how silly manufactures got quoting how good their cameras were but the fine print reveled the lens to make it happen to be $10,000 What would be nice to have is a chart of the 4k cameras and their ratings, vs price and sensor size at the same focal length lens. With minor differences for extream lens coatings or poor sensors, a good graph should be possible that would allow people to understand and buy the right camera. Sensors have improved, No doubt, but that should show as an industry trend accross brands. Otherwise my android phone with a 20mp camera should best the older SLR with a Full Frame Sensor. If you want good shutter speed in low light you need a large pixel, get 12million of those and you have a 1"-2" sensor! Not the fractional sizes found in lower end cameras.
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Undisclosed Manufacturer #2

11/13/21 02:25am
What seems to be lost in this digital age obsessed with pixel count are the fundamentals of light. Requardless of the sensors, be it cmos, ccd, film, or the human eye. It takes time and area to "read" the light. The signal you get is based on the size of that pixel and the lens collecting the light on it. A larger physical sensor with the same pixel count can read in lower light and finish capturing the image faster. There are some good general web pages on light capture and some on how silly manufactures got quoting how good their cameras were but the fine print reveled the lens to make it happen to be $10,000 What would be nice to have is a chart of the 4k cameras and their ratings, vs price and sensor size at the same focal length lens. With minor differences for extream lens coatings or poor sensors, a good graph should be possible that would allow people to understand and buy the right camera. Sensors have improved, No doubt, but that should show as an industry trend accross brands. Otherwise my android phone with a 20mp camera should best the older SLR with a Full Frame Sensor. If you want good shutter speed in low light you need a large pixel, get 12million of those and you have a 1"-2" sensor! Not the fractional sizes found in lower end cameras.
Agree
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Funny
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