Cingular Go Phone: Q-See QSD2304L-320 4 Channel H.264 Pentaplex Network DVR w/Real-time Recording, Mobile Phone Surveillance & Pre-installed 320GB HDD Review

When I opened my photo studio in a traditional main-street storefront, I understood I needed good security, so I had a supervised alarm system professionally installed. But I was worrying about break-ins and smash and grabs -- it never occurred to me that my biggest threat would be vandalism.

It started about a month after I moved - first somebody shot my store window with a BB gun -- then a few days later, they threw two rocks through the window at 1:30 in the morning. The alarm went off and the cops arrived 90 seconds later, but the damage was done and I had a whopping bill from my glass company.

So I decided that the next time this happened, I would get the whole thing on video so I could ID the vandals and turn the info over to the police.I bought an QSD2340L-320 DVR from Amazon, along with four Q-See cameras, and a microphone for right outside the front door.

I have to say -- even though I am fairly technical, installation was a breeze. All the Q-SEE components came with everything required, so it literally was just a matter of plugging everything into the DVR, and it just worked the first time.

I learned a few things about video surveillance along the way. When I first put up the cameras, I had them aimed at my glass window surfaces, doors, etc. Then I realized that what I needed was the ability to make positive ID of faces of any vandals or burglers, so I repositioned the cameras so that all approaches to my storefront are captured on the cameras. The second thing I discovered was that cameras with IR illumination didn't like to be mounted behind glass -- glass windows reflect the IR back to the lens, completely obliterating the video at night. So I replaced one of the cameras with a model that doesn't have IR illuminators. On another camera, I unscrewed the front bezel and snipped the wire to the IR illuminator. Problem solved. As it turns out, there is plenty of light from the street lights to record good video at night, so I didn't really need IR illumination at all.

Finally, I learned that the focal length of the lens is critical -- because I wanted to cover a wide area, I needed wide angle lenses. Amazon isn't particularly good at listing the focal length of surveillance camera lenses in their descriptions, but when I went to Q-SEE's own site, I was able to find focal length specs for each camera they offer, and I ordered cameras with the widest possible lenses. At least one of Q-See's cameras comes with a standard "c-mount" lens, allowing you to fit a higher-end, wider lens if desired.

As for the DVR, I couldn't be happier. It came complete with everything I needed to get it up and running, including a well-written 70-page instruction manual. With the 320GB hard disk, you can record four cameras worth of video at high quality 24 hours a day, and you'll get two or three weeks of video recorded before the system starts erasing old video and replacing it with new. And if there are any events you want to archive, you can either offload them to a USB hard drive, or burn them to a DVD-R recorder. Nice.

I really like the various options there are for controlling the DVR -- there are front panel buttons, an IR remote, and a USB mouse. I hid the recorder away in a very remote and difficult to find location, and then used active USB extension cables to connect the mouse to the DVR. Next to the USB cable, I ran an S-video and audio cable, which connect to a Vizio flat-screen monitor. The result is that if I ever do experience a smash-and-grab, the crooks won't be able to find the DVR, so the evidence of their activities will be available to the police. The other good reason to mount the DVR remotely is that it is a little noisy -- far noisier than say, any of the computers in my studio.

The DVR comes with a standard composite video out, and an S-video out. The composite output gave good performance when connected to a high-quality Sony CRT monitor, but looked very fuzzy and contrasty on the Vizio LCD monitor. So I ordered a 25-foot S-video cable, and that improved both sharpness and contrast on the LCD display.

In theory, the DVR supports remote access over the internet. I've gotten close to getting it working, but so far, no joy. I'm somewhat experienced with these things, and I would rate the Q-SEE DVR's user interface and instructions in this area as among the most difficult to figure out of all the products I have used.

Fortunately, the rest of the unit is easy to use and figure out. If you have something you want to protect, this is an inexpensive and elegant solution. I also installed three different types of Q-SEE cameras and their microphone. All surpassed my expectations in terms of quality and performance. Highly recommended.

Pros:

1. Easy set up and operation for everything other than remote internet access.
2. High quality video and audio recording and live view.
3. Lots of input and output options for cameras, microphones, alarm system trigger connects, and back up media
4. Ability to monitor 4-cameras simultaneously, and instantly zoom any camera to full-screen

Cons:

1. Fan on DVR is very noisy -- not an issue though if you install the system in a secure remote location
2. I couldn't find a way to turn the audio on and off with the USB mouse -- apparently you must use the IR remote for this -- a problem when the DVR is mounted away from the control location
3. The only video outputs are composite and S-video -- I would like to see a standard computer video output as well.

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Product Description:
The new industry standard of H.264 Compression enables higher quality, lower bit rates, and new applications. This 4 Channel Pentaplex Digital Video Recorder records real-time videoon each channel into the pre-installed 320GB hard drive. It can simultaneously display live footage, record, playback, connect via network, and back-up without any recording loss. Connect this DVR to a television and view up to 4 cameras at the same time. With the RJ-45 Connection you can even monitor remotely through LAN or Internet IE Browser from anywhere in the world. H.264 technology provides a far more efficient algorithm for compressing video than any other compression method available. It supports dual video streams so you can record in a higher resolution but view over the internet at a lower resolution for faster images. Also supports mobile surveillance through cell phones with WinCE and 3G systems. Q-See-s Digital Video Recorders (DVRs) are designed to manage multiple cameras, and enable users to view, record and playback recorded video locally or over the Internet. This DVR can support up to 4 cameras, and can be integrated into your current security system. With Q-See, surveillance can be handled remotely - worldwide. For Product Questions contact Q-SEE: (877) 998-3440 or cs@dpsi-usa.com