Looking for another Axis camera

[JohnnyC]

I am looking to replace a fixed IP network camera on my property. Currently it is a Panasonic BL-C131A which is low end BUT served very well during the past years. The Panasonic camera is an indoor camera, but mounted in a fabricated protective housing and is working great outdoors.

I am looking for a fixed megapixel camera good in low light and produces a great image. There is very little moving activity in the area where the new camera will be mounted, but when there is activity it is can mean trouble as we had everything from trespassers to bears (yes bears) roaming the area . The area of view is a long but fairly narrow parking area in a commerical zone.

I swore my next camera was going to be a high-end Mobotix, but it would be an overkill for the area under watch for my next camera. I recently bought an Axis Q1755 for a different area of my property where there is very high activity, higher lighting levels and it FULLY meets my expectations, but will not perform well in very low light where my next camera is needed. Also the bells and whistles of the Q1755 are not needed for my next camera.

As I was looking at the Axis website for ideas I noticed they just released the Axis P1346 fixed camera which is a 3 mp 1080p HDTV camera. It is rated to .6 lux color and .08 b/w min which is MUCh better than the Q1755 in low light. This new camera fits my needs to the "T". Also the price ($1,160) usd) is much less than the Q1755. They plan to release the "-E" outdoor package soon, but I can't wait until 2Q10. I am ready to make a purchase today.

*** What is stopping me? This is my question: Currently the Axis P1346 is an indoor camera. I think I can shove it into an Axis T92A20 Protective Housing as I have done for my Q1755, but not sure if it will fit since there is no information that tells me if it will work. Axis will release the P1346-E outdoor package soon and the picture of the housing looks different than the T92A.

Aside from the Protective Housing issue I mentioned, do any of the Axis experts on this forum know of other differences between the indoor versus outdoor camera models, specifically the "-E" models and non-E models?

I could call Axis, but it is the weekend and I would like to make a purchase today.

Thanks in advance and sorry for any typos as my typing sucks (I am an old fart).

John
New Jersey

[JohnnyC]

One more note: Since I am looking for a new camera, I expect the Chinese will respond with links to their camera/manufacturer/retail websites along with their propaganda as this happened to me in the past. I expect I may get emails too since I know several have my personal email address which I was stupid to give (all done in the past - live and learn).

So, let me say this -> I am not interested in Chinese cameras. I am interest in QUALITY and from camera manufacturers with a PROVEN track record.

John
New Jersey

[JohnnyC]

As per Axis, the T92A20 outdoor protective housing will work (don't know why I did not see it the first time I viewed the details).

Anyway I just purchased the Axis P1346 and T92A20 from Amazon.com. Amazon had the cheapest price for the Axis P1346 and the price spread was about $200 USD between all websites viewed.

The P1346 should fit my needs perfectly! Glad to see they got a 3.0 mp camera in their line of IP cameras. If the picture in H.264 is as FLAWLESS as my Axis Q1755, it's well worth it. I'm also glad I threw a 2 tb drive in my PC last week to replace my 1 tb drive.

I'm still mystified about Axis's P1346-E which has not been released yet . What is different between the P1346 and P1346-E? We know the "-E" means outdoors, but the non-E version inside the T92A series housing will be the ticket for outdoors too.

John
New Jersey

[buellwinkle]

So what it will end up costing after you buy an Axis outdoor enclosure and software about what a Mobotix M12D-SEC 3MP camera will cost that is already an outdoor camera and has 2 way audio, built in PIR motion detection (much more realiable at night and outdoors than video motion detection), 2 seperate sensors and lenses for much better night vision, software is free and it writes directly to a NAS, the Axis has to send it's images to a PC for processing. i just hate cameras for surveillence that require a PC, with the Mobotix, I can turn the PC off and it's just the camera and a 1TB NAS from WD for $169.

Mobotix claim is that thay are the largest seller of megapixel cameras. They are made in Germany and very well made. Operating temps go down to -30C and the enclosures are built pretty tough with no moving parts and they do a good job of hiding wires and connectors.

Seperate outdoor enclosures can be a pain. You typically have to wire them for ventelation and heating and use a lot more electricity than the camera that is inside. That may not be an issue to you but I put a UPS behind my PoE switch and running a couple of cameras and a NAS on a cheap UPS for hours in a power outage is a plus in my book.

Also, I wasn't happy with Axis tech supports response to my question last week on correcting for a green color cast. They said that because I bought an indoor camera and I'm using it outdoors, it's not going work right. Hmm, sloppy answer, that says I shouldn't buy any Axis indoor camera and expect it to do well outdoors and the P1346 is an indoor camera.

[JohnnyC]

buellwinkle - You raise very good questions and points. At the time I complimented your Mobotix M12D-SEC 3mp camera, my AXIS Q1755 purchase had already been placed and I was waiting for delivery. There is absolutely no question Mobotix is of high quality. I did a lot of reading after our last discussion on it. As a matter of fact I save the night and day images of the pool area for comparisons. I did swear that my next camera would be a Mobotix.

The cost of the Axis P1346 is $1,168.98 and the T92A20 protective housing is $453.27. Shipping and handling is $8.61. No tax since this is coming from out of state. The grand total is about the cost of a Mobotix M12D-SEC 3 mp camera. Just to note, the T92A20 comes with a PoE midspan and heater. My Q1755 is mounted inside a T92A20 and the enclosure is easy to work with.

I run a total of 9 cameras (with a few in reserve) from different areas of my property. Some areas have high and fast moving road traffic while other areas are dark and dead. Some cameras record 24x7 while other cameras record on a triggered events only. Some areas under surveillance require high frame rates on recordings while other areas can do well while recording 5 to 10 fps. All recordings and video are managed locally on a high end PC that I built.

I fully understand the capabilities of the Mobotix and I do have a perfect "spot" on my property for a Mobotix when time comes (maybe my next camera purchase). Just so happens the Axis P1346 will fit better in place of an older camera that it will replace than a Mobotix.

As for power, I have a commercial generator on-site. There wil be a delay of power switchover when compared to an UPS, but I can live with it. I'm not the Bank of America where every image counts.

When I was researching the Q1755 and after addending ISC East in New York City last October, I spoke (not write) to AXIS's tech support several times. They were helpful and told me what was in the pipe-line for new products. So, I did not have a bad experience as you did.

If you followed my posts since the day I joined this forum which was not long ago, I mentioned I was a Panasonic guy. Panasonic is OK, but after I purchased their latest H.264 megapixel camera (bb-hcm735a) I was not happy. The image produced unacceptable artifacts and I could not record h.264 to the SD card. This was only a few of the issues I had. Since then, I turned to Axis. I bought the Q1755 HDTV camera and the picture is ABSOLUTELY FLAWLESS in any setting and resolution. I have now jumped the fence to Axis.

I will also say I had my share of cheap Chinese IP and analog cameras too. I know you know my position on the cheap junk.

Anyway, when it comes time to buy a Mobotix, I will be picking your brain with specfic questions and as I said, I do have a PERFECT spot for a Mobotix on my property.

Have a nice evening and weekend.

John
New Jersey

p.s. - Sorry about any typos as my typing sucks and I hate to proofread.

[JohnnyC]

bullwinkle, I lied.... I just rechecked my amazon.com auto-confirmation email and total shipping I mentioned for $8.61 was only for the camera. The T92A20 protective housing is an additional $12.66. Grand total is $1,630.86.


I'll be eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for the next few months.


John
New Jersey

[buellwinkle]

Neither of those are cheap cameras. If you want an inexpensive 3 MP camera, let me know. I bought an Arecont AV3100DN and a 4-10mm Arecont lens for evaluation purposes. It has good image quality, IR cutoff filter and good night vision. I want $450 for it if you are interested. I've used it for a few hours in my office. It would need an Arecont enclosure for outside which runs about $200.

[itsokrelax]

[buellwinkle]

I believe that only applies to CCD. Also, by having two sensors for different light levels, you minimize the need to auto-iris.

[PCRoger]

How is Mobotix for remote access, remote w/ PDA?

Axis has a free Windows Mobile app that I can view the cameras with.

thanks

PCRoger.

[JohnnyC]

Just got the P1346 camera in late afternoon. I quickly threw it on my network, configured it, and just started to play with the camera. All I can say is WOW!!! The picture is PERFECT in all resolutions and settings. At 3MP at 20 fps it looks like a movie (very fluid). Obviously when switched to HDTV IP video, it streams at 30 fps but lesser than 3 mp (I think at 2 mp?). Anyway, I can't tell the difference in picture quality for my indoor testing between 3 MP and HDTV. The picture quality between MJPEG and H.264 look the same in a large room (I'll test outdoors on Saturday). There is a slight lag (NOT choppy) in H.264 between moving objects in front of the camera and while looking at the live image on the screen at super high resolution. In MJPEG mode at 3MP, there is NO lag at all and appears to stream like 30 fps as I already stated.

Just from a few preliminary tests, the Axis P1346 will run with my Axis Q1755, if not better. The only downfall with the P1346 is it has manual focus and a few other minor things that the Q1755 does have. Other than that, this camera is has the PERFECT picture and nothing less. Also this camera is so small compared to my other cameras.

I'll spend an hour or two on Saturday playing with the camera before mounting it the T92A20 protective housing and throwing it outside.


John
New Jersey