I am seriously considering the turret type Hikvision cameras. I was wondering if anyone tried both the 3MP and 5MP models. I had noticed in the Dahua comparison between the 4MP and 3MP that the 3MP was better in low light. Wondering about the Hikvision? Also has anyone ever seen an image comparison between the two?
I am considering the Dahua. A side by side comparison would be great. Which Dahue is the best in the 2-5MP range. I might order one of each to test. Would like to down select to the best Hikvision and the best Dahua Turret models in 2-5MP range. I need 10 cameras so finding the best camera is important. My budget for 10 cameras is $5K. But if I can get a great one for less the leftover funds can buy a bunch of beer !!
I have just the Dahua starlight mini-dome overview camera with 3.6 mm lense on the garage but it can see in near total darkness to the end of the driveway (20 feet) with IR off (with just some porch lights 120ft & 140ft in either direction).
Likewise I have an Amcrest (not starlight) that can barely make out the bottom of a staircase (~16 feet) with IR on.
So my experience (so far) aligns with the "Dahua 2MP Starlight rocks" crowd.
Some specs below. The 3MP Hik is an Ultra-Low Light model, which is Hik's equivalent of Dahua's Starlight. So performance is about the same... it's just that for the extra MP you get, the image is virtually the same width as 2MP (128 pixels wider), it's just taller (456 pixels)... which isn't always helpful.
For the 5MP Hik, its minimum illumination is nowhere in the range of the Starlight/Ultra-Low Light models. IMO, if it's used in a low-light scenario, some tuning might yield OK static images, but any movement is almost guaranteed to be an unusable blurry mess.
