2017 RANKING & REVIEWS
TOP RANKING BEST CCTV SYSTEMS
2017 Guide: Keeping Your Home Safe with Home CCTV Systems
The average cost of a home in 2016 settled upward of $350,000. That is not even accounting for the valuables and your precious family that resides inside a home. Don’t you want to ensure that your family and home is kept safe and secure, even when you are not there?
It may seem impossible, with your thoughts drifting to hiring a security staff to monitor the premises while you are away, but it doesn’t need to come to that.
With a home CCTV camera, you can keep an eye on what is happening, even when you are not there.
Whether you want to check in on teenage children who spend an hour or two by themselves before you get home from work, keep an eye on your house while vacationing, or make sure the new family pet hasn’t torn through the garbage yet, a CCTV camera for home will allow you to keep watch.
Award Emblem: Top 6 Best CCTV Systems & Cameras
With a do-it-yourself attitude sweeping through home improvement, many are turning to DIY security systems. Home CCTV kits are all-encompassing systems that allow you to keep an eye on your property, without hiring an outside company.
You can install the camera CCTV and link it to Wi-Fi to get the access you need.
The trick nowadays is to pick a CCTV camera from the growing list of CCTV camera kits. More models are flooding the market every month, which makes choosing one difficult.
When looking at CCTV camera kits, you likely have questions running through your mind, including:
- What is a home CCTV camera?
- What are some of the best CCTV cameras?
- Where can you buy a camera CCTV?
- What should you look for in a CCTV camera for home?
- Are CCTV kits very expensive?
Throughout this 2017 guide, we will try to answer these questions and then some. We will explain what a CCTV camera system is and what you should look for when buying a CCTV camera. Finally, we will offer a detailed review of the best CCTV cameras for your home.
See Also: Best Home Surveillance Cameras | Ranking | Best Video Surveillance Systems
Advisory HQ’s List of the Top 6 Best CCTV Systems
List is sorted alphabetically (click any of the CCTV Kits below to go directly to the detailed review section for that home CCTV):
- Homeboy
- Icontrol Networks Piper NV
- Nest Cam
- Nest Labs Nest Cam Outdoors
- Samsung SmartCam PT
- SkyBell HD Wi-Fi Video Doorbell
Top 6 Best Home CCTV Systems | Brief Comparison & Ranking
Top Home CCTV Systems | Advanced Features | Video Quality | Price |
| Homeboy | Built-in siren | 640 x 480 | $149 |
| Icontrol Networks Piper NV | Sound, temperature & light sensors, night vision, built-in siren | 1080hp | $243.99 |
| Nest Cam | Two-way audio, sound & motion detection, night vision | 1080hp | $199 |
| Nest Labs Nest Cam Outdoor | Outdoor capability, magnetic mount for easy installation | 1080hp | $183 |
| Samsung SmartCam PT | Two-way audio, motion & sound alerts, night vision | 1080hp | $169 |
| SkyBell HD Wi-Fi Video Doorbell | Motion alerts, free video storage | 1080hp | $199 |
Table: Top 6 Best Home CCTV | Above list is sorted alphabetically
Detailed Overview: What Is a CCTV Camera System?
If you’re still reading this article, you likely know how important it is to keep a watchful eye on your home and family to ensure their safety. You may have heard your friends, family, colleagues, or media talk about CCTV kits, but do you know what they do?
Image Source: AES CCTV
CCTV stands for closed-circuit television, making a CCTV camera a TV system that is monitored for safety and surveillance purposes. Though CCTV systems were often thought of as expensive, and only for businesses, times are changing. Now, you can get a home CCTV camera to install and monitor on your own, instead of signing up for a costly service like ADT.
CCTV camera kits are now readily available from a number of companies, and most are easy to install and use. These kits are usually a build-your-own model, and you can select from numerous cameras to build your own unique system.
How would you like a bit more peace of mind while you’re away? What once was only a luxury for wealthy business owners and professional buildings, a CCTV camera system is now easy to install in your own home.
Detailed Overview: What to Look for in Home CCTV Kits
With so many different DIY home CCTV systems out there, it is important to know what to look for. Sure, you want a camera that won’t break the budget and lets you keep an eye on your home, but cameras for CCTV systems vary greatly in quality.
It is important to choose a camera within your price range that also has the features you need. When you are trying to find the best CCTV cameras, consider the following home CCTV camera features:
- Price: You will want to be sure to have a budget in mind when shopping for a home CCTV camera. Keep in mind the quality of your system can vary greatly by price.
- Power Connectivity: Most home CCTV systems run on Wi-Fi; however, you can find some that run on 3G/4G modems.
- Video Type: Some cameras offer you a live feed access, where you can peek in on your home at any time, while others will only record when motion has been triggered.
- Alerts: Some home CCTV kits will push alerts to your smart phone when they predict movement or sound. This is a great feature to have.
- Video Quality: Video quality can vary greatly by model. Most have 720p, but certain models can offer up to 1080p quality. Note that the higher quality your home CCTV camera is, the more bandwidth you will need.
- App: You will want to make sure that your camera is either compatible with your phone, or that you can access video via a secure website.
- Storage Type & Capacity: There are two main types of storage – cloud storage and local storage. Cloud storage often lets you save more, but you will usually need to pay a subscription fee.
- Field of View: This refers to the area that your CCTV camera for home can see. 180 degrees is generally the largest you will find, and this fisheye lens is considered the best.
As you can see, CCTV systems come in all shapes and sizes. It is important to select one that has good video quality, remote access, and that fits in your budget.
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Detailed Review – Top Ranking CCTV Systems
Below, please find the detailed review of each CCTV camera on our list of best CCTV cameras. We have highlighted some of the factors that allowed these home CCTV kits to score so highly in our selection ranking.
Homeboy Review
Homeboy offers a CCTV camera that bucks the usual trends. There are no live stream capabilities, so if you want to check in on your kids or pets regularly, other CCTV systems would be a better fit for you.
However, Homeboy offers a long-lasting battery, which allows this little camera to be placed or mounted anywhere indoors. The home CCTV camera is not HD quality, streaming in 640 x 480, but there is night vision capability.
You will get motion-activated push and email alerts to your phone. These will inform you when someone is moving about the house. It takes about 500 milliseconds from the time the camera senses motion to the time it starts recording the action.
Bottom Line
If you are tight on funds, the Homeboy CCTV camera might be a good option for you. While it doesn’t have live streaming or HD video quality, it is fairly priced and can last months on a single battery charge.
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Icontrol Networks Piper NV Review
The Icontrol Networks Piper NV is an all-in-one home CCTV system with 1080p video quality that gives you a variety of options.
This home CCTV system takes a piecemeal approach. You can get the hub, sensors, cameras, and deadbolts, among others. This is nice because it allows you to choose only what you need or can afford, with the ability to build up your system later.
What makes this one of the best home CCTV systems, aside from the easy 2-minute installation, is the litany of features it comes with. This is the most expensive of the CCTV systems on our list, but you will have access to sound, temperature, and light sensors, plus night vision and built-in sirens.
Bottom Line
Overall, the Icontrol Networks Piper NV is one of the easier home CCTV systems to install. The piecemeal approach allows you to choose only what you need, though it can mean more upfront costs than other systems sold as CCTV kits.
Related: Top Home Security Systems | Ranking | Best Wireless Security Systems for Home (Reviews)
Nest Cam Review
The Nest Cam is a good choice for an indoor CCTV camera. The camera offers 1080p video quality, which is in line with other top-notch CCTV systems out there on the market.
The nice thing about the Nest Cam is that it offers live video feed, as well as records storage. The video quality is very crisp and clear, leaving most other home CCTV systems in the dust.
While you can receive sound and motion alerts, they only come through once every thirty minutes. This is a drawback for an otherwise great CCTV camera system.
Bottom Line
We love the Nest Cam home CCTV camera. The camera is priced reasonably and has extraordinary video quality. If you are looking at home CCTV systems, this one is hard to beat.
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Nest Labs Nest Cam Outdoors Review
The Nest Labs Nest Cam Outdoors is similar to the Nest Cam, only this one is for outdoor usage. We love the look of this outdoor home CCTV camera because it isn’t massive and bulky.
Many home CCTV systems that are outdoors detract from the appearance of the house, but the Nest Cam Outdoors is able to buck that trend.
This CCTV camera has a magnetic mount, which means you don’t even need screws to anchor it to your home. It is very easy to install, and the USB power cable can be detached from the AC power adapter, which allows you to feed it through a wall.
This is essential if you have no weatherized power outlets on the outside of your home.
Like the indoor Next Cam, this one offers impressive 1080p video quality, as well as night vision.
Bottom Line
When it comes to outdoor CCTV systems, the Nest Cam Outdoors is tough to beat. With easy installation and supreme video quality, you can easily monitor the outside of your home from anywhere.
Samsung SmartCam PT Review
Like most technology-related products, Samsung also gets into the CCTV systems market with the Samsung SmartCam PT.
The Samsung model is definitely a system worth looking into, especially with a camera that pans 350 degrees and tilts on a 155-degree arc.
Great video quality also comes with this Samsung home CCTV, with 1080p. The affordable home CCTV system comes packed with a variety of advanced features. You will get motion and sound push alerts, night vision, two-way audio, and on-board storage with a microSD card.
Bottom Line
If you are looking for affordable home CCTV systems, you may want to consider the Samsung SmartCam PT. One of the most affordable on our list, Samsung boasts 1080p video quality, as well as other great features.
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SkyBell HD Wi-Fi Video Doorbell Review
The SkyBell HD Wi-Fi Video Doorbell is so much more than a doorbell. The Wi-Fi doorbell comes with an impressive 1080p, which some CCTV kits do not even have.
You will get free video storage and on-demand clip recording with the SkyBell. One drawback is that you can’t change video resolution or your push alert settings within the app.
Thankfully, the SkyBell works with a variety of third-party products, like Amazon and Google, so you aren’t pigeonholed into their suite of products.
The SkyBell is easy to install, but at 2.8 inches, it might not fit on your doorframe. This could force you to re-wire or move your existing doorbell if you insist on things looking neat. Otherwise, the CCTV camera for home should be quite easy to set up.
Bottom Line
The SkyBell HD Wi-Fi Video Doorbell is a great addition to any home CCTV system. Though it is higher in price than some, the video quality is great, and you get motion alerts as well.
Conclusion – Top 6 Home CCTV Systems
We all want to keep our families and homes safe, even when we aren’t around. That is why home CCTV systems are becoming so popular. With a new DIY approach, more models are coming into the market, which is making the installation of one even more affordable.
Image Source: Home CCTV
The difficult part has become how to find the best CCTV cameras. With so many differing models in the market, it is often difficult to decide on just one. That is why you need to consider the following features when analyzing home CCTV systems:
- Price
- Power connectivity
- Video type
- Video quality
- App / remote access
- Storage type & capacity
- Field of view
These features can vary greatly by model, so be sure to decide which ones are most important to have in your home CCTV camera.
Our list of the top six best CCTV cameras aims to cut down on the frustration you face. By doing the research for you, we hope to make protecting your family and home easier than ever!
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