There are better security systems out there.

Check out Costco. They have a nice selection of camera systems that will meet your needs. We hard wired our cameras and they have an app so we can monitor remotely. We have Night Owl in one house and can't remember the name of the other system right now that we have at the other house. We also added a pan, tilt zoom so we can keep an eye on the mechanicals remotely. You can also get a Vera and have outlets that you can cycle the power remotely. We have a pinger on our router so if a connection can't be established with the router it will automatically reset after a half an hour without communication.

@Mark - Dogs can be bribed, and they can't give a description.

mark is on a roll this morning. i'll have what he's having.

Mimosas!! :)

I'm following this, b/c we currently have adt. I'm thinking I'd like to update and get rid of that monthly service myself. I'm just torn...

We wired our own home for our security cameras just before drywall. After the build was complete, we installed IP Camera's (power over Ethernet) at each outside corner and entrance, and 3 inside, then purchased the "Blue Iris Software" full version, which we run on a home server set in our safe room, this virtually removes the threat of hacking. (Caveat; my husband writes software, so he was able to configure it all himself). Our cameras are all motion detect, and you can set the software up to alert you it's when recording. They also have an app so you can watch video from your tablet or phone. We've been using it for 2 years now and haven't had a single problem.

To Marks, point, we also have her.... LOL!

@Mike Lamb, they're pretty good initial deterrents, tho!

htwo82 Pretty girl!! We have a whole pack of mutts, I'd be curious how far someone would actually get! (Not that I want to find out!)

Sorry Mike. I do agree with looking into what Costco has to offer for cameras.

I think the dogs are -- by far -- the best deterrent mentioned here. My dog's only a Beagle, but if you heard him from the outside you'd think he was a BIG BOY. His bark and his attitude don't match his size. Might have something to do with the fact that every time he "barks the UPS guy", my husband praises him and gives him meat; he's been trained to "verbally assault" anyone who comes to the door. For a Beagle, he's a scrappy little fellow.

Those shepherds are beautiful.

Rather than putting trust in cameras, I vote for putting money into solid door jams and good locks, skipping side windows by the front door, and thinking carefully about landscaping. And then USE your locks. You know, make your house hard to get into.

I'm amazed at how insecure some people's houses are. My in-laws bought a house that had only a bedroom door between the kitchen and the garage. First thing they did: changed out that door for a full-fledged exterior door with deadbolts.

Yeah, the camera may take a picture, but unless you're robbed by the stupidest burglar ever, you're going to have a picture of a person in dark clothing -- probably a hoodie plus a hat. At best you'll be able to say that the person is male or female, heavy or lightly built. You're unlikely to get a picture of the guy's face. With luck, you might see his hands and say whether he's black or white.

htwo82 all for the love of cheese!! They can all focus for that! LOL

We don't have a Costco close I don't think, but I do most my shopping online. Maybe I need to look.

So back on topic, if you don't have a monitoring service like ADT or SimplySafe, you have to be the one on the ball if something comes up on your cameras, right?

I know that if our alarm goes off, more power to anyone trying to steal anything, b/c it will seriously make your ears bleed.

Mrs Pete, all good info, I love when you chime in. :)
A regular bedroom door between garage & house!??? wow...

I've seen so many videos of dogs and burglars getting along just fine in houses.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGbPLizVbQc 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovIrEoYXvZc

http://fox2now.com/2017/01/18/clear-video-captures-burglars-breaking-into-south-st-louis-home/  

And I wouldn't be surprised that if a thief did break into your house and your dog attacked and injured them, that the thief could easily sue you for more money than they would have stolen, because they are now a victim.

My dog would have eaten them.

(I don't like dogs and wouldn't have one as a pet, so there's that.)

Mike Lamb... True story! That's what's wrong with this world!!

Now I want to stage a break in... lol I'm pretty sure my pack could be wooed by cheese :)

But back to our regularly scheduled program. Do the security systems that aren't monitored have the obnoxious alarm to sound?

You can get a monitored alarm for ten bucks a month. For twenty cellular so if the phone wires are cut it still works. Cameras are useful for much more than security.

We have cameras all over our house (inside and out). They feed to a DVR, which is remote-accessible through our phones. We can see who's at our door, who's in the alley behind our house, who's walking down the sidewalk, who might be walking between our house and the houses on either side of us, who is driving past our garage (which we enter from the alley behind our house). Inside, we have cameras in every room. We also have an alarm system with glass-breakage monitors, fire/smoke sensors, motion sensors, and door/window sensors. It's monitored by a company and it is VERY loud when it's set off (I've only done that once).

Yes. We've been burgled, but that was BEFORE we turned our house into a fortress.

imstillchloecat - With cameras in every room, how do you keep your intimate moments from being recorded?

They have switches. :)

I suspect neither dogs nor cameras will do much to deter someone with skills who really wants to get in to your house. Both can help deter the more run-of-the-mill criminals who may well move on to an easier target.

We have cameras. Our house has never been robbed, but our (secure, locked, supposedly break-in proof) mailbox was, and my husband's security camera at the road allowed him to pass along a description of the robber (it's been an ongoing issue in our semi-rural area, so any info helps). A dog couldn't have done that (and wouldn't have deterred the theft, since the mailbox is far from the house).

Also, some of us are allergic to dogs, so that option is out.

Goodness! Where on earth do you all live to need so much security? I have an ADT alarm system - get a discount due to USAA insurance. I use it when I leave the house and at night when I go to bed. If anyone breaks in and the alarm goes off and they stay, then I'm just plain unlucky. I'll take my chances.

We were told when researching security cameras to be sure to understand the picture quality which, of course, lines up with the price. Reasonably priced camera (e.g. Costco's kit) have lower resolution so you get grainy, blurry images - not much help to identify an intruder for the police. We were quoted over $4,000 to install 8 cameras ($349 each) and a DVR storage system ($899 - not cloud storage) with the cameras providing quality images. Since it isn't in our budget we haven't done any research on the equipment or pricing.

Anglo - our situation is probably overkill, but unless and until you've been burgled, you'll never understand WHY we live the way we do. BTW - USAA had $2,000 in our bank account the morning after our burglary so we could replace computers, alarm clocks, etc.

On the other hand, this is good argument to make sure you have Zeiss lenses on all your cameras.

Personally I'd avoid products from companies that are in the business of selling you services, like Arlo, Nest, etc since they lock you down to their non-standard products and monthly payments get really expensive over time.

A flexible and powerful option that will be much cheaper in the medium to long term is a Synology server plus pretty much any camera that meets industry standards. https://www.synology.com/en-us/surveillance

For camera brands I like Hikvision and Foscam.

Mark :) I love dogs. All animals really. That one looks ferocious!

Kristin S :( I'm sorry you're allergic, but yes there are many reasons people can't have dogs. You also share my theory on the people who really want to do it will do it.
That's why I've not gone any further with what we have than what we have. However, I would like to add a couple cameras and maybe a doorbell camera. I get so overwhelmed with it all.

imstillchloecat I'm sorry you've been burgled. I'm sure that really makes you serious about your security system. Sounds like you have it figured out! Awesome about USAA!

We've had several mailbox vandalism events. Our drive is 1600+ long. So no wireless system will reach nor do we have power there. We're relying on a deer cam, but nothing has happened since we put it up. I'd love to come up with a better solution there...

Check out Lorex security system. Some of their series can send you a notification when a movement has been captured, there is no monthly fee.

While cameras without internet are now the most commonly spread option, they aren’t the only option on the market. For example, you can hard-wire the security ip camera to your home. This option doesn’t give you as broad access as the WiFi security cameras do, but they are accessible in different ways. Also, they are an excellent choice for those who don’t have any access to WiFi. Well, when the options are limited, anything’s better than nothing, right? Click here.

I don't understand the security camera thing. I have insurance for when you steal my stuff when I'm not there. I have firearms for when I am.

So many uses... One time I thought I had been hit by a porch pirate, but reviewed the footage, and discovered that the wind had actually blown the package away. I was able to go find it in the woods, rather than report it as stolen.

Ever wonder if your kids have their boy/girl friends over when you are not there? Cheating spouse? Stalker problems? Security cameras can help you discover and address these problems.

You can also do some cool things with them, if the right integration is there. For example, I was able to turn my cameras into motion sensors for Samsung smartthings(in addition to still performing as a security camera), so I could do things like turn off the lights in the garage if no motion was detected for 10 minutes.

We were so amazed when my supervisor brought fever detection cameras to our office. I was afraid because of COVID-19 time. I thought that we all can go to work when we are sick and when he told me about these great cameras I was very satisfied. I thought I should buy a couple for myself and increase the security level of my house. My supervisor told me about this place called https://veritech-systems.com/services/fever-detection-cameras where i bought a few and guys who sold me them was so polite that also helped me to connect them. Price was also a benefit