Wireless CCTV

[Seymour Butts]

My daughter has just purchased a 300Sq Mtr Industrial Factory.
She has had it converted into a dance studio which essentially divides the factory into thirds, 1 x 100Sq Mtr office area, 1 x studio area 70 Sq Mtr, 1 x studio Area 100 Sq Mtr and 1 x 25Sq Mtr Storage area.

We need / want to install a CCTV system but really this is not required for security as we already have an adequate security system, the CCTV is really only needed to give parents the ability to watch what is happening in the studios on a 42" plasma in the office area at the front of the building.

I've looked at a few wireless systems on Ebay but in all honest I am totally ignorant of such systems but feel that both the frequency (2,483 MHz ) and the 380 lines of horizontal definition may be limiting factors.

We have budgeted $600 - $800 for a 3 -4 camera system, is this feasible??
and where should I be looking and more specifically what should I be looking for.?
We would prefer wireless simply for ease of installation.

Thanks

[watchdog]

I have NEVER seen a w/less CCTV system that I would say "works". The military & Government sector probably have them but they also are probably not restricted to the licence free bands & O/P power of 10 mW.
Do yourself a favour & stay away from w/less. Your post says nothing about recording , just viewing. It sounds like you just want one in the studio so put most of your money into a good camera , cable it back to the flat screen & plug it into an A/V input. Tooooo easy. If you want to record you can get a "useable " entry level DVR for around $350. That leaves $350 for which you can get a fairly good camera

[sihi42]

I agree, wireless is prone to interference operating on the 2.4g range. And also is open to anyone else tuning in to your picture. Definatly go wired setup. You can now get for about $600 a 4 wired camera setup with pretty good picture and recording abilities....

[Seymour Butts]

Thanks guys, you are correct, we really don't need to record, just view.
The only reason I chose wireless was because we neglected to include wiring when we did the refit and just wanted to avoid the wiring costs.
The thought of someone else watching what we are watching doesn't really concern us, however continuity and reliability are important factors.

[bet2win]

What people forget about wireless cameras, is that you still need to get power to the camera.

End of the day, it is really not that hard to run cable within the same building.

[intelliGEORGE]

Can be done. Not for the $600-$800 you have allowed for.

[Seymour Butts]

What people forget about wireless cameras, is that you still need to get power to the camera.

End of the day, it is really not that hard to run cable within the same building.

Want a job??

[Andrewpv01]

If you put in an entry level camera (cheap) to cover a 70sqm studio and then plug it into a 42" plasma I don't think you will get the clarity you are after.

The more area you want to cover the less detail you will get in the image.

To get a good image you will need a good camera for that size area.

[CCTVguru]

I know my products are not in the price range of this application but wireless does work if done correctly. I have designed many wireless systems for councils and industrial sites where cable is not possible.

[Drift]

Recording or not, you'll still need to split the screen if you plan on watching all 4 cameras at once. Unless you can actually find a quad some where these days, you'd be better off with a budget 4 channel DVR. Wireless or hard wired, your budget requires a little tweaking for any sort of decent system.

Don't get too tied up in the resolution of different cameras though as with what you're doing, you're unlikely to notice much if any difference between a 420& 540TVL camera on your monitor.