[4CH] Crystal Vision CVT9604E-3010W All-in-One True HD Wireless Surveillance System NVR CCTV w/ 2TB HDD, Built-in Monitor & Router, Camera Auto Pair

This is the full package for your home or office security. I actually have two of these systems, and intentionally left them off my home network because I wanted to record an event and they performed flawlessly. I could see all 4 cameras on each system using the included monitor and the recordings were saved to the internal hard drive. Only after the event did I reposition the location of the cameras and then plugged the monitor/base station into my home router so that I could check in while away from home. All that was required was finding the IP address of my home router and then typing that into the setup prompts on the monitor/ base station. I have been using both systems for 1-year (all 8 cameras mounted outdoors) and I can't say enough good about this system. The cameras have worked perfectly in the rain and throughout the cold winter when the outside temp got down to -17 F (Minnesota winter...). It is a completely stand alone system that works right out of the box. No confusing system jargon to slog through, no initializing. I saw another reviewer who gave this one star - we must have received completely different products, because all I did was inbox it, plugged in the cameras and base station to power, connected the camera antennas, and turned it on. No LAN lines were ever unpackaged and I had 4 live, streaming video feeds pop up on the monitor. The system comes ready for 2 LAN connections. One is from the central processor (the box with the monitor, hard drive and antennas) that plugs into your home network. The second is an optional connection from the cameras to the central processor. You can either use this to create a "wired" setup or choose to not use this and your cameras will communicate wirelessly to the central processor. On a positive note- the central processor has its own independent wireless router, so that means you are not consuming bandwidth on your home wifi router just to push video. Only when you are viewing your cameras through the IP Pro software will you be using your home wifi. There are many options for each camera. You can name each camera something meaningful, you can adjust the sensitivity of the motion detection, as well as define the area in the field of view that has motion sensing triggers by selecting to turn on/off a grid work of squares (about 20 x 30 squares on the 10.1" monitor), as well as set the duration of time that motion must occur before recording starts. You can set it up to perform one or any combination of actions after an event triggers recording: send an email to up to 2 recipients, send an alert through the IP Pro app, sound a buzzer on the monitor-hard drive unit and/or sound an external alarm. I haven't played with all of these yet, but I did get the app alert to work one day. I turned the app alert off because I hadn't dialed in the sensitivity nor the active zones on each camera. You can set up to 4 record timers that will record regardless of motion or not (just regular, uninterrupted video) and then search for any recorded events, timed or motion triggered, using an intuitive, color coded playback feature. If needed, you can find, then save a backup copy of video events to any USB connected device (thumb drive, external hard drive, etc). Like I said, I'm really impressed with these devices. It is very easy to setup and they auto-pair with the home device, so connecting it was as simple as plug and play. Now that we have these two systems running, we've gotten a little bit of a camera bug. We are thinking of different applications and setups. I would easily buy another system. This could be used as a portable monitoring system straight out of the box. All you would need are a set of four tripods to mount each camera and power running to each. I did not receive any discount, offer or any form of compensation for this review. I believe good products deserve good reviews, and this is one great product! -------------------------------------------------------------- UPDATE - JUNE 9 2018 -------------------------------------------------------------- Just wanted to leave a note about the system. It has been nearly 2 years (and 2 winters) that I have been using these systems. They are still working perfectly. The only issue I had was one camera had some sort of power issue and would not appear on the base station. The way I have my cameras setup is with some overlap, meaning that I have at least one camera that can see at least one other camera. The camera with the power issue could be seen "flashing" the IR lights during night use. I unplugged the camera and let sit a few months. I thought I would need to replace it, but on a whim I plugged it back in and now it's working fine. Don't know what that issue was... Still very happy with my purchase and considering buying another system. Just have to choose between the 4-channel or e 8-channel. ———————————————————— UPDATE: October 2021 ———————————————————— Oct 2021 - one of the two systems has failed and I cannot seem to revive it. The base station powers/boots up, but has lost the signal from the 4 wireless cameras. All 4 cameras went dark at the same time (they are on different circuits and various distances away from the base station) right after a solar storm. I wonder if the solar storm messed up the transmitters… Looks like it might be time to purchase a replacement system. Definitely got my money’s worth… technology lasted 5 years in an outdoor northern MN setting. Last two winters got to -34F.

THIS IS A GOOD SYSTEM, BUT ITS NOT WITHOUT ITS WIERD LIL ISSUES. 1ST, VERY EASY TO GET UP AND RUNNING, IT IS TRULY A PLUG IT IN AND GO TYPE ARRANGEMENT. THE ABILITY VIA HDMI CONNECTION, TO RUN IT ON A DEDICATED LARGE SCREEN TV IS VERY NICE AND ONE OF THE REASONS WE BOUGHT THIS SET. CAMERAS ARE VERY CLEAR, VERY CLEAN IMAGES. IR / NIGHT TIME USE IS EQUALLY AS GOOD, EXCELLENT DETAIL IN THE IMAGES. CLICK TO ZOOM IS ALSO A PLUS, BUT IT IS SET TO A SINGLE ZOOM LEVEL (NOT ADJUSTABLE OR DYNAMIC). CAM FIELD OF VIEW ISNT THE GREATEST AND THERE IS NO ABILITY TO ADJUST THAT EITHER, FOR THE PRICE POINT, BOTH ISSUES ARE AS EXPECTED, JUST KNOW IF THE CAM IS SET TOO CLOSE TO THE AREA YOU WISH TO MONITOR, THE FOV WILL BE TOO TIGHT AND THE ONLY WAY TO ADJUST THAT IS BY RELOCATIONG THE CAM ITSELF. RIGHT CLICKING OF THE MOUSE, OPENS UP A SMALL MENU OF SORTS, READING THAT HOWEVER IS NOT FOR THE FAR SIGHTED, AS ITS VERY SMALL TEXT/WINDOW AND RATHER HARD TO READ. SOME OF THE FEATURES LISTED ON THE MENU, SUCH AS 'VOLUME" DO NOT WORK AND ONE HAS TO WONDER WHY THEY ARE THERE, AS THE SYSTEM HAS NO SOUND AND APPARENTLY NO WAY TO ADD MIC/SOUND(??) INSTRUCTIONS ANYWHERE ARE VERY MINIMAL. *YOU WILL NEED TO GO ONLINE TO CHRYSTAL VISIONS WEB SITE FOR THE FULL MANUAL, BUT THIS IS NOT SOMETHING WE FOUND STATED ANYWHERE ON THE MENU OR IN THE TINY INSTRUCTION SET UP GUIDE..., JUST HAPPENED TO STUMBLE INTO IT WHILE TRYING TO FIND ANSWERES FOR ANOTHER ISSUE WE HAVE, WHICH IS; SOMETIMES ON JUST 1 CAM, WE EXPERIENCE SERIOUSLY DELAYED FEEDBACK ON THE MONITOR, UP TO 45-50 SECONDS ON JUST 1 OF THE 4 CAMERAS IN OUR SET. ITS NOT ALL THE TIME, BUT MOST TIMES. DISTANCE TO BASE STATION IS LSS THAN 40 FT AND THRU ONLY 1 INTERIOR WALL...OTHER CAMS ARE OK AND SIMILARLY MOUNTED. WE TRIED THE ADD ON ATTENNA EXTENSION, IT WAS JUNK AND MADE MATTERS EVEN WORSE. :( OVERALL A GOOD ALL AROUND SET, FOR THE PRICE IT WOULD BE HARD TO FIND A BETTER MORE COMPLETE SET-UP, BUT WITH A FEW MINOR TWEEKS FROM THE MANF, THIS WOULD BE AN AWESOME SET.

System does provide very good day and night video... when it works. 1.Video drops off line without notice and cannot be reset unless you are physically present to power down the system and wireless cameras and then re-power/reset the system. Not much good if you are depending on it working while you are out of town. 2. System operation menus are not user friendly and are difficult to understand. System menus cannot be accessed remotely. 3. Connection to smart phones works well, extremely difficult if not impossible to access via computer. 4. Tech support is weak and only available via e-mail. Spent more time than I can recount trying different suggestions from tech support to fix the system set-up and use issues. 5. Wireless camera will not work from more than 25 feet away if there as a concrete or cinder block wall between the camera antenna and the system antenna.

After extensive research, I landed on this system. It has since met and then exceeded my expectations! Right out of the box, figuring out what is what and connecting the system is a breeze. Connect to your wifi, plug cameras into power outlets, ethernet cables into your modem and voila, you're up and running. That's the easy part. The hard part, depending on the size of your house and/or accessibility on the outside is actually mounting and securing the cameras on the house. On my two story house I needed a ladder, drill/screw gun, siding removal tool and that's basically it. All of the hardware is included in your purchase. I mounted the cameras right to the house, removed the siding to run the wires, drilled access holes through the electrical outlets for the power plugs and then sealed everything up and reinstalled siding. All in all, from opening box to 100% up and running, one Saturday afternoon with basic tools and five minutes on youtube to learn proper siding removal. This system works flawlessly. I actually bought two units so I have eight cameras up and running on wifi without affecting my laptops, cellphones ect. These cameras are tough. We have been through several stormy/snowy/blistering cold periods and the cameras work as they did day one. The picture is clear and bright, day or night. The app works amazing and I can view my cameras at any time, anywhere in a matter of seconds. The memory is great. I run the two systems on continuous record 24/7 and can access files from over a month ago. Playback on the system or app is super easy. The auto erase of old footage is a great option so you never run out of space. The monitors that are attached to the DVR units make it super simple to glance at any moment and see what the cameras see. I also have the DVrs plugged via HDMI into my tv so I can quickly get a bigger picture if need be. Honestly, I'm probably forgetting more perks but for the price, reliability, quality materials and easy to follow instructions with basic tools, this system is a no brainer. I have yet to find a single flaw. If you're in the market racking your head, look no further. I am very satisfied and would recomend this system without hesitation.

System is very simple to setup-cameras link easily when next to the device however the wifi cameras will all of a sudden lose signal and intermittently once mounted so you need to refresh the signal every now and then to get the view back. The clarity is very good, day or night. Cameras have small view field that is rather surprising compared to say the "ring" doorbell. This system is fine for keeping an eye on the property while present but theIP Pro Smartphone Remote App is awful-does not work at all. Definitely recommend using a large monitor to view the system as even though the system comes with a small monitor, very hard to read the system on this small screen.

Update: after 8 months the problems with the system are worsening. Pictures on the monitor freeze for minutes at a time and the pictures are out-of-sync most of the time. With cameras aimed at my door and driveway, I frequently have people at my door before they ever show up on the monitor screen. I tried to contact Customer Service via their website, but haven't heard back from them. The cameras work great and the pictures are clear, but none of that matters when the pictures are not showing what is currently happening. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- After struggling with a Lorex system for several years, I was glad to get this Crystal Vision system. Here's why I give it only 3 stars: > The cameras are 5 stars. Great picture and angle of view. Easy to mount in just about any position. Nice appearance. Excellent quality. I have not used the night-vision capabilities. Be aware the night vision lights are a visible red which makes the cameras noticeable at night. So, if you want cameras that won't be noticeable or attract attention, I would not recommend these with their red lights. > The DVR system is 3 stars. Set up was fairly easy. The monitor is great, although I wish it was removable. The disk drive is a little noisy. My biggest complaint is the "camera 2" position, the upper right picture on the monitor, frequently freezes or displays a delayed picture. I used other cameras and the picture would still freeze or be delay, so it's not the camera. With two cameras mounted together aimed in the same direction, only the #2 picture freezes or gets delayed, so the problem is not related to the distance between the camera and receiver. When I aimed both cameras at the street and mounted a third camera further away, also aimed at the street, I rarely saw a car or person go by on all 3 cameras. At best the car or person would appear on two of the pictures, but sometimes it would appear on only one of the pictures. > The mini-CD and Instructions are 1 star. The CD wouldn't work on either of my computers running different versions of Windows. The Instruction pamphlet is very basic and some parts were outdated. There is a full manual available on Crystal Vision's website that can be viewed online. It has a download button, but the button did not work for me. > The app, not included in my star rating, does not work well with my wifi. The app, running on an iPad, sometimes fails to connect even when just 2 feet from the router. Rebooting the iPad helps sometimes, but sometimes it doesn't. I have no problems with my other apps connecting. When the app connects, all of the pictures freeze occasionally and stay frozen until the app is restarted. And, occasionally, it will not go back to the quad-picture view from the single picture view. Just a note - with the iPad about 30 feet from the router, the pictures are delayed up to 40 seconds. All in all, I'm satisfied with the system, but there are opportunities for improvement.

I purchased 4 channel, 2 TB, version in September of 2017, and here it is two year later and the darn thing just keeps working! I've used the system to retrieve recorded video multiple times and it didn't take long to find what I was looking for with the motion-record feature. The night-vision is reasonably good and I can make out who's who in the nighttime, which is a must. I hung up the cameras, they found the NVR automatically and started recording, it was so simple! The AP is pretty good too, but sometimes it will have its hickups, but works for remote-viewing just fine for me. I do recommend this product based on the fact that it's easy to setup and use, and it has 2 TB of storage so you don't have to pay a cloud service any monthly fees whatsoever. I just leave the monitor on day and night in my office and I was afraid it would just wear out, but it just keeps going. I did have to dust off a couple cameras this year because of spider webs, but that's just common routine maintenance for an outdoor system.

We got two sets of four cameras to place around the house. The second set we bought, some months after the first purchase, came with shorter cables, without any apparent reason. It was disappointing, since the cables of the first set of cameras were the ideal length. The cameras work well, even though sometimes one or two of them won't work and we'll need to restart the equipment. The image is good and night vision is surprisingly good, as well. Installation was simple, but we had to get extension chords. It is not perfect but it is good enough for what I wanted - extra protection and safety.