Honest review of video surveillance cameras for a car in the yard

The rapidly accelerating pace of life has already forced motorists to abandon the daily 2-time trips to the garage. No one can afford to waste time driving the car into a special box in the evening and picking it up in the morning. Urban infrastructures are not designed for a huge amount of transport, so every courtyard of an apartment building is crowded with cars. And then serious events unfold. Every day, like on a battlefield: you don’t know what losses you will suffer if you leave your car in your own yard. A way out is video surveillance for your car. This is what our article is about.

Objectives of video surveillance for cars

The task of every motorist is to ensure the safety of their movable property. Precisely:

• physical destruction of the vehicle (for example, as a result of arson);
• car theft;
• theft of component parts (wheels, batteries);
• damage to the body (broken mirrors, scratches, road accidents);
• theft of valuables from the car.

Thus, all goals for ensuring the safety of a vehicle can be divided into 2 groups:

1. Monitoring of events taking place inside the car.
2. Observing the situation that develops around the car in the yard.

Installation rules

Video surveillance in the car should be installed according to the following principles:

1. Mounting strength and absence of threat in case of sudden braking for the driver and passengers.
2. Openness.
3. Lack of interference for video recording.

Covert video surveillance inside the car. Pros and cons

A camouflaged video camera (car) is a controversial issue that is constantly raised in thematic forums.

The fact is that any equipment that is intended for the secret collection of information and looks like household items is prohibited in Russia. Reason — Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of March 10, 2000, No. 214. The document contains signs of prohibited equipment.

IMPORTANT: videos obtained using spy equipment cannot be accepted by court and law enforcement agencies as legal evidence. In addition, severe penalties are provided for the use of illegal devices (imprisonment up to 4 years or a fine of up to 200 thousand rubles).

SOLUTION: installation of a camera inside the passenger compartment, which does not contradict the laws of the Russian Federation and placement of an information sticker on the car about video surveillance.

Monitoring from home

Much has been written about how the Russian Kulibins invent surveillance systems for cars from their homes. Having systematized the information, our editorial staff highlighted the following important aspects:

1. Installation of video monitoring systems behind a car from home is not directly prohibited (from a window, balcony), provided that the information is not collected for intentional distribution.
2. If you plan to install a camera on the facade of the house, then a documented decision of the housing co-op and consent of 2/3 of homeowners are required.
3. The explanation of Roskomnadzor regarding obtaining the consent of citizens caught in the camera lens reads: if video filming is carried out in public places that are open, then written consent to collect personal data is not required.
4. For monitoring, assemble your own (unique) system, order turnkey video surveillance from specialists or use ready-made sets.

Equipment selection criteria

Necessary set of options for vehicle monitoring:

1. Minimum recording duration is 1 day.
2. High light sensitivity and/or presence of IR illumination.
3. High detailing ability for face and license plate recognition.
4. Availability of autofocus and zoom.
5. Possibility of remote monitoring.
6. Quick notifications about abnormal events to the owner’s phone.
7. Reliability and safety of data storage. We recommend using cloud services.

Options. Camera reviews

Motorists advise using ready-made kits such as HD Vehicle DVR and Texet TN-525HD DVR.

Such solutions have approximately the same configuration, which includes a recorder, several mounts (on glass and other surfaces), cables, navigator, disk with drivers, and shockproof case. The price isn’t high.

If you need to organize surveillance from an apartment (1-3 floors), and the distance to the car is small (up to 15 m), then the Novicam NC13WP network camera (price — 3.5-4.0 thousand rubles) may be suitable. Wide field of view, but the 4mm fixed lens does not provide clear detail at long distances.

For a clearer image, we can recommend the NC23WFP Wi-Fi camera (price — 8.5 thousand rubles). Also, this model will save a car enthusiast from wires.

But for monitoring a car from a distance of 15-30 meters, it is best to use network cameras with varifocal lenses. They make it possible to zoom in/out an object in the frame. Experts recommend paying attention to the NC29WPS and NC28WPS models (price — 15.0-16.0 thousand rubles). The cameras can work in all-weather conditions, provide a picture in Full HD and have other high performance capabilities.

You can also take an innovative approach: use the Faceter service. In addition to classic security features, Faceter software has both hearing and intelligence. This allows for up to 99.8% accurate face recognition. Interested? The article “Analysis of the Faceter smart surveillance system: in simple words about complex matters” will tell you all the details.

Conclusion

Even a trap for a wolf or bear is not a guarantee that your car will stay in place. It is a video surveillance camera for your car that is a universal tool for ensuring the safety of movable property.