ANNKE 5MP PoE CCTV Camera Outdoor, 3K Super HD Security Camera with Human/Vehicle Detection & 100ft Night Vision, Compatible with Alexa, IP67 Weatherproof, MicroSD Slot

I recently purchased the ANNKE C500 PoE CCTV system, and I am thoroughly impressed with its performance and features. Here’s a breakdown of my experience: Installation and Setup: The Power over Ethernet (PoE) feature made installation incredibly straightforward. With just a single Ethernet cable for both power and data, the setup was clean and hassle-free. The instructions provided were clear, and I had the entire system up and running in no time. Video Quality: The video quality of the ANNKE C500 is exceptional. The 5MP resolution provides crystal-clear images, both during the day and at night. The clarity and detail in the footage are impressive, making it easy to identify faces and other important details. The night vision works perfectly, offering clear visibility even in complete darkness. Reliability and Performance: The system has been highly reliable since installation. There have been no issues with connectivity or performance. The PoE ensures a stable and uninterrupted power supply, and the cameras continue to function flawlessly even during adverse weather conditions. Remote Access and App: The remote access feature is a game-changer. Using the ANNKE app, I can easily view live footage and playback recorded videos from my smartphone, no matter where I am. The app interface is user-friendly, and the notifications for motion detection are timely and accurate. Motion Detection and Alerts: The motion detection functionality works as advertised. It is highly sensitive and customizable, allowing me to set specific zones and sensitivity levels. The alerts are prompt, ensuring that I am immediately informed of any unusual activity. Build Quality: The build quality of the cameras is robust and durable. They have a solid feel and are designed to withstand various weather conditions. I feel confident that this system will provide long-term security for my property. Value for Money: Considering the features, performance, and ease of use, the ANNKE C500 PoE CCTV system offers excellent value for money. It’s a comprehensive security solution that provides peace of mind without breaking the bank. Overall Experience: Overall, I am extremely satisfied with the ANNKE C500 PoE CCTV system. It delivers high-quality video, reliable performance, and user-friendly features, making it a top choice for anyone looking to enhance their home or business security. If you're in the market for a dependable and high-quality CCTV system, I highly recommend the ANNKE C500 PoE. It’s an investment that pays off with the peace of mind and security it provides.

A couple of months ago, to relieve the boredom of Lockdown, I replaced out aging, manual, up-and-over garage door with an automatic roller door. Like many modern garages, ours is full of 'stuff', rather than a car. One of my concerns since fitting it is that one of us could accidentally open it without knowing. Something that concerned me greatly, since security was a key requirement. Lo-and-behold, I left the house a little over a week ago to find said garage door wide open; the contents, invitingly accessible to the world. A quick check suggested that everything was where it should be and that nothing had been disturbed. I then check the CCTV recording that covers my car on the driveway to see, almost out of sight, that the door had opened at 11.30pm, the night before; precisely when we'd gone to bed. We'd had a very lucky escape. Something needed to be done immediately. Actually, I added two different mechanisms, but here, I'll focus on the use of this camera. I have a HikVision 8-channel Network Video Recorder, which had 3 spare channels, so the idea was to add another camera in the garage, looking out via the main door. Being an Amazon Prime member, the camera was here the very next day. I already have a POE switch in the garage, as I have a WiFi Access Point that connects to my car. So fitting the camera was trivial. After identifying a suitable spot, a couple of screws secured it to a rafter and an Ethernet cable connected it to the POE switch. I downloaded the Annke Vision app (which looks suspiciously identical to the HikVision Connect app) onto my iPhone and configured in the new camera. Image quality is very good, whether in colour when there's some light, and monochrome when it's dark. I configured by router to allocate a fixed DHCP IP address, so that I could easily reach the camera over the network, and added it as a 6th camera to my HikVision NVR, providing 24x7 recording. Next, I configured the motion detection feature of the camera to recognise when the door opens, having it send me an email. I could do more direct integration with other parts of the house, but I'd addressed that need a different way. The motion detection seems entirely reliable, notifying me quickly via email if there's any significant movement in the garage including, of course, the door opening. It also attaches images so that I can see exactly what's going on. The camera was relatively cheap for a POE camera with a relatively high resolution. Image quality is great and motion detection is spot-on. I have another couple of Annke cameras connected which have also performed very well, so I'm confident that this will do the job for a good while, yet.

I chose this model as it provided a 2.8mm lens which gave a wider field of view compared to others brands which usually sat at the 3.6mm to 4.00mm range. The other selling point for me was that the camera also offers onboard SD Card slot, which is handy if you don't have an NVR to hook it up to and use it as a standalone unit. The camera will be used to monitor my car port and door entrance at the front of the building, so will have to handle a wider field of view, not so much a longer narrow one. The camera was easy to setup, plugging into a POE switch providing power and network via single cable. First power on was easy, via SADP tool on Windows to configure the IP address and gateway for my network, as well as activate the camera. Then it was a doddle to access the management console of the camera using IE web browser by typing in the IP address and configuring the options of the camera. All pretty standard comparable to other WebGUIs I have experience with such as HiLook, HWatch and Hikvision units. The Annke unit offers platform access, which once enabled on the camera GUI can be accessed via the Annke Vision app available on Android and iOS, which was easy to setup by using the cameras Serial number. I had this setup within 5 minutes, very easy and able to see the camera picture on my iPhone. The camera detects motion events and can send push notifications to the App, or via a email which can be specified. It will also obviously record to the built in SD Card. I was very impressed with the picture quality whilst setting the options, tomorrow I will install the camera on my wall, but so far the camera is just as good as more expensive units I have used. I haven't tested the Nightvision yet, but from having looked at this, it seems the camera uses 2 IR lights as opposed to a plethora of diodes around the lens which can in some cases attract unwanted attention to the camera - this model operates more covertly this way. The camera will be wall mounted initially without a mounting bracket, needing to be purchased separately. These tend to be quite pricey for what they are so it helps to shop around for them. They do offer greater degree of movement for placement and directing the angle - but the GUI provides the ability to flip and switch the picture should you have to mount it upside down of vertically. There is an LED streetlight near my property, so it will be interesting how the picture quality and nightvision copes with this out of the box, but if it doesn't there are lots of user customizable settings to play with to configure the unit to compensate. Software setup of the camera took less than 10 minutes from unboxing to having it ready configured to be hung on the wall. All in all from what I have seen so far of the picture quality, it is very good and I am pretty happy with the configurable options. The ANNKE Vision remote viewer app is quite good too, intuitive and responsive. I will update the review once the camera has been in use for a while and has experienced the weather conditions etc.

The cons first, not very secure on installing, no way of locking camera in place if within reach anyone can move it or remove it completely. The base is metal but the camera is just plastic. Motion detection is way too sensitive many false alarms, could be better maybe with some smart features included. The pros, excellent picture quality, great night vision. I’m operating mine into an Ankke 3k lite dvr and installation was really easy. If you’re not particularly needing motion detection and can install well away from easy reach, I would highly recommend this camera but motion detection needs some improvement.

Great item

This camera was purchased to replace a Hikvision DS-2CD2032. It’s quite a lot bigger than I expected but it was no problem to fit. POE is the only real option for security cameras as it is reliable and only requires 1 cable. I connected it via a TP-Link POE switch which in turn is connected to my Synology DS118 NAS. The DS118 runs Synology’s Surveillance Station software. The image quality of this camera is very good, much better than my old Hikvision. Also the field of view is wider. The high dynamic range is a great feature and the H265+ files are much smaller than the H264 files the Hikvision produced. I use the event detection on the camera to trigger the NAS recording which is easy to set up and reliable. If you are using a NAS enable ONVIF and create an ONVIF account on the camera. The build quality is not as good as the Hikvision camera but is still excellent. If you apply online to Annke you can get an extra years warranty. Overall at £60 it represents very good value for money.

Unable to configure to separate purchased base. Sent back

Needed another camera to add on to my current Annke system. Existing cameras are 8MP, but for the area to be covered by the new camera, 5MP is perfect. Current cameras are directly connected to the NVR, but this one needed to go via a POE switch to avoid a lengthy cable run. Used the existing ethernet which was powering an existing camera to feed the POE switch (changed the other end to the router instead of the NVR direct) Then just added 2 new cables to power the new and existing cameras. All connected to a TP link POE switch, configured in both the user interfaces (no need for Annke's suggested software to do so) and then added to the NVR config via their locked IP addresses (once configured in the router) and done. Extra camera installed alongside existing system. Switch will allow me to expand the system further if I need to.