Firstrend Wireless Security Camera System, 5MP 8-Channel CCTV NVR Kit with AI Human Detection, H.265 Video, Night Vision Outdoor Cameras, P2P Remote Access, 3TB Hard Drive for Home

This review applies to Firstrend Wireless NVR Kit Model # FTUS-W843M1TA-XM, which includes a wireless NVR unit, (4) 3MP wireless bullet cameras (resolution: 2288x1288), 5 power cables, a mini mouse, drill templates, a short ethernet cable and a user manual. This was my first purchase with a CCTV solution and it was an easy learning curve. Unboxing was straight forward, no issues there. The NVR itself is housed in a metal chassis with a 1 TB hard drive, the outer ports are (1) VGA, (1) HDMI port, (1) Ethernet port, (2) USB ports, (1) power port, and 2 wifi antennas. The unit does not come with an HDMI or VGA cable, so you must supply yourself if you want to setup the unit through the onboard setup. Once you connect the unit to power, and you can see a picture on the TV/monitor, the NVR will run through a setup wizard that is self explanatory. You cannot type in this interface, or hook up a keyboard, but the on screen menu will let you use a virtual keyboard where you can click the letters to setup a password for the system. The cameras come pre configured and paired from the factory. All you need to do is supply power. If for some reason your camera isn’t paired, you can run through the menus and pair them by using the supplied ethernet cable. Each camera comes with an antenna, an adjustable ball socket that will clamp down, a mounting bracket with (3) screw holes, and a pair of wires that hold an ethernet jack and a power dongle. Placing them is relatively easy, and there are packs of drywall mounting screws if you need that. I tested this system for 30 days. What I liked: Easy setup: I was able to get it running in about 20 minutes, unboxing to NVR setup. Wireless connection is very strong. It runs the cameras on its own wireless network using an MKK protocol by default. Silent: the unit isn’t noisy at all. Interface: the onboard interface can be clunky, but once you’ve been in the menus, everything is just a right click away. Storage: the entire 30 days I was recording, I managed to fill up about 600GB of the 1 TB storage. This is 24/7 footage with motion alert clips. Backup: you can backup your clips to an external storage. My 5 TB drive wasn’t recognized, but a 2TB drive worked just fine. Voice: each clip was also accompanied with audio. Playback: I could see all of my clips through the interface by using a quick search. Support: their technical support is top notch. They will usually respond to emails in a day or so, and their phone tech support is amazing. RTSP support: it is not explicitly mentioned anywhere, but after trying varying combinations of rtp:// urls I was able to get a feed from the different cameras to stream to YouTube or Twitch. For those interested it is rtsp://[username]:[password]@[ipaddress]:[port]/channel=[camera number]&stream=[0 or 1].sdp? Remote login: You can setup your router to port forward 3 different ports to login and view the clips or live feed. Phone app: XMEye Pro is what is recommended for this NVR. It connected flawlessly and I was able to manage the cameras and NVR easily. What I disliked: Power setup: each camera needs to be individually plugged in. Be prepared to use extension cords. Backup: to backup your clips, you must use the onboard software or the VMS software. You can only backup 1024 records or files at a time, and each backup of 1024 records takes on average about an hour. I had about 14,000 records. Customer service said they would fix this in a future update. Backup format: you can choose between three different formats to backup in: .h264, .avi, .mp4. The .h264 standard this NVR system uses is a proprietary version, so if you want to somehow view them on your computer, they won’t play unless you use the included video codec executable the backup software writes to the backup directory. If you want avi and mp4 backups, be prepared for clips that are sped up too fast. I think it has something to do with the conversion trying to force a 30fps framerate on a 6-7 (average) fps clip. Also, sometimes the mp4/avi clips will drop entire chunks of video (20 seconds at a time). Windows software: You can also control this NVR through a windows application that is not included with the package nor available on their website. You need to contact customer service to get it. Once you have it, the interface is intuitive, and you can reach most settings for the NVR. The camera live feed is nice, but if you click on another tab of the program, it will sometimes bug out and not be able to load the feed. Restarting the software fixes this. Hard drive: As mentioned before, you need to use the software to get your clips. If you physically take the hard drive out to backup your clips, the drive is not recognized in any OS – Linux and Windows (didn’t have a Mac). This is for security reasons I’m sure, but it’s annoying when I just want to copy the raw data. Wireless positioning: The wireless signal is strong, but you will need to find a place somewhere in the middle of your cameras if you want the sweet spot without having to piggyback one camera off another. The piggyback solution uses one of your cameras as a repeater of sorts to connect a far away camera to a camera that’s closer to your NVR. I tried doing this to one of my cameras, and it fixed that cameras connection, but left the repeating camera’s connection slower. Inconsistent clips: The cameras come with a resolution of 2288x1288 max, but sometimes they will record in 1280x720, 1920x1080 and the framerate will vary wildly from as low as 4 fps to 25fps. I know this cuts down on size, but it’s annoying when I want to use the clip elsewhere.

We’ve had the cameras up for about 4 weeks and use them constantly (presently having problems with a rouge third reich HOA president). The good: Pictures are great, very high quality and the mobile app and controls thru the app are good. Occasionally it takes 3-4 second to reload an image, but once loaded it manages all 4 cameras quite well. Setup was easier than our first system (Zmodo, cloud based). Initial login left me confused, no indication as to what the default password is (it’s null. As in nothing, leave it blank) and had me calling support. I figured it out before they returned my call, but they did return my call within a hour even though they promised 24 hours. They then called again within 12 and followed up with multiple text messages. So, service is great! Even if an extra line in the instructions would have made it moot. What could be better; The power cords. The ‘wall wort’ is big. Surely way bigger than it needs to be, and since I stuffed them into an extension box attached under floodlights it was a very not easy. The line off the camera also has a plug for an Ethernet connection. Which might be nice, but generally it just means that routing the line thru anything small is impossible. Fortunately I live in a very dry environment so for the 2 lines I had long runs with I carefully cut the Ethernet connection off and heatshrinked those wires airtight. So while I brought up the negatives, note that I still gave them 5 stars. Awesome, clear pictures, mostly simple setup, phenomenal service, and great value for the money. And you don’t have to worry about your security footage being maintained on a cloud (cloud just means someone else’s computer - do you really want people you don’t know watching you?).

Great product, it's like having eyes in the sky.Keep you safe.I'm in security , and I think it's a wonderful product

This will be a review of the second system I ordered. Largely due to the excellent customer service I received on the first system, I proceeded to order a second one so I could take the four cameras from it and add them to my existing system, and have 8 cameras and a backup base unit in case something ever happened to the one currently in service. There isn't a whole lot to say. Jespen continues to be an excellent representative and the system (plus the new cameras) is working perfectly. It seems that the cameras that come with each base unit are paired at the factory, so they'll have to be paired to your current base unit if you do it the way I did, but this is for technological reasons, I believe, and doesn't present any significant problems. Jespen or the other reps can provide details if needed. In my case, I was able to figure it out and had everything up and running in no time. *****EDITED 12-23-22***** As noted above, this was the SECOND of two systems that I ordered from Firstrend. It looks like the first review I left was overwritten by Amazon's system, so I'm hoping this edit will help anyone looking for some of the information in my first review. OK, first, the systems did have a few quirks that made it necessary for me to contact customer service. The first system had what turned out to be a hard drive failure. My service contact was Jespen, to whom I owe a lot for the patience and help that made it possible for me to bring the system back online. The second system had a camera problem suffered in recent heavy rains and droplets of water formed inside the lens. Jespen provided a video that showed how to correct the problem and I expect things to be back to normal shortly. Overall, I'd rate the systems at somewhere between 4 and 5 stars with video quality for the 5MP cameras being the best I've seen in a system in this price range. Ease of installation is also a big, big plus for me, and these systems are very easy to work with. I can figure things out, but enjoy it when the designers and engineers care enough to make it easy for the end user to set up and get going with minimum delay. Some things to note are that the term "wireless" refers to the video signal ONLY. The cameras still need a source of power, provided by the 12V adapter Firstrend supplies with each camera. So, you'll need to have either a 110V outlet nearby or use some kind of 12V extension cable (I've seen these but never used them, so can't speak as to their feasability). Another thing to understand (as far as I can tell, that is) is that playback is set to show the feeds from 3 cameras at a time, not all 8 cameras simultaneously. This isn't a problem for me, but if you have questions, it would be best to call customer service and speak to them before committing. Speaking of customer service, even better than the 4-5 star system quality has been the customer service that I've received from Firstrend, especially Jespen, who has kept in touch and provided all the information that I could have expected. If only all vendors and dealers understood the principles of seller/customer relationships so well!

Update They suck!!! They offer extra cameras for a good review After less than a year, they fast forward, pause , cant get get ant package thieves etc. They are s**t, they paid me for a good review for an extra camera, have had multiple times where i needed the footage and couldn't get it because the cameras were off line, all the time!! Playback is always fast forward etc. Paused? Dont buy, they suck, dont read my review because they gave me extra cameras to write a good review the following review i weote is Bulls**t---- after researching and comparing the many security camera systems, I bought the Firstrend 1080P 8CH Wireless Home Security System with 1TB storage. The setup was easy plug and play. You do have to run a small wire to power the camera on, the signal/picture are wireless. You have to create an account, email and password and download the App on your phone, so now you can view your cameras anywhere on your smartphone, which is a plus, and the video was perfect. ( I was approx 75 miles from home ). The 1TB hard drive is alot of storage, and enough for me. With 4 cameras recording 24/7 I used approx. 100gb so far. So I should be able to record around 7-8 weeks before the hard drive is full and needs to be backed up and formatted. The range of the wifi is great! I have 3 of the cameras about 20 feet away from the hard drive with no interference or loss, and 1 camera on my garage which is around 120 feet away and it works great! I was worried about the signal being to far away, but it works fine. at 1:30am the picture is great. Firstrend customer support is awesome! Which is extremely important to me, if you can't stand behind the products you sell I don't want it! Firstrend stands behind there product and they don't make you wait days and days for a response. I emailed Firstrend 2 times with questions and support, Jespen emailed me back within a couple hours and addressed all of my questions. If your looking for a good security camera system with all the features, and won't break the bank, Firstrend 1080P 8CH Wireless Home Security System is the way to go...

I liked this system so much I bought a second one a couple weeks later, so that I’d have an 8-camera setup instead of 4. Had I known the 4-cam system was so good I would have bought the 8-cam one initially, because that would have cost less, but hindsight is 20/20. The receiver (“Network Video Recorder”) that comes with the 4-cam package is actually configured so it can display up to 8 cameras anyway, but now I have a spare NVR. I bought this Firstrend to replace a similar wireless home security system of a different brand, and which was never really satisfactory. But unlike that one, the Firstrend has really sharp video, and virtually no delay between the camera and what you’re seeing. My previous system sometimes was 5 or more seconds delayed in what I was getting on my monitor from what was actually happening outside my house. Another difference is the signal strength on these cameras. My old system would have video from the different cameras dropping out sporadically, and then after a while, coming back on, then dropping out again, over and over, as the signal strength was obviously weak. But these cameras send a super strong signal into the house from their locations outside, and I never have a single video signal dropout. And I don’t even have the antennas up on the NVR. In fact, after I installed one of the cameras outside, I came back inside to check the video, which was perfect, and then I realized I still had that camera’s antenna in my pocket! Forgot to attach it! No antenna on the camera, and the antennas on the NVR were in the down and hidden position, and yet a perfect signal being received. Also, the system has a lot of features...it can be set to recognize humans and/or vehicles and start recording when that happens, even if you have the recording turned off. The cameras have microphones so you can choose to listen to audio from them if you wish. You can export recorded video to a USB. You can drag and drop video from one camera to a different camera position on the screen. There’s numerous options for how to display the cams...just one, all four, all 8, etc. But the user manual that comes in the box has only the most basic info and really needs to be more complete on all the many things this system does with its many menu selections, so that’s the only downside. But fortunately their tech support is excellent and I exchanged probably a dozen emails with them getting questions answered, and they even called me and spent an hour on the phone with me answering more questions. So, I’m very pleased with this system.

I have had them operating for a year. The Eyemed app sucks! Not sure why, but it never worked correctly. Now I get advertisements to remove before I can see my cameras, but I can not see them at all. So, forget that app. The rewind did work. They are set up with their own wifi. They have worked very well for a long time. We rewind no issues here in our neighborhood. One is not working now, and I can not seem to figure out how to reset it. I wish that the app worked, but it never did. That is why the 3-star.

I've had this for close to 6 months at the time of this review. Will update if needed. This system replaces a previous NVR brand (OOSSXX) and out of the box is 90% a better experience, and much better customer support. Many of my comparisons will be to the previous unit's hardware & software which are all an improvement over the former. The only downside is the lack of a way to IP into the system and capture your video output from a computer directly. The old system used Adobe Flash which is now out of support, so it also could not be used, but it would be nice to have some software that I can use from a PC instead of directly on the NVR itself. PROS: + Cameras use a ball joint. When loosened you can aim this any which way you want to and easily hand-tighten to secure it. It is a single tightening mechanism to adjust for any angle. (Old camera had 2 different sized Allen wrenches to adjust vertical and horizontal) + Antennae is on the side of the camera instead of the rear. This makes for easy installation and attachment of the antenna after the fact. (Old camera mounted on the rear, which the antenna got in the way of the aforementioned screws to adjust the camera in the first place) + Software is a lot easier to use and set up. categories make sense when navigating, and set up app for the phone is a simple QR code scan to link the two. + Cameras are pre-configured (typical for these kinds of setups, but worth mentioning) + Frame-rate is fairly consistent. The farthest camera from the NVR unit has the worst frame-rate at about half the frame-rate of the closer cameras but it's also still usable through a metal garage door, a firewall, and a regular wall, so I expected it to have the worse connectivity due to this. + Excellent customer service, fast response when contacting about a dead camera. CONS: - There was 1 dead camera in my unit. It worked for a short while and just stopped working. I don't know if this is typical or not. My old camera system had some issues with cameras but to a worse degree. Since this particular camera was inside a garage and not exposed to the elements (and the outdoor cameras are just fine) it's likely just a fluke, and customer support is resolving without hassle after some simple troubleshooting. - No support from hooking up to the NVR from my local computer over the network to review footage. You either must use the Phone app, or export the videos directly from the NVR onto a USB OTHER THOUGHTS: - Overall, this unit is better than my old unit in almost every way. the cameras seem more stable in frame-rate, easier to mount, and the NVR software is much easier to navigate. My only concern is the longevity of the product due to one of the cameras completely dying and not being able to power on. To be fair, my old system also had some issues with several cameras. Ultimately the system lasted for quite a while, rendering it cheaper than a month-to-month service like Ring. I hope this one will also last as long. The customer service responded within the same day to help me get my single dead camera replaced so I am very thankful for that.