home security camera DVR/NVR kit recommendations?

I'm in the market for a complete kit (cameras + DVR/NVR) after my house got broken into in mid-January. I've NEVER had any place of residence broken into before. This house was built in 1979 and never had a break-in until now.

I had a Dropcam Pro inside and could see 2 people in the house, one quite clearly visible but the camera was in IR mode as they left the lights off. I wasn't even on vacation!

I just was late coming home from work + errands. The broke right before 9:14 pm on a Wednesday night. I could see them shining flashlights into the kitchen from the backyard (surrounded by a fence) at ~9:07 pm.

There's been a huge surge of burglaries in my area in the past few weeks. On 1/23/15, a house 6 houses away from me on a street connected to mine got broken into. On 1/27/15, its neighbor (5 houses from me) was hit. 6 other houses were burglarized that night, but in a neighborhood a few miles away.

I want a complete DVR system w/outdoor cameras monitoring all possible points of entry (doors and windows), so I'm guessing (depending on field of vision of the camera), I'd want at least 6 exterior cameras, maybe as many as 10.

I really am not keen on DIY setups or anything like cameras direct from Chinese companies like Hikvision. I don't care about SD card storage as I'm sure not going to climb up on a ladder (possibly the 2nd story) to swap SD cards. I really do NOT want to have a PC dedicated for recording. I don't have an extra PC I can spare.

My only current experience is w/2 Dropcam Pros and their web UI + iOS (iPhone and iPad) and Android phone apps.

I don't know all my pre-reqs yet, but I can think of these:
- DVR storage
- weatherproof cameras w/720p res or better preferred
- reliable motion detection w/o too many false alarms and the ability to exclude certain zones
- decent software that can highlight where in a timeline there's been activity detected.
- decent track record of manufacturer's support to fix bugs and fix security holes/bugs
- reliable hardware
- ability to copy stills (JPGs?) and movie files off (USB flash/hard drive, SD card or microSD card, network are all ok)
- motion alerts on my mobile device (iOS preferred)
- ability to view video remotely from mobile device
- ability to fast forward thru video/create or view a time lapse video

I'd REALLY hate to spend a whole ton of $ on hardware and a contractor to install it all to only have stuff crap out or for the system to turn out to be a piece of crap that's flaky, is buggy, has unreliable motion detection or too many false detections, etc.

I'd also hate it if the system has horrible security holes that are never patched because the vendor decided to abandon it and move onto the next product.

I'm not on a really tight budget. I figure the max I'd be willing to spend on hardware is between $1K and $1.5K. I'll pay whatever it takes to have a reputable installer do the work. Not sure where I should look for that though...

I really don't have time for a new hobby (e.g. Network Camera Critic) and to experiment w/random cameras, PoE switches, NAS boxes, software, random resellers on Amazon, Alibaba, etc. I just want a complete system that a contractor can install onto a house.

I saw a Samsung (too low res for me) and Lorex system at my local Costco. At Security Camera Systems , besides Swann, I see brands like AvertX, Lorex, Q-See but some seem to have bad reviews.

Swann seems to be constantly a name that comes up but I have no idea which of these systems/vendors are good/bad.

At Fry's, I also saw brands like ZModo, Revo, and Night Owl. Some are Chinese companies (e.g. ZModo) so I'm not sure I want to bother. AvertX seems kinda new (founded in 2012?) and reviews like Costco - AvertX 16 Channel Professional IP HD Security System with 2TB Hard Drive and 8 1080p IR Bullet Cameras customer reviews - product reviews - read top consumer ratings give me pause.

Where's a good place place to discuss pros, cons, find reviews, etc.?

Or, should I say screw it and go w/an ADT alarm system + pay for their cameras and monitoring? I will probably be installing an alarm from someone, in the near future.

 

Thanks. Unfortunately, I realized why I don't have a a membership with them. Their closest store is over 67 miles away, one way. No thanks.

Was your Samsung system recent? Have a model # of the kit? What's the resolution of the cameras? To me, nowadays, I wouldn't want something under 720p. A lot of other cameras below that res might capture someone walking around but w/o enough details to be of any use.

Recently, I found some demos/explanation at 420 TVL, 480 TVL, 540 TVL, 600 TVL, 700 TVL, 1000 TVL - What are TV-Lines? And Will I Get Better Surveillance Footage If I Buy a Camera with More TV Lines?.

Thanks, but I need weatherproof cameras. I've already got 2 Dropcam Pros w/subscription inside and I receive get alerts on my 2 phones and emails.

Interesting. I'd seen their stuff at Lowe's but they seemed geared more home automation (not interested, for the most part) or an amateur alarm. It seems they only have 1 outdoor camera: Shop IRIS USA Digital IP Outdoor Security Camera with Night Vision (Works with Iris) at Lowes.com and from glancing thru a few reviews so far, it looks like it's crap (overly sensitive motion detection and no way to set detection zones (Dropcam lets me set zones and exclude areas from causing alerts)).

 

I'm probably going to go with Swann 8 Channel HD NVR Security System with 2TB HDD and 8 3MP HD IP Cameras. Costco has an arrangement w/them for a 3 year warranty. I might only install 6 cameras and keep 2 as spares.

I believe it comes w/8 of these cameras:
NHD-820 1080p high definition network surveillance camera
Swann 3MP HD IP Add-on Bullet Camera 2-pk
review: » SWANN HD-820CAM (Hikvision DS-2CD2032) 1080P IR Bullet Network Camera Critic

Sample videos (You'll probably want to view this on YouTube's site directly. Change quality to 1080p via the gear and go Full Screen):

I was hoping to save some $ by going w/a 720p system, as I figure that resolution is good enough, but I haven't found anything that would give me a big savings and it seems like there aren't many review (and not many positive ones) of Swann's 720p PoE systems. And, since Costco doesn't have any Swann 720p PoE systems, that means I'd only get 12-18 months warranty instead of the 3 year arrangement they seem to have on the 1080p Swann system I'm considering.

After talking to one person and reading around a bit, I think it's better if I go w/PoE (Power over Ethernet) cameras as there's only 1 to run and that also allows them to have a web-based UI and be used w/other NVRs or even a computer, if I want to ditch the supplied NVR.

 

I ended up ordering Swann 8 Channel HD NVR Security System with 2TB HDD and 8 3MP HD IP Cameras last night. If only someone could give me feedback on InstallerNet/Installcard for home surveillance (security camera system) reputable? | PriusChat....