Trail Cameras

[lreops]

Interested in getting a Trail Camera, but have no idea of what is most important to look for and if anyone can voice their recommendations of what they think is the better of all the choices.

Thanks
Ron

[lefty87]

I am a fan of the tactacams.    Especially for interior locations or your "A" spots.  Check a coverage map for wireless provider you use.  For the peninsula ATT is best.  The app is pretty user friendly and you can suspend billing when you're not using it to send to your app.    As for others...I am not going to lie I have had primos, bushnells, etc.  The ones that last for me are the cheap wildgame innovations.  You wont feel bad if they break and put out a decent photo.  I got those since i was wanting what I thought quality over quantity but they have been pretty good.

I will post some examples.

[lefty87]

Examples

[lefty87]

More

[Mikie]

I don't know that much about them, but I would recommend getting the fastest "trigger speed" that you can. A lot of them have 7-10 second trigger speeds which means a bunch of stuff can walk by before the camera fires.

[indoe]

I have a recommendation on where to buy it. My cameras always die after a year or 2. I don't buy the most expensive ones because I'm worried they will break or get stolen. But Walmart has an insurance plan you can buy with any electronic. I'm sure other stores do as well. I did this last year. I purchased a camera and also purched the 3 year plan I believe. The camera died on my the 2nd year and I took it back and got 90% of my money back. I will do it this year as well. It might be a good time to buy one soon.

[samiam]

First thing you need to do is decide whether you need photos over the internet, or just recorded to a memory card. If you need internet capability, you need to research which carriers offer connectivity where you have the camera(s). You may be lucky, and have a broad selection of carriers available, but that is not always the case. At our remote property, the only available carrier is US Cellular. Not all cameras are compatible with all carriers, so this can be vital information. If we want to add internet connectivity (I am considering it) the only compatible camera brand appears to be Spartan. We have had several unconnected, relatively inexpensive, Moultrie cams deployed for 8 years or so, and have had no issues with them.

[lreops]

Thank you for your replies. Some interesting tidbits that hadn't crossed my mind.

First, I'm trying to figure out if I want or need an internet capability as some have mentioned. I was under the impression that through the memory card I would just download into computer and then I could send it wherever, via internet. Unfortunately, I'm apparently too old school to be able to keep up, tech wise in today's world. When you mention "Apps", does that mean that you can always connect to your camera live? And I thought that if I choose to get one with WiFi, that it would be recognized in my home network and able to view it that way. I'm guessing that I'm off on things.

Second, Never was one to go for the extended warranty, not realizing that the life span of these units is questionable, good tip.

I have a recommendation on where to buy it. My cameras always die after a year or 2. I don't buy the most expensive ones because I'm worried they will break or get stolen. But Walmart has an insurance plan you can buy with any electronic. I'm sure other stores do as well. I did this last year. I purchased a camera and also purched the 3 year plan I believe. The camera died on my the 2nd year and I took it back and got 90% of my money back. I will do it this year as well. It might be a good time to buy one soon.

Ron

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[samiam]

Thank you for your replies. Some interesting tidbits that hadn't crossed my mind.

First, I'm trying to figure out if I want or need an internet capability as some have mentioned. I was under the impression that through the memory card I would just download into computer and then I could send it wherever, via internet. Unfortunately, I'm apparently too old school to be able to keep up, tech wise in today's world. When you mention "Apps", does that mean that you can always connect to your camera live? And I thought that if I choose to get one with WiFi, that it would be recognized in my home network and able to view it that way. I'm guessing that I'm off on things.

Second, Never was one to go for the extended warranty, not realizing that the life span of these units is questionable, good tip.   
Ron

As you stated, you can download photos from the memory card in a camera that is itself unconnected, and, once downloaded, upload, attach to email, do whatever you can do with any other kind of file. This requires you to physically access the camera. For some makes & models, the camera itself can connect to the internet via a cell service and run a program that can upload or email the photos automatically. That allows you to view and/or download the photos in near-realtime without being physically present at the site. That is what I would like to do for our remote site - it would be nice to be able to see that the cabin hasn't burned down or a tree hasn't fallen on it before undertaking an 8 hour drive to spend a week there Also, while I'm not terribly worried about a break-in where we are, should one occur, the photos could potentially be useful in apprehending the culprits.

[lreops]

Again, thanks for all of yours'  input. It is that it's a little overwhelming because of all the many choices with many showing similar specs with such a variance in price between them. I'll figure something out.

Ron

 

[jack1747]

Most things are plug'n'play (pnp) wifi now.  If you have a wifi router within range of the cam it should be easy peasy. If your looking for catching some pic's of critters.  If you looking for something else Ron send me a PM.  My setup is a little much for most. My Son uses Arlo.  I am impressed with their setup.  Quick and simple.

[lreops]

Thanks, Jack. I originally was thinking of a PNP, but Where I want the cameras is more than 100', where most say up to 100'. I know that there must be a device that could probably relay the signal to my network....but....I'm a tech dummy.

Ron

[jack1747]

Thanks, Jack. I originally was thinking of a PNP, but Where I want the cameras is more than 100', where most say up to 100'. I know that there must be a device that could probably relay the signal to my network....but....I'm a tech dummy.

Ron

Not a big deal.. Use a WiFi bridge.

[lreops]

See that, all my guesses for the devices name would of never thought, bridge. Thanks.

Ron