HiLook IPC-T250H 5MP Fixed Lens Indoor / Outdoor Turret PoE IP Camera

After a small glitch in getting the camera set up for the first time (sorted quickly via RA process and returned to me today), I managed to get it onto my network and configured to use my DHCP server in just a few minutes using the SADP tool.
The biggest dislike for this camera is that you can ONLY use Internet Explorer 11 to access it. All other browsers - including Edge - fail to present the login page. Thankfully someone has produced an extension called "IE Tab" which works perfectly with this camera.
Setup of the camera for the video is quite easy and I did not need to even glance at the manual for most settings. I have it inside my win...view more After a small glitch in getting the camera set up for the first time (sorted quickly via RA process and returned to me today), I managed to get it onto my network and configured to use my DHCP server in just a few minutes using the SADP tool.
The biggest dislike for this camera is that you can ONLY use Internet Explorer 11 to access it. All other browsers - including Edge - fail to present the login page. Thankfully someone has produced an extension called "IE Tab" which works perfectly with this camera.
Setup of the camera for the video is quite easy and I did not need to even glance at the manual for most settings. I have it inside my window while testing and the picture is very crisp and clear. Vehicles and people are readily identifiable at 5-10m and there is almost no lag in the image.
Even at night I still get reasonably clear images although the inbuilt IR is currently reflecting off my window. I currently have the camera on the lowest 1280x720P setting and I can see street lights and vehicle headlights on the other side of the harbour from me, some 2.5km away.
Adding the camera to my phone's camera viewing app was very simple. The image is obviously lower resolution and bitrate but is still very clear. I am now tossing up the purchase of another couple of cameras for other locations around my home.

Good picture, but the initial setup is quite involved with a separate app just to be able to set an IP address and configure the RTSP stream.

I recommend the newer models with easier browser based setup. Good picture, but the initial setup is quite involved with a separate app just to be able to set an IP address and configure the RTSP stream.

I recommend the newer models with easier browser based setup.

These cameras, when on sale, are good value for the features provided. They are a budget Hikvision product so they don't have all the latest features but we have found that they perform well with a stable firmware and that they have an extensive set of configuration options.

However, the current firmware requires the use of Internet Explorer 11 (or, now, MS Edge) browsers to access the camera management pages as most other web browsers will not install or download the web video active X components designed for this firmware. Edge has been upgraded to allow it to run in IE mode and it now allows full access to the cameras when compatibilit...view more These cameras, when on sale, are good value for the features provided. They are a budget Hikvision product so they don't have all the latest features but we have found that they perform well with a stable firmware and that they have an extensive set of configuration options.

However, the current firmware requires the use of Internet Explorer 11 (or, now, MS Edge) browsers to access the camera management pages as most other web browsers will not install or download the web video active X components designed for this firmware. Edge has been upgraded to allow it to run in IE mode and it now allows full access to the cameras when compatibility modes are enabled.

We purchased these cameras primarily to upload motion event FTP images to a web server and did run into a problem where the cameras refused to upload images if the main video streams were set to maximum resolution values. The FTP uploads returned to normal when the video quality was reduced to 'Medium' and a bit rate of 6144 Kbps. It appears that Highest quality with an 8192 bit rate causes the FTP uploads to fail in our case. This was confirmed on three of these cameras.

Overall - I give these 4/5 stars only because they require MS browsers to set them up and the FTP issue we encountered. Apart from that we are happy with the quality of these items and the http or rtsp API interface options work well to access the streams or images via web pages without the use of a DVR.

I replaced a dome camera with this turret because of better night vision performance (no reflection of IR back into the dome) and it works very well as expected. Clear images in day and very clear IR images at night over a long range. Previuous Hilook domes have been very reliable over a year and a half but the IR performance is not as good as a turret. Only hiccup was that it arrived with the admin password set to something other than the default (usu 12345 or blank) and noone at PBTech knew what it was. There is a documented process to reset it by asking Hilvision for a security key (there is no manual factory reset button on it). Its few...view more I replaced a dome camera with this turret because of better night vision performance (no reflection of IR back into the dome) and it works very well as expected. Clear images in day and very clear IR images at night over a long range. Previuous Hilook domes have been very reliable over a year and a half but the IR performance is not as good as a turret. Only hiccup was that it arrived with the admin password set to something other than the default (usu 12345 or blank) and noone at PBTech knew what it was. There is a documented process to reset it by asking Hilvision for a security key (there is no manual factory reset button on it). Its few steps: Load Hikvision SADP software, plug the camera into a POE switch and it appears, say you forgot the password and through a couple of steps it gives you a .xml file with a key to send to Hikvision support. Surprisingly they are very responsive and return an .xml code within about 6-8 hours (they are open UTC +8 time Mon to Fri to time when you send it!). Load the return xml code (through the SADP interface) and bingo it asks for a new password to be set. Important not to power it off between getting the first xml code out and entering the code they send in return otherwise the keys all reset to something else and you start all over again. I had a Hilook NVR to plug it into and then also had to set the IP address using the SADP tool to a 192.164.254.xxx not used already on the NVR. Worked fine from then on. All easy to do if you know how (which I didnt until now!) but it would have been quicker if the password was the usual defaults or simply known.

I have currently 6 of these camera's, and the resolution is good. I did loose the passwords though, and resetting the ip addresses then becomes a challenge. There is no factory reset button inside, so you have to email the manufacturer to get an unlock-code which is valid for only 24 hours after you approached them. The time they need to respond is deducted from that. I have currently 6 of these camera's, and the resolution is good. I did loose the passwords though, and resetting the ip addresses then becomes a challenge. There is no factory reset button inside, so you have to email the manufacturer to get an unlock-code which is valid for only 24 hours after you approached them. The time they need to respond is deducted from that.

Set up on HiLook NVR-216MH-C/16P very straight forward. Motion detection feature makes recording easy and view of records on shows motion saves scanning though hours of records searching for action. Set up on HiLook NVR-216MH-C/16P very straight forward. Motion detection feature makes recording easy and view of records on shows motion saves scanning though hours of records searching for action.