IR30 WideAngle IR Illuminator

I got one of these, and also had problems with very little illumination on some cams before I figured out what was going on.There are 3 types of infrared handling for CCTV cams - those with fixed IR filters, those without IR filters, and those with switchable filters (called IR cut filters). The last is on what's typically called a true day/night (or TDN) camera.B&W cams and many color cams don't have IR filters at all, especially inexpensive color cams with built-in IR illuminators (the Y-Cam Black/White/Knight are examples - see reviews on Amazon for the color issues). With these, you get good sensitivity to IR and good illumination from device like this, but colors can be off during the day, due to all the IR from sunlight. My Y-Cam shows the grass with a purplish hue when the sun is on it, and black clothes don't look black, but this device lights up the area like a spotlight for it.Color cams that aren't meant for night time or outdoor use often have a fixed IR filter. This makes the white light colors correct, but means it doesn't see IR very well, and this illuminator won't work for these. If you can see the LEDs lit up dull red but can't use it like a flashlight or spotlight for your camera, you probably have a fixed IR filter. One easy test is to point a remote control (these use IR) at your camera, push some buttons, and see how the LED lights up. Cameras with IR filters will show the LED lighting up as a dot, but those without filters will show bright glare and lots of beam.Cameras with IR cut filters (true day/night, or TDN) have an IR filter in place during the day, and move it out of the way at night. This gives the best of both worlds - true color in the daytime and good sensitivity at night - but it's a moving part, which is sometimes more likely to fail over time, especially on inexpensive cameras. Some TDN cameras have a photocell (like on this illuminator) to control when it switches between day and night, others use the video signal to figure out when to switch. The photocells tend to be more reliable and repeatable, but it depends on the camera design. If you cover a TDN camera with your hand, you should be able to hear a click as the filter retracts, then another one when you uncover it.I tried this illuminator first on an Arecont AV5100M IP camera, and it couldn't see any illumination from it, because it has a fixed IR filter. When I tried it with multiple TDN cams (several Vivoteks and an AV5105DN), it lights up the area very well.Finally, this does have a dull cherry glow, due to the 850 nM wavelength, which most cameras that don't have IR filters are sensitive to. The completely invisible IR LEDs are 950 nM, but most cameras are less sensitive to this wavelength, and it has less energy as well, so you need a lot more power to get the same illumination (plus it costs more for the same power).OK, on to the illuminator:Good:- Photocell to turn it off in the daytime- Standard CCTV power plug so you can run it from any spare 12V camera supplies you have around.- Compact, easy to mount.- Doesn't run too hot, feels slightly warm when it's been on overnight.- Mine has been reliable, running for a month now, with no burned out LEDs or switching problems.- Lots of light for the low price.Bad:- Not the sturdiest mount, but it's hard to complain for the price.All in all, it's quite a nice piece of gear for the price. If the LEDs start failing, that would be a bad point, and would show that you need to spend more money, but mine's been good so far. This has similar performance to illuminators that cost 4 times as much.

2nd update 1/1/13: of the four units I installed a year ago, three are now completely dead and the one remaining one is only about 30% functional. Steer clear of these things unless you don't mind replacing them often.Update:Since I wrote the initial review in January 2012 all of the illuminators have started failing. The LEDs are burning out after just a few months of use and the result is a significantly darker image on the associated cameras. I know the LEDs are going out as I can see the faint red glow from them is now gone while the ones around are still glowing. I'm not going to bother with an exchange as all the units are exhibiting the issue to some degree. Some have just one or two LEDs out, others are over 1/2 failed. I've decided to just spend a little more and (hopefully) get a better quality unit.Just a note here for other potential purchasers: I live in the Phoenix, AZ Metro area and use these outside so they are subject to ambient temperatures up to 120°F. They are all in the shade all day but even at night ambient temps are in the mid 80s to mid 90s. In a cooler climate the burn-our may not be an issue.Original review from Jan '12:Really fills in the dark areas of my security camera views with wide angle lenses. Instead of a narrow spotlight in the center of the image, the entire frame is now lit and looks like B&W daylight.I purchased some 2W power supplies and Y cables and run two of these illuminators for each camera I have. Some to get a really far away area lit, some to just get a wide field of view.Definitely will be getting more of these.

I purchased a couple to see how they'd work with my CIB, Z-Moto and First Alert cameras to mainly extend the lighting conditions farther than the camera's internal or burnt out IR's. One was placed 50' from the camera at a perpendicular angle to the camera's line of sight. It looks like a halogen floodlight is illuminating the yard now instead of just a dark area the camera used to capture. The other, I attached to the inside of the window pane to illuminate the front porch that a camera is facing but had burned out its internal IR. If you place the IR's housing edge flat against or seal it to the window, there won't be any bleed over into the camera's lens. Now I have a reasonable view of anybody approaching the porch.Since these two worked flawlessly so far (I can't speak on their longevity or weather-proofing yet), I ordered three more to use on the side and back of the house. Two are in line with the cameras aim they support and another (which supports two cameras) is perpendicular- each providing bright, adequate and farther illumination than any of my camera's internal IR's. Because they are wide angle, they don't wash out close subjects (10 - 12 feet) but sufficiently illuminate distant objects and the yard out to 30 feet or so (the advertized 50' might be a stretch, however). If you can position these beyond where your camera's internal illumination starts to fade, you should be able to effectively double your camera's nighttime vision.I have a couple wired with a wye directly to the DVR/camera's power line and the rest I am using spare 500mw power supplies I wasn't using that came with the CIB cameras- one direct and two connected via a wye.No. They don't come with a power supply or a wye... but that's fairly obvious from previous reviews (and who orders stuff without reading at least some of the reviews?). Another reviewer's tip on using your TV's remote to see if your camera sees it is a good indication that these will work with yours. They are a PITA to hang since you have to fasten the mount first- then thread the tiny screws through the mount and hood into the IR's housing to secure (probably up on a ladder, one handed or some other precarious position). If you have cameras with wide angle (3.6mm) lenses, these are the ones to get. If you try to use these with a normal 6mm (or longer) lens, the lens might be already looking beyond the IR's capability (as was the case with one of my CIB's). So, a narrower angle supplemental IR would probably be better in your situation- or do what I did... mount the IR light perpendicular 50' from the camera.I knocked off one star due to the difficulty in mounting. If they came with the power supply and wye, they would cost twice as much as Amazon carries them for (but surely not enough to the warrant some one or two-star reviews given by not including them).