INTRODUCTION

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   We live in dangerous times it's something that we all know and although many of us choose to ignore it (each for their very own reasons) things will probably only get worse. I guess i too used to be that way up until the moment people started breaking in houses and cars close to where i live so i didn't have much of a choice other than to install alarm systems with IP cameras both at home and at the lab. Much like most things in the electronics market there are currently two ways available if you want to safeguard your house with the help of IP cameras the first of which is to choose a complete kit which will contain the number of cameras (IP or analog models) that you require and an NVR (network video recorder). The second and also the more complicated one involves you pairing the IP camera model(s) of your choice to an standalone NVR (or NAS). TRENDnet has been in the business of manufacturing some of the best IP cameras in the market and today we'll be testing their latest TV-IP314PI model.

   TRENDnet is a global provider of award-winning networking and surveillance solutions to small and medium-sized business and home users. Building networking solutions since 1990, TRENDnet enables users to share broadband access, multimedia content and networked peripherals for true anywhere connectivity. TRENDnet's diverse product portfolio includes Wireless, Internet Cameras (IP Cameras), Switches, Power over Ethernet (PoE), Fiber, Gigabit, Home Automation, Network Video Recorders (NVR), Keyboard/Video/Mouse (KVM), Print Servers, Powerline, NAS Media Servers, Multimedia Accessories, and more. To learn more about TRENDnet, please visit www.trendnet.com.

   The TV-IP314PI is a Indoor/Outdoor 4MP (Megapixel) PoE (Power Over Ethernet) Day/Night network camera housed inside a IP66 certified (dust and water proof) compact bullet enclosure (much like the one used with the TV-IP310PI model). The fixed focus lens and the 1/3" progressive scan CMOS sensor allow the TV-IP314PI to record video (H.264/H.264+) with resolutions of up to 2688x1520p pixels at 20fps (1920x1080p @ 30fps is also supported) with a diagonal viewing angle of 98 degrees (83 degrees horizontal and 45 degrees vertical). Also thanks to the 30 IR LEDs placed around the lens (Smart IR) the TV-IP314PI can illuminate an area of up to 30 meters in range while by supporting the PoE standard (IEEE 802.3af) the camera can be fed sufficient power (5W max) only via the RJ45 cable when connected to a compatible device (such as a PoE switch). The TV-IP314PI also supports WDR (wide dynamic range - 120dB), 3D DNR (dynamic noise reduction) and is also fully compatible with the ONVIF (Profile S/G) and PSIA specifications.

 

 

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Just like the TV-IP310PI the TV-IP314PI arrived inside a small box with a large product picture at the front right over its three main features.

 

 

The features and bundle contents lists are printed on the left side.

 

 

At the rear we also see the features list printed in 6 languages and a product picture used to showcase the parts of the camera.

 

 

Packaging is very good since the camera is placed inside a piece of foam.

 

 

Contained inside the box is the TV-IP314PI IP Camera, mounting screws, water and dust protection clips (for the RJ45 cable), drill template, software CD, IPView app booklet, quick installation guide (2 pieces), warranty information paper, PoE information paper and the product registration paper.

 

 

THE TV-IP314PI

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Almost identical to the TV-IP310PI the new TV-IP314PI weighs just 362g and measures 80mm in length and 50mm in diameter.

 

 

To showcase just how compact the TV-IP314PI is we placed it right next to the LCAB03VLNOD IP camera by Linksys.

 

 

With a total of 30 IR LEDs the TV-IP314PI can illuminate a distance of up to 30 meters at night (the ambient light sensor is placed at the lower center).

 

 

Moving at the rear of the enclosure we find a reset button and the grounding screw.

 

 

The mounting base may not be the thickest we've ever seen (and perhaps not the most durable one) but it's fully adjustable.

 

 

Two cables come out the enclosure, one is the PoE compatible RJ45 port and the other is the 12VDC1A power port (power adapter sold extra).

 

 

Unfortunately just like with the TV-IP310PI the TV-IP314PI doesn't have a microSD/SD card slot (internal storage) for snapshots either.

 

 

WEB INTERFACE PART 1

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Exactly like with most IP cameras a live view window takes most of the first page (you can maximize the window by double clicking on it).

 

 

From the first page you can also choose to playback recorded files (if you have configured the camera to write on the local drive), check the logs, see the main system information and logout.

 

 

The second page includes advanced options/settings and the first tab is the system tab from where you can name the camera and location placed, add/remove users, adjust the time, set the live view and recording parameters, enable/disable extra authentication settings and perform maintenance tasks such as firmware updates.

 

 

From within the network tab you can adjust various network interface settings, set the port numbers, enable DDNS (DynDNS - NoIP), use PPPoE, enable/disable UPnP, use the SNMP feature, configure QoS (prioritize traffic) and use the IEEE 802.1X authentication standard.

 

 

WEB INTERFACE PART 2

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

We've reached the video tab which is self-explanatory since from here you can choose the stream type (main/sub), select the desired resolution and framerate (2688x1520p@20fps/1920x1080p@25fps/1280x720p@25fps), choose between constant (up to 16384Kbps) and variable bitrate, enable/disable H.264+ (smart codec that saves bandwidth compared to H.264), select the i-frame interval and use the SVC feature (Scalable Video Coding).

 

 

Through the display settings tab you can tweak pretty much everything you'd ever want in terms of image quality from the usual brightness, contrast, saturationm, sharpness and day/night options up to exposure settings, backlight settings, white balance, DNR and orientation.

 

 

The OSD (on-screen display) is also self-explanatory so from here you can choose what you'd liked displayed on the live screen.

 

 

Thanks to the privacy mask feature you can hide several parts from the view.

 

 

You can also set motion detection and video tampering on several parts of the view from the event tabs.

 

 

In the storage tab you can set the recording and capture schedules and configure the where you want the recordings to go (you will need to setup at least one network storage drive).

 

 

IPVIEW ANDROID / IOS APP

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

Although the TV-IP314PI is not a cloud IP camera thus you can't access it easily from anywhere in the world you can still download the android/iOS app to access it from your local network (and probably also DynDNS/No-IP if you set it up).

The app has reached version 2.0 and as you can see the first screen gives you 4 choices add a camera, scan on the local network for a camera, list all registered cameras and view one of them.

 

 

Since in the lab we also have the TV-IP310PI it was detected along with the TV-IP314PI.

 

 

The sub-stream used by this app has a resolution of 640x360 pixels at 20fps (you can also take snapshots and start recording the feed).

 

 

The app also allows you to adjust the auto-scan mode, change the aspect ratio and configure a drop-box account.

 

 

There-s also a multi-view feature which can be used to view the feed of more than just 1 IP camera but unfortunately it's not included with the free app version.

 

 

VIDEO QUALITY

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As usual I strongly recommend updating the camera to the latest firmware version which you can find online as seen above. Also if you get a 4MP IP camera chances are you will use it at full resolution which is why this section will only cover the 2688x1520p one.

 

 

Image quality during the day is slightly better than what we saw with the TV-IP310PI but i can't say it's a huge improvement (still very good overall for such a compact model).

 

 

Since the TV-IP314PI fully supports WDR and 3D DNR we decided to use both. Above you can see the image quality at night without and with 3D DNR.

 

 

Here you can see the image quality at night with WDR on and with WDR and 3D DNR on.

 

 

CONCLUSION

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

   The TV-IP310PI IP camera model which we reviewed a few years back couldn’t exactly match the detail some more expensive models with larger lens offered nor did it come with a built-in microphone (nor an audio input) but thanks to its resolution combined with its compact IP66 certified enclosure and the 30 meter range of the IR LEDs we really thought (and still do) that it was a solid offering by TRENDnet. The TV-IP314PI also improves on many things compared to its predecessor including megapixels (3MP / 4MP), recording resolution (2048x1536p / 2688x1520p), and diagonal viewing angle (89 degrees / 98 degrees). However that’s not really all since on top of that the TV-IP314PI comes with quite a few new interesting features including support for 3D DNR, H.264+ and SVC. Unfortunately just like its predecessor it lacks a micro SD/SD card slot (onboard storage) and although this might be quite important to some people I think most will not give it a second thought. Also as I’ve been saying for years it would be nice to see more “affordable” IP camera models featuring optical zoom so I do hope TRENDnet becomes one of the first to release one.

   With a current price tag of USD127.49 inside the USA (Amazon.com) and 170.66Euros inside the EU (Amazon.de) the TV-IP314PI Indoor/Outdoor 4MP PoE Day/Night Network Camera by TRENDnet offers a very good balance between price and performance/features. True it's a far cry from the best IP camera model in the market today (let's not forget that there are even models out there that cost close to USD10.000) but it does offer very good image quality both during the day and at night and that along with its features are more than just enough for us to give it our Golden Award.

PROS

- 4MP CMOS Sensor
- Supports Resolutions Up To 2688x1520p @20fps
- Supported Features (H.264+/SVC/3D DNR/120dB WDR)
- IP66 Weatherproof Housing
- 30m Effective Night Vision
- PoE Compatible
- Web Interface
- Available Software (PC / Android / iOS)
- Size
- Price (For Some)

 

CONS

- Available Connectors (No Alarm, Video and Audio In/Out)
- No microSD / SD Card Slot (Internal Storage)