Defender Exclusive Bundle: Sentinel 4K PoE 8CH NVR Security System, 4 Metal Cameras, 2 Year Warranty, 5 x 60ft Ethernet Cables, Smart Human Detection, Audio Recording, Spotlight, Mobile App

Sentinel 4K Ultra HD Wired 8 Channel PoE NVR Security System with 8 Cameras ReviewTypically, I invest many hours (2-40) researching before buying products. This situation on Home Security Camera Systems was no different…I spend a couple of days researching brands, operating platforms, wired, wireless, color, black & white, audio, etc. etc. etc.When debating the wired/wireless options…I thought…how do the wireless ones get their power? Drumroll…batteries or solar! I asked myself, do I want to be climbing a ladder every time a battery needs replaced or recharged? NO! My me, wired was the way to go. Even if you get a “wireless” one – many of them still require an electric plug in. (so you don’t have to run cables through your attic but you do have to have power to each camera…which still requires running electric lines through your attic).PRO TIP: Buy yourself a “fish stick” - maybe the glow in the dark ones - so that when you are running lines in your attic through your soffit it will be easier to see and you will not have to crawl so far back in each corner.I bought two Sentinel 4K Ultra HD Wired 8 Channel PoE NVR Security Systems with 8 Cameras, one for our house and one for a widowed neighbor that lives close. I can confidently say that I am very pleased with my purchase. There are many reasons I chose this system: 4K, Color, IR for night, LED flood lights that can be motion activated, recording time, recording quality, POEs for each camera, metal, not plastic camera housing, price, no monthly fees, and positive customer reviews.PRO TIP: Draw out your home and plan out where each camera will be placed – use smaller 75degree angles to estimate coverage. (I have successfully covered 180 degrees with only two cameras…so I believe they do more than the advertised 75 degrees)I can spot things over 100 yards away, I can zoom in on a particular area, I can listen through each camera, and I can cover every angle surrounding our home! I also like the fact that I can make each cameras settings unique to that camera. I found the quality of the system to be great. I contacted CS through chat to get a few questions answered before buying. They are helpful and very knowledgeable.I still have to figure out the “Smart Human Detection”.The above reasons are why I have given a 5-star rating. YES, I would buy again. YES, I would recommend this system. YES, I like their customer service.PRO TIP: They run a good # of promotions/incentives direct from their website!

Pros: Excellent video quality, very easy to install, easy setup.Cons: Constant false motion detection events, "Detection Area" feature doesn't work in the app, and there is no way to navigate to motion events (except by tapping a notification, and that only works once) in the app if you have continuous recording enabled. There should be an app screen where you can view all motion events for all channels. The same should be available at the NVR console. Customer support is slow. I've asked three questions, and each time it's taken at least 3 days to get a reply. This system is disappointing because with a few software improvements it could be a great system.

I tried and returned two other camera systems before buying this defender system. Setup was easy, instructions made sense(!), image quality is very good, multiple recording options (24 hr, motion, etc), a good user interface, and an excellent app have made this a joy to use. Yes, it’s a wired system and I had to crawl around in a hot attic to install it, but it was totally worth it to have such a great camera system at a very good price.

Amazing deal and the app works awesome! Love the system.

Really do enjoy these cameras but 1 came out of the box not working I ordered the 8 camera system I have reached out to the company and they have done nothing. Other then tell me to switch the wires around. I have done so and nothing seems to work. The sent me several emails but no replacement has been sent out

Look elsewhere for good customer service. When I installed the system I had a camera that was very blurry. I tried a new cable and adjusting the settings and nothing fixed it. I reached out to their customer service and they wanted to run through the typical, turn it off and turn it back on troubleshooting that I already tried. I explained that I did these things so they said send an email, which I completed. A week later they send a follow up email, wanting a clip. I am not reinstalling a camera to appease them. No response.The human/vehicle detection is VERY sensitive, even on the lowest setting. I had to turn it off.I was told by Yvonne that I would get 15 days of storage with 8 cameras on the best video quality setting recording 24/7. I am getting 4 days of storage.

This system alerts my phone 100 times a night saying there is a human. And it’s always buyer a tee. If someone is actually outside it half of the time doesn’t notify me. No good for the price. Would love to get my money back

There was no QR code on the actual DVR, also the QR code in the system does not work the app does not accept it can not be used with the app. Waste of money for this.

After buying and setting everything up I was very disappointed in the picture quality of the cameras I swear those cameras are not even 1 megapixel cameras let alone 8 megapixels I’m pretty sure they can only record in 720p cause 1080p would not be that bad I can barely read an name off of the hood of a boats engine from 5 meters away let alone a license plate or someone’s face there is no way they used the same quality camera as the camera that took the pictures they advertised. and I have tried multiple times it says it’s recording in “4K” I have tried resetting it and redoing the system menu but nothing happened and my tv and monitor I tried was both 4K so that’s not the reason aside from that although the cords were low quality as well, at least they sent waterproof connectors for the cameras (not that I needed them pulled the wires straight into the building behind the camera) and the extra 50’ cord was useful for connecting to the router although I guess you do get what you paid for still would be nice if they didn’t falsely advertise it being 4K/8 megapixel cameras the IR was not to bad though at least it wasn’t much worse then during the day

I bought the 4k POE Sentinal system and had it installed while building a new home and running the cables was convenient. All cables are the Cat5e which are more than enough to handle 4k video but the video quality is quite pixelated and it would be impossible to read a license plate or identify someone that you didn’t know well. The image I attached is a screenshot from the defender app onto my iPhone 12 and you can’t read a licence plate from 20 feet away. The DVR is connected to a brand new Samsung frame tv and the quality is the same. The defender ads states that the 4k video is perfect for identifying licence plates and faces but it’s not. I like the app and the ease of use/setupBut don’t plan on getting a quality image. I wouldn’t even say it’s HD. I have contacted tech support and have gone through all the setting to ensure that it’s set up correctly for 4k 15fps. Defender says the system is operating as designed but it’s no where near 4k. Don’t plan on grabbing license plates or detailed images of faces with this system, even within 20 feet of the camera. Unfortunately the house was build around the wiring so I can’t remove and return it.

The media could not be loaded.  We’ve been unfortunate enough to experience a few vehicle break-ins over the years and someone went as far as stealing our Christmas lights & decorations off our front lawn. 😭 Needless to say, we’ve needed security cameras. The ones we currently have, have failed us during some critical moments recently. We are so happy to get our hands on these Defender cameras, a well-known CANADIAN brand I’ve been eyeballing for years.This is a REALLY nice security camera set. I wanted to compare a hard-wired system to my current wifi systems that I own. I already have a good feeling that the Defender is more reliable compared to my wifi systems. It will likely become a permanent replacement for at least one of my current branded cameras. Only time will tell and so far I am pleased with the reliability. ⚡️IMPORTANT TO NOTE⚡️The NVR needs to be near an electrical outlet (AC adapter provided) and a router (read below🤔). Four sixty feet Ethernet cables are provided to power up the cameras and sync them back to your NVR.You’ll need to think about where your cameras are going to go and how you will link them back to your NVR. Most people run the wires through their attic. Having them run outside was not an option for me due to my squirrel issues; they have taken a liking to chewing wires outside my home. 😒Watching some You Tube videos on installation should give you an idea of what to expect.In order to use the App (Not necessary) you must plug your NVR into a router, which can limit where you put your NVR as well, OR you’ll need to buy a longer Ethernet cord because the one that comes with it is only 5ft. These are some of the many things you need to think about before purchasing this system. 👍WHAT I LIKE👍 ✅ NO MONTHLY FEES!!! YEAAAH!!! 🙌 You don’t have to PAY for a service, which I LOVE! This is one of the main reasons why I wanted this camera set. I am currently paying a monthly fee for one camera set and cancelled another security camera’s fees. With the Defender cameras, I don’t feel I am being held hostage to keep my footage and my own house safe, if I can’t pay my security bill. ✅4 channel systems are more affordable. ✅ The picture quality on the Defender is more detailed. Far better than my front door camera, and a pretty good match to my 1080P HD wifi deck camera at night. ✅ The Defender night vision is better than my front door camera. My front door camera doesn’t even have night vision (it’s hidden in a lamp) and I used to pay an astronomical monthly fee. The Defender is noticeably better than my Driveway camera (which is a different popular brand) because it is an older model, however the newer model (my Deck Camera) gives the defender a good run for it’s money for night vision. Even though the price is cheaper for that particular wifi system, the Defender comes out on top showing more details. ✅The casing surrounding the camera lenses seems strong and solid. ✅ The Defender is encrypted so that no one can hack into your cameras and watch or steal your footage.👁👁 ✅ The company provides you with everything you need except for a 4K monitor/TV. It comes with 4K cameras (X4), multiple cables, a mouse to control your NVR. The NVR includes a 1 TB Hard Drive (which is a lot of space). ✅ User experience and navigation on screen from the NVR is pretty straight forward. You don’t need to be an expert to figure out where things are. It seems to come naturally for me. ✅ The settings are really nice out of the box, however there are a lot of options. One such feature is tracking zones, which allows you to set up the areas you want your cameras to focus on. I really love this feature because it is very flexible, and it is a better feature than my wifi camera systems. ✅ Scrubbing the video is much easier especially if you use the app to “record” a snip-it from the play back section. The footage you record will significantly look better than the raw images in the play back settings. We tested it out and compared the wifi system to the defender and the clarity of a sign we made can be seen clearer at a further distance (see video). ✅ You can access your footage through an app on android or iOS (if you want to). All of the systems options for camera control are not available to you through the app. It doesn’t bother me because it’s just nice to be able to check in, to make sure you haven’t had any “porch pirates” at your door. Or hooligans breaking into our vehicle.😒 ❌WHAT I DON’T LIKE❌▪️ For those who may not be aware, you cannot add extra cameras later on in the future. I think it would’ve been nice to have that option for those of us on a budget. ▪️ I personally feel that the “colour night vision” is a bit misleading. There is a bright light on the camera that can be triggered by motion and it turns on; so of course it’s in colour - it is now lit up from the light. My other cameras do the exact same thing. I suppose the difference is it may be better quality at night. This should be the case b/c they are 4K after all. 😉 ▪️ I really wish it came in black because these stand out against my dark brown trim of my home. I might paint the cameras sometime in the distant future? ▪️ The mouse feels really cheap, but it works ok. Honestly, I just switched it out with a better one that we have lying around the house. ▪️ Because these are hard wired, they take longer to setup. You need to really plan where you’re going to put everything. I had anxiety about how hard it was going to be, and having two attics with a concrete wall separating them, made this a challenge. Plus paying someone to install the cameras for $200 per camera plus labour, was NOT in the cards or budget for us. Take the leap, watch some VERY informative YouTube Channels on any wired camera installation. They were a huge help and relieved a lot of anxiety. ▪️ We use our iPads for EVERYTHING. Currently this system is not setup to support any iPad aspect ratio. You can see that the UI is set up to support the dimensions on a phone. This might seem trivial for some, but my 4K Monitor is in my family room, so when I’m lying in bed, I’m mostly on my iPad and try to keep my phone out of my bedroom. This is a pretty easy solution for the company to solve, and hiring a good designer can help with that. ▪️ I think the Defender should use some of their budget to hire a good UI designer. The current interface feels like it’s over 20 years old. Lol! I had to look for the manufacturer’s date in the manual to make sure I wasn’t getting an old system by mistake, especially when I saw the date 2016 on the initial startup. 😝 Even the font makes me cringe. ▪️ 2 way voice talking is not available on these cameras. This is a pretty basic function offered on many cameras, so I was surprised and disappointed to see this was not a standard option considering the price. ▪️ The sound overall is just ok - not great. It’s to be expected and is pretty on par with other camera systems. Over time, I have found the sound gets even worse probably due to the elements, dust etc. I hope the sound doesn’t get compromised over time. ▪️There is quite a big delay in real time vs watching the live footage. It’s likely because it’s pulling in the 4K at 30 frames per second, but other cameras I have are better in that regard. With that said, I don’t mind the delay too much and I’m sure I could make it better by adjusting some settings(?) 🌺CONCLUSION🌺I’m extremely grateful to have such a reliable, high end system around my home now. As hard as it was to install, I’m glad we did it. We had a lot of help from YouTube making it much more painless. This Defender 4K system has set me free from the shackles of bill payments! That alone feels SO GOOD and I feel like this is a reliable system so far. At first glance the initial price of this system is a little daunting and why I could never afford them straight out of the box. But let me assure you, you will pay more in the long run with the monthly subscription for cameras that produce almost useless quality and details. Other cameras may be cheaper, but the stress of paying your monthly bill is not worth it. Save your money, and get yourself a reliable security system. It’s worth putting in the research and effort.I’ll keep one of my wifi cameras to compliment these and see how it goes in the long run. I hope to one day cut any and all subscription ties no matter how little the fees are. Every cent matters these days and the Defender solves a lot of problems for me. I would recommend these cameras to family and friends.

Upgraded my old lorex system to this one. Only had to plug in the new cameras to the old Ethernet lines and swap the boxes. Huge upgrade with minimal effort. Love the spot light feature. After 9 months one camera died. Not impressed anymore.

The media could not be loaded.  This is a pro level system but designed more for a home or small business. Unless you buy additional gear such as a wifi extender and POE switch that are made for outdoors, I think it is best suited for interior use. Reason being: you have to get 8 cables out of your home/building to the cameras mounted outside. That means drilling 8 holes around your home or one big one as they need to attach to the NVR for power. Not optimal. If you were to install these in say, a shop or garage or small warehouse etc. you would only have to deal with running the cables along walls at best, or through some of them which gets tricky if you're not a skilled DIY type. However, you need to attach the NVR to a dedicated monitor as the mobile app does not have all the features the NVR does.Now, overall quality. From the cameras to the NVR and its many functions; this is fairly high level gear. For tech savvy people who are also good with DIY, It is relatively easy to set up. The 1TB NVR can record a lot of footage depending on how you set the camera resolution. The price is, IMO reasonable given there are 8 cameras, 8 60ft cables, an NVR (basically just a DVR but for this specific purpose) and all are made of fairly high grade materials though the camera mounts could stand some improvement. Bottom line: if you have a need for more extensive security than the typical one camera wireless setup, this system is top notch. The biggest question mark is about installation.I think it would make more sense to have one cable that runs from the NVR to a junction box outside than having to attach all 8 to the NVR. On the plus side, if connected to your router the NVR will pick up other IP cameras on the network. I have one camera by the front door that it immediately picked up and added to the others.Mounting the cameras is fairly straight forward and a drilling template comes with each camera. You can run the cable along or through the wall depending on your needs. 60 ft sounds long, but if you have a large home/business/property etc it really isn't when you factor in the distance it is to the exit point to the exterior cameras mounted positions. In summary, while the system in theory requires no professional installation; given the complexity of just getting the cables outside and the advanced level of the software setup, you either need someone who is very knowledeable in both areas, or hire someone who is.The system software itself is fairly complex for people who are not particularly computer literate. There are a LOT of settings to deal with. From detection zones, sensitivity, time/days to activate each camera, bandwidth and resolution for each camera and just way too many more to list without writing an entire manual instead of a review.This is not like the one or two camera wireless systems you see on Amazon. This requires a considerable amount of planning and effort if you want to use all 8 cameras. The cameras provide excellent quality images and the NVR is way better than having microSD cards you have to put inside most cameras.Bottom line: A great system if you know what you're getting yourself into. If you're not particularly tech literate or handy, you may want to consider other, more simple options. If you are comfortable with all that, then yes; this is an excellent system for you.