ANNKE H1200 PoE Security Camera System

A hodgepodge of good and downright irritating

It's not a bad system, by any means, it actually has many things that show careful consideration in the product development. But, it has some glaring issues that would have made me rethink this purchase if I'd heard about them earlier.

First the good:

System is acceptable in its price range. Cameras feel solid for the most part (more on that later)

I like the option of using a dedicated power cord in lieu of POE, if needed.

The drilling templates for the cameras are just flat out outstanding. Why no other manufacturer I've used makes their templates out of stickers ill never understand.

Camera and NVR functionality for optimization are pretty darned good as well.

Night vision and the lighting options are very good.

Now for the irritating:

The camera mounts need work. Even after turning the base as far as you can without cracking it, the camera still has a bit of wriggle to it that can trigger false movement detection in the wind.

The mounting hardware is a joke, the screws and anchors they come with i wouldn't trust in a drywall application, let alone hanging these things from a soffit or exterior wall.

The default camera/NVR system settings are nowhere near acceptable. You're going to need to immediately need to start tuning them to get an even halfway usable image, and dive deep if you want to be able to read a license plate, even in the day time.

The app is generic across many camera models, so get used to seeing "this function not available".

There's also a fair number of places in the app where settings/buttons haven't been translated to English, and get used to typos like "Vechiel" instead of "Vehicle" in your playback.

When you get an alert, the thumbnail is likely *not* going to show what actually caused the alert, so you're going to need to watch the entire 2.5 minute clip to see what triggered it...and hope it wasn't a false alert or a tree branch swaying.

Which brings up the false alerts. Even with "People and Vehicles" chosen as the alert trigger and turning on the AI analysis...I still get alerts of a vehicle or person when one of our chickens, turkeys, or barn cats walks by or we let the dogs out to run.

Camera tweaking through is a pain. This system desperately needs the ability to apply settings to all cameras at once instead of having to write a list of what you've changed and go down the list of cameras to apply them.

Now, on to the "ohhh, so close" where you can see someone was trying to add value, but just kinda missed the mark.

The cables, yep, it's awesome that they included cables...but, the lengths are ridiculous and it's not a high quality ethernet cable. If I didn't know better I'd say they were a 4 pair cat3 or POTS cable. I ran a throughput test on one of them and was fluctuating below 5mbps.

I ended up grabbing a box of exterior rated cat5e and ran my own cables (no point in spending more for cat6, the cat5e is more than good enough for camera bandwidth and is far more flexible than cat6). Thankfully the cameras include the weather proof terminal covers so you don't have to cut them off the pre built cables.

The NVR I have no complaints or race reviews for. It's a nice, simple POE NVR that doesn't require an engineering degree to set up, the in depth adjustments are done through web interface in the app. I do appreciate that I can add 8 more cameras to it and it takes only a couple minutes to add em in.

All in all, it's a decent, basic, system that I'm going to keep tweaking to see if I'm missing something to make this more functional. I do think it'll do most of what I need, I just need to learn its eccentricities.

No customer service available.

It sucks that the company doesn't have a line you can call to get helpful from real person. When I tried adding another cam to my system, it stopped working. So if you encounter any issue, you're on your own 👎

Crystal Clear 12MP Quality & Easy PoE Setup!

I am beyond impressed with this ANNKE 12MP security system. The image clarity is incredible—you can see every tiny detail even at a distance. Setting it up was a breeze thanks to the PoE (Power over Ethernet) design; just one cable for both power and data. The AI motion detection is very accurate and significantly reduces false alerts. The package arrived well-packaged with everything needed for installation, including clear drill templates. If you want professional-grade security for your home or business, this is the one!

Very competent and robust NVR system to serve both in professional and residential settings

I’ve installed plenty of NVR systems over the years for schools, community centers, and homes — including my own — and I’ve used just about every brand out there. My first Annke system was about three years ago, an 8-channel PoE setup with 5 MP dome cameras. It had a couple of small glitches at first, but Annke’s support was quick and knowledgeable — a simple firmware update fixed everything.

This time I upgraded to a 16-channel PoE system that supports up to 12 MP cameras. It comes with eight cameras, which are more than enough for my house. They’re metal-bodied, solidly built, and have great image quality both day and night — the color night vision is especially impressive. I was also able to reuse my older 5 MP domes without any problems.

The NVR itself is a bit larger and now uses a built-in rack-style power supply instead of an external brick. It’s slightly louder but not a big deal since it’s kept in a spare room. The interface feels very similar to the older model — quick, clean, and easy to navigate. I also like the new AI-style features that tag human and vehicle activity in the playback timeline — a nice touch.

Remote access through the Annke View app continues to be rock-solid. No need for static IPs or DDNS setup — it just works. I’ve used the app for years and it’s been stable and reliable.

With my background in IT and camera installations, I can say Annke has done an excellent job again. This new system is well-built, performs great, and is easy to set up and manage. Highly recommended. Pictures show my old and new system as well as the cameras side by side.

ABSOLUTELY Love the Annke Security System!

We have been using an Annke DVR and Cameras for 4 1/2 years now with outstanding performance but with all the new technology out we thought it was time to upgrade to the NVR and PoE cameras. Wow…I truly cannot believe the difference in picture quality with this system. This package comes with 8 super HD cameras and a 16 channel NVR so we’re going to take advantage of the spare channels and purchase 7-8 of the same cameras and cover my workshop and grounds. The system is also setup for us old folks who are not real tech savvy. I just ran the cables, plugged them in on each end, turned on the NVR and connected the mouse and my monitor and BINGO…the system found all the cameras on its own! The motion detection is amazing and the Annke app that we’ve been using for years is also truly amazing. We can see our property from anywhere on our phones for free!! Not like some of the other’s! Thank you Annke for another wonderful product!!

This is the camera system you need!

I was hesitant to purchase a system at this price point for my home. As a long-time Blink user, I have about 20+ cameras spanning my house and a barn on another property. I can confidently say that I’ve encountered numerous issues with my current system, and these problems have only worsened with the introduction of the newer generation devices. Their app is notoriously slow, causing various malfunctions.

When I bought my house, it came with a one-terabyte older ANNKE system that lacked sound and night vision. Surprisingly, this system worked exceptionally well, providing comprehensive coverage for all eight cameras across my property. However, I yearned for improved night vision and sound capabilities, leading me to make a foolish decision and purchase additional Blink cameras.

Fortunately, my nightmare is finally over.

From the moment the box arrived, I was genuinely impressed by the packaging and attention to detail. The shipment process was meticulous, and the items were remarkably well-packaged. As a retired military veteran, I appreciate the quality and attention to detail that goes into such packaging, which goes a long way in ensuring the longevity of the products.

Upon inspecting the items within the system, I was astounded by the build quality. I had anticipated cheap, lightweight plastic cameras with flimsy mounts, but the reality was far beyond my expectations. The cameras and mounts were of exceptional quality, far surpassing my initial assumptions.

I wanted to test out the system, so I set up just one camera to see how it looked. The video quality is incredibly clear, detailed, and smooth. The mobile app, developed by the manufacturer, is undoubtedly the most intuitive and user-friendly interface I’ve ever used. Many other systems could learn a thing or two from these guys.

When I open the app and click on a camera, it’s instantly available, and I have days of continuous coverage. I can review the footage right at my fingertips, no more 30-second or 60-second clips followed by a pause before recording again. Instead, I have access to nonstop video, sound, color night vision, and infrared night vision.

Since the system is wired differently from my current one, I’ll need to run the provided ethernet cable through my attic. Since I live in the south near the Gulf Coast, it’s quite hot up there right now, so I’m delaying that installation for another week or two until the weather cools off.

The key takeaways here are the incredible motion detection with AI assistance, the value for the money, and the crystal clear picture and sound, regardless of the conditions. I am incredibly happy with this purchase.

I’ll gladly update this post later once the installation is complete.

High resolution camera system with sound

Upgraded my analog camera system from 5 years ago to this POE system and so far really happy with the difference. With POE, I don't need to run multiple wires and power cords. Images quality is better, with both sharper image, better color and even wider angle. The Ethernet cables have protected ends, preventing moisture. The flash light at night time is nice. Able to record sound is even more impressive, really brings the recording alive. During initial set up, I noticed that this system does not support ONVIF cameras, even though it seems to be able to detect them on the network, it doesn't have proper authentication methods. With 8 cameras included, I have all corners of my house protected with couple of spare. A good bundle all in all.