Trail Camera Recommendations?
General Topic
Hi Friends:
I use trail cameras year round and take about 150,000 photos. Wife and I enjoy this together. This evening, we looked at 1,200 photos. Wife wants to get me an early Christmas gift - a couple new cameras. So, I have been reading and reading....
Wife is a passionate outdoors-person who has always been involved in everything outdoors. However, she was stricken by rheumatoid arthritis and is for the most part an invalid. One of the ways that she can still enjoy the outdoors is through trail camera photos.
My better trail cameras were stolen last fall. I have two very old Cuddeback cameras that work well but are low megapixel. They take good photos, but pixel count limits enlargement options and quality.
I also have a 4 Wildgame Innovations cameras. Wake up time is slow. Time between photos is slow. Night photo quality is poor - blurry.
I would like the following features in the new cameras. At least 12mp. Fast wake up and fast recycle to the next photo. Burst shooting. Simultaneous photo and video. Sound for video. Fast shutter speed to freeze the image and get crisp images. Time lapse option. Excellent durability and excellent reliability. Good battery life. If possible, a permanent password, permanent name branding, GPS tracking, and a remotely controlled self-destruct system - well maybe.
I am interested in infrared, low-glo, no-glow, and black flash to minimize spooking. (My two old Cuddeback cameras have white strobe flash and take color night photos which is useful and important for specific purposes.)
Please tell me about the cameras that transmit photos. I know very little about this technology. Where they will be used, of course there is no WiFi. And I don’t want to buy an expensive cellular account for a camera to send me photos of raccoons.
Without debating the ethics of use, please tell me what brands and models of trail cameras you prefer and why. Equally important, please tell me what cameras to avoid and why.
Wife and I sincerely thank you for your suggestions.
Best wishes.
I'll start at the back end. You'll get alot of view points on this. Better cams have at least a 2 years warranty. Exodus cams have a 5 year no BS warranty and they are not outrageous in price. I don't have one but the guy I know who do seem to like them.
""Backed By The Exodus 5 Year "NO BS" Warranty, and 50% Off Theft and Damage Replacement Policy.""
I have been using Moultries for the last 4 or 5 years. They have a 2 year warranty. I do vids only. I have gotten some bad ones and they sent me brand new ones free under the 2 year warranty. I have two older M-990i's that are 3-4 years old and still taking good vids. The two new s-50i's they sent me are working great so far. Excellent vid quality. Their customer service has done me right so far.
The below is a recent M-999i vid.
https://youtu.be/Rm5Kd596h3E
This is a recent s-50i vid.
https://youtu.be/RvASDUSIygg
Browning cams are another good one. They too have a two year warranty.
First, I'm sorry about your wife's condition. It must be devastating to be an outdoors person who can't get around outside. Prayers for you both.
My experience is limited to Bushnell and Browning cameras. Both take excellent pics, have good battery life, and fast trigger speed. They are easily adjustable as to time between pics, and recovery is good. Both have good customer service.
As to cell cameras, I have a Spartan GoCam that I use on a hog trap. My use has been limited, but so far, so good. I haven't used it enough to determine longevity but overall I'm satisfied. Night pics could be a little better, only about a 40' range, but it's a blackflash so that kinda comes with the territory.
All said, I'm looking into the Exodus when I have to buy more.
I have just five cameras;Brownings and Bushnell's.Run video exclusively.Just put out the latest ,just purchased Bushnell HD 20MP.The Brownings(Spec Op) are no-glow,day-time videos are great,night are o.k.,great on batteries(lithium).Bushnells are low-glow and good day-time and excellent night videos with a great detection range and excellent on lithium batteries.I use San Disc cards and Energizer batteries .Both run about $150.I had two Wildgame cameras that were total junk. I would read reviews on www.chasinggame.com. ect.
I've been using the moultrie mobile system about 2 months. It has worked well for me. My other 4 cameras are Bushnell. They have been very good
Anything but Moultrie. Used them for years. Have had close to 20 of them. Had 5 relatively young ones die on me this year. They use to be tolerable. No more.
Almost all of them are made in China and they're reliability is dependent upon the factory/quality control in place - it kind of goes in cycles. Right now Browning seems to have found a good factory with some decent quality control. Second would be Moultrie, in my experience (leaving out Reconix because of their prices). Good luck.
Trailcampro.com is your friend. A ton of good info.
They rate dozens and dozens of cams.
I like the coverts. They have a two year warranty . I use the MP8 and have sold over a 100 of them with very little problems. The newer camera is the covert viper 12meg. And they are not a bad price . I have them for 120.00 and they are blackouts .
Thank you for the info. I have much more to read now. I will respond to each reply. Right now gotta go to work. best wishes.
Reconyx if you love it so much. Anything but Reconyx if its going to get stolen
Quote: "I don’t want to buy an expensive cellular account for a camera to send me photos of raccoons."
The account I have with Covert via AT&T is 5.99 per month. Then each additional cellular camera is 5.00 per month.
Both the cellular and the regular Covert cams are great.
I've had the best luck with the Coverts I've purchased. I've been happy with the Stealth Cam that I've been using this year. Moultries and Cuddebacks have been junk and I'd never buy another.
Been really happy with the bushnell line. Good batt life excellent photos easy to use We run 2 Spartan cell cams. Day time pics good nighttime not great range. Battery life not good
Grunt N Gobble X2. Lots of great information there.
Thank you for the information and suggestions. Loads of helpful info. Looking into various brands. It appears that Bushnell cameras might be a good choice for me. Looking into the cellular cameras, but like others I am conflicted over spending much on something that will be stolen. Will report back later.
Best wishes.
Battery life is also a big deal IMO. That would be another thing to review. The new Moultrie s-50i's are working great so far. I got the 12v solar cell panels for both that seems to be working well so far.
I have the Browning Strike Force Elite. Cost around $110-125. I've been well pleased with these cameras, they are dependable and have a long battery life.
I have a Exodus camera. Bought it when they were introduced at a special price on another form. It does take take good pictures but walks up a little slow and get a lot of rear end pictures. But works OK to buy another one. Looking at cellar camera next.
I recently had a problem with a Bushnell camera. I contacted them and they attempted to resolve my issue. In the end they went out of their way to make me happy. Good camera and great attitude. Having said that it seems all of them are better and less expensive than five years ago. Does anyone use NIMH batteries in their cameras? I do on some and like the cost savings.
x2 on Trailcampro.com, that website/company is an excellent resource. Additionally, I purchased my first wireless camera through them (Bushnell Aggressor Wireless) and purchased the trailcampro 2 year warranty. I am very glad I did as the camera had an internal hardware failure less than 1 year after I bought it (seemed to be a common issue with that first generation version) and they honored the warranty and replaced it. I've been happy with the cam (other than it breaking initially) but be aware that the uploaded photo resolution isn't great. However, when you physically pull the SD card it will have photos in 14 megapixel, just like a standard trail cam. Best of luck in your decision, my thoughts go out to you and your wife.
I have a Exodus camera. Bought it when they were introduced at a special price on another form. It does take take good pictures but walks up a little slow and get a lot of rear end pictures. But works OK to buy another one. Looking at cellar camera next.
I have a Exodus camera. Bought it when they were introduced at a special price on another form. It does take take good pictures but walks up a little slow and get a lot of rear end pictures. But works OK to buy another one. Looking at cellar camera next.
A friend of mine is a dealer for Browning cams. So the last 4 years I have bought my share of Browning Cameras, and not one has failed yet, and they take thousands upon thousands of photos each per year. Very durable, reliable and clear in pictures, weather providing. You can get the strike force Cams for around 130-150 a piece. Browning makes other models slightly more and slightly less in price also. But IMO they are the best for the price on the market. And I've run almost every brand out there at some point.
