Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

according to people

185
people found this helpful, as of 2023
ranked #182,903 most helpful out of 571,544,897 reviews
★☆☆☆☆
Step 1. Measure door thickness. Step 2 drill 13/16" hole
This review is on the PH35 Door Peephole Camera made by COP (COP-USA) The 2 specs below aren't published anywhere (including the instructions that come with the camera). The door thickness spec alone would have prevented me from buying this camera. 1. It's best suited for a 2" to 2-3/8" thick door, but can marginally work on a 1-3/4" door using the ugly adjustment screws (see my picture). 2. 13/16" hole (or counterbore) required for lens to mount flush (that's a big hole!). Pros: Nice color image when lens is not in direct sunlight, right up to sunset. In my case, 6 hours of usefulness a day at best. Cons: - Useless image 18 hours a day (poor image from sunset to noon when camera lens faces east). - Bad looking installation for 1-3/4" thick door (very common thickness) (creates a 1/4" gap between door and camera). - Not possible to hide and tuck wiring (like another brand). - 13/16" is a huge hole to drill through your door. - "Stock Product Photo" doesn't show wiring, size and adjustment screws of the camera. - No product specifications (door thickness) listed on Amazon (and Spytown). If that information had been provided, I wouldn't have purchased this camera. I thought it would be a direct replacement for my black and white KTC camera (I was wrong). Still want to buy this camera? Read on and see what happened.... I'll never purchase from Spytown (retailer) or COP-USA (manufacturer) ever again. I purchased COP-USA's PH35 door camera through Spytown. The camera was defective out of the box as the lens came apart at the wrong end and 7-8 pieces of the lens assembly fell out. Spytown wouldn't provide an RMA for me to return the camera. 6 phone calls, 2 online RMA requests over a 1 week period, no response. Since I wasn't having any luck with Spytown, I contacted COP-USA directly in hopes of exchanging it since the west coast office is just a few miles from my home. Big mistake! The operator/receptionist stonewalled me telling me I needed to work with my retailer. I asked if I could talk to a technician in hopes he could tell me how to put the lens back together. She connected me to a technician that agreed the lens came apart at the wrong end, and I could stop by to pick up a new lens. Just as he said that, the operator cut him off (apparently she was listening), and told me, "he has no idea what he's talking about and you need to work through your retailer". I can't even begin to describe her tone with me. The tech was a good guy, but the operator clinched my decision with that company. I finally did get an RMA # from Spytown...coincidently it was 4 days after disputing the charges with my credit card company. 7 weeks after I sent the camera back at my expense, I finally received a replacement (hooray?). Now I finally get to install it. I discover since my door is 1-3/4" thick, the camera will not mount flush on the back (inside) of the door. Additionally, the wiring cannot be tucked and hidden along the camera like my KTC b/w camera....so all the wiring just dangles from the camera. I didn't like how the wiring looked so I went back to the KTC camera after a few weeks.
May 2009 · Electronics
worser bester