Cell cameras

[TIGGREM2]

Can anyone suggest a good quality cellular deer camera thats reliable? Please dont suggest spypoint s as i have 7 of them and want something different!

 

[cbhunter]

can't be beat at this price point IMO! Love all 4 of mine.
If your budget is endless then I'm sure there are better options. Lots and lots of happy Tactacam users on this site


If you go with the xb further down that post, just know that it has gps tracking and I believe that one to be a black flash cam. All mine are low glow infrared which doesn't bother me

https://www.tndeer.com/threads/tactacam-reveal-x-sale.423038/

 

[Carlos]

I have had great luck with the stealth cam models from Sam's club.

(Except for when the bears pull them off the tree.)

 

[rem270]

I really like tactacam. I'm like you and despise spypoint.

 

[Trey13]

I'd go tactacam… have several and live them

 

[deerhunter10]

I've had good luck with bushnell cellucore.

 

[UT-longbeard]

I've only ran tactacam. Been a great camera so far. Running 3.

 

[TheLBLman]

I'm personally currently running Tactacams, Brownings, and Ridgetecs.
I have several friends/associates running everything out there including Reconyx.

To a person, everyone has found Tactacams disappointing,
and most "liking" Tactacams seem to have limited experience with other offerings.

I don't want to recommend any "new" model of ANY brand,
because there are often "bugs" that take months to get resolved.

For me personally, the overall "best value" has been this:

Browning Defender Wireless Pro Scout (AT&T)

Transmit images and videos over an AT&T network from the outdoors to your wireless account with the Browning Defender Pro Scout cellular trail camera.

www.trailcampro.com

On this particular above Browning model, even with heavy usage, I'm getting right at a year of battery life, and it only needs 8 AA batteries! That compares to @ 4 months with the Tactacams using 12 AA batteries. This is a significant annual cost difference just on batteries.

I have one good friend running @ 150 cell cams, and he'll tell you Reconyx is the best value.
So "best" is a matter of perspective,
particularly as to what you prioritize, such as
up front costs, on-going cost, features, and reliability.

Generally speaking, those cell cams with the lowest up-front cost
will have less features, less reliability, and cost more to run monthly
due to more expensive cell plans and shorter battery life.

Cell cams that cost more up front,
often have a total cost of being less over 2 or 3 years of operation.
There just ain't no free lunch.

Most every brand & model has some different pros & cons,
and very few can do everything I like for different applications.

Since I'm not running any Reconyx cell cams,
my personal overall favorite for features & reliability is the Ridgetec Lookout.
If these units last 3 or 4 years, they may end up being less costly
(over time) than my Tactacams. This is especially the case while running 3 or more cell cams of the same brand.

 

[Spurhunter]

For the price you will not beat Tactacam, however, they have some negatives. It can take 24 hours for a setting change to take effect. They are slow to trigger sometimes. After taking one pic, they are very slow to take another, regardless of what settings are. But, they work, take pics, and rarely have problems. When you consider the pros and cons of $100 cameras, I wouldn't trade 1 Tactacam for 6 spypoints or moultries.

 

[TheLBLman]

When you consider the pros and cons of $100 cameras, I wouldn't trade 1 Tactacam for 6 spypoints or moultries.

I'll agree with you about that.
But if you want to compare a $200 Browning to a $100 Tactacam,
the $200 Browning will cost you less in total costs (up front + operating) over 2 or 3 years,
while providing you significantly better features.

 

[Spurhunter]

I'll agree with you about that.
But if you want to compare a $200 Browning to a $100 Tactacam,
the $200 Browning will cost you less in total costs (up front + operating) over 2 or 3 years,
while providing you significantly better features.

I'm about to add a camera or two myself. I am debating between the two you mentioned here, which are the same two we discussed in a PM. The Browning is $50 cheaper, but I'm willing to spend an extra $50 if the Ridgetec is worth it.

 

[Carlos]

Here's a couple recent pics from mine.

 

[Trnr]

I've only got one cell cam but it's a RidgeTec Lookout. Been rock solid for me and comes with sims for ATT and Verizon so you can use what works best in your area.

If you haven't checked them out Trailcampro.com does some really good testing and reviewing of all cams

 

[TheLBLman]

I'm about to add a camera or two myself. I am debating between the two you mentioned here, which are the same two we discussed in a PM. The Browning is $50 cheaper, but I'm willing to spend an extra $50 if the Ridgetec is worth it.

The Brownings vs the Ridgetecs:

Each brand has some pros & cons over the other.

Both are web based programs (can view pics instantly on your computer),
and both additionally simultaneously work on your smart phone.

Ongoing costs of monthly cell service is a little less with Ridgetec.
Browning battery life is far superior.

Ridgetec has far more programming features than Browning.
One feature I use a lot on Ridgetec is the field scan mode
(where maybe you program the cell cam to simply daily take a non-triggered pic every minute in say the last hour of daylight}. Field scan mode is mainly of value on large food plots, fields, and for security purposes.

The learning curve on figuring out how to do everything is a little longer on the Ridgetecs, as so much of "how" they do things is just different from Tactacam & Browning. But after I figured it out, I actually like Ridgetec's way much better.

One thing Ridgetec's programming offers is the ability to do SCHEDULED uploads as often as every 5 minutes (24/7) without the need for "instant" uploads. "Scheduled" uploads greatly increase battery life over "immediate" uploads.

By comparison,
Browning will only allow scheduled uploads up to 6 times daily (such as every 4 hrs, 24/7).
Tactacam will only allow scheduled uploads up to 2 times daily (every 12 hrs).

Another thing I typically do is have my settings changing twice daily, where I have during the day, more pics per triggering event, triggering events closer together, then at night, fewer pics per triggering event, triggering events farther apart. This alone can increase battery life 50% by my estimate! (I cannot do this with Tactacams because they are unreliable to make the changes.)

 

[TheLBLman]

I rarely use video on cell cams.
Video uploads simply eat your battery life.

Instead of using video, on cell cams, I prefer just having the cams programmed to take lots of pics, and little to no time between triggering events. This is where better quality cell cams with fast recovery times (the time between triggering events before the cam is capable of working next) get you pics missed by slower recovery cams.

I am increasingly using video, just not with the cell cams.
BSK is correct about the added advantage of sound.
But there is also an advantage of higher quality images of still pics,
obtained without having to visit the cam site (with cell cams).

 

[Andy S.]

I've had good luck with Tactacam Reveals (Gen 1, X & XB models) and Spartan GoCams. End users can tweak their camera/delivery settings and address many of the shortcomings that other users complain about. I've read good things for several years about Ridgetecs.

 

[lafn96]

Have Spypoint and Tactacam - Tactacam is much, much better as far as picture quality. Also much more reliable so far, as 2 of the 4 Spypoints I have won't connect/work.

 

[hunter drew]

I really like tactacam. I'm like you and despise spypoint.

I remember someone asking about spypoint a little over a year ago. If I remember correctly someone said they were junk lol

 

[hunter drew]

I really like the Tactacam

 

[rem270]

I remember someone asking about spypoint a little over a year ago. If I remember correctly someone said they were junk lol

Drew knows best!!