Cellular Cameras

Hey y'all, we are looking at adding some cameras that will text/email photos. I've been doing some research, and it seems like every cellular camera out there has a bad review for every good review. I really liked the concept of the cuddeback cuddelink system, but it also kind of defeats the purpose of us getting a new set of wireless cameras because we still have to drive down to check the one camera. Ive found some info about a cuddelink "cell cap" but haven't been able to find one for sale... Anybody have some really solid recommendations of any particular brand? Price isn't a huge issue, but wouldnt mind finding a pretty good value. Not looking for crystal clear photos, just something that will take more pics than it misses and will send them somewhere that we can view them remotely, reliably.

Cudde will be releasing the cell cap later this summer, so none are available at this time.

I have covert and they have been good. I have them set up on 12V batteries with a solar charger and I get a lot longer battery life this way, otherwise I would be going thru batteries like crazy. Have two separate cell services as I have different model years. First one is not available anymore as it has a sim card and simple unlimited text plan I added to my ATT family plan. 10 bucks a month.
My other covert requires a ATT data plan I can pay for monthly or per data block. I end up buying 2GB data for 90 days at 25 dollars, so around 8 bucks a month. I never run out of data on that despite getting sometimes hundreds of texts a day from that camera.

This year I picked up a spy point evo link camera, and it works well. Has several plans you choose from through spy point, and it around 10/month for the unlimited but you can go cheaper for less pictures.

All of them eat batteries. All of them do a decent job getting pics to my phone. I am just looking for general details on the pics not small details so the thumbnail pics I get on the phone are great. Really helps when I want to see if something is there, but it isn't 100% reliable for that as I have seen lots of animals around the feeders the camera doesn't pick up, as with any trail cam.

Thanks Buckeye. May be worth going with the cudde's and waiting for the cell cap. I saw on their website estimated price of the cell cap is 300 bucks. If I can use cuddelink to set up the chain of cameras and then just throw a cell cap on the home box, that may be something to look into. Thanks for the info on the coverts and spy point, will dig into those a little more!

Covert black Ops $375 + 15 per month for cellular.........I have four and haven't had issues except battery life if you put them where there is minimal cellular signal it will eat the batteries, make sure you have decent signal where ever you set up.

I've noticed prices have now dropped below $300 and expect them to drop more as time passes.

We use a few Bushnell Aggressors. Solar panel plugs into it and batteries last over 6 months if you use lithiums. $10 A month per cam on AT&T. Our regular Cuddebacks never lasted long.

I've given up on Covert and their battery eating cameras, with solar chargers, showing 9 on the level and still die. I'm holding my breath for the new Cudde product.

Been very happy with Snyper Commander cameras.
I get sketchy cell coverage with the phone but the camera works well anyway.
As stated battery life can be an issue so if possible run rechargeables and a solar panel.
Value priced too.

our club uses the Moultrie system with $10@ month plan, have 4 Cams running with solar panels year round use with no issues.

They make hog hunting fun when the text alert goes off at camp while sitting around the fire!

Love my Bushnell Aggressor and customer service ( the one time if needed it) was great.

Bushnell has worked well for me.

I've got three coverts and have been happy with them. The issues I've had were resolved quickly and their customer support is top notch. Wouldn't hesitate to buy more.

Main thing to consider is cellular reception and which provider has the best coverage in the area you want to set up the camera. ASP Lithium batteries will last the longest.

I have the Spartan NoGlow on Verizon and love it. Very reliable sending pics.

I have 3 of the Spartan NoGlow on Verizon as well. I have been running them on my ranch for 3 years now. I use them for security reasons and I still get pics of critters all the time. I have them programmed to send pics via text and email. I have a specific text tone set so I know when I get a pic it's one of my cameras. I also have them programmed to send me pics at specific times of the day so I know all is okay and the cameras are working. The Game Warden told me if I get pics of trespassers to let him know 24/7 and he will be on his way.

What is the monthly allowable data for those plans? Do the pics go through that pretty fast?

And....is it really worth it?

It’s whatever you want to pay for. Some plans go up to 50k pics a month or something stupid like that. Almost real time pics, yes, totally worth it.

Definitely the prices will drop.

The pics come through pretty fast depending on the tower signal in the area. On average I get a pic in 5-10 secs after it is taken.

I dont know the exact data amount but My plan is 5000 pics per mth for around $17 a mth.

Is it worth it? HECK YES!!! The peace of mind that I know whats going on when I am not there...and i like to use the cameras for hunting when I am there.

Battery life is going to be an issue based on what I know about mobile devices and networks. Battery life in cameras is maximized by having the camera go into sleep mode until motion is detected when the camera can be quickly activated. Cell phones and other mobile devices must go through an authentication process when they are first powered up and maintain a periodic ping with the cell network while active. They can also increase signal strength when needed, which as you guys who hunt in remote areas know all too well, can drain a battery quickly.

I can see a mobile camera being able to go into sleep mode, but it will take a few seconds to authenticate with the network before images could be transmitted to a distant device. Not sure, but perhaps some models do this and buffer images before turning on their radio and transmitting images.

Not sure about the sleep mode since I can manually push a picture from my phone to the camera. I run solar on rechargeable batteries so I don’t have an issue with battery life.

Bushnell solar panels are plug and play. We get 6+ months out of the batteries with it. Just put it where it gets sun and a signal.

My buddy in KS has a SkyPoint he setup on his wetland to check and see if ducks were using it. He has it set to go off at certain times twice a day, so it's not going off and sending pictures based off movement. Camera was put out in November of last year taking 2 pictures a day and original batteries are still showing 70%. I've been pretty impressed with the pictures he's sent us as well as the functionality of the app. I'm going to get 2 or 3 to set up for my deer sets up there. I have Moultie cams I was going to buy the modems for, but I don't like two separate units and linking them. They SkyPoint he has is working and seems easy to set up. Also, I think you get 100 free pictures when you setup the app. Not sure if it's a one time deal, yearly, or what nor if it's per camera or per app.

Warning: don't purchase the Spartan GoCam's with Verizon 3G data plan. I have 3 and just received an email stating that Verizon is changing their plans and the camera's will not be supported anymore. Those of us that already have the camera's will be able to continue to use the camera's until the end of 2019. After that we are screwed!!



Email below:

On December 31, 2019, Verizon plans to retire its CDMA-only network (1x/EVDO, 2G/3G).
They will no longer activate new CDMA-only devices after June 30, 2018.
They will continue supporting the following account services through July 1, 2019:
Device ID Change
MDN Change
Price Plan Change
Suspend and Resume
Reactivate MDN
If you have Spartan GoCam (connected by Verizon) 3G cameras with an active data plan, you may continue to use them until the end of 2019. Please DO NOT deactivate your cameras if you plan to use them until the end of 2019. You can still make the changes listed in the Verizon statement as long as the cameras are active.
If you have Spartan GoCam (connected by Verizon) 3G cameras which are currently deactivated, you must activate them by June 30, 2018, if you plan to use them until the end of 2019.

Hopefully they will give you partial credit for a trade in if they still work by then. They have to retire the old technology network.

I have Two covert black ops. I’ve really liked them but last year I needed To do an update to one of mine, I tried And tried and tried to get a hold of them with no luck whatsoever. I left Several messages. With that said, the bushnell customer service is sounding pretty appealing to me right now. And I always Loved my trophy cams.

crozierk I had a thread in Hunting Gear about CL. I got a set of 4 for this season and for me they worked great. My understanding and the paperwork that came with them you can set them up for PC Image Collection, Internet Connected Windows PC and Cell Modem.

I just called Spartan and they will give me a 38% discount on a new 4G version. Based on the purchase date of 4/2017 of the 3G blackout I purchased last year.

The sad thing is I like the 3G better than the 4G. The 4G does not have realtime controls.

I run 2 Spypoint Verizon Link Evo, 2 Spypoint ATT Link Evo and 1 Stealth cam that are all cellular. I run each to a 12 volt battery box that is direct wired to a 12 volt charger. The only problems I have had is i had one solar panel that over charged killed the battery. The current cameras have been running for 2 years with only the one problem. The Spypoint is free for 100 pics a month and goes up from there. The Stealth can be used with ATT or Truphone sim. I use truphone which you only pay for what you use. Meaning I put $25 of credit on my sim and when it uses that amount, I can either put more money in or not. I average about $45 a year on the truphone when it is set by a feeder sending over 4000 pics every month. This is by far the cheapest I have used.

Both do well with detection. Make sure you are pointing it either south or north.

I had a problem with an electric gate opener that was 12v solar that kept overcharging the battery. I called the company that made the gate opener and they recommended I get a Solar Charge Controller that would keep the battery from being over-charged. IIRC they cost around $25 each and it was a Morningstar Sunguard.