Review on 📹 Amcrest 1080-Lite 8CH DVR Video Security Digital Recorder: Pentabrid & IP Camera Support, HDD & Cameras NOT Included - AMDVTENL8-H5 by Joe Vazquez

I had a 9 year old system that served me well but all good things come to an end. My dashcam's power supply broke and I decided it was time to invest in a new, more feature-rich and modern dashcam. I read many reviews and chose Amcrest. The DVR arrived without a hard drive (I knew it would) and I proceeded to install the ones I had on my old DVR. Instructions on how to open the DVR case are given, they are adequate but not great. If you've ever opened up a computer and installed a hard drive, this will be a no-brainer, and for those who haven't there are plenty of guides online. Once you have the hard drive installed, it's time to connect it to the monitor and set up the IP address, etc. Again, the instructions aren't well written and don't provide enough information for those who may never have installed a DVR. There are several videos on the manufacturer's website and Amcrest offer support. I hit it off as I found the instructions confusing and got it up and running in less than 20 minutes. You can download the camera viewer app and they also offer a PC option (Internet Explorer version only). For the most part, it's a learning curve and trial-for-error. I understand why some find installation and configuration difficult. I had to learn how to use the PC software as I couldn't find any instructions on how to do it and it wasn't intuitive at times. Overall this is a great $70 deal and I think I'm getting sharper pictures! I noticed my old DVR dinosaur had fans but this one didn't. I've been told that heat kills electronics. I made a MacGyver and used one of the old fans I had and adapted it to cool the case. The fan is powered by an external power supply and is always on. This wasn't a problem as I rarely turn off the dash cam. Amcrest offers a one year warranty on this dash cam and have reached out to me to offer the necessary support.