Zmodo Reviews 212

Total waste of money, horrible "product"... do not buy this... you'll be very angry once you try to use it!!!

Camaras are great and easy to install. Only part I have not really looked at is the Cloud service. You do need a good wireless network to make sure the function properly, but that would be like anything else

They have no customers service/support. They just give you false information with out any real answers. Just say I do not know.

It's our eating time now, need to take a break for 15-20 mins, you may hold on for a while or reach us later by reopen an chat box(please screenshot our chat history to get a quick solution), thanks for your understanding.

The text above is a copy and paste of the answer that I have from Zmodo customer service in a chat session while asking him technical questions on their products. Products 5 Customer Service 0 Technical Support 0

As an addendum to my previous post stating nothing was running and our 8-camera 500Gb Zmodo system wasn't working, I'd like to state what we identified (after many hours of trial and error) as the problem:

If you fully read the review I'd posted July 6th, the cameras kept going offline with only 4 running. I'm happy to say that now, after ironing out the wrinkles (and adding a high-performance router) the last 2 weeks there hasn't been a problem at all. Here is what we found:

Frontier is our DSL provider and we have no alternative in the area. They upgraded an old wireless router with their state-of-the-art offering, a Netgear D2200. We thought that would solve the problem. Wrong. It still wouldn't handle only 4 cameras. We added a wifi extender, thinking that might solve the problem. Nope.

After many email exchanges with Zmodeo support, it was suggested we add a high-performance router. We did. A Netgear R6700 ($89 on Amazon), which has 3 antennas that increased our wifi range significantly. So now, we have the Frontier DSL modem, ethernet-connected (RJ45) from it to the R6700, and after some configuration changes, the system has been working flawlessly for the last 2 weeks. If you have Frontier as a DSL provider, this is what you'll have to do, with a couple heads-up beforehand:
1. We'd mapped the cameras to the Frontier wifi router. So if you've done that, you'll need to rename it (i.e. DSL Gateway).
2. Disable wifi on the Frontier modem.
3. Fire up the R6700 (connect both routers with the RJ45 ethernet cable provided in the box).
4. Name R6700 EXACTLY what your Frontier modem's name had been. Also be sure and set the same wifi password.

We currently have 7 of the 8 cameras installed. Within about 1 minute, all 7 cameras began popping up on the monitor, and the wifi extender was also fully functional. It was if the cameras had no idea we'd changed, or added, an additional router. Now, alerts to my iphone work like a charm, and I can even go back and review earlier recordings by iphone, not even being required to go to the dedicated monitor (which is 30 miles away). If you want to save a segment of recording, however, in the event you have a security event you want to provide to the local sheriff, you WILL have to do that on the system locally via a thumb drive to save it. Like I said in my original review, the Iphone app is the bomb.

Changing my opinion on the 8 camera, 500Gb system from a 1 to a 5. With sincere thanks to the support guys at Zmodo who helped us iron out all these wrinkles - Jared and Travis.

customer support is a waste of time. they just do the same fix like reset unit, reboot system, this is there answer for everything. every time you contact them you have to start from scratch. they keep updating the system and app so if your unit is more than a year old its outdated and worthless. Yes the company does not care about purchases already bought. everyone should report them to the better business bureau.

Do not get cloud storage. Cannot cancel and cannot reach customer service despite multiple attempts.

Wish I had read this first. I have the NVR with 8 camera system. It works when it feels like it. Cannot always connect to cameras or nvr via the app or on line. Many times lost the set up totally and had to re set up . These are junk and customer service is worse than the system itself. Don't waste your money or time.

I bought a ZMODO pivot with two door sensors. In the beginning these sensors worked but after a few moths they did not reported anything anymore when a door opened or closed. I replced batteries and tried to add them again to my pivot but that is also not working anymore. I called supprt (live chat) and they advised me to claim a RMA to ask for two new sensors. On the support site they could not help me anymore , but when i tried to fill in an RMA i recieved always an error code " wrong code entered". When asking support what the different codes are i have to suppy i did not receive any answer. It looks like they want you to give up to claim an RMA. So, bad hardware and bas support. ZMODO harwdware is juts crap.

Bart Van Damme

I purchased a 4ch 720 NVR - and it worked flawlessly for the time i needed it ( 2 years plus ) since i was pleased with my original purchase i handed it over to a family member ( its still working 3 years on ) and purchased the newer 8Ch NVR system and then later added a standalone doorcam - other than 1 camera failing I've had very little if any issues. Admittedly the customer service is none existent , i attempted to replace one of the 8 camera's for a dome camera with speaker ( trying to locate any useful information on the camera compatibility was like - searching google for the meaning of life ) i contacted the customer service on numerous occasions and nobody knew if the camera was compatible with our system. I opted to take a punt and purchased it from amazon ( which initially turned up faulty ) returned to amazon no problems 2nd and 3rd device turned up faulty ( i had no idea if the camera's were in fact faulty or just not compatible ). I gave up trying and stuck with what i had ... shame really - my advice - if you have no problems they're great little systems - if you need customer service / technical help , you're in for a rough ride .... The last thing i'd say is - there's a heavy lean towards cloud based subscriptions , the original software works fine on my iphone X and even though Zviewer stopped working ( which was great btw ) the zmodo app - seems to work 99% of the time - it has regular updates but i can't help thinking - if they scrap the cloud based crap and stick with the original setup they could corner the market for affordable home and small business CCTV solutions.
Invest some of their profits into a better Customer Service Solution and you're onto a winner.

As for the endless poor reviews , i fully appreciate you never really know how good your car dealer is until you have problems with your car , i've had a small taste of the customer service and have to agree its very poor.

Had high hopes for this Security Cam brand. Had 4 of them! Now only one is working! The only good is their updated software.

If I could give zero stars I would. I've encountered staggering negligence in digital systems support over the course of twenty-five years in IT, but none (aside from major players like Time Warner and AT&T) hold a candle to the worthless class of not-even-pretending-to-care "support" from this Chinese company. The product line is unstable and poorly developed, and trying to get even the simplest issues resolved is hopeless. Save yourself some stress and give this sorry excuse for a technology company a huge pass.

Truly terrible company and software - over the space of a year they have removed more and more features from their software that has left me with a useless system - no remote notifications or playback any more. Complete waste of time and money - their support is none existant, and cameras are not proper IP cams so not compatible with any other system - so I have to rip the whole lot out now.

I would give no stars if that was an option. I bought a pivot with two door sensors, & one stopped working less than a week later. I tried to delete the “accessory”, reset it, & add it to my devices, but it doesn’t work. Zmodo’s chat is a joke. I told the “engineer” my problem, & was told to reset the device & add it again. I told them I did that, but I was told 3 more times to reset & add the product. The only instructions I received after 20 minutes of telling the person I have been reseting & readding the device with no response, was to move my device closer to the router. They are side by side. I wish I could upload screenshots of the conversation, because it was completely unprofessional & entirely disappointing.

I bought the 960H DVR and it failed to work. I went to the website and tried the online chat support. The login never completes allowing you to connect. So I call the 866 number found in the box hours before 8 PM CST but it says they are closed. So I try the support line from the website and am told there are 17 people ahead of me and my wait would be 35 min. But after one and a half hours I hear I am 5th in line when I am cut off (hung up on). I call back immediately to hear they are closed. I wasted hours on this piece of junk and they have no options for service. I returned the DVR and will NEVER buy their products again! If Zero stars was an option, they would get that as my review.

I purchased an 8-camera wireless with DVR and it worked poorly for a while with an interface that was hard to use. They forced an "upgrade" in 4/18 and I can now no longer access cloud alerts, zsight no longer works at all, and I can not see recordings on my DVR. At this point even the cameras that still work are pretty much useless. Is there any way to fix this?

Good luck trying to return if defective under warranty

This camera, (ZM-SH721) almost lasted a year. It died on me with about a month left on the warranty. It would not reconnect to my network. When it worked, it was a nice cam. I could use my Iphone to monitor my condo. The reason for 2 stars is based on the companies return form. It doesn't work. After working with a customer rep, we decided that the camera was defective. I was sent a link so that I could add all the information that was necessary to return the camera at my expense. Every time I tried to submit the form, it would not go through and it would return to the original form to start entering the information AGAIN. After about 15 try's, I gave up. Sent the company another email to let them know that there is a problem with the form. I haven't heard back from them at all. You are taking a chance if you purchase this EZCam.

Did you ever want something to turn out well that you refused to acknowledge unfortunate failure reality? About a year ago, I purchased a Zmodo Greet video doorbell and was entranced with its design and features. The unit is a jewel: slick and compact, well styled with a 155 degree pan-scan 720P camera, infrared nighttime illumination, motion detection, built-in microphone, talk-back feature, etc. It was EASY to set up and worked perfectly... for about two months. Then, Zmodo began issuing software upgrades. One by one, features began malfunctioning. Then, the camera stopped working, displaying "Device Offline" error message. I searched Zmodo's web site, then, the Internet for a solution. Seems dozens of other owners were having similar problems, so couldn't possibly take long for Zmodo to recognize and fix the problem, no? Months went by. It appears the same Zmodo idiots who designed the software are responsible for customer support. I have the impression the engineers are in a far-away country with no clue how their product must interface with various smart phone versions and brands. I tried re-installing the Greet and Zmodo app a half-dozen times. Finally, I noticed a half-price sale on the model I owned. Concluding that my Greet had simply died, I purchased a SECOND Greet this week. After installing, it worked perfectly. HAPPY CAMPER. Then, the pop-up Zmodo message, "New firmware is available. Click here to update." You guessed the outcome: the camera became "off line" once new firmware was installed. This is such a potentially great product, I spent hours trying to make it work but have now reached the end of the line. Ring replaces Greet next week. What a shame.

8-ch 720P sPOE system
Cameras & DVR/NVR hardware seems solid, but *ALL* their software rates only 2/5
If they provided what customers want - rather than what their own marketing people are pushing - they could easily get a 4.6-5 / 5

Their aim is to push customers on to their own subscription 'cloud' service with a monthly fee. Otherwise access to your own media is extremely clunky - and only accessible via their website or unintuitive local interface. No local browser access - you MUST use their cloud, or limited local hardware viewer.

Sad, because this will kill the product family, once someone else fills this slot in the market.

I have been trying to get honest answers since putting up security system, sent emails etc. I sent all kinds of emails asking about camera to cable connections & was told to cover (when I did lost 3 cameras immediately some come off & on other channels will not return (I only have 1 camera that has not lost picture of 8)started losing video less than 3 months from installation. I wish I would have known before buying this system IT IS JUNK,DO NOT BUY THIS ZMODO/FUNLUX 8 CH DVR & CAMERA SECURITY SYSTEM IF YOU DO HOPE YOU HAVE BETTER LUCK THAN ME