What trail camera to buy?

[huntingarcher]

I have 2 of the older Cuddebacks IR.They work fine but eat batteries up.I have heard the newer Cuddebacks are not so good.

[huntin_sparty]

I have only had 2 companies, Moultrie i40 and Cuddeback capture ir.  PROs and CONs of each.
Moultrie
PROs
Excellent battery life 2 to 3 months even in cold MI winters
Great quality photos
CONs
Slower trigger speed fair amount of back ends and sometimes nothings
Cuddeback
PROs
Quick trigger speed
Great Quality Pictures
CONS
Battery life is ridiculously short!!

[JockC]

Camofire.com has a well-reviewed one today for ~$90.

[LC]

Well I'm new to the market myself. I did alot of researching and what I found out is there are two basic cameras. One if you want to use it over a bait pile (99.9% of cameras being used) and two if you want a true trail camera! If your putting a camera over a bait pile basically they all work. Now if your wanting one to monitor a trail your gona need a quick response camera. Again you can break it down to two cameras again. Good ones and Bad ones and it doesn't matter the brand! Kinda like cars and trucks doesn't matter what the hood emblem says it's either a good one or a bad one!

With all that said I never hunt over bait so have no intention of putting a camera over my bait pile. I bought a Bushnell Trophy camera. Uses AA batteries last for ever,small in size and has a quick response time. However the first one I bought didn't work for crap out of the box. Took it back and replaced it with another one! It works GREAT!  I've had mine out all winter in some single digit temps with the original regular alkaline batteries and it's been very reliable! Takes great pics when positioned  on a trail at a angle to the trail rather than at a 90 degree angle to a trail. I love it! Your mileage may vary.

[meathead]

I have a Bushnell and 2 coverts.  If I had it to do again I would have 3 coverts.

[eagleone]

I bought one of those $99 dollar moultires this year and have had now problems with it.  Another "trick" for new trail cam users- scratch up the ground in front of the cam- or hang a scent wick - it can make the deer hold up for an extra second. just my 2cents

[bfrbmj]

I bought a Bushnell trophy cam for work this summer.  It worked well so I bought another for hunting.  EZ to setup, lithium batteries are still good from the summer, and good quality pictures.  A friend of mine had another brand's camera and I was not that impressed.  I also used a salt lick preseason to help stop the animals for pix.  Only problem was that bears would rub against the cameras and I would get some good ground shots until I readjusted- then I put hot sauce on the cameras- stopped the problem.

[xtrema312]

the wild game ir4 is a great cam for the price.  I have three scout guard 550's and love them.  They were flawless for me.  They are basically the same as the covert.

[Jim Jackson]

www.trailcampro.com  and  www.chasingame.com  have excellent reviews of all the major trail cams.  I'm partial to trailcampro simply because they are local here in springfield missouri.

[KentuckyTJ]

Originally posted by xtrema312:
the wild game ir4 is a great cam for the price.  I have three scout guard 550's and love them.  They were flawless for me.  They are basically the same as the covert.

Todd, the coverts have been totally re-designed and have top end camera features now without increasing in price.

- Bulb or IR flash option now.
- Door hinged moved to top (makes it much easier to access camera card and internal settings without having to unstrap the camera).
- Day or night or both option.
- Hole through camera body for a security cable for theft protection.
- Larger card capacity (used to be 2 gb was the largest card you could use) Now its 16 gb

For the big spenders they also now offer a telemetry camera. Go check them out under the products section of the site.

 http://www.dlccovert.com/product-edgeseries.html

[ARCHER2]

TJ,
You've peeked my interest in the Covert cameras.
The edge series doesn't have the built in viewer does it? Do they offer a portable viewer like the Bushnell? How's the battery life on them?
Hope you don't mind the questions, just like to get answers from someone who's used a certain product.
                 Thanks!
                 Charlie

[KentuckyTJ]

The Extreme series has the built in viewing screen. I have a portable viewer for my cameras that don't have a built in screen and actually don't even use the built in screen in the camera as they are very small and run the camera batteries down while using it. Portable viewers can be bought from many companies. The Covert's Battery life is the same as the Bushnells as Bushnell gets them from the manufacturer in China that Covert started with. I like the energizer blue lithium batteries and they last up to 4x longer than normal batteries.

The Bushnell cams don't have nearly the features the new Coverts have for the same price.

[ARCHER2]

Thanks TJ, I appreciate it buddy.
            Charlie

[NoCams]

After talking to TJ today my next cam will be the Covert edge series. Thanks TJ !

[Old man of the swamp]

Thanks for all of the input from everyone. I know a lot of you have had good luck with the Bushnell cameras but after about 6 hours of reading the testing reviews by Chasingame and reading all of your input I think I am headed for the Covert Edge series.

[lpcjon2]

Trail cams work great for catching your teenager sneaking out and in the window as well.Not just for hunting anymore.        
  The smaller Trail Cam the better to keep it less noticeable from thieves.

[zepnut]

Also have two cuddebacks. Battery life is a little short but have too much money invested to make a switch.

[stikbowshooter2]

I like the DLC Coverts as well.  Very small, easy to conceal, great battery life and reliable.

[reddust]

I have good luck with my Wildgame Innovations IR4 and IR5 game-cameras,I also have a Cuddback,it is OK but I think they are overpriced.

[MIKE WIRT]

I JUST BOUGHT THE STEALTHCAM "UNIT". A LITTLE BIGGER THAT THE BUSHNELL, TAKES GREAT PICTURES. HAVE HAD WILDGAME CAMERAS AND DID NOT HOLD UP TOO LONG FOR ME.