Good trail cams that don’t break the bank
 

What trail cams have you found around the $150 or less range that are decent?

My main cams are stealth cams or browning and find the stealth cams the better of the two when it comes to not missing animals that pass by. I recently bought a wild game innovations terra and it sucks as a deer cam missing majority of the animals. I think it will become a bear bait cam

I am not into all the fancy features just simple pics so I can gauge what’s around. After trying the terra and having no pics of deer even though the new snow was full of tracks thinking I am not going to invest in another one. Got some sweet pics of just the trees though

So what cams get the job done and what to avoid?

Good trail cams that don’t break the bank
 

I have been using Spypoint force 10 and force 11 (running probably close to 20 of these 2). These have been pretty good cameras for the price (can usually pick them up on sale for $100-130). Camera speed is really good, batteries last a long time and bang for your buck is pretty darn good as far as I am concerned.

Only negatives I have had with these cams, is that some of them once they reach the last day of the month don’t flip over to the new month on the time stamp (reverts back to a day in the same month) which is really annoying. So have to send these back and get them replaced by spypoint. I would also say that spypoints customer service has really fallen off in the last year or so.

I see these apeman cameras on amazon, really good reviews. Haven’t tried them but they seem decent price for the good reviews.

https://www.amazon.ca/APEMAN-Waterpr...895093&sr=8-21

DR


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I picked up the apeman when it was on sale for I think $70. Quality is great zero issues, other then the sensitivity is really high. Even on low I’ll get 300-1000 false triggers in 2 weeks. Also run a bunch of spypoint and stealth cams. Happy with both, although I think my stealth cam quality is a bit better. Spypoint night photos suck.

On another note, anyone warrantied a spypoint? Had a bear rip one off a tree and ended up with water inside the lens / camera.

Will have to watch for spy point cams on sale to try one out

Those stealth cams that peavey mart and CT sell as a 2 pack any good ? I think they are the model QS 12 ?

I use the apeman cameras from amazon less than $100. So impressed I just keep buying them.

I can’t speak to compare them to other brands as all I’ve ever owned are stealth cams, I have 7 in total, 2-3 different models- and I’m satisfied with the overall performance of them for the cost. I’m always excited to check cameras, so the stealth cams are definitely doing their part!

Yes I have warrantied Spypoint for the date issue in the cameras. Had a cow moose destroy the front of one of my force 10s, suffice to say damage from a critter is not in their warranty; Only manufacture defects. They did offer a price to replace it, but I am pretty sure that price was higher than I could buy them on sale at cabelas.

DR


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Of all the $80-$140 cameras I’ve tried, I find the stealth cams take the worst pics and are the least sensitive. The Moultries take the best photos especially at night but are more sensitive to false triggers, however they never miss animals like the steal cams do.

I have about 12 cams up now and the stealth cams go to the least important spots.

Stealth Cam
 

Our group picked up 4 Stealth Cams (can't recall the exact model, but not super high-end) for this Fall and they are by far the best we've used to-date.
- crystal clear day time photos.
- night photos are decent.
- very, very good battery life. (Moultries I have are awful for battery use)
- decent sensitivity.
- good trigger speed.

I will be taking a chance on the Can Tire 2-pack soon. I see Cabela's also has this offer.

I always get good pics with moultrie's cams. Price wise some of their models are reasonable and check out their internet specials. Some great prices on refurbished units too. https://www.moultriefeeders.com/products/cameras

I like the Bushnell 16mp cameras around 140$ on Amazon. really nice HD videos with sound batteries last quite a while. I have 2 of those and 6 stealth cams. I make sure to use the Bushnell in the heavy traffic areas

Another vote for Spypoint. Had all different types since about 2003. Bushnell never had any luck. All broke or didn't work to begin with. Wild game innovations were cheap. Moultrie had mixed results. Some worked good. Some didn't. Spypoint I have had the best luck. Had some break but warranty work was good. And the least failures. Take great pictures. Flash is good. Great detection and fast camera response. Have a mix of expensive cell stuff to cheaper force cameras.

https://bresserusa.com/products/5-me...ack-gc-2mp-pn4

Cheap and do the job.

I have had one for 5 years and bear ripped it off a tree and still working.
Picked up 4 more this year when in USA.

Moultrie cams I have experienced in the past and the ones from 10 years ago I was not impressed with. Those recommending Moultrie cams how old are your cams?

Love spypoint, have been great for me. I've never had a bushnell but a couple buddies have them and they take great pictures although I've been told that if I do pick one up to be really diligent on taking the batteries out after season as they will die otherwise.

I still use a 12 year old Moultrie D40. Works good. Only thing is it only takes low memory SD cards and eats 6 'D' cell batteries in a couple months. I have bought new twin packs of stealth cams and found them more faulty. Have a bushnell that is reliable too.

I guess I just like having a basic picture of what's going on. Don't need super high resolution or extra features.

I am not into the fancy stuff either

My issue was 2 moultrie cams just completely went dead after two seasons

My Moultrie cams are all from the last 3-5 years, same as the stealth cams. I have several different models (A25,A30,A40) and all taken decent night pics.

The quality of pictures between the $100ish Moultrie and the Stealth, especially at night is huge. The stealth cam pics are very grainy, blurry and just sub par at night. I’ve been nothing but disappointed in the 1/2 dozen I’ve used. The Moultrie while more susceptible to false triggers produce much clearer pics especially at night when it matters.

After several years all cameras are still working fine. I also have some WGI which suck, some spy points which are decent and a Browning which is great but was pricey.