D-Link DNR-312L Network Video Recorder (NVR) Review

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For those that have invested time and money into building their own surveillance solution, the proverbial cherry on top is the ability to record those streams to an independent device. While most modern NAS appliances come with an IP camera solution, I myself have found those to be finicky at best, working with specific cameras and being updated at a snail's pace.

The D-Link DNR-312L is a single-bay NVR capable of connecting to and recording nine independent camera streams. This solution includes a HDMI port, along with dual USB 2.0 ports, and gigabit Ethernet allowing you to connect the device straight to any HDMI compatible monitor or television. Compatibility extends to PCs with Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome or Safari web browsers.

MSRP of the D-Link DNR-312L is set at $289.99 with a one-year warranty.

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Scope of delivery includes the NVR, Ethernet cable, power adapter, and reading materials.

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The front of the enclosure houses three LEDs to denote power, HDD activity and network activity.

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The back of the unit has dual USB 2.0 ports at the top, followed by audio in and out next to the gigabit Ethernet port and HDMI out.

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With these being diskless solutions, you have to remove two screws on the bottom of the unit to install your preferred hard drive.

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Here we have our unit opened up, as you can see, there is a small fan at the back of the enclosure to aid in cooling.

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After installing our HDD, we fired up the NVR and entered the WebGUI. All of our IP cameras instantly appeared within the software with live feeds.

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The settings menu allows you to fine tune the NVR to your liking. Above, we have entered the camera setup menu where you can see all three of our cameras listed. By clicking on any single camera in the top panel, you can adjust settings for it down below.

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Here we have the recording settings. From this menu, you can set up cameras to record continuously, on motion or on an event.

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Before you get too far into the setup of your recording schedules, a good idea is to head to the hard drive menu and format your drive. As you can see, we have a 6TB WD Red drive in our NVR.

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A feature I really enjoyed with the 312L is the auto backup. From here, you can back up the NVR to a FTP server, SMB solution or USB disk.

The D-Link DNR-312L is a solid solution for those building their very own surveillance where it is necessary to record the footage. Build quality seems to be on par with what's expected of a single drive enclosure, the plastics fit very tight together, and the two bottom screws seem to hold everything securely.

Performance of the unit was quite surprising, though we only have three cameras streaming to the device at this time, it would be nice to get a few more to see how the unit handles all nine streams. With that said, the only major downfall of the DNR-312L is its only compatible with D-Link IP cameras, whereas the larger 322L model supports additional vendors.

Overall, the DNR-312L is a perfect fit for those that already have D-Link IP cameras, or plan on using D-Link exclusively for their surveillance solution. The menus are simple to navigate, and set up was almost plug and play.

PRICING: You can find the D-link Mydlink One-bay Standalone Nvr - Network Video Recorder for sale below. The prices listed are valid at the time of writing but can change at any time. Click the link to see the very latest pricing for the best deal.

United States: The D-link Mydlink One-bay Standalone Nvr - Network Video Recorder retails for $285.00 at Amazon.

Canada: The D-link Mydlink One-bay Standalone Nvr - Network Video Recorder retails for CDN$299.99 at Amazon Canada.

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