What is the best video surveillance system?

I have several nest cams, may not be the best system but they are versatile and reliable.

I prefer stand alone systems that have web capability but do not need it to operate. There are potentially too many security holes in the full on, web operated systems. I like the Zmodo system with 2 TB of storage and 8 +/- cameras. Each camera has a view split into 150 rectangles so you can block out or set the motions sensing sensitivity independently. That is handy. The cameras are hard wired and are powered by 12 v so it is easy to set up a battery backup that guarantees operation even if there is a power outage. The cameras do not have IP addresses and do not transmit over the web so they cannot be easily hacked.
I set up systems to start recording (with a 30 second pre-trigger) only when motion is detected. The 2 TB is enough to record for a couple of months and it writes new info over the old. If there is a problem I can review the record. If not, then i never look at it.

I do not like sending my personal info over the net 24/7. I don’t even want to think about doing that. Sure there is a password that is required to watch the video remotely. But, seriously, does anyone here think China allowed those units to be exported without a backdoor open? I don’t want to make it easy for anyone to watch me or my actions.

Another downside is that most of these a would be thief can usually just snip your cable from the pole to your house and ones without internal storage are useless. That said, stand alone units that do not use cloud storage and record locally are about useless if a thief can locate the recording device.

Drives are wired into a fireproof/theftproof box usually screwed to the floor, for example. Cloud backup can be used but it should be independent of the software and service provided with the cameras and drive.