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Securing your house with an IP security surveillance has many benefits and is actually an overall easy process. Most IP camera surveillance systems on the market are now plug and play, greatly simplifying the setup process. To get started in selecting your equipment follow these 3 easy steps on selecting the right IP security cameras and Network Video Recorder(NVR).
1. Deter potential theft Security surveillance is an effective deterrent. Someone casing the neighborhood is more likely to choose the property with no cameras over the property with cameras. Having a surveillance system not only protects your property, but makes the community a safer environment for everyone.
A very common question regarding security cameras and installs is the type of cabling to use. Currently, 2 types of wiring are widely used for IP security cameras which are Cat6 or Cat5e twisted pair cabling.
If you've been researching security cameras for a while, you have probably noticed that some cameras measure resolution using TVL (600TVL, 700TVL, 1000TVL) rather than 720p, 1080p, or Megapixels. This can be confusing and even misleading, which can make it very frustrating to figure out what you need for your home or business. In this article we're going to break down what all of those numbers actually mean so that you can make an informed decision.
Originally posted to the /r/homedefense subreddit on Sept 30, 2013 by reddit user ahmadnassri, an exploit that could potentially expose your entire network to hackers has been released to the world. On Jan 10, 2017 ahmadnassri released a full walkthrough on how to hack into an alarm.com system and gain access to an extensive list of private data and devices.
Most security professionals will say that installing surveillance cameras on the outside of your home or business is an effective method of deterring criminals from choosing you as a target. Is this just a marketing pitch to get you to buy cameras, or are there actual statistics to prove this?The University of North Carolina at Charlotte conducted a study in 2012 that sheds light on the subject and gives us a better understanding of what is going on in a burglar's mind when selecting a target. The University's study, titled "Understanding Decisions to Burglarize from the Offender’s Perspective,” surveyed 422 incarcerated male and female burglars and asked them a number of questions about choosing a target, motivation for burglary, and the question that we will focus on in this article; the effectiveness of alarm and security camera systems.
Smart Security cameras are advanced cameras that feature a robust set of configuration tools to help secure your area. These Advanced Analytics have revolutionized traditional surveillance systems with advanced features and alerts. These features are most commonly found in IP security cameras. Different Security cameras will have different features. I am going to cover our Bolt 4k bullet camera and the smart features on that particular camera.
A varifocal lens is an adjustable camera lens with independently adjustable focus and zoom. This is usually done using a pair of knobs or rods located near the lens of the camera. In this article, we will outline when it is beneficial to use a varifocal bullet or dome camera.
RTSP is one of the most useful things that an IP camera provides over Analog counterparts. Since the encoding is done at the camera, we can pull the RTSP stream right from the camera. NVR/DVR's also have an RTSP Stream that can be used for live viewing the streams. This write up will cover both products. An excellent tool for testing and implementing solutions is VLC media player. It is Open Source and free to use.
As with everything in life, there are trade-offs when deciding where to store and how to secure your surveillance camera footage. Most options available fall into two main categories: Local Storage and Cloud Storage. In this article, I will walk you through the pros and cons of each and hopefully help in avoiding some pitfalls and misconceptions along the way.
We have found that a lot of people shopping for security cameras are under the impression that IP cameras require an internet connection to operate correctly, after all, it is right in the name. Though IP is an abbreviation for Internet Protocol, an IP camera system will work perfectly fine without an internet connection. You can view the cameras, record to a hard drive, and search through recorded footage using just a monitor and a mouse plugged directly into the NVR.
If you’ve been in the surveillance industry for any amount of time, you have probably noticed that many of the cameras on the market look the same just with different logos on them from a myriad of different companies. The fact is that there are only a handful of companies that actually manufacture security cameras, and most security equipment wholesalers & retailers simply re-brand OEM / ODM ("Original Equipment Manufacturer" / "Original Design Manufacturer") cameras and recorders.
One of the most popular features of security cameras is the ability to record only when something is happening in front of the camera. This has been the go to method for preserving that precious Hard Drive space, especially with resolutions always on the rise and with it recording storage demands. With event recording, you don’t have hours and hours of footage taking up space where nothing has happened. Up until now the most popular way of detecting an event is through motion.
Most of the cameras that we carry in our catalog are weatherproof, and we identify the camera's level of tolerance to the extreme conditions with it's Ingress Protection Rating. This "IP Code" (not to be confused with the IP address) was made to define how well devices like our IP cameras hold up against the elements, namely dust and water. In this article, we'll go over what all of the different levels of Ingress Protection are, when to use the different IP ratings, and what varying degrees of Ingress Protection our products offer.
With a new year comes new technology! 2018 is bringing about some fundamental changes in the IP camera models you know and trust to make them even more reliable and functional. These changes include a shift to EXIR night vision on all models, more analytic options, and a longer POE range when paired with our NVRs. These changes can be found in our entire line of 4K cameras, and our Bola HD+, Dart HD+, and Slingshot HD+ options are being overhauled as well.
This short article will cover the basics of how to position security cameras for best results. While many factors exist for placing cameras I will touch on the basic ones of placement. I would consider the following to be the four steps in placing your cameras:
Designing a security camera system for your customer’s home or business can sometimes be as easy as throwing up a couple of cameras and setting them to record. However, more often you'll need something different and more complex than the “typical” or pre-boxed system. In this article, we’ll go over choosing the right NVR, camera, and identifying when it is best to use other accessories, like brackets and back boxes. We'll also explore different camera types and capabilities and some common tools that are must haves on every job.