Wired vs.
Wireless
There are two main types of connections for CCTV cameras to
the monitor or recording device, they consist of either a fixed cable or a
wireless connection.
Fixed Cable Connection
Fixed cable connection means that your camera will be
physically connected to your monitor or recording device via a cable. Usually coaxial cables are used, most of the
time they are similar to your normal home TV cables. Lengths come in 25, 35, 50, 100 or 500 feet. As the distance increases, you may see
degradation in signal quality.
For distances longer than 100 or 200 feet, you can purchase
higher quality coaxial cables such as RG59 coaxial cable for distances up to
600 feet and for distances more than 600 feet, but less than 2,000 feet, you
can purchase CAT5 cable.
Wireless Connection
Most wireless CCTV cameras use the 2.4 Gigahertz frequencies
to transmit their video images to a monitor or DVR (digital video recorder). Usually, frequencies can be slightly changed
to have more than one group of cameras in a specific space. Wireless CCTV cameras used at this frequency
can easily transmit through most walls and obstacles; however each individual
location will have its own operating limits. Expect most wireless CCTV cameras to send data
to a range of about 200 feet, however many will more likely work well when
transmitting less than 150 feet. A clear
line of sight transmission will always work the best.
Obviously a wireless connection allows you greater freedom
to place your CCTV camera almost anywhere. While wireless CCTV cameras transmit their
video images to a digital video recorder or monitor, many of these types of
cameras must be plugged into an electrical outlet. There is however some CCTV cameras
that are battery operated.
Dome
Security Cameras
These are named for their dome shaped protective cover. Dome Cameras are manufactured in both interior
and exterior versions. The dome camera
also provides a few additional advantages over some of the other commonly used
camera types. The exterior versions are
very tough and extremely tamper resistant. Additionally, in both versions a dome camera
can hide which direction the lens is facing making it very difficult for a
would-be perpetrator to see if they are in the dome camera’s field of view. Dome Security Cameras can also utilize a
variety of technologies such as: Fixed or Varifocal Lens, Day / Night vs. Infrared
and even Mega Pixel.
Bullet
Style Night Vision
Infrared Bullet Cameras are small CCTV Night Vision Cameras
that are cylindrical in shape. The main
advantage of IR Bullet Cameras is their low cost and small size. These IR cameras generally mount directly to a
wall or ceiling and offer a good picture at a reasonable price. A Bullet Security Night Vision Camera is
generally mounted in higher out of reach locations as they are not the most
tamper resistant. Bullet security
cameras generally come with a fixed or Varifocal lens and the most common IR
emission ranges are 30’, 60’, 90’, or 120’.
PTZ
In some situations the use of fixed position cameras will
not be enough to achieve adequate surveillance for a specific area or areas. Pan, Tilt, Zoom (PTZ) Cameras have the
capability of being controlled remotely, change zoom level (typically 10X up to
36X) and moved in any direction via a keyboard or PTZ Joystick Controller. Other ways of controlling the PTZ Camera are
through the DVR Software using a mouse or even via an Infrared remote control.
Pan, Tilt, Zoom Security Cameras are often used to visually patrol a
wide area with pre-sets to switch between certain areas in a loop. It is also possible to connect a motion PIR
(passive infrared sensor) to the Pan, Tilt, and Zoom to the Camera so when a
person comes within the motion detection range the camera will automatically
spin round to face that point. These PTZ
cameras are ideal for any application where a large area needs to be monitored.
Types of Images
CCTV cameras generally take both black and white or colour
video images. In addition, many CCTV
cameras can even have night vision capabilities which allow a CCTV camera to
view and record low light images using special technology. IP cameras are becoming more and more popular
as their price decreases, as they can have mega-pixel super-sharp clarity and
can be connected to a standard computer CAT5 network, most have POE (Power over
Ethernet) capabilities, meaning the cable from the camera can also carry power
to the camera. This reduces the installation cost as no power supply units are
needed.
Frames per
Second
Frames per second means the amounts of full frames that a
video camera captures and sends to a recording device or monitor per second.
While most CCTV camera systems are easily able to capture 30 or more frames per
second (30 fps is considered real time), the amount of digital storage would be
enormous to record every moment of everyday. For most shops, speeds of 1 to 6 frames
per second are more than enough to catch and record a perpetrator committing a
crime.
DVR
A DVR (Digital Video Recorder) is the recording device,
which stores all the images onto an internal hard drive for up to 32 cameras
and view on a display. Recordings can be
played back from all cameras or one at a time.
A user can go back to any time in the recording and playback a recording
in a matter of seconds.
The recorded images can be stored to hard drives or CDs and
archived for as long as necessary. The DVRs can be controlled, viewed to
recording can be played back over the internet using an internet browser or a
client software. This allows you to view
your premises from anywhere in the world, additionally, any optional PTZ
cameras can be controlled remotely, over the internet.
Please note: When
viewing on any smart phone you cannot use the play back option on this type of
device, only viewing can be displayed.