In today’s day and age, a higher necessity has emerged for the implementation of a sound camera security surveillance system, and while many options exist on the market for both IP and coax cameras, they are some significant advantages to utilizing IP camera solutions over analog. If your still using old analog security cameras, all of us at Camera Security Now hope this article provides clarity if your considering upgrading to IP security cameras.
Pros of IP Security Cameras:
Pro: High Resolution and Long Distance Security Cameras: One of the first things any business or organization should look for when researching and designing a camera security surveillance system is high resolution. It’s no secret that the implementation of higher resolution cameras are going to yield more usable and meaningful footage. The most obvious advantage in utilizing IP security cameras comes in it’s edge in video quality over coax cameras. IP security cameras start at 4 megapixels and have no theoretical limit as to how high the resolution can be. As a result, an IP-based surveillance system provides clarity and depth coax cameras simply cannot compete with in live monitoring, recording, and playback. Additionally, this higher resolution capability gives IP cameras the edge over coax cameras for facial recognition, license plate tracking, and long distance monitoring, recording, and playback as well.
Pro: Wireless Communication and Installation: When thick walls, plaster, and or concrete stand in the way of camera installation, IP cameras can provide a resolution. IP-based cameras enable a seamless and pain-free solution to installing the many cables that come with the installation of coax-based security cameras because of the ability to set cameras to communicate with one another via centralized access points. While wireless is possible for coax security systems, it’s quite expensive and requires encoders at each end of the wireless connection, whereas as with IP cameras, as a result of this wireless communication, camera configuration can be performed before installation thus reducing the overall time needed to setup security systems. Also, because of POE support, security cameras can even be added directly to an already installed network, if preferred. Furthermore, Wi-Fi hands overseers long distance remote monitoring capabilities at installed locations from a computer or phone, improving the overall functionality of surveillance cameras in a camera surveillance system.
Pro: Ultra H.265 Recording and Long-Term Storage: H.265, or High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC), the newest compression standard, provides substantial improvement of video encoding over the older H.264 standard used by coax security cameras. In fact, H.265 can encode footage about twice as fast as H.264 and reduces the overall bandwidth utilization and storage consumption versus H.264 found on Coax security cameras. As a result, video quality is maintained and not sacrificed across different video applications. However, with Ultra H.265, perhaps the most striking feature is its ability to scale surveillance streaming up to around 8192×4320. Thus, this resolution improvement generates more precision and transparency when viewing or recording live movement and animated objects with IP security cameras.
Cons of Analog Security Cameras:
Cons: Lower Resolution Recording: Have you ever been watching the news when the reporters are talking about a robbery at a gas station? If you have, we’re sure you’ve asked yourself: why is the security camera footage so low? In reality, the reason for this is likely because they are using coax-based security cameras instead of IP cameras. Using security cameras through analog means lower resolution monitoring, recording, and playback. The reason for this is because coax surveillance cameras typically start at 1 megapixel and max out at 4 megapixels for recording. Remember, cheaper doesn’t always mean better, because if you do experience a robbery, having high quality security cameras implemented may be the difference between busting the perpetrator and essentially letting them walk away free of their crimes, and ultimately with your money.
Cons: Camera Positioning: Analog security cameras need to be connected to a DVR, and because of this, must be in close proximity to their host DVR. As the distance between DVRs and analog based security cameras increases, you risk reducing the consistency of an analog connection. This means, analog cameras are much more limited in where they can be installed, whereas IP security cameras provide the flexibility of efficient wireless solutions that offer more optimal functionality and consistency of signal.
Cons: Decreased Range Quality: As established earlier, the resolution of analog security cameras is typically significantly lower than that of IP cameras. This in effect means further distanced viewing via analog is worse than when monitoring via IP security cameras. If your business implements analog security cameras, you may miss a key event the occurs on-site at your business, warehouse, or factory because of the lack of long distance playback quality. Furthermore, to meet a comparable level of range monitoring quality found on IP cameras with analog cameras, you likely need to buy more analog security cameras and cabling, and have them installed throughout your lot or building. In the end, despite the often lower cost of coax surveillance cameras, you could end up paying more to equal the same quality of long-distance monitoring afforded by IP security cameras.