CCTV Video Surveillance Security Camera System

 

Though most of our attention these days is focused on the transition to IP video technology, it's important to note that analog CCTV security cameras can still be highly effective for many surveillance applications, especially those on a budget. With traditional CCTV security cameras, the video signal is processed and transmitted in analog format for local viewing from one central monitoring location. But that doesn't mean you can't use analog cameras in an IP-based surveillance environment. Using IP video encoders and other equipment such as digital video recorders and hybrid DVRs makes it possible to leverage your existing analog cameras while migrating into the world of digital surveillance.

What is a CCTV security camera?

In its truest form, a CCTV camera is an analog video camera that transmits signals via coaxial cable to a single central location for monitoring, recording, and video analysis. While the recent trend is a push towards IP network cameras, CCTV cameras are still widely used, and offer a cost-effective answer to many common surveillance scenarios.

CCTV technology has been around since the 1940's, and became a major player in the security industry around 1970. The technology is tried and true, and there are CCTV security camera models for virtually any surveillance application. The two main categories of CCTV cameras are fixed cameras and pan/tilt/zoom models which can rotate horizontally and vertically to cover more area.

Pros and Cons of Analog Surveillance

These days, there's a lot to think about when putting together a video surveillance system. And the first question on most people's minds is “Do I go with traditional analog cameras, or IP network cameras?” There are pros and cons to both choices. Let's focus our attention on analog CCTV surveillance cameras.

Pros of analog CCTV

Lower initial cost - In most cases, analog cameras cost less up front than IP network cameras. Wide-spread compatibility - Mixing and matching camera models and surveillance equipment form different manufacturers is easy with an analog CCTV security camera. Lower initial cost - Analog cameras tend to handle low-light situations better than IP cameras on average, though IP camera technology is improving in this regard.

Cons of analog CCTV

Expensive cabling - For large-scale surveillance applications, analog cameras require complicated cabling schemes that can be quite expensive and also challenging to install. Limited features - Many of the advanced features now available with IP cameras (for instance: megapixel resolution, digital zoom, and video analytics), aren't available in analog CCTV models.