1. Question:
“I have heard that a DVR is really the latest and greatest technology in the security world?”

Answer:
A DVR (Digital Video Recorder) has a lot of advantages over a VCR (Video Cassette Recorder) such as the fact that there is no need to exchange tapes, it offers consistent image quality, and quicker search for recordings. Network video has all these advantages, plus it also offers remote monitoring (wired or wirelessly) of all cameras, and it uses an IP-based infrastructure to connect all cameras to the recording. This means you save on infrastructure costs, and at the same time build a scalable, flexible, future-proof system.

2. Question:
“Since I already have analogue cameras shouldn’t I buy a DVR instead?”

Answer:
In many installations, several analogue cameras are already being used. Video servers are used to digitize the analogue cameras and to bring the information to a network video system. This leads to cost savings on infrastructure. Additionally, DVRs normally come in 16 channel versions, and do not scale very well to larger installations. A network video system can scale easily from 1 to more than 1000 cameras, one step at a time.

3. Question:
“Won’t it be very expensive - the cameras cost more than analogue cameras?”

Answer:
A network camera is more expensive than the corresponding analogue camera because it includes far greater functionality, e.g. digitalization, image compression and intelligence. When the total cost of the hardware (cameras, cables, and recording) is taken into consideration, a network video system normally favourably compares to a DVR based system. If you add on the installation cost, the advantage of the IP Surveillance system becomes obvious: an IP based infrastructure, with twisted pair, is much less expensive than analogue coax cabling.

4. Question:
“Won’t it cripple my network transferring all that video data over my network?”

Answer:
Where only a few cameras are installed, your existing Fast Ethernet (100 Mbit) office network probably has sufficient capacity. For any larger deployment of network cameras and video servers we recommend a separate network for the video, just as you would install a separate analogue coax video network. With today’s network switches and routers, separating networks is relatively easy. Because of the local intelligence in the network cameras, decisions can be taken in the camera as to whether to send 1 frame per second or 30 fps over the network, based on the event, motion detection and time of day. This ensures that the network is used efficiently.

5. Question:
“Wouldn’t the IT manager be unhappy if I put all my video on his network?”

Answer:
A professional IP Surveillance based network will need a separated IP infrastructure to transport the video efficiently. It can however use the existing twisted pair infrastructure that exists in most facilities. It can also share spare ports on existing switches and routers, hence creating a converged network for data, video and potentially also voice. All this leads to a more cost-efficient overall communications infrastructure for a company.

6. Question:
“How can you be sure that transmitting video for security purposes over an IP network will be safe?"

Answer:
An IP based network including the Internet is being used today for bank transactions, as well as sensitive corporate and military information. By employing available security measures like encryption, virtual private networks (VPNs), and firewalls, IP-based networks can become highly secure.

7. Question:
“Are there compatibility issues between networked video and existing video equipment?”

Answer:
Much of the existing video equipment is based on analogue video (NTSC format) and is transmitted over coaxial cables. In order to make use of existing network infrastructure, be sure you work with a network camera vendor that also carries video servers. A video server has an analogue NTSC input for a video signal, and then performs digitalization and compression which effectively turns the existing analogue cameras into network cameras.

8. Question:
"Is the audio included, and if so, how is it used?"

Answer:
To acquire audio capabilities, you can connect an external module to some network video products. Having sound as well as images can be useful in several respects, especially for “audio surveillance” where the camera user can listen-in to the monitored site/location. Since the module supports two-way audio it is also possible to give verbal feedback to the monitored site.