Getting a good image can help solve surveillance problems and quickly show people what video really looks like. While print screen is built in, this requires a number of cumbersome steps to produce a shareable image. We recently ...
Netgear is one of the biggest IT brands in the world, with over a billion in annual revenue. Now, they are finally moving into the surveillance industry, with the ReadyNAS Surveillance Suite, what they call "The Industry's F...
Proper cable installation is key to trouble free IP surveillance systems. However, testing is often an afterthought, with problems only discovered when cameras have problems, resulting in increased troubleshooting, or even worse,...
Freedom, simplicity, and true interoperability have been the promises of ONVIF since its inception in 2008. However, field deployments have been slow and coming, and early adopters have reported numerous problems and inconsistent...
Until now, the surveillance cloud has been the province of IP upstarts and small companies pushing a new approach. The old guard incumbents have sit on the sideline. No more. Honeywell has made its move into the cloud with a...
With so many options available, selecting network switches for surveillance can be especially daunting for inexperienced users, with little guidance available from independent sources. To that end, in this note we recommend switc...
Once an integrator favorite, Pelco is increasingly viewed with distrust and concern by many. As the former US leader becomes assimilated into a French multinational conglomerate, Schneider Electric, concerns rise. In particular, ...
While many cameras default to DHCP out of the box, that does not mean you should use it. This may seem basic for some, but those new to the industry may not know there are other options. In this note, we overview dynamic and...
Extortion or Essential? It is common to hear integrators use both term when describing VMS software maintenance licenses / recurring software upgrade fees. While these types of fees, often 15%-20% or the purchase price each year,...
Connecting to remote cameras remains one of the most painful tasks in surveillance. Automatic setup features have proven unreliable in many cases, leaving users frustrated. Manual setup can be tricky for even experienced users, a...
The lawsuits keep coming. Now ObjectVideo is suing former, long time partner Pelco. Done quietly after business hours on a Friday afternoon, ObjectVideo issued a two paragraph release announcing the attack.ObjectVideo suing is no...
Unlocked doors are a key vulnerability of many access control systems. While a door may be closed, it can easily be kept unlocked, allowing an adversary to later enter without any authentication. Adding lock status monitoring can...
Does hosted access offer advantages over traditional panel based door access control systems? Brivo Systems, a US provider of 'hosted access' solutions, is the most prominent provider and advocate of a different approach to elect...
Multiple styles of PTZ are available, though little clear-cut guidance on which is best for a given application is available, making camera selection difficult for inexperienced users. In this note, we overview the three main typ...
With Wide Dynamic Range becoming an increasingly prominent feature for manufacturers, understanding the actual field performance of cameras is critical. Adding to this is the recent move of a number of manufacturers adding 1080p/...
The most polarizing debate of the last few years is when the video surveillance market will 'tip' to IP video (i.e., be more than 50%). Last year, we declared that the market had already tipped to IP video for new projects in Wes...
Can the traditional access control market be disrupted by new entrants leveraging consumer technologies and mobile phones? One startup, Lockitron, is backed by a powerful Silicon Valley investment firm and gaining ...
Getting high quality images in low light is a common challenge. With the problem being so widespread, we were curious to understand how integrators normally address the issue. In our latest integrator survey, we asked "How do you...
With the market sharply moving to megapixel cameras, an increasingly important question is: what MP cameras offer the...
This report examines the key events that shaped video surveillance in 2011 and the top trends we expect to see in 201...
Now that the dust has settled from the new announcements of the last month, we can better understand the impact on th...
Dealing with direct sunlight is one of video surveillance's toughest problems. Avoiding the sun is frequently impossi...
Aggressive marketing creates dangerous myths. Vendors transform their product's highest aspirations into concrete cla...
Capturing license plates is one of the best ways to identify suspects and intruders. As such, it is highly desirable ...
Parking lots are one of the most important areas for using surveillance cameras. Thefts, assaults, vandalism, loiteri...
In an unprecedented move bound to have a major impact across the global video surveillance industry, ObjectVideo has ...
This report provides in-depth recommendations and a template for optimally specifying surveillance cameras. Confusion...
Casinos break most of the 'rules' in video surveillance. With their large camera counts, high risks, frequent threats...
