In January 2011, Bosch announced the release of an HD camera line. This was anticipated for 2 reasons: (1) Bosch became one of the last major brands to release their own HD line (previously they OEMed Arecont's MP) and (2) Bosch Dinion SD (analog and IP) have a reputation of high quality video performance (based on many integrator recommendations, we included them in our Analog vs SD night time shootout).

In this report we share out test results from two Bosch Dinion IP Box Cameras (HD & SD):

• Bosch NBN-921 (online $775) - 720p (1280x720)
• Bosch NBN-498 (online $700) - 4CIF (704x480)

Both have the following key features in common:

• ONVIF
• H.264/MJPEG
• Manual Back-Focus
• iSCSI Storage Support
• D/N (IR cut-filter)
• Analytics (Bosch IVA) option

Here are some key differences:

• NBN-921 is HD 720p while the NBN-498 SD 4CIF
• NBN-921 supports micro-SD (on-board storage); 498 models have micro-SD card support in new units shipping in 2011
• NBN-498 supports video out (BNC) 

In our testing, for video quality, we focused on WDR and low light scenes as these tend to be the most important in differentiating quality. In this test, we did not consider VMS integration or the use of on-board storage. We plan to cover Bosch's VMS / recorders in its own dedicated reports. Additionally, the Bosch 720p, through its support for on-board integrates with Genetec's edge recording solution (see our Genetec Trickling test results).

This test is part of our ongoing series of megapixel camera tests. Review our directory of ~30 megapixel camera tests.