As long as our Avigilon review is posted, I might as well follow up with more. Here is the second review, of Pelco Endura:
PROS:
- Relatively uncluttered desktop.
- Easy to learn and operate.
CONS:
- Relatively poor “live” and “playback” picture quality
- “Jerky” video in reverse play and on initial PTZ motion. System apparently can only play back I-frames.
- Slow response to commands. Camera call-up, playback start (especially in salvos) etc. take relatively long compared to other systems.
- No slow-motion playback.
- No “Motion Search” functions
- Bookmarks can only be set for individual camera.
- Joystick control of PTZs not possible on both main screen and monitor wall without moving joystick back and forth between systems.
- High latency (~300ms). This interferes with PTZ control.
- No metadata in clips.
- Save locations limited to default set in User Profile unless changed in Export Manager.
- Saved clips apparently cannot be converted to other format(s) for editing or authoring to a Video DVD.
- No direct Video DVD authoring.
SYNOPSIS
The Pelco Endura system has a few positive features but many limitations. Although its GUI is simple and straightforward, some functions are difficult to understand. Many functions are slow to start when initiated, such as reverse playback; especially of salvos. Switching from “live” to “playback” is also very slow with the screen often displaying “Press the Joystick Button”.
Both “live” and “playback” picture quality were unacceptable on both the viewing screen and the monitor wall, which would require that we either retain our analog matrix for live monitoring or deploy many IP megapixel cameras to overcome the video quality deterioration from what we now experience. Reverse Playback is of I-frames only (confirmed), which causes “skipping” of frames and non-fluid motion. We've found that this is a shortcoming for many systems with h.264.
The digital zoom function works well and the “zone of interest” function could be useful but the overall poor picture quality negates any real benefits. Perhaps these functions would be more useable on megapixel cameras but we have no intention to replace most of our cameras with megapixel ones anytime in the near future.
The Endura system lacks a “motion search” or “pixel search” function. This is a severe weakness compared to most competing systems.
The Endura system has the second highest latency we have measured at approximately 300ms. This high latency affects our ability to control PTZ cameras, especially when trying to follow moving vehicles or other relatively fast motion.
Clip creation is another area where Endura is severely lacking. Start and end dates/times must be manually entered – potentially allowing mistakes during the process. The inability to “point” a clip to a selectable network drive means that clip creation will need to be a two-step process: create the clip in the folder specified in the user’s profile, and then copy it to its final destination. This is one of the most confounding clip-creation features we’ve seen on any NVR/VMS system. In addition, clips created in Pelco’s proprietary .pef format apparently cannot be converted to a standard format for editing and/or authoring to a Video DVD.
CONCLUSIONS
The Pelco Endura system is not ideal for Casino Surveillance operations. It has numerous severe limitations that would adversely affect user performance and potentially impede productivity.
It is not recommended to proceed with any additional testing or evaluation.