Cameras come in many shapes, sizes and specifications. This 101 examines the basics of cameras and features used in 2020. In this report, we review the basics of cameras, including: Core components of cameras Analog vs. IP cameras Common c...
By IPVM Team - 3 months ago
With its newest IP intercom, Hikvision proclaims users can 'get full control over an entrance' regardless of where it is installed, home or office alike. Can the company's modular intercom deliver? We purchased and tested a DS system, based on Hi...
By Brian Rhodes - 6 months ago
Avigilon is well-known for video surveillance and access, but how well does the company's intercom work? We purchased and tested Avigilon's H4 Video Intercom to see how it compares to the competition. In this report, we evaluate and test the f...
By Brian Rhodes - 6 months ago
Commend touts the new ID5 intercom as 'timelessly elegant' and the slim body, glass front touchscreen indeed looks better than common, but ugly, institutional looking call stations. But how well does it work? We bought and tested Commend's ID5 t...
By Brian Rhodes - 9 months ago
US Government banned Dahua OEMs for dozens of companies. The following directory includes 40+ of those companies with a graphic and links to company websites below and 20+ that have dropped Dahua in the past 2 years. It does not cover all Dahua...
By IPVM Team - 9 months ago
Axis newest door station, the A8207-VE, claims to deliver "video surveillance, two-way communication, and access control" in a single device. But how well does each of these perform? The video in the unit tested disappointingly bad in low light, ...
By Brian Rhodes - 10 months ago
IPVM has validated, with testing, and from Dahua, that many Dahua cameras have a wiretapping vulnerability. Even if the camera's audio has been disabled, an attacker can still listen in unauthenticated. Inside this report, we examine how it wor...
By John Honovich and John Scanlan - 10 months ago
For years, HD resolution and single cable signal/power were IP camera advantages, with analog cameras limited to much lower resolution and requiring separate power and video cables. However, in new HD analog cameras, AHD, CVI, and TVI have made si...
By IPVM Team - 10 months ago
The People's Republic of China (PRC) government has released a new set of overarching standards for authorities to follow when they install video surveillance networks across the country. The standards were drafted over several years by Chinese po...
By Charles Rollet - about 1 year ago
With 40+ years of experience in IT from a wide array of verticals, including US and foreign military, and large corporate and industrial settings, retired IT professional Richard Buckmaster [link no longer available] now applies his years of exper...
By Dan Gelinas - about 1 year ago
Video intercoms are a growing market with video surveillance manufacturers expanding into this niche. IPVM is continuing its series of video intercoms tests, adding to our test of Zenitel/ Stentofon Turbine and Axis 2N. Can Dahua become a viable ...
By Brian Rhodes - over 1 year ago
IPVM was at CES 2019 for the second year (see our CES 2018 Show Final Report) and is reporting on announcements and interesting news from the show floors. This show report includes: Review of major new announcements at the show Drop in Chin...
By IPVM Team - over 1 year ago
Bypassing passwords and long download times on-site, DVR Examiner collects and organizes video evidence directly from a hard drive extracted from embedded recorders with proprietary disk formats. Many major manufacturers do not provide a native to...
By Robert Shih - over 1 year ago
Video Intercoms, also known as Video Door-Phones or Video Entry Systems, have been growing in the past decade as more and more IP camera manufacturers enter this segment. This directory tracks the players in this market, contrasts Video Interco...
By IPVM Team - over 1 year ago
Axis expanded its video intercom business buying Czech-based 2N in 2016. Despite competing against owner Axis' intercoms, 2N recently registered as more favored by integrators. This test expands IPVM's intercom test series including Zenitel's Vi...
By Brian Rhodes - over 1 year ago
Mobile VMS apps are a critical interface for the modern surveillance user. But who does it best and worst? We tested 6 manufacturers - Avigilon, Dahua, Exacq, Genetec, Hikvision, and Milestone to find out: We tested them across 11 categories ...
By Sean Patton - over 1 year ago
Amazon is expanding their security offerings yet again, this time with Alexa Guard that delivers security audio analytics and a virtual "Fake TV." This continues a recent series of Amazon security expansions including acquiring Ring for $1 bill...
By Dan Gelinas - over 1 year ago
Intercoms are certainly increasing in popularity, driven by the integration of video and IP networking. But who is the favorite? On the one side, you have incumbents like Aiphone, Commend and Stentofon / Zenitel. On the other, you have large IP ca...
By IPVM Team - over 1 year ago
IPVM has published reports testing an Axis door station and a Hikvision door station (tested). However, those companies are new entrants to this space. By contrast, Zenitel's Vingtor-Stentofon is an intercom incumbent provider. We bought and test...
By Brian Rhodes - almost 2 years ago
Based on member 4MP testing requests, we bought and tested Digital Watchdog's low-cost 4MP DWC-MTT4Wi to see how it performs in real world scenes, examining key features, including: Full light performance Low light performance Integrated IR...
By Ethan Ace - almost 2 years ago
Has FLIR solved the video intrusion / remote monitoring problem or have they created an overkill, overly expensive device? FLIR has launched Saros, an offering that has a long line of capabilities: dual thermal sensors, 4K video, 940nm IR LEDs,...
By Sean Patton - about 2 years ago
Big money has entered the remote video monitoring market. While remote video monitoring has been done for more than a decade, the market has remained niche. [link no longer available] Now, a private equity firm with more than $7 billion of asse...
By IPVM Team - about 2 years ago
With $18 million in VC funding, and led by the former product lead for the iPod and the VP of Engineering of Dropcam, Andrew Hodge [link no longer available], hopes are high for Owl to have similar success in the car / dash cam market. And there...
By John Scanlan - about 2 years ago
Audio is more widely available and easier to use than ever, with many IP cameras building audio in and often making integration as simple as toggling a button. But how widely is audio used? There still remain many legal and privacy concerns about...
By Brian Rhodes - about 2 years ago
Many manufacturers have released new generation 5MP / 6MP cameras that tout super low light, WDR and other features historically typical in 1080p but not 5MP / 6MP. In our recent series of tests we tested four of these models from major manufactur...
By Ethan Ace - about 2 years ago
