Continuing to break through the jargon
With CCTV becoming more commonplace both for businesses and in homes, our previous blog post started to break down the options available when choosing a system for your premises. The last post focused on image quality (HD, analogue, ip CCTV) and what it is that you require your CCTV to be used for. Once you have decided on the cameras, you have to think about what way you want to be able to monitor and record the images you are capturing. Again, there are multiple options for this depending on your needs. A digital video recorder (DVR) and screen is the standard method of recording and viewing your security footage and is included in our packages, but there are some extras you may be interested in.
Storage capacity – ip CCTV and Analogue
When designing your system you will need to work out how many days’ worth of footage you require to keep at any one time. The greater the number of days you want to keep on record, the larger your hard-drive will need to be. This may come down to your budget or the way in which your business is run. In the last CCTV blog we spoke about cameras, analogue were the less expensive choice if you do not require high definition images. Analogue also works out less expensive in terms of recording. The images captured are of a smaller resolution than megapixel cameras so they take up a lot less storage space. There are options for storage of ip CCTV too. Video compression needs to be considered in order to condense the information either being transmitted by the ip camera or being recorded onto the DVR. There are several different compression types, but the best in the CCTV industry right now is known as M-PEG-4 and takes up around 25% less room than other methods.
Remote monitoring – Smartphone CCTV
There has been a huge growth in remote-viewing capabilities over the internet and via smartphones. This allows you to view your CCTV images live from practically anywhere! In order to use this service you will need a broadband internet connection with a static ip address. Your internet service provider will be able to answer any questions on this, but they do sometimes charge an extra monthly fee for the static ip service. It’s worth doing some research into these costs and internet connection speeds to see what will work for you. It is also a good idea to get your service provider to change your download to upload speed ratio as viewing your property remotely relies on upload speeds as opposed to usual internet usage, such as movies, which relies on download speed. For businesses it is advised to use a separate internet connection from your existing one. Both Keybury domestic and commercial CCTV can be viewed over the internet on a desktop, laptop, smartphone or tablet on Apple and Android by downloading the apps provided. You can even combine cameras from more than one property onto the same app!
Police response monitoring – BS8418 CCTV
Although not generally needed for domestic properties, some insurers are insisting that businesses have police response CCTV in cases where items of high value may be at risk. Insurers may also provide discounts to those which have this high level of monitoring in place. There are certain requirements that must be met in order to have BS8418 CCTV. Firstly make sure that the installer of the system is accredited to install BS8418 CCTV – such as Keybury’s engineers. The monitoring centre (RVRC) must also be approved. Once these measures have been met to allow you to install the system, make sure that your premises is secure. If the perimeter is often crossed by people or animals this could cause a large number of false alarms which would result in you losing your police response. This could result in a breach of contract with your insurers and put your business’s protection at risk. Although investing in a high tech monitored system can be costly, if your premises currently has manned guarding, this could result in savings in the medium to long term. For more information on our analogue, HD, smartphone and ip CCTV systems, you can find easy guides on our free online resources page.