Category Archives: CCTV

CCTV systems for home installation.

Posted on by

CCTV systems, sales grow on-line.

CCTV systems for domestic installations are becoming more and more popular as people realize the added security it can bring to your home. DIY CCTV solutions are now popping up everywhere and no more so than in the UK. Gone are the days when CCTV installations are done exclusively by security professionals. Now because of clever design and good information anyone can install cameras and digital video recorders. There are some great providers of CCTV systems on line and most will offer a 3-5 year guarantee on their equipment which has filled potential customers with plenty of confidence to buy security equipment and have a go at a DIY solution.

Electricians can profit.

Of course there will always be people who will struggle to run cables or indeed may not wish to ruin the aesthetics of their property and this is why wireless CCTV systems have also become a very popular alternative. Again the options are plentiful with online sales continuing to increase at a very healthy rate.

Adding to the demand for online security solutions are electricians who are starting to install all forms of CCTV systems and access control into both domestic and commercial premises. Often this will be an addition to an existing specification they have submitted for an electrical installation. The security aspect of the job is the icing on the cake for them.

5 year guarantees.

Once more what has made this possible and has levered business away from professional CCTV installers is the fact that on line distributors are happy to give lengthy guarantees on their equipment. Typically a couple of years ago 12months would have been all you could have expected from a supplier but now all the risk has been taken away from both the domestic customer and the electrical trade because they know that they can return the goods at no cost to themselves should a CCTV camera or DVR fail. With this in mind though it should be mentioned that reliability has been improved dramatically now and failure rates have plummeted.

It is then no surprise that on-line shops selling state of the art CCTV systems have done so well. A trend that is unlikely to change in the foreseeable future.

Analogue CCTV cameras, still alive and kicking

Posted on by

Analogue CCTV cameras have kind of received some bad press recently. We have been guided by the big manufacturers over the last year or two and have been led to believe that analogue CCTV is a dead technology. Well it seems that the good old analogue CCTV cameras and DVRs are still very much alive and kicking. Why is this? Well its really all down to price. Analogue CCTV systems have remained stubbornly cheap in comparison to IP cameras recording onto an NVR. Of course we all know the benefits of IP surveillance systems.The clearer images, the ease of installation, dual streaming and so forth. However it appears that price is currently the overall driving factor and with DVR and analogue camera solutions from the Asian market becoming ever cheaper but including more features and functionality, IP camera solutions are making little headway at present.
This is outlined when you get the likes of March networks bringing out a New DVR to replace there 4000 series with a projected life span of 5 years this takes us up to 2016!! Something I doubt they anticipated having to do some 3 or 4 years ago. Panasonic released their iPro range in anticipation of exponential growth into IP video solutions but as we see below they are still pushing analogue products and we think this will continue now for at least another year.

Panasonic Analogue CCTV cameras and DVR solutions include the following but what sort of prices would you be expecting to be paying?

INCLUDING:

WJ-HL204 250GB DVR from £450
WV-CP290 Fixed Camera from £90
WV-CP280 Camera Bundle from £140
WV-CF284 Static Dome from £90

Panasonic WJ-HL204 DVR with 250GB on board storage is a 4-channel recorder with H.264 compression for all cameras. With the ability to add 3 drives that takes the unit up 3TB it would seem to offer all the the end user needs at present at a fraction of the cost of an IP solution.

WV-CP290

So what about the analogue camera solutions , well with High sensitivity and high resolution.

WV-CP290

The new Panasonic WV-CP290 CCTV Camera combines the very best features you would expect from Panasonic at the very best price. In addition fixed dome camera are always popular and the WV-CF284 is compact in design and boasts a varifocal lens, and easy mount brackets.

So as we can see lots of analogue CCTV cameras and DVR  products out there from the big name manufacturers. One day it will be…. but analogue CCTV is not dead just yet!

Lilin NVR…..new in the LILIN CCTV range

Posted on by
  • Lilin NVR range
  • Lilin NVR
  • The new LILIN NVR range  means they have expanded their range of network video recording solutions once again. The CMX CCTV software and the GVD range of HD NVR’s are capable of recording up to 32 megapixel IP camera streams and displaying these simultaneously. Search options include a time line that allows the operator to easily find video that the end user may wish to export or burn onto a DVD. Points or regions of interest within the megapixel image can be created and this allows flexible recording and reduces storage of unnecessary data. With NVRs capable of up 14 TB of internal storage the GVD HD network video recorders offer some excellent features.
  • The LILIN CMX management software is also capable of managing remote IP cameras and DVRs . Emap alarms and motion notification enable the end user to be kept informed of all important events. Enabled with a powerful HTML feature hyperlinks means the user is able to bring up live video by just clicking on the mapping feature that is presented to the him when an alarm activation occurs.
  • Third party cameras can also be integrated into the system including ACTi IP cameras along with Arecont,  Pelco, Axis, Panasonic, Bosch and Sony Quite a selection of top make names. ONVIF compliance means that this recording solution can be applied to a site that has a multitude of different cameras installed
  • lilin cameraLots to look at on the LILIN website if you would like to see more detail

CCTV industry- the life of a CCTV Manufacturer

Posted on by

Within the CCTV industry sometimes things do not go to plan………. Manufacturers make great kit with all the best intentions but when it gets into the field something goes wrong…..

The kit falls over or doesn’t perform as it should. End user understandably are annoyed that their expensive system is failing – often right after being installed. Installers are annoyed because not only is there the cost to revisit site but also the delay of other orders/installations as they try to fix the faulty systems.

Some from within the CCTV industry simply deny the fault, some simply issue more of the same kit and the problem simply snowballs as we see from the image CCTV cameras can be incredibly difficult to access.

But sometimes, just sometimes, a supplier will be straight, candid and honest – detailing the fault, when it is likely to happen, what can be done to fix it (even temporarily) and more importantly, work with the installer and end user to resolve it from happening again……….sometimes, we even hear of suppliers funding the cost of hire equipment and man power to support the installer…..

So, perhaps honesty really is the best policy – it breeds loyalty that remains long after the initial annoyance at the problem.

We welcome that in the CCTV industry