Consumer DIY Home Surveillance versus Professional

You have a unique opportunity when you are remodeling or retrofitting your home to install a reliable IP based surveillance system. Instead of looking to off-the-shelf consumer cameras such as Nest that will inevitably need to be replaced, we highly recommend an IP camera system.

The professional IP camera system consists of an IP camera, video recording system, and infrastructure that includes the network, video management software, and display system. The consumer surveillance camera is primarily only a “camera.”

Though these IP camera systems cost slightly more, these IP camera systems provide better quality and reliability than consumer camera systems.

Consumer cameras are inexpensive, some selling as low as $40. There’s a reason for this cost - these low cost lenses have about a 2 Megapixel resolution resulting in reduced video clarity. Consumer based cameras must connect to the WiFi which can make them vulnerable to hackers. Plus these lower cost consumer cameras will most likely need to be replaced a few years down the road. If you are looking for a clean exterior look for your newly constructed home, having to swap out these cameras will most likely damage your exterior. 

So what’s so great about Professional Grade IP Surveillance System? You don’t need to worry about power for each camera location, power can be fed via power over ethernet cable. This allows a lot of flexibility with camera placement. These cameras have higher resolution over the commercial cameras and are connected to a dedicated video recording system. The video data stream is encrypted, and the recording system can handle multiple cameras. These systems have effective alarm detection that only records critical video. 

A huge highlight is that these camera systems can be integrated with door access control, IP paging systems, and IP intercom systems that can help control who enters the home. 

IP Camera Systems that are designed for professional applications provide better quality, reliability, and functionality.