One huge advantage of an IP camera based surveillance system over their analog, coaxial cousins is vastly better image quality.

So why are so many analog cameras still in use? 

Dragging Surveillance Into the Digital Age

Matt Krebs at TechNewsWorld asks, “In a world where HDTVs, Blu-ray and 3D IMAX features dominate the entertainment landscape, how can video from surveillance cameras be so poor?”

Cost is always factor but the gradual shift to higher quality, full-featured IP cameras can also be attributed to surveillance systems that haven’t broken down yet.  Many systems still employ analog components that have not out-lived their usefulness on fully functioning infrastructure that was expensive to install.

That may now change with surveillance in the Cloud.

Hosted Video Partnership 

Krebs …

I’ve talked about how video servers are a great way to start converging your analog CCTV surveillance cameras to a network based system and how video servers provide poweful intelligent video features.

Just like installing a video graphics card or more memory in your computer, you will get instant and noticeable benefits from adding a video server to your analog surveillance system.

With the addition of a video server your system can be configured to:

  • Respond to triggered events and sent alerts.
  • Connect to and enable external devices

As mentioned in the previous post, video servers are a great way to converge analog cameras to IP camera technology.  You can gain the benefits of a network based surveillance system while continuing to realize a return on your coaxial cable wiring and analog camera investment.

Another big benefit of video servers, something that analog video systems cannot provide, is the ability to use event management and intelligent video functions.

Video servers enable a surveillance system to be constantly on gaurd with powerful built-in intelligent video features such as:

  • Video Motion Detection
  • Audio Detection
  • Tampering Alarms
  • Input ports for external sensors

Once an event (any occurence out of the ordinary that you can specify) is detected the system can automatically send email alerts, …

Axis Q7404 Video ServerVideo servers, sometimes known as video encoders, bridge the gap between analog CCTV surveillance systems and digital IP based systems.  Video servers are a great budget conscious, transitional product for those who are looking to gain some of the features and benefits of network based solutions but, aren’t ready to make the full jump.

If you’ve installed analog cameras in the past few years they’re going to be functional for quite some time.  There’s no need to shortchange that investment.  Video servers will allow you to maintain those analog CCTV cameras while enhancing your video surveillance system to provide the benefits of IP video.…