Choosing CCTV Cameras

CCTV Solutions Powered by WD Purple™

Choosing CCTV Cameras

CCTV Solutions Powered by WD Purple™

Choosing the right camera for your CCTV solution can be overwhelming given the variety of choices available.

Here are some factors to consider to make the right decision:

What areas will the CCTV monitor?

Depending on your space, you may need one or several cameras to keep an eye on vulnerable points.

Main entrance
PTZ Camera

PTZ (Pan-Tilt-Zoom) Cameras are ideal for entrances where you could pan across the street to focus on passing vehicles etc.

Narrow lane
Bullet Camera

Bullet Cameras have a long range and are great for outdoors, large backyards, parking lots and narrow lanes etc.

Low light area
Infrared Camera

Infrared Cameras are meant for places with low-light conditions like a basement garage or for night viewing.

Rooms
Dome Camera

Dome Cameras can be used indoors as well as outdoors and generally provide a 360° view of a room.

Image quality: how much detail do you need?

High resolution cameras allow you to zoom in and see details clearly.
Commonly available cameras have resolution of 420p, 720p, 1080p or 4K.

2 megapixels (MP) HD picture quality works well in domestic CCTV security systems within a range of 20 to 25 meters.A higher range (5 MP and 8MP) is essential for a CCTV system installed outdoors.

Frames per second (FPS): smooth video or light on storage?

FPS refers to the number of images played each second in a video. The industry standard is 30 FPS. However, you can choose to store your videos in lower FPS like 10 or 15, to save on storage space. At lower FPS, videos may be choppy.