The Costco Connection - September 2017

UNDERSTANDABLY, THOSE WHO own a home or run a small business (or both) want to protect their property. Video cameras are a popular— and relatively inexpensive—way to keep an eye on your space. Many of these systems allow you to replay and share archived footage in the event of an incident. Internet-connected cameras let you access the video anywhere and anytime.

Since September is National Preparedness Month, it’s a fitting time to discuss how to find the right camera system, whether it’s to be used personally or professionally. (See page ;; for more preparedness tips.)

Q How many cameras do I need?

A One of the ;rst things you need to ;gure out is how many cameras you need. Cameras are sold individually or as part of a set, which can cover multiple areas in and around a home or small business.

If it’s a multiple-camera system you need, you can go with static cameras that don’t move or opt for ones that pan, tilt and zoom to help cover more area.

Also, it’s always a good idea to consider a surveillance system with extra channels so you can add more cameras, should you want to, in the future. For example, it may not cost much more to buy a ;;-camera system, even though you might need only eight cameras right now.

Q Where do I want to place the cameras?

A You’ll need to decide whether you want indoor-only cameras or indoor and outdoor cameras, based on the areas you are monitoring. You might have to pay more for weatherproof outdoor cameras, which often have small domes on top to protect the lens.

A related consideration: Do you want wired or wireless cameras? Generally speaking, wired cameras are more reliable and aren’t dependent on Wi-Fi reception, but you might need to fish cables through walls and floors. With a wireless system, you simply plug the cameras into a power source, and they communicate back to the main unit, without the need for a long video cable.

Q What are the recording options?

A The last main choice is how you want the
video to be stored. You can go with a digital video
recorder (DVR) backup; many o;er a couple of
terabytes of footage (that’s a lot). A DVR is ideal
if you have multiple cameras, as you’ll need a
big hard drive to archive all that video—and
keep in mind that the higher the video resolu-
tion, the more hard drive space it’ll take up. For
example, 4K video takes up more space than
high-definition, which takes up more space
than standard de;nition.

If you don’t think you’ll need massive amounts of storage, consider a home monitoring system with SD (flash) memory cards, a smaller pre-installed hard drive or a network video recorder (NVR). One advantage of a networked camera solution is Power over Ethernet, sometimes called PoE, which allows the cameras to operate without an additional power supply. These cameras transmit video and power on a single, in-wall, fire-rated Ethernet cable and get their power directly from the NVR.

Access to your cameras when you’re away, so you can peek in at any time on your smartphone, tablet or laptop, is a great feature. Some camera systems support cloud backup, which is convenient as you can log in from virtually any device and from anywhere, but keep in mind you might have to pay monthly for cloud storage.

Q What else do I need to know?

A Here are a few other considerations that can
help you choose the best system and get the
most out of it:
• It’s quite easy to set up and use many of
these camera systems. For example, the camera
wires (if there are any) are color-coded to match
the ports on the back of the DVR or NVR. You’ll
likely need professional help only if installation
requires ;shing cables through walls and ;oors.

• With many of these Internet-enabled cameras, you can set up motion or sound alerts. You’re immediately notified if the camera is triggered, via an app on your smartphone. You probably won’t need to pay monthly fees, as this uses your existing Wi-Fi.

• Night vision is a handy feature, for obvious reasons. It will be listed on the box.

• Some camera systems come with a monitor to see what the cameras see, while others are designed to connect to a TV or PC monitor via an HDMI cable. Most work with apps, too. C

Protecting your pad
The benefits of video surveillance

TECHCONNECTION

MARC SALTZMAN

Marc Saltzman, a leading high-tech reporter, contributes to more than three dozen prominent publications, appears on radio and TV, and is the author of more than ;; books. He’s on Twitter @marc_saltzman