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What you need to know before you buy!

Some of the basic points covered here are:

History

CCTV DVR Remote Digital Video Surveillance Remote Video Security System and equipment for home and business

The following information will provide you with some insight into DVR's. You will learn quickly that all DVR's are not alike. The object here is to make sure that the products you buy are the right ones for the job and they accomplish your security needs.

The DVR business originated several years ago, with mechanical-type devices resembling VCR's with functions controlled by On-Screen Displays. The beauty of the mechanical device was that it was something anyone could operate and the function keys were similar to a device they were already familiar with; the VCR. So this made it less intimidating. The shortfall though has been its limited functionality. So the public wanted more and along came the PC-based DVR. While the PC-based DVR now brought enhanced features and programmability, it also brought along with it the inherent reliability concerns of a PC. Further adding to the situation was everyone now thought they could easily build DVR's

Misconception (it's not just a PC with some added components)

Unfortunately, many people are under the misconception that building a DVR is simply taking a PC, inserting a video capture card and adding some off-the-shelf software. This explains the hundreds of companies that have hung up a sign, taken out some ads and begun working out of basements and garages, holding themselves out to be DVR manufacturers and security specialists. At the last International Security Conference (ISC), we attended in Las Vegas, we counted 147 booths with DVR's, being displayed. We only had enough time for our engineers to visit 30 of them, of which 27 out of the 30 could not even successfully complete basic demonstrations the most basic functions, without the software crashing or a variety of other problems.

What is A DVR?

The reality is, a true DVR (Digital Video Recorder) meant for security is a sophisticated system composed of hardware components, software programs and sub-assemblies with built-in checks and balances. It all must work in unison to create a robust and reliable piece of equipment, designed for mission critical applications. This is not to be confused with the TiVo or other set top cable boxes that are also known as “DVR's.” They are in no way related. Creating a DVR solution requires a dedicated team of software and hardware engineers, database programmers and system designers, plus support personnel. Remember, we are talking about security where there is no margin for error. These applications take years to develop and de-bug.

All DVR's are Not Alike!

DVR's are all simply not alike. If anything it's quite the opposite. It's no different than buying a car. There are $10,000 Hyundai's, $100,000 Mercedes and everything in between. It all depends on your needs and requirements - both can drive and get you from point “A” to point “B.” That is if you can keep them running. DVR's are a lot more temperamental than even the most exotic foreign cars that live at the mechanic.

Digital video recording is a processor intensive multitasking application and can tax even the most robust of systems. So every ounce of computing power is helpful. Along with that processing power you need equivalent components to drive it. The famous saying is “you are only as fast as your slowest component.” If the system is not beefed up from end-to-end, in each and every aspect of hardware and software, it does you no good. If it's underpowered it is going to break.

Using the car analogy, if you buy a light weight truck it may be a fine vehicle, as a light-weight truck. Try then loading it up with 10,000 pounds of cargo and drive it up a hill constantly. Don't expect a long life out of the transmission or engine. It's not that it's a bad product, but that's not what it was designed to do.

Similarly, this is one of the reasons for the disparity in DVR pricing. It's what's under the hood that you pay for, but unfortunately without a Consumer's Guide to DVR's, it's difficult at best, for the user to know the difference, until it's too late.

Components become even more of an issue when you get into large storage or multi-user applications. So “Caveat Emptor” – let the buyer beware – all DVR's are not alike. Some have the nerve to build them out of $399 PC's and call them server Grade Equipment.

As far as the system doing what you need it to do, if you do not have a lot of experience with DVR's, this is something you should look into very closely. The entry-level products will fail to mention many things that their system will not do. Often the buyer doesn't realize it until:

 There is no shortage of potential shortcomings of a substandard system. That is if you can get it to work in the first place for any extended period of time. In our knowledge database, we have identified over 100 different items that can go awry with DVR construction, and hardware and software conflicts.

 The biggest concern always remains reliability. Many of the entry-level systems, which we like to call “toys,” are not meant for mission critical security. Remember in its most crude form, you can go to Comp USA buy a PC Cam, video capture card and PC and voila, you've built yourself a DVR. But these are not the right components for security and of course there is the issue of software.

DVR Card Differences

We have identified there are inferior consumer–type economy cards as some like to call them, and industrial-type products. I would be suspect at best of anybody that would even have the conscience to sell you an "economy card". Its junk and doesn't say much for their reputation. We need to understand the difference between them. Most video capture board manufacturers do just that, manufacture “the board”. You know that green thing you see that has a bunch of neat looking colorful components soldered into it. In reality, these companies are assembly plants. This is no different than much of the consumer electronics industry, where virtually all companies create products assembled from other company's components. So what is it then that makes the difference, between a top notch product and a substandard one. Quality control. Care in how they are assembled. And the right combination of parts to achieve the best performance. In talking to distributors who have carried "economy cards" they experienced as much as a 40% reject rate. That 40% was just the board, forget about it when you factor in the software problems.

Bottlenecking

If you have 100 hoses connected to each other, 99 of which can pump water at 3 gallons per minute, and a couple of hoses at the end or anywhere in between, that can only pump water at 1 gallon per minute, then the entire system will only pump 1 gallon per minute and the 3 gallon per minute hoses are of no added value. The same happens with DVR components. “You're only as fast as your slowest component.” So put a bunch of good high-performance components on a DVR board and one is not as fast and you have defeated the entire purpose

Shared Resources

Shared resources occur when a component performs multiple tasks simultaneously, each function taking away a portion of the total resources. So when a manufacturer quotes a specification; that is usually the "maximum" performance level. It also usually assumes that the component is doing nothing simultaneous. A shared resource obviously slows down performance resulting in choppy, robotic or even poor quality images.

 So when you see the better industrial video capture cards, which have hundreds of chips and multiple layers, that's because it has individual components for each and every channel of video to be broadcast. Again, you have to still consider the bottlenecking issue; because just one single unmatched component can slow the system to a crawl. The consumer-type boards may have 1 set of basic components, to be shared by all.

 Their idea for increased performance is put a bunch of cards in a single machine but that has its own set of problems. Keep in mind, up till now we have only addressed the hardware concerns.             

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