It’s easy to get CCTV and IP cameras mixed up, here are the differences between the two!
What is a CCTV camera?
CCTV stands for closed circuit television. Closed circuit refers to the fact that CCTV cameras are analogue i.e, they transmit an analog signal through cables and a DVR converts the signal to a video format.
The Pros and Cons of CCTV
- Because CCTV cameras use a wired connection, relocating CCTV cameras is more difficult and more expensive.
- Most modern cameras are IP because CCTV devices are often older, generally, the video quality is lower.
- Some CCTV cameras don’t have the capability of audio recording. Analog cameras that have audio require additional wiring.
- Analog cameras have protective wiring that reduces the risk of interference.
- Generally, CCTV cameras have less modern features but are often cheaper than IP cameras.
- Analog cameras aren’t dependent on the network meaning that you won’t lose footage if your network goes down.
What is an IP camera?
IP stands for internet protocol. Internet refers to the fact that IP cameras transmit video and audio via a network; either through cellular or wifi. An IP camera is usually connected to an NVR or network video recorder, unlike a CCTV camera which connects to a Digital Video Recorder.
The Pros and Cons of IP Cameras
- IP cameras are easier and cheaper to relocate because they don’t depend on a wired connection.
- IP cameras are the modern security cameras we all know, and because of this, they have the latest technology built in which is why they generally have better video quality than that of CCTVs.
- IP cameras transmit audio through the same cable as the video (ethernet). Some IP cameras are even powered through the ethernet cable (PoE) making cable management even easier.
- IP cameras have the most modern features such as motion detection, night vision, analytics, and much more.
- Because IP cameras don’t transmit through a cable you can often connect a near-limitless number of cameras to your security system.
- IP cameras depend on the network, if your network goes down you could lose your security footage though some IP cameras can be connected to an SD card to store footage locally.
- Although most IP cameras have sought out of features that CCTV cameras don’t have they have come with a much higher upfront cost.
- IP cameras use ethernet cables and standard cat5 ethernet cables don’t have the same protective layers that a CCTV cable has. This puts you at risk of electrical interferences.
- IP cameras are vulnerable to cyber criminals that could hack into your network.