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bigbrother2

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Everything posted by bigbrother2

  1. bigbrother2

    why is a $300 true day/night better then a infrared?

    It is one thing to debate if the technology in camera A is better than the technology in Camera B, but when I deal with customers, it boils down to what will get the job done at the most reasonable cost. For most applications, residential and small business customers have been very satisfied with the results they get from CCTV cameras with IR illumination. I have yet come across an application which required anything more substantial - I am sure those applications exists, but they may be a niche need. Andy
  2. bigbrother2

    Hi, I am new to the forum

    Hi, I am new to the forum and want to introduce myself. I am a CCTV enthusiast and installer from Canada. I became a believer of the technology when I used it to successfully prosecute and convict a vandal. I have since helped my people with their own installations and started a blog to help others. Looking forward to participating and learning! Andy Thompson
  3. bigbrother2

    Swann maxi day/night cameras

    That the reason I stick to $100-$200 for my outdoor residential applicaitons. If they get vandalized or burned, it's not a big expense to re-deploy. My residential outdoor cameras are 3 year old $100 IP55 rated cameras and they have been out there in -35c cold - never had one of the four breakdown yet. But like you, I once burned out a sensor because of the sun. Andy
  4. bigbrother2

    Image Sensor CCD vs CMOS

    Wtih a CCD sensor, every individual pixel’s charge is transferred through an output node, which is then converted into an electrical signal. The signal is then buffered and sent as an analog signal. Because the pixels are completely devoted to light capture, the image quality is usually pretty high. With a CMOS sensor, every individual pixel performs its own charge-to-voltage conversion, and the sensor also performs amplification and noise-correction. The sensor also includes digitization circuits which allow the chip to output information in a digital format. Because of the complexity of this design, the area devoted to light capture is reduced. And because each pixel must perform its own conversion, uniformity (thus image quality) is lower. The production cost for both types of sensors are similar, but CMOS sensors sometimes require additional support chips to optimize image quality. CMOS sensors are great for devices that require speed and low power consumption, while CCD sensors excel in image quality and low light performance. While both CMOS and CCD sensors have matured a great deal in recent years, when it comes to security cameras, I prefer CCD for outdoor applications and CMOS for indoor IP camera functions. Let me explain why. In the still camera world, CCD and CMOS are almost at par in terms of performance. In fact, CMOS sensors are attractive in this space because of their much lower power requirements - an important feature for devices which run on batteries. In the security camera world, I find that CCD sensors outperform their CMOS counterparts in several key metrics. The first and most important is light sensitivity. If you need a security camera with superior night vision capabilities, CCD is the way to go. The CMOS cameras I have tested, with or without IR illumination, were almost completely blind in the dark. Cameras with CCD sensors are very capable in low light applications, and are terrific when coupled with infrared illumination. If you need to record in low light situations, CCD is the way to go – do not even consider CMOS. The second factor to consider is image quality. In the security camera world, while both technologies are getting closer, CCD still has the edge when it comes to image quality. This is because CCD sensors exhibit less image noise than their CMOS counterparts. So why would one consider purchasing a security camera with a CMOS sensor? Mainly because these sensors are more prevalent in IP Security Cameras - that is, cameras that are equipped with built in web servers and communicate using the IP protocol over CAT5 cabling. These cameras tend to be very affordable and are great for indoor applications that require web based video streaming. Andy
  5. bigbrother2

    Swann maxi day/night cameras

    Sounds like the sun in blinding the camera - try changing the vertical angle by about 10 degrees. Andy
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