7 Reasons to Install IP Cameras

The change from analog to digital cameras might be the greatest opportunity to come along in the security industry in a long time.

IP cameras certainly have been fruitful for Todd Broyard, owner of Black Lab Alarm in Woburn, Mass., who now attributes 72 percent of his overall business to video surveillance installs.

Broyard has been in the security industry for 21 years, focusing on ultra-high-end residential security installations. The change to IP-based security cameras offers his company incredible installation efficiencies, new market opportunities and solid quality.

Black Lab Alarm specializes in installing digital cameras from VideoIQ that include built-in analytics and, more importantly, built-in recording functions that eliminate the need for a separate DVR.

The built-in recorders have a three-month storage capacity. There is no streaming of video signals to a central station, and the $2,000 cameras compress the images at high resolution, up to 15 frames per second. The video analytics can distinguish between cars, animals and people. When the recording is full, the images can be downloaded onto a flash drive.

Here are 7 reasons IP cameras offer a new paradigm for dealers in video surveillance.

More Accurate Proposals From a budgeting standpoint, installing IP-based cameras are much more predictable. That means Black Lab Alarm rarely creates a bid for a job that ends up being way off.

Easier Installation Broyard says "plug and play" cameras are easier to install, requiring only power and an Ethernet connection.

"Analog cameras are more work and require more service. The more equipment, the more things that can break," he says. Since Broyard uses digital cameras with a built-in recording function, he doesn’t have to worry about running power to a DVR, running a cable from an analog camera to the recorder, or protecting the DVR in a secure environment. (Smart burglars steal the security DVR that includes the video of their crime.)

Lower Power Draw Homeowners who use IP cameras with built-in recording use much less electricity, since most integrators know DVRs cannot be turned off and draw a lot of wattage.

More Flexible System Design IP cameras are more portable, which means fewer cameras are needed in most cases. Broyard can easily move digital cameras to different locations on site. This saves the client money by installing fewer cameras and moving them around, since all they require is power and Cat 5 to the Ethernet.

And the system designs are no longer bound to the old configurations of 4, 8, 16, etc. for quad monitors, etc.

Opens New Markets Broyard says he now does a lot more installations at construction sites, which is an easier market to serve with cameras with built-in recorders.

"Lots of times, construction sites don’t have secure portable trailers on site anymore, which is where I would typically house an analog DVR," says Broyard.

Another application gaining steam for Black Lab Alarm is vehicle protection.

"Often, clients who live in the city want to protect their car when it is parked in their driveway. We get a lot of calls for that application. Front porch video is another common installation," Broyard says.

Avoids Expensive Analytics Software Digital cameras with built-in analytics eliminate the need to purchase additional third-party software to analyze the video. "That alone is dramatically less money for the client," says Broyard.

Retrofit Solution for Analog CCTV For integrators who have already installed analog systems, VideoIQ makes $1,000 encoders that convert an analog system to IP-based. That means nearly every CCTV installation done by integrators - other than large-scale industrial and high-security systems - is a candidate for conversion.