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About Surveillance

State-of-the-art security and surveillance camera solutions in South Africa

IP Surveillance has transformed into a multi-faceted discipline that encompasses home, office and business premises and the safety of mines, hospitals, farms, livestock, land, and much more. IP surveillance is the digital evolution of closed-circuit television (CCTV), where an IP camera records video footage and distributes the content over an IP (Internet protocol) network.

This page is intended to clarify the most frequently asked questions and guide you towards a surveillance solution that suits your desired application. We offer an extensive range of IP cameras, network video recorders (NVRs), doorbell cameras and terminals to complete an end-to-end surveillance system.

IP surveillance

There are several reasons why designing a surveillance solution using IP technology is more effective than standard analogue systems. These benefits include

- Higher resolution leads to better quality images

- Greater flexibility and agility

- Artificial intelligence in the form of smart detection

- The ability to record and play live videos simultaneously

- More efficient use of storage as video content can be compressed

- With the help of network video recorders (NVR), IP video makes it possible to store data in any geographic location

- IP systems improve remote viewing and control, meaning anyone with access to the network can see the video stream from any camera connected to the network.

There has been a growing industry shift towards replacing analogue CCTV with IP surveillance systems. Top-tier vendors like Uniview, Hikvision, Axis and Huawei invest substantially in IP technology.

IP cameras

Choosing the right IP camera for your solution is not difficult. There are many cutting edge surveillance solutions readily available at different price points, from a couple of hundred rands, all the way to multi-million-rand solutions, depending on the application and software requirements. Here are some of the most prominent smart software features found in modern IP surveillance solutions:

License plate recognition

ANPR or license plate recognition (LPR) technology in IP surveillance is constantly improving and, together with the increasing number of license plates in local databases, has become a concrete tool for private security service providers and law enforcement agencies. ANPR systems are particularly effective in urban security systems, security estates, smart cities, city improvement districts, car park management and smart transport systems.

ANPR is a technology that automatically reads vehicle registration marks (VRMs), allowing these details to be compared against database records. An ANPR camera takes an image of a vehicle license plate, passing the image on to a reader. The reader locates the VRM and reads the letters and characters to be identified using Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. An image of the license plate is then saved and checked against the database.

ANPR is useful for offence detection, including unlicensed operators, truck and repeated bus overload offenders. Some ANPR cameras allow for the blacklisting and whitelisting of license plates. As soon as a blacklisted car drives up to the boom-gate, the system will notify all the necessary parties via an array of different customisable alarms.

Facial recognition

Facial recognition is used to identify people in public and private spaces. Facial recognition systems use computerised pattern-matching technology to identify people's faces automatically. The video surveillance system sends the captured video and audio information to the desired central database, where the data is securely held. These images are not in the public domain but are monitored and transmitted to a central site for recording, storage and extraction in the event of a security breach.

Uniview’s smart products can comprise powerful facial detection technologies that enable them to differentiate between animate and inanimate objects, avoiding false triggers from natural elements such as wind and rain. Unlike, traditional security systems that get triggered by almost anything. These technologies can easily be set up by the user to track a specific target. Whether it be vehicles or people, this technology will abide by that programming and track exactly what the user set it up to detect.

People counting

People counting is an advanced video analytics tool that enables businesses to detect, track, and record entries, exits, queues, and waiting times accurately, awarding businesses owners insight on how long people spend in one place and how often it is visited. This technology allows you to test the effectiveness of new displays, compare one displays foot traffic with another, evaluate new store layouts, monitor queueing times and track heatmaps of people’s movements around the store.

Smart Intrusion Detection (SIP)

Intrusion detection systems monitor human-related activities around homes and other buildings, focusing on alerting suspicious or malicious activity. They also respond to detected abnormal movements by hindering impostors from gaining access to the premises. The main objective of SIP is to only lookout for people, vehicles and motorcycles through the use of either cross-line or intrusion detection zones. This automatically reduces false alarms, offering you more peace of mind knowing that your cameras only monitor and notify you when it matters. To top it all off, you also save on bandwidth and storage space, allowing you to have more backup days.

Choosing an IP Camera

When selecting the correct surveillance cameras, it is critical to understand where they will be used. Quality is essential when choosing a product with most top-of-the-range IP cameras having up to 4K resolution. A wide-angle lens enables you to cover a larger area and for more flexibility, panning, tilting and remotely zooming the camera allows the user to monitor activity outside the camera’s fixed field of view. ONVIF capabilities are helpful if you have different brands installed on site. Should you need a camera with 24/7 monitoring, strong video compression is essential in helping you save storage space. The industry standard for video compression is H.265, with only a few cameras supporting ULTRA H.265. This codec can save you up to 85% storage space when converted from standard H.264 compression without sacrificing image quality.

Network Video Recorders (NVR)

NVRs are a critical component of any surveillance solution. NVRs allow you to easily manage your IP surveillance network within a single interface and provide you with centralised video controls to easily view, collect, and store your surveillance footage in one convenient and easily accessible location.

Differences between NVR and DVR

The main difference between these two technologies is the video transmission methods. DVRs use analogue video feeds and compress them digitally. NVRs use digital images which have already been pre-compressed by the IP camera. This simple contrast plays a significant difference in the strain of the CPU. NVRs share the processing work with the IP camera and allow the NVR to use excess capacity on artificial intelligent features such as face detection, rather than just compression and replay of video footage.

Surveillance FAQ's

What is the standard surveillance camera price in South Africa?

The cost of an IP camera varies, beginning at prices below R 700.00 going up to well over R10 000.00. The price depends entirely on the type, quality and feature offering of the specific camera you intend to purchase.

How do I select an NVR?

There are three crucial components to consider when selecting an NVR. The first is the number of channels needed, i.e. the number of cameras required will determine how many channels you’ll need. It’s also important to ensure that the combined resolution of all the cameras on all channels fall within the specifications of the NVR. The second component to consider is the storage space requirements and the maximum amount of hard drives the NVR can accommodate. The amount of hard drive bays and the maximum size per hard drive will give you the total storage available for storing video recordings. The third consideration would be whether you will need a Power over Ethernet (PoE) NVR or standard NVR (non-PoE). The differences only are that the PoE NVR can deliver power over a Category 5e/6 cable to the IP camera. This is not a fundamental requirement as IP cameras can often be placed significantly away from the NVR, requiring their own power source depending on the application. It is always important to keep in mind the limitations and capabilities of Cat cable. Read our article on Acconet cable to find out more - https://miro.co.za/blog/latest-news/build-your-network-correctly-from-the-start-with-acconets-cat-range

What is a good home security camera system?

Ring is the brand to consider for a reliable Wi-Fi-connected IP camera solution for home use. They have user-friendly app interfaces that allow you to control everything in the Ring ecosystem. Their basket of products includes video doorbells (wired and battery-powered), security cameras (wired and battery-powered) and smart wireless alarms systems. Some of these cameras have built-in spot and floodlights to ensure great visibility at night and to act as a deterrent for unwanted guests. Importantly, Ring offers rechargeable camera batteries. The solar panels and Wi-Fi extenders needed to charge the camera or extend coverage are also available from MiRO. Regardless of the system you choose, the ability to expand must be factored in, as well as the level of local support available and the ease of installation. A practical solution would entail enough cameras to cover hotspots, high-quality camera resolution, and solid storage to enhance your residential security.

What is a good enterprise camera system?

Uniview’s experience in the South African security industry has paved the way for multiple cameras and NVR solutions that deliver sharper colour and clarity. Heavyweights in the security field are the Uniview Ultra H.265 5MP outdoor mini LightHunter PTZ camera and the Ultra H.265 2MP outdoor mini LightHunter PTZ camera.

What is a doorbell camera?

A doorbell camera is a Wi-Fi enabled doorbell equipped with a camera and smart features like motion detection, recording capabilities and a built-in speaker that allows the user to speak to the person at the door from anywhere in the world as long as the user has internet connectivity.

What are the camera storage options available?

Storage options depend on the camera you choose. Today’s security cameras offer you the choice between local storage or cloud storage. Cloud storage manages and encrypts videos, making them accessible via your smartphone and local storage could either be on an SD card inside the camera (if supported) or would require an NVR with hard drive space. You can install 3rd party hard drives into the NVR, and there are many different types of NVRs with varying amounts of SATA slots. One SATA slot means it can take 1 hard drive, meaning if your NVR has 4 SATA slots, it can take 4 hard drives.

Are wireless security cameras a worthwhile investment?

Wireless cameras are only as good as the Wi-Fi network they are connected to. If your Wi-Fi speeds are consistently slow, unstable, or your camera is placed too far from your router or access point, you may experience lag, latency and frozen images. A poor Wi-Fi network can result in a compromised surveillance solution. Luckily MiRO can help to sort your slow WiFi outreach out to us for more information.

Where are IP cameras for sale?

Miro.co.za offers a variety of surveillance cameras for sale. Sign up or log in to view our extensive range of indoor and outdoor IP cameras.

What is a touchless security system?

A touchless security system, primarily deployed in businesses or high traffic volume access and egress points, offers alternative forms of recognition, using algorithms and biometrics to make facial, palm and iris recognition possible.

What do community monitoring services mean for South Africa?

In South Africa, the increase in public surveillance technologies presents a problem between monitoring citizens through available digital products and protecting democratic rights and privacies. With the move to smart cities, both in South Africa and across Africa, promoting national cybersecurity policies to expand digital surveillance devices is an essential step towards advancing digital rights. Smart city systems with high-definition cameras tend to support public safety departments' efforts. However, community engagement and discussion remain critical to ensuring the public supports community monitoring services.

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Surveillance

About Surveillance

State-of-the-art security and surveillance camera solutions in South Africa

IP surveillance

IP cameras

License plate recognition

Facial recognition

People counting

Smart Intrusion Detection (SIP)

Choosing an IP Camera

Network Video Recorders (NVR)

Differences between NVR and DVR

Surveillance FAQ's

What is the standard surveillance camera price in South Africa?

How do I select an NVR?

What is a good home security camera system?

What is a good enterprise camera system?

What is a doorbell camera?

What are the camera storage options available?

Are wireless security cameras a worthwhile investment?

Where are IP cameras for sale?

What is a touchless security system?

What do community monitoring services mean for South Africa?

All Products

Surveillance

About Surveillance

State-of-the-art security and surveillance camera solutions in South Africa

IP surveillance

IP cameras

License plate recognition

Facial recognition

People counting

Smart Intrusion Detection (SIP)

Choosing an IP Camera

Network Video Recorders (NVR)

Differences between NVR and DVR

Surveillance FAQ's

What is the standard surveillance camera price in South Africa?

How do I select an NVR?

What is a good home security camera system?

What is a good enterprise camera system?

What is a doorbell camera?

What are the camera storage options available?

Are wireless security cameras a worthwhile investment?

Where are IP cameras for sale?

What is a touchless security system?

What do community monitoring services mean for South Africa?

All Products