Megapixel Security Cameras – BIG Picture – Cost Effective

Megapixel security cameras are digital cameras with high resolution.

They can be used indoors or out, and are relatively new on the CCTV security scene.

On average they range from 1.3 megapixels to 10 mps resolution and higher.

Megapixel security cameras are used in big and small BC cities like Vancouver, Surrey, Richmond, Langley, and the entire Lower Mainland by a wide variety of businesses like retail, bars, commercial, industrial, etc.

Lower resolution cameras must monitor smaller viewing areas than megapixel cameras for the same result. For example a standard resolution security camera might be 640 pixels wide, while a megapixel camera could be five or more times that size. You can even purchase panoramic and pan/tilt/zoom models, but keep in mind you will need a compatible DVR and one with a large enough hard drive or series of drives to accommodate the larger files sizes a HD or megapixel security camera produces.

Multi-Megapixel security cameras offer a couple of advantages over fixed focal length standard resolution cameras, and they can be, but are usually not the only camera used in a security system.

Even though they reduce the number of cameras in your security system, they can add considerable flexibility. Megapixel cameras are more expensive to purchase per unit, but with careful planning they can help reduce overall costs, including installation. When one megapixel camera is put into service to do the job of two standard cameras it reduces the amount of cabling and installation time.

A megapixel camera will allow you to monitor a larger physical space, which means for example you can monitor a parking lot using only two cameras instead of eight.

You can digitally magnify select areas of the screen when you need more detail, without using a zoom lens. Unlike a camera with a zoom lens, a megapixel camera can still record the whole area while it is zoomed in. As well, unlike a a PTZ camera, a megapixel camera can zoom in after the incident. 

Megapixel cameras are useful for monitoring lobbies in public buildings, or parking lots, and manufacturing facilities – places where you need to switch quickly and easily between a wider panoramic view to a more detailed rendering.

When used in conjunction with a standard resolution security camera they offer increased flexibility to monitor an event from more than one perspective, and at a wider view or closer range depending on your requirements.

With the proper software you can also select more than two fields of view simultaneously from the same camera.

A trained security system operator can adjust on-the-fly a megapixel camera in a live situation, but because the resolution of a megapixel camera is so high, when used with an unmonitored NVR – network video recorder, you can view the recording at a later time and zoom in digitally on an area of interest.

A megapixel camera is ideal to view an overview of a large parking lot, and when required, capable of zooming in digitally on alerts, faces, or license plates. It can deliver enough information for facial recognition software to be used effectively. Facial recognition requires 120 pixels per square foot of resolution.

If you choose the right megapixel camera, install and configure it properly, enough detail can be collected to provide the police and law enforcement agencies with the required information to lay a charge and get a conviction.

Call us at 604.555-1001 if you have megapixel camera questions, or email us!