Specialist IP Camera Store - Supply & Solutions
Public Sector & Education • Business & Enterprise • Home Security
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Evaluation of Axis Camera Station recording solution
Axis Camera Station (ACS) is video management software which enables you to manage your cameras in one simple interface. ACS has been around for over 10 years and been through a number of iterations. This gives ACS a long track record, making it a proven solution for small and mid-sized organisations. As ACS has been developed in-house by Axis, it’s a reliable and mature VMS solution.
Many organisations choose generic video management software for the ability to integrate any camera and crucially the reassurance that software is updated frequently. With Axis Camera Station 5 you’ll benefit from frequent updates and the ability to intgrate third party devices.
One of the main reasons to choose ACS is budget: software and licences are purchased up front and that’s it. No reoccurring payments, making it much easier for organisations who struggle with a subscription model.
Introducing the Milestone Husky X Series
The new high-performance Milestone Husky X2 and X8 network video recorders (NVR) have arrived. They’re supported by a sporty new look (see the video below) and promise something different from previous Huskys and other NVRs.
So, is the product in the box radically different and crucially, is it worth the money?
How IP cameras can be used to monitor machinery and reduce downtime
Modern IP cameras now come with a dizzying array of features. What can sometimes be trickier to figure out is how they can be used practically in areas other than surveillance. Take an industrial or manufacturing setting for example; how can you get an early warning of issues?
For the purpose of this blog we’ll be concentrating on indoor scenarios.
Vivotek, Mobotix & Axis make strides in cyber security
Three separate companies have recently made strides to make their IP cameras more secure. Vivotek have announced a collaboration with a cyber security company. Mobotix have passed a penetration test on their hardware and software. Finally, Axis offer free email alerts if new vulnerabilities are discovered.
Vivotek partners with Trend Micro
In October Vivotek announced a collaboration with Trend Micro, a cyber security company, to reduce vulnerabilities in their products. What this means for Vivotek customers is they now have and extra layer of security with Trend Micro’s anti-intrusion technology to be embedded into Vivotek cameras.
Perimeter security – what to consider in a camera
Monitoring and protecting a perimeter, be a school ground or business premises is one of the most common surveillance scenarios. However, with such an array of cameras to choose from, how do you narrow down your options?
This article covers the main features to consider when purchasing cameras to protect a perimeter. Of course, budget is important too, so this guide can help you determine which features are required for your installation.
Axis Companion – small business solutions
You may have noticed the addition of ‘small solutions’ to our menu. The full title is small business solutions and it’s where you’ll find the Axis Companion range. Designed to give small businesses a straightforward, professional security surveillance system, the Companion range of cameras and NVRs can be purchased separately or as a system.
What’s in the range?
There are three recorders:
How to migrate to Milestone XProtect plus products
Milestone has for several years offered two different VMS systems under the XProtect product banner. These are termed the Business-Ready or Professional range (Essential, Express and Professional) and the Advanced range (Expert and Corporate).
Because these different variants look and are administered differently, as well as having different capabilities, this has always caused some confusion. Additionally, it has meant Milestone has two pieces of software to develop and support and not one.
Recently, however, Milestone has released ‘+’ variants: Essential+, Express+ and Professional+ to resolve this issue and to homogenise their offering, meaning that support becomes easier and the platform as a whole is unified, easier to develop and most importantly, can be clearer to the end user.
Axis Camera Station Core Licence Change
The maximum device limit has been removed from Axis Camera Station 5 (ACS 5) Core device licences. This is good news as it makes ACS 5 more flexible, it simplifies the licence structure and the cost has stayed the same.
Created for small to medium sized businesses, Axis Camera Station enables companies to monitor and record from cameras and supports integration with access control and speakers, all from one interface. There’s also a mobile app, for monitoring on the go.
As with most Axis products it’s easy to set up and use, with a setup wizard to guide you through camera integration as well as smart search to make finding an incident simple.
Milestone ‘move hardware’ bug fix available
A new patch has been released by Milestone to fix a bug which occurs when the ‘move hardware’ functionality is used. The bug deletes all footage from a moved camera without generating an error, ignoring retention and evidence locks.
This effects XProtect Express+, Professional+, Expert and Corporate from version 2016 (10.0a) to 2018 R2 (12.2a). The fix for this bug is built into the next release, R3 (12.3a).
How to select the right Milestone product
Milestone recording software is a powerful way of analysing and acting on information from connected IP devices. This could be anything from opening a barrier to an authorised vehicle or finding footage from incident which occurred last week. As an open-platform it’s compatible with thousands of different cameras, fantastic if your system has built up over time and is comprised of different makes and models.
What can sometime stump customers is choosing the right XProtect product. There’s an array from the entry level Essential+ up to Corporate, with each one successively expanding the feature set. If you’d like a steer on which might be suitable for your organisation, read on.
