Specialist IP Camera Store since 2004
Public Sector & Education • Business & Enterprise • Home Security
2020 was a year full of rapid change for all of us. With a new year ahead, we feel it’s the perfect time to take a look at what’s been and gone in the IP video industry and where we see it going over the course of 2021.
In this post we’ll discuss what trends and technology we expect to see taking the market by storm this year. From intelligent analytics to cloud CCTV – let’s talk about the exciting new innovations we expect to emerge in 2021. Read more >>
In a blog post in April we raised a concern about the risks of the emerging perception that thermal cameras are a necessary, effective method for coronavirus screening, whilst when used as the main tool, they are not. We were and are concerned that a false sense of security may be created in the places where this type of equipment is being deployed.
Businesses are looking for solutions to adapt to the new requirements of social distancing, improved hygiene and screening people for COVID-19 symptoms. Health and Safety protocols and standard operating procedures (SOP) are being reviewed and rewritten in response to the new rules. The increased use of digital technologies is playing a critical role to businesses running their operations in new ways, home working and video conferencing being the obvious examples. We also see increased interest for IP camera technology as a key tool for adapting to the new situation.
When the Axis M5525-E was listed on Network Webcams in October 2017, it certainly created a bit of stir; a feature-packed PTZ camera in Axis’ affordable “M” range and crucially, below the £1000 price-point. Having a PTZ camera in this competitive price bracket was a first for Axis and despite the unit being priced towards the top end, we anticipated it would be popular.
A few months on, and the M5525-E is proving to even more popular than we initially expected. We put the camera through its paces in January this year and created a demo video which has only increased the rate at which it flies off the shelves.
As you are probably aware the video surveillance world is going IP. But what does ‘Going IP (Internet Protocol)’ really mean? On the face of it this change looks innocuous and some would say unnecessary. You are going from a world where video data which used to travel over coaxial cable is now travelling over CAT 5+/CAT6 Ethernet cabling, fibre, WIFI, or even 3G. It means that video can be moved, recorded, stored and managed using the same type of network infrastructure as firms use for their other computer-generated data.
We’ve just spent three days at the annual security exhibition IFSEC, taking place at the Excel in London this week. It’s a huge show and impossible to look at everything but overall the sense is that the evolution of IP-based security technologies is continuing to gather pace and analogue-based solutions have now been marginalised. I did not see one analogue camera on the show at any of the main stands, but then I was not looking for one.
The physical access control market is already a substantial one. IHS (formerly IMS Research) valued it at $3 billion globally in 2012 and projected its CAGR of 7% over the next five years (source: IHS report 2013). There is no doubt that the business case for Access Control System (ACS) integration with IP video strengthens when you consider the backdrop of the rise of what is commonly referred to as the ‘intelligent’ or ‘smart’ building (see for example the SmartBuilding Conference 2014).
Y-cam Solutions have launched their 2nd generation Y-cam Bullet HD cameras, available in either HD 720p or HD 1080p versions. Y-cam is a popular camera brand amongst home users and small and medium sized businesses, with all Y-cam models offering wireless capabilities, ease of use and compatibility with a wide range of operating systems, browsers and mobile platforms. So how have the new 2nd generation Y-cam Bullet HD cameras improved from the first generation models?
Talked about since summer last year the next generation of Mobotix IP cameras is finally here and available. Not having seen any real improvements from Mobotix since the introduction of the benchmark setting 14 and 24 camera series in 2009 / 2010 we felt Mobotix was falling behind somewhat in recent years. But it was worth the wait. The new generation of Mobotix cameras is a big leap forward and puts Mobotix right back into it. So what makes Mobotix an attractive solution again?
Close to the tipping point
During 2014, the global value of IP camera sales is set to reach the tipping point when compared with analogue CCTV cameras, according to the leading analyst covering the global surveillance and analytics market IHS (formerly IMS Research). Jon Cropley, IHS’ lead analyst covering the surveillance market explains:
“The video surveillance equipment markets in EMEA and the Americas have already reached a ‘tipping point’ where revenues from network video surveillance equipment exceed those from analogue equipment. At a global level this is not forecast to occur until 2014 due to the continued growth of the market for analogue equipment in Asia.”
IHS’ global report on the video surveillance market based on 2013 sales (which should be out by June 2014) may even reveal that the global ‘value tipping point’ has already arrived – spurred on by rapid migration to IP video in China and the rest of the Far East.