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The NW blog
Archive for the ‘Sony’ Category
Beyond the datasheet: The importance of a user-friendly IP camera web interface
In the competitive IP camera market, manufacturers are always looking for ways to stand out from the crowd. With the clear majority already being able to deliver cameras in the highest resolution, an increased focus has been put on making improvements in other areas, such as camera-based video analytics, compression technology and low-light imagery. However, one area that we find proves to repeatedly be an issue for our customers is the usability of the cameras web interface.
Due to our vast experience serving different types of customers in multiple industries we know that the quality & flexibility of the web interface is still a crucial area to consider. So, to give you a better understanding of what you can expect from the web interface when you come to choose your IP camera, we have picked out four well-known brands to give you a short review of the experience. We have focused on how easy it was to use and navigate the different interfaces, the features available and how compatible they are with the current leading web browsers.
How Green is your IP Camera?
Taking responsibility for the impact on the environment is a 21st century challenge for all businesses. For some organisations, green credentials are an important consideration when purchasing any equipment they use.
How do the IP camera brands we supply at Network Webcams compare when looking at their environmental responsibility policies? To see how green your IP camera is, we researched 8 manufacturers to see how easily we could discover their stance on the environment. Do they highlight their goals and commitments to being more energy efficient? How are they reducing their carbon footprint or minimising the materials used in their products? How do they reduce waste?
Using image rotation to optimise coverage and bandwidth usage
When choosing a camera for video surveillance in narrow scenes such as long corridors, staircases, aisles and tunnels, the traditional landscape-oriented setup may not be the optimal choice. If you’re monitoring a narrow corridor or passageway, a sizeable portion of the scene is going to be walls either side, making a lot of your image redundant. The full area and resolution of the camera’s image sensor is not being fully utilised and this means that evidence of events occurring outside this limited area of coverage may be missed. These redundant sections either side of the image also consume bandwidth and storage that could really be put to better use.
This is where the ability to rotate the image proves to be very handy. This feature allows you to obtain a portrait-oriented video stream – effectively turning an HD camera’s 16:9 aspect ratio to a 9:16 aspect ratio. By filming in this orientation, you are ensuring that the whole sensor covers the area of interest, maximising coverage and eliminating bandwidth and storage waste.
Best seller IP camera contenders for 2017
With a continually growing catalogue of IP cameras to choose from, it can be tricky trying to decide which camera is the best fit for your requirements. As always, our aim is to make it easier for the customer to find the right camera and we recently brought you a blog that looked back and highlighted our best selling cameras for 2016. This time, we’re narrowing the field by looking ahead and listing models that we feel have all the right attributes to make them a popular choice in 2017.
We’ve selected a variety of camera types in a broad price range, so whether you need simple monitoring for your retail store or you have more demanding surveillance requirements at a large industrial site, there’s something here of interest.
Sony launches new high sensitivity models with Exmor R CMOS sensors
This year has seen Sony raising the bar for ultra low-light network cameras to new heights and news of eight new high sensitivity models being added to the line-up in 2017 indicates this trend is set to continue.
All of the new cameras will include Sony’s cutting-edge imaging technologies and a high performance sensor – allowing them to deliver clear detail and improved visibility with excellent low-light performance.
New Sony SNC-VB770 high sensitivity 4K network camera
Sony have recently introduced the SNC-VB770 – dubbed the industry’s highest sensitivity 4K network camera. That’s quite an accolade and the datasheet certainly details some impressive specifications – the most pertinent of which is a minimum illumination level of less than 0.004 lux.
If you’re thinking “that’s almost pitch-black light conditions”, you’d be right and that means capturing clear 4K images in colour – even in extremely low light conditions. To put these light levels into perspective, it’s the darkness that you’d encounter on a starry night with no other light source or indoors with such poor lighting that it’s even a challenge for the human eye to see the object.
The camera uses a highly-sensitive 35mm full-frame Exmor sensor and optimised E-mount lenses to maximise the performance of both the sensor and its signal processing engine.
Why the Sony SNC-VM772R is leading the 4K pack
Nearly every major IP camera manufacturer now has a 4K IP camera offering but it is the Sony SNC-VM772R that truly breaks new ground because Sony have tackled three fundamental technology challenges that are holding others back, thus far anyway.
So what is it that Sony has achieved that makes them stand out from the pack?
Sony 4K comparison video tells its own story
In the last few years HD 720p and full HD 1080p network cameras have been dominating the higher end of the CCTV market, and they still are. But no doubt you will have heard and read about 4K resolution as the next big thing. The first 4K CCTV cameras came to market in the second half of 2014 and we have been selling a fair few – to the so-called ‘early adopters’. But 4K relies on other technologies to catch up before we can all enjoy its benefits.
Top 5 best-selling Sony IP cameras
Sony IP cameras have always offered great image quality and even more so since the launch of their 6th generation cameras over the last twelve months or so. However, many of the Sony cameras in the range look very similar on paper, making it difficult for people to choose the right one for their requirement. We thought to offer some help by listing the top sellers, of which there are five and they really do stand out.
Sony launch new lens options for popular X-series cameras
The Sony X-series outdoor mini-dome cameras offer excellent quality and have been very popular. Now, Sony has launched a number of additional lens options, ranging from very wide to cover large areas to narrow for pinpointing specific details in a scene.
The new lenses significantly increase the installation possibilities of this affordable range, making the X series look attractive for many locations. With choice from horizontal viewing angles of 113°, 83°, 51° and 25°, and Sony’s new e-Varifocal technology, which allows you to adjust the exact focal length remotely, there are few locations where a X-series mini-sized IP camera would not suit. All three additional lens options can be used with any of the Sony X series mini dome cameras: SNC-XM631, SNC-XM632, SNC-XM636 and the SNC-XM637.
