Every product you buy, even as a commercial consumer, should be seen as an investment.
For instance, buying computer software for your home is different from purchasing something for your company. At home, you don't necessarily need something state-of-the-art. After all, you aren’t supporting a business's entire infrastructure. That's why "personal" packages for these kinds of products are always significantly less costly.
As a commercial consumer, going all out and purchasing “enterprise” products is a bad investment.
On the other end of the spectrum, business owners must take an entirely different approach.
That isn’t to say you must blow the whole budget on various workplace tools. However, while allocating your funds, the idea of spending money to make money should echo in your mind.
The perspective discussed above is an analogy for how decision-makers should view their given business’s spending and budgeting. This notion extends to almost all expenditures in a work environment. From your coffee maker to your security cameras, you require superior products to support the infrastructure.
More to this blog’s point:
What do you think happens when purchasing your small business’s security camera systems at Walmart or Costco?
Yes, a strict budget is integral to the long-term success of any small business. But that means knowing when and where to spend so that you get the most value for money. Undercutting your company’s security systems leaves you open to an array of dangers.
In other words, you’ll leave yourself vulnerable to losing so much more because you chose to spend less.
Different levels of camera systems exist for their own purposes. For your business, cheap consumer-grade products won’t do. Instead, perform the research, and look for something on the enterprise level.
Let's discuss what you get when you allocate your funds toward enterprise-level camera systems:
Bolstered Cybersecurity
Over the past few years, the security camera industry has been doing its level best to stave off a growing swarm of hackers. There have been varying levels of success in avoiding breaches—but more often than not, companies in this space have some egg on their face. At some point, their recorders and cameras have been infiltrated by an unauthorized cybercriminal.
This continually evolving issue has catalyzed many enterprise camera systems focusing on network threat protection.
P2P and Port Forwarding were initially utilized to make networking easier. Unfortunately, this only gave hackers more avenues to wreak havoc and penetrate systems.
Nowadays, VPN Router/Firewalls are a type of computer meant to fend off the threats caused by technological advancements. These are seen as the most optimal ways to protect your surveillance systems and have turned into the de facto industry standard.
Realistically, when setting up your workplace camera system, networking security should be a top priority.
More Features Means More Safety
With consumer-grade cameras, you aren't going to get the abundance of features you get with enterprise systems.
For instance, something like license plate-capturing or facial recognition exceeds the purview of something you get at Costco. There are many reasons for this, but it starts with night vision.
Consumer-grade products don't perform well at night, requiring a light source to illuminate the area below it. At this level, any night vision illuminators are meant for limited ranges. Beyond that, there's a fixed brightness.
Therefore, people and objects end up appearing “blown out” without any details because they’re overexposed. Imagine trying to pinpoint the numbers on a license plate or a burglar’s face with such equipment.
At the enterprise level, there's more advanced night vision. Infrared (IR) illuminators adjust brightness according to the given setting—a feature called "Smart IR."
More specifically, Smart IR matches the camera’s infrared light output to the scene’s specifications. No matter the subject, whether a person or license plate, they’ll be seen in more enhanced detail.
High Dynamic Range
Do you point a camera at your store’s front door?
In this instance, when a customer or employee opens the door, sunlight floods the camera’s sensors while shining through the doorway.
Consumer-grade cameras fail on this front. The extra light being let in the room forces a compensation, and the shutters open. Therefore, the rest of the store is darkened while the doorway is fully exposed. This results from the mounted camera being in a room that seems darker than the doorway area.
Suddenly, the indoor image is entirely useless despite the doorway being highly visible. What's worse is that the person entering the store has their face obscured since they're now inside an under-exposed store.
This example doesn’t only apply to brick-and-mortar storefronts. It can apply to your office building or any other kind of facility.
Enterprise security camera systems have a unique light-handling feature. Inside these products is generally a software and hardware solution called "High Dynamic Range" or HDR.
Going back to the storefront example, HDR would create an adequately exposed composite image of the two areas. It takes the exposure of both the room and doorway and combines the two images together. Everything appears at the same brightness level, resulting in transparent faces in the store and door.
Anybody entering the store would now be seen without question.
It almost goes without saying that any camera lacking HDR isn’t worth it for your business.
Durability and Robustness
High-quality surveillance cameras are meant to withstand rigorous circumstances. Here's a list of what you should be looking for:
- Aluminum or plastic construction durable enough to withstand the elements
- Should be built to avoid pooling water seeping into the joints or gaps—which should be reinforced with a rubber gasket
- Seek out cameras with high-end weatherproofing (it should have an Ingress Protection (IP rating) of 66 or more
- With high-quality soldering for the circuit boards inside, connections won’t break over time
How Can You Improve Your User Experience?
Say you see a camera with a free 2-year warranty—this likely means there's a wealth of exclusions. Generally, things like misuse, tampering, modification, incorrect voltage or surges, and acts of God aren't covered.
Even without these exclusions being made clear, some vendors will still deny your claim.
The chances are that a more reliable brand will be more honest about their warranties. You’ll have to pay for something extra that helps extend the lifespan of your product and services. Keep in mind that this won't be available for free—it'll be something you must pay for.
Also, the more you’re willing to pay, the more you’ll receive from customer support. Whoever ends up installing your camera should be certified and knowledgeable enough to provide thorough training if needed. Usually, they should offer an onsite walkthrough to answer any questions.
Beyond that, any executive solution should provide you with pre-purchase consultations to steer you in the right direction. These kinds of companies will often let you know if they're the correct fit for your business—providing the utmost transparency. Then after the purchase, they’ll be readily available whenever you need their help.
Lastly, you should not DIY your installation. Hiring a professional is a must since such individuals are experts in their field and fully grasp where your cameras should be positioned.
Pay More Now and Have Fewer Regrets
You put everything you have into your business. Why suddenly veer away from that philosophy when it comes to your security cameras?
The features, capabilities, and user experience on enterprise security cameras vastly outweigh consumer-level systems. It doesn't even compare. This investment is something that will pay off tremendously in the long run, preventing you from dealing with the inevitable disaster.
