When purchasing a security camera system, it is important that you make the best decision to protect your home and family.
We see many people getting overwhelmed when it comes to which security camera system they should purchase. These people almost always end up purchasing the wrong system to suit their requirements. They end up focusing only on cost and lowering the quality of the security camera system without them knowing.
Our team felt that we should do something to help YOU make the best and most informed decision.
Mistake #1: Wi-Fi, or a wireless security camera
To quickly summarise this for you, between wireless cameras, wifi and wired security cameras, wired security cameras are always tremendously more reliable and they also maintain a longer lifetime. Usually the reason Wi-Fi security cameras are purchased is because of their convenience. However, when you know the reasons why to avoid them, you may second guess your choice.
There are multiple types of wireless security cameras, the first being powered wireless security cameras. These security cameras actually need to be plugged into a power point for them to work. In our opinion, this defects the “wireless” feature of these systems. The reason being is that you need to run power cables for each power point for the security cameras to work, so why not just install a wired security system and do it properly?
The other type of wireless security camera is a battery operated security camera, and these ones are pretty dangerous as they just get screwed in.
Battery operated cameras will operate for a few weeks, or about a month (if you are lucky) before you have to replace the battery. These security cameras are dangerous because anyone can come up, grab it, take it away and that’s it, you have no footage of the incident. There is no main safety element to these security cameras which defects the purpose of acting as a security device.
The last type of wireless security camera’s which are starting to become more popular, are solar security cameras. In rural properties, these security cameras are most cost efficient if it is a large property. However, you also need to take into account that you require the sun (obviously) to power these cameras. If it is cloudy, raining or the sun is down, you’re not going to have an effectively running system.
When considering wireless verses wired, wired security cameras are the way to go.
Mistake #2: Purchasing outdated security cameras
What do we mean by this? An outdated security camera system is something that runs off an old analogue type system. This is the old way of operating a security system or cameras, having them energised and downloading the footage through the old type of cabling.
Although these security systems may seem cheap from the market or online, don’t fall into the trap of purchasing them because they are cheap. You want to purchase a security system that will have a long life-time and do its job properly!
These outdated security systems would usually be operating off a coax cable, which is the antenna looking cables, the black RG6 cables. These cables no longer need to be run out for our security cameras these days. The security cameras we use right now are IP security cameras. A sneaky thing some companies out there do when they’re advertising their boxes of the IP cameras, they are not actually IP cameras, they are actually wiring on the box that they are IP cameras but it’ll be an analogue set up. The way they can get away doing this is because they are actually IP-rated cameras, which means they its IP rated in terms of weatherproofing.
You will know if a security camera is really an IP camera as it would have a small data point or ethernet point on the cable connection lead. This means one cable needs to be run to each camera which is Cat 5 or Cat 6 data cable. This cable is exactly the same as what an ethernet cable is that is wired to your wireless router.
IP security cameras brings a whole lot of reliability to the overall security camera system. So when you are choosing your camera system for your home, you want to make sure you are choosing the right one.
Always choose an IP security camera system.
Mistake #3: Not choosing a vandal-proof camera
A vandal proof security camera is engineered with a hard metal casing around the optical and mechanical lens on the inside. This means that if an intruder was to hit the camera, they would think that they are damaging it and it stops recording however it is actually still recording and capturing the entire event.
We choose to avoid bullet type security cameras as these in our opinion can be easily grabbed and pushed down. We use turret/ dome security cameras as they are harder to push out of the way when an intruder is trying to fiddle with the system.
A job comes to mind when i think of our vandal proof cameras. One of our customers daughters ex partners came to his home at 1am in the morning. He snuck up and attempted to move the camera out of the way so you wouldn’t see his face. Our security cameras are actually very hard to just move with your hand, you need a special tool to be able to do this which are not just readily available on shelves.
This person continued his crime, smashed the security door of the home, attempted to kick the door and yelled abuse through the door to the home owner. The home owner had all of this on footage and was able to provide it to the police when they arrived to site moments after the individual had left.
So when considering which security camera you should purchase, keep this in mind as you want a camera that will provide you with a longer lifetime guarantee of the protection of your home and your families safety.
Mistake #4: Assuming that every security camera does the same thing
Security camera systems can have different functions and settings, such as motion detection, tripwire notifications and 24/7 recordings.
Motion detection is a feature that enables you to record the motion only around your property. This is a great storage saver as your cameras are not just recording and storing storing useless footage. It also helps you search through footage too as you can quickly skip through all the motion recordings only instead of sitting and watching footage for hours until you find when an incident occurred.
Tripwire notifications are super cool! These notifications are normally best used when your home is unattended or overnight for notifications of an intruder overnight. A virtual line can be drawn down on the system and if that line gets triggered by an intruder/ person or motor vehicle, you would be sent a notification to your mobile phone to alert you.
These notification reduce false alerts and ensures that you have accurate notifications of incidents/ intruders.
Mistake #5 Not doing your own research
It may sound obvious however many people just ask their friends or family what camera system they had installed for their home. They then trust that it is perfect for their home.
These systems that they installed may very well be the system you should also install, however always ensure you look into the ins and outs before purchasing.
What to look out for?
Warranty Periods:
Normal security camera systems have a 12 month warranty or 24 month warranty. A camera system that is reliable and has a long life time they will usually have a three to four year plus warranty.
Warranty is one big factor you should consider when purchasing or hiring a security company to install CCTV Cameras.
When you are talking to a security installer always ask what their warranty period is for the equipment and also their workmanship. Here at Sutton Security & Electrics we have a 3 year warranty on our security system equipment and a lifetime workmanship warranty on all our work.
A security installer will normally have a good warranty period if they trust the products that they are using.
What do the reviews say?
With so many accredited installers it can be hard to decide which one to invest your trust in to protect your home. Do your research and look at reviews on google or facebook.
You want to get a reliable product and have it installed by a certified electrician.
Is it user friendly?
We have had feedback from many customers that have had CCTV installed previously in the past and they upgraded their systems due to them being difficult to use and unreliable.
You want to ensure the security system is easy to use on your phone and the monitor itself. It shouldn’t be a challenge to use the security system.
What after support do you receive?
Normally security installers will install a security system and leave you with a brief manual. These manuals can be hard to utilise and if there are ever any updates, this booklet is now obsolete.
The other feedback that we had from people who had systems installed by other installers is that they cannot get in contact with them for help or if any items are faulty. It is disappointing that this occurs in the industry, however some installers make their systems that cheap, they cannot afford to go out to faulty systems or provide after support to their customers.
Why are we different?
- Online Training Available: Once our team has completed your CCTV Installation, you will receive an online username and password to our online training portal. Here you will find videos filmed in house by us, teaching you how to use the system. If you have purchased a new phone and are unsure how to install the app on your phone, there is a video for this. If you need to change the time or date, there is a video for this. Anything that our customers should be able to do, has been recorded for them. The benefit of this being online means that when there are updates, we update the videos to ensure you are never left behind.
- After support via the phone: If you require further support, we are available for our customers. All phone calls are answered and all customers are helped. If there was ever any faulty equipment, these are replaced as soon as possible and we deal with the warranty process to ensure you have little down time.
- Lifetime workmanship warranty: We trust our team and the quality of our work. This is why we back ourselves with a a lifetime workmanship warranty.
Contact us though our website, facebook or instagram for more information!
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