Seeking Nerdvana

If you need to keep an eye on things when you're not around, video surveillance is becoming an easy way to remotely keep tabs on the situation.

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Video surveillance: Swann's Digital Guardian DVR & Mobotix's M10 network security camera

If you need to keep an eye on things when you're not around, video surveillance is becoming an easy way to remotely keep tabs on the situation.

Whether you want to check on a sleeping baby or keep a look out for thieves, surveillance cameras and digital video recorders are now simple to set up and access from afar. Like most technologies, you can spend less than $100 on a basic set up or thousands of dollars on a full blown network. The key is to decide what you want to watch, why you want to watch it and how you want to respond if something interesting happens.

Surveillance cameras come in two main types; CCTV (Closed Circuit TeleVision) cameras which run over video cables and IP (Internet Protocol) cameras which run over data links such as Ethernet or ISDN. Both can also run over wireless, but the security implications mean that most people choose to hardwire their surveillance cameras.

CCTV cameras are the easiest to set up because they're just AV devices without any onboard smarts. They often use BNC or RCA video plugs so you can connect them to any video device, such as a television or VCR. They also need power, but some systems eliminate the need for two cables by running separate power and video wires through the one cable, with separate power and video plugs on each end. This makes it easier to install them in hard to reach places.

More advanced CCTV cameras come with manual zoom and focus rings, meaning you have to adjust them after installation according to what you want to shot. Pan Tilt Zoom (PTZ) cameras can be controlled remotely, but this requires them to be connected to a recorder capable of sending these commands.

IP cameras usually require some configuration but, in return, offer a lot more flexibility. Many utilise Power over Ethernet to reduce cabling. Some have built-in webservers and storage, meaning you can access them from anywhere using a web browser.

Most video surveillance systems employ tricks such as only recording a few frames per second, or only recording when something moves, to reduce storage needs. As CCTV cameras are only dumb terminals, they have to be connected to an analogue or digital video recorder. DVRs record to a hard drive instead of video tape, making it easier to store, search and remotely access recordings. You can set up your computer as a DVR, capturing video from either CCTV or IP cameras, while some IP cameras can do all this onboard.

Many USB webcams come with basic video surveillance software. While USB also supplies power to the camera, USB can only run over about five metres of cable - which isn't very practical for monitoring more than the room the computer is in. Dedicated surveillance cameras also usually have better optics and sensors than webcams.

Swann's Digital Guardian DVR ($AU199.95) is a PCI card which allows you to connect four CCTV cameras to your computer, recording the video to your hard drive. We put it to the test using Swann's CCTV Security Camera 4 Pack ($price). This includes two weather proof ''Bulldog Cam'' colour cameras which also offer infrared vision up to 10 metres. The pack also contains two C500R cameras with inter-changeable lenses, with a 3.5-8mm manual vari-focus lens and 4mm fixed lens included. Each camera contains a 1/4 inch CCD sensor and the C500R offers advanced settings such as back light compensation.

Swann's Bulldog Cam

Installing the PCI card and the software (Windows 2000/XP only) is very simple - the hardest thing about the whole process is running the cables and positioning the cameras. Each camera comes with an 18 metre dual power/video cable. The four BNC video jacks connect to the PCI card and four power jacks to a single power supply.

Swann's C500R

The Digital Guardian software isn't much to look at, but it's surprisingly flexible - capable of controlling up to 16 cameras using four PCI cards. You're presented with the same view as on in-store surveillance monitors - a shot of all the cameras at once or cycling through them every few seconds. The software can also remotely control PTZ-compatible cameras.

Video is recorded in MPEG4 can you can vary the bit rate and frames per second. If you run out of hard drive space you can start recording over the oldest recordings or spill onto a new partition.

Settings such as brightness and contrast can be adjusted for each camera. You can also individually schedule them to record at certain times or just in response to movement. The sensitivity can be adjusted, so you don't capture the curtains rustling but you get a good look at the mongrel climbing out the window with your DVD player.

Should it detect something untoward, the Digital Guardian can trigger an audible alarm and email you a snapshot of the action. When you return you can search through the video according to variables such as time and event. You can zoom in on your perpetrator, freeze the video, adjust the image to get a clear shot and then print your wanted poster.

If you can't wait until you get home to know what's happened, you can log on to your computer from anywhere using a browser to check the cameras and review the video. This required us to change the IE security settings on a remote computer to accept an unsigned ActiveX file, which then downloaded the software. Obviously this might not be possible if you're somewhere like an internet café.

Swann's Digital Guardian DVR offers most of the advanced features you'd expect from a serious surveillance system and the cameras do a fine job, particularly the Bulldogs in infrared mode. The Achilles heel is the Windows box that it's running on. If you're serious enough about security to go to this much trouble, do you want the whole thing relying on the stability of a Windows PC? Even Swann acknowledges this, letting you schedule an automatic reboot every few days in case your computer gets a bit flaky.

Mobotix's M10 network security cameras (from $AU1345) are IPs camera which eliminates the need for a computer on the backend. They offer similar features to Swann's Digital Guardian DVR, but does so using a built-in Linux server, so all you need is a web browser to access and configure the camera.

Mobotix's M10

Designed for monitoring large outdoor areas, the The Mobotix M10D-Secure ($AU2727) includes a megapixel sensor with two lenses - one 43mm wide view and one 135mm zoom - in case you want a good close up of the action. Using a water proof housing, it has a motion detector, temperature sensor and even a microphone and speaker. It doesn't use infrared for night vision but the motion detector can turn on a security light if something moves in the dark. Sounds can also trigger the camera.

The M10D-Secure will run over Ethernet or ISDN and uses Power over Ethernet. It comes with two 2 metre CAT5E patch cables and a PoE adaptor in case your networking gear doesn't support PoE. Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol is disabled by default, so you can't just plug the camera into your network and expect it to pick up an IP address. You have to connect it to a computer first and log into the camera's Linux server to configure the camera. Now you can and enable DHCP, if you so desire, then connect it to your network.

This out of the way, the M10D-Secure is simple to configure and the interface explains each setting. Like the Digital Guardian, it offers variable frame rates as well as letting you adjust things like contrast and back light compensation. You can view the scene from either the wide angle or zoom lens, or both - either side-by-side or picture-in-picture. Multi-view lets you monitor several cameras at once or cycle through them. Hovering the mouse over a point of interest zooms in on the area. You don't have the ability to remotely move the camera but there is an optional PTZ camera mount. Thanks to its megapixel sensor, the Mobotix produces a far clearer image than the Swann gear.

The M10D-Secure has up to 36MB of onboard RAM and can store data elsewhere on the network such as a Linux or Windows server, although new versions have an internal Compact Flash card slot. It stores surveillance data as JPEG images or in the Mobotix MXPeg video format which is optimised for surveillance. Through a browser you can view the current scene or search the archive - either manually, using variables such as time stamps or using the event log. You can also download the archive as a compressed file.

Should something untoward happen, the camera can email you a snapshot or upload it to an FTP server. It can connect to an analog modem or GSM mobile phone using the serial port and it can even called you using a SIP-enabled VoIP phone. The webserver's interface can also be optimising for viewing on a PDA or smartphone.

Both the Mobotix M10M and Swann's Digital Guardian DVR offer the advanced features and remote access you would look for in a decent video surveillance set up. While the Mobotix requires more initial configuration, you don't have to worry about configuring a PC to support it. The Mobotix system's extra connectivity features are clearly designed for commercial users, while the Digital Guardian DVR is a consumer or SOHO product. The main advantage of the Mobotix system is it doesn't rely on a Windows PC in order to operate, although its internal Linux server can also be scheduled to automatically reboot if you're concerned about stability.

Adam Turner

First published in APC Magazine (May 2006). This is the unedited copy, so it might vary slightly from what's in the magazine.