CAMERA TECHNOLOGY MUST BE UNDERSTOOD TO PREDICT CAMERA QUALITY!
Camera technology is constantly changing and if you don’t understand the technology used in your camera then you won’t know what you’re getting until its too late! Many cameras use the same body, but may use very different technology for different quality cameras. The old adage was never truer; “you can’t judge a book by its cover”. Here is a list of technology based terms to help you better understand what you’re paying for:
Wide Dynamic Range: (WDR) This function is intended to provide clear images even under back light circumstances where intensity of illumination can vary excessively, namely when there are both very bright and very dark areas simultaneously in the field of view of the camera, for example in front of large windows. WDR enables the capture and display of both bright and dark areas in the same frame, in a way that there are details in both areas, i.e. bright areas are not saturated, and dark areas are not too dark.
ATR: Adaptive Tone Reproduction: ATR improves the visibility of the entire picture by providing the optimum gradation compensation. It is a digital version of the Wide Dynamic Range feature, and therefore less expensive.
2D DIGITAL NOISE REDUCTION 2D DNR – Improved S/N ratio 50dB and more sharp and noiseless low light image quality provided by built-in noise reduction (2DDNR: 2D Digital Noise Reduction) function.
HLC: High light Compensation suppresses strong light sources (such as the headlights of automobiles, flashlights, etc…) in dark places and prevents camera from being blinded. Not needed on cameras with Wide Dynamic Range because that feature is built into the WDR.
Effio – Enhanced Features and Fine Image Processor. It is a high quality Sony signal processor and realizes high resolution of over 650TVL, high signal to noise ratio, and high color reproduction. This provides clearer pictures with higher sensitivity compared to conventional CCTV cameras.
The Effio line in the order of release is as follows:
Effio
Effio-E
Effio-S
Effio-P
CCD chip (Charge Coupled Device) Many of my competitors are still using HAD CCD, HAD CCD II, and Super HAD CCD first generation. These will not produce the high quality image of the more advanced CCD chips represented by the 2nd generation Super HAD CCD, and the recently released ExView HAD CCD.
Super HAD CCD – Super HAD provides 2 times of better sensitivity and 6 db better smear rejection ratio than the formal traditional type of CCD. Two micro lenses on top of each photo diode are able to collect more photon from incoming light than the old CCD made by SONY and any other maker.
Super HAD CCD II – Sony has now improved the sensitivity of the existing Sony security camera “Super HAD CCD” and developed the new “Super HAD CCD II”. While achieving high sensitivity in the “Super HAD CCD II”, Sony also designed this device with concern for color reproduction. Sony increased the blue (short wavelength) sensitivity and achieved balanced spectral sensitivity characteristics. These spectral sensitivity characteristics lead to reduced color noise.
ExView HAD CCD – This CCD chip represents the cutting edge of CCD technology! “EX-View” is a sensitivity-enhancement technology, developed by SONY, to improve light sensitivity of its CCD. EX-View results in an improvement in light sensitivity of 2 times for visible light and 4 times for near-infrared (800 ~ 900 nm) compared to the conventional CCD versions offered by SONY. The lux rating of the EX-View CCD is two times better than the premium SONY “Super HAD” CCD for both visible and near-infrared wavelengths.
From this information you can determine a camera using a Super HAD CCD chip will not give as sharp of a picture as the generation two Super HAD CCD II, nor as good as the ExView HAD CCD chip. If you have large windows or glass doors you will need some kind of WDR or Back light compensation. By understanding the terms you can match up the camera for your specific requirements.