Functions of a 4 channel DVR

The first ever digital video recorder was launched at the consumer electronics show in 1999 with Replay TV and Tivo, since then the DVR has evolved into many different uses. In the security industry it is the backbone for recording video. The 4 channel DVR is the most widely used DVR by home owners and small businesses. The three leading manufacturers are Samsung, Swann and Lorex. Each of these companies provide a number of 4 camera DVR systems and configuration.

USB Motion Grabber

A USB video motion grabber allowing up to 4 cameras to be connected is also a very common product to create a 4 channel recording system with a computer as a recording device. The motion grabber provides motion activation to the cameras so the video can be recorded to a computer hard drive. The drawbacks to using this DVR system is the computer has to be on at all times plus there is a loss of computer disk space to record the video. USB motion Grabbers up until this time are compatible with Windows operating system  up to Vista.

Internet Viewing

The popularity of a 4 channel DVR continues to grow from a home the owners desire to see what is happening at home or their business while they are away. The 4 channel DVR is a perfect to monitor a vacation home. With an internet connection a vacation home can be monitored at all times. This will remove any suspicion that may arise when wondering what is happening at home, at your business, with a baby sitter, what the dogs are doing or an elderly parent.

Considerations

• When contemplating the purchase of a 4 channel DVR there are some considerations to take into account. These considerations could save money down the road.
• Recording time will vary depending upon the size of the hard drive cameras.
• Expandability of the Hard Drive to fit future need
• Internet connectivity
• The addition of more cameras
• Transmits in H.264 verses plus other formats
• Digital Zoom

Recording Time

The recording time of a DVR is affected by the quality of the camera the higher the camera resolution the less time it will take to fill the hard drive. Once the hard drive is filled the new video recording will over write the existing video. Therefore make sure you have sufficient disk space to cover the time allotted to recover the video in the event of an intrusion.

Expandability

With in a year of purchase a number of first time buyers end up expanding their systems with more cameras as well as increasing the recording capability with more disc space. A DVR with the ability to expand storage disk space will allow security needs to grow at minimal expense.

Internet Connectivity

By taking time to understand how the DVR and router connect your video to the internet will prevent a lot of frustrations. Residential properties are set up on dynamic IP addresses. Having a dynamic IP address means it is constantly changing. Without proper setup and understanding how a DDNS works, frustration could be an issue.  When there are problems in viewing and logging into the DVR the most probable cause is with the dynamic IP address changed at your home and on your DDNS service.

Highest Quality and Quickest Transmission 

In order to gain the highest quality picture with the fastest transmission the DVR has to have H.264 compression with high resolution cameras and a high resolution monitor. Most DVR’s that are sold are pretty much set to transmit at H.264 over the internet.  The picture quality will be determined by the resolution of the camera  and the monitor the video is viewed on. Cheaper cameras will have poor resolution while more expensive ones will also transmit a higher amount of TVLines.

Flash Drive and Digital Zoom

The easiest way to retrieve video from a 4 channel DVR is with a USB flash drive. Most DVRs are equipped with a port for a flash drive. Digital zoom provides a close up view and is an excellent feature available on many DVRs.