What is H.265/HEVC? H.265 or High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) is the successor to the MOST POPULAR and the MOST WIDELY used H.264 (AVC) video compression protocol. The H.264 codec is currently being used by most video conferencing/video surveillance systems. HEVC/H.265 can provide the SAME video quality at HALF bit-rate (bandwidth) when compared to H.264, and it can enable ADVANCED display technologies/resolutions like 4K/8K/3D, etc. It is NOT a free protocol, but it is a standards-based open protocol and can be licensed by ANY vendor. Has the CODEC been released? Through the first version of H.265/HEVC was completed and released in EARLY 2013  (source: wiki) and on June 10 ’13, ITU-T announced that the new protocol…

While consumers have cloud-based services like Google + hangouts, Skype, etc. to initiate multi-point video calls, why don’t we commonly hear of cloud-based multi (video) conference units (MCU) for enterprise/corporate customers, instead of dedicated MCU’s for each company? Well, the enterprise video conferencing scenario is slightly more complicated, that’s why! In enterprise companies and large organizations, people generally buy room-based and personal video conferencing  systems that give a much better user-experience than web-cam based consumer systems. Some of the high-end room-based video conferencing systems have limited multi-conferencing capabilities. Common models can initiate video conferencing sessions between 3-5 sites, or slightly more. This surely is not sufficient for many companies that…

HEVC (High Efficiency Video Coding) is the latest Video Compression standard that is being developed by JCT-VC (Joint Collaborative Team – Video Coding) and is expected to be completed and available by January 2013. Like the H.264-AVC, the HEVC is also a standard and can be licensed across products, irrespective of the vendor. The H.264 or H.264-AVC has been extremely successful in both Video Conference equipments and Video Surveillance equipments. It sort of paved the way for HD Video Conferencing to become a reality. But we should remember that in spite of a solid video compression standard like H.264, working with High Definition Video is still a challenge as it…

The above video is a demo video for something else, but they do show glimpses of how two monitors can be connected to a video conferencing system, where one displays video and another displays data/presentation. Sorry, I didn’t get a video specific to H.239! What is H.239 in Video Conferencing? H.239 is a standard to share data/presentations/second video channel along with the primary video channel. That means, while you can see and talk to people from remote locations using video conferencing technology, you can also share your computer monitor output or a document camera output to the participants on the remote end. The person who is talking can show a…

Certain IP Cameras come with PTZ functions – Pan Tilt & Zoom, for better control over the video footage one is watching/recording. In this post, let us see what is a PTZ IP Camera and some useful PTZ features offered by IP surveillance cameras. PTZ IP Surveillance Camera Video Demonstration: What is a PTZ IP Camera? An IP surveillance camera, as you know, is used for viewing/recording the video footage of an area that needs to be monitored. This video footage is sent over the IP network (Computer Network) and it can be seen from anywhere over LAN/Internet. The PTZ functionality is an added feature in many IP cameras that…

While there are a lot of advantages of IP Surveillance over Analog Surveillance, bandwidth occupied by IP Surveillance Cameras are an important consideration before implementing an IP surveillance project. In this article, let us look at the factors affecting the bandwidth occupied by each video stream of IP Surveillance Cameras and certain measures that help reduce the bandwidth occupied by them.

There are certain sites where one cannot carry cables, but still wants to monitor using surveillance cameras. Wireless cameras could be used, but they still need to be powered using an electrical cable. If an electrical cable can be carried to the camera, a data cable can also be carried! So, Solar powerd wireless IP surveillance cameras could be employed in situations where one cannot lay any cable till the cameras.

In this article, let us look at an overview of four important parameters that define quality in a video stream for IP Video Surveillance applications - Resolution, Frame Rate, Compression & High Definition (HDTV)

If Video Conference happens in a room, Telepresence happens in a studio! Almost every aspect of a Telepresence system is engineered to give a truly immersive environment for the participants so that they feel that everyone participating in the meeting is sitting in the same room. But, would you go for a Telepresence system in your organization, provided that Video Conference systems are getting better and better every day? You should be familiar with Video Conferencing. Now,  have a look at this video (Youtube, 1:00) to have an idea of what a Telepresence meeting looks like. I know, that’s not the best video on Telepresence out there, but its short…

Obviously you'd think that in this age and time, Video Conferencing over IP is the Best (or) the Only option. But don't count Video Conferencing over ISDN Out - Yet! In this post, let us look at the advantages of both Video Conferencing over ISDN (and) Video Conferencing over IP Networks.

IP Network Cameras have their advantages over CCTV Surveillance, but I had overlooked this one! Can you imagine what all you can do with a Surveillance Camera that has an 35x-36x Optical zoom? These IP Surveillance Cameras make a lot of interesting applications possible!

By now, you should be familiar with the advantages of IP Video Surveillance over Analog/DVR Video Surveillance. Basically, IP Video Surveillance uses IP Cameras / Management Software to capture, transmit and view video surveillance footage over the computer network and even across the Internet. One of the biggest advantages of IP Networks is the ability to use wireless medium to transmit information, including video. So, in this post let us have a look at some of the main advantages and disadvantages of wireless IP Surveillance Cameras.

Day-Night IP Surveillance Cameras are quite common today and can display images based on reflection from near-infrared spectrum. There are even Thermal IP Surveillance cameras that can display images using reflected heat (thermal radiation), in total darkness. So if you want to monitor your warehouse at night, you can do it with IP Surveillance Cameras!