DVR Resolution-Makes no sense to me...

[nifter53 0]

I purchased a 520TVL camera (811X508 pixel) and also purchased a 4port DVR card that supports 640x480 from my supplier.

 

Being confused about the whole resolution thing, I asked them if the DVR card would only display/record at a resolution of 480, not 520.

 

They said that no cards or stand alones on the market can support a resolution of 520TVL (811X508 pixel) or higher.

 

So the question is. If you can't view or record any higher than 480, then why buy a camera that has a resolution of 520, 580, 600 etc?

 

This all seems so simple, but yet so damn confusing...

[SambaNoodles 0]

Believe me, you are not alone in being confused about this issue. The CCTV industry is notorious for confusing customers and in many cases, outright lying to customers about the capability of their products.

 

You really need to read this thread as it will answer most of your questions:

 

http://www.cctvforum.com/about10415.html&highlight=

[Thomasy 0]

The resolution of camera is for the quality of image what you need to surveillance.

 

420TVL--- you could see the things but not clear, I mean, not clear for small matter.

 

540TVL---- it is much clearer when seeing the same thing by comparing with 420 TVL.

 

The resolution of camera is very important for level of security surveillance.

(The higher level of security you want, the better resolution is required)

 

As for DVR/ DVR Card, their display resolution is quite different with the resolution of camera. To some extent, they link together for security surveillance, both are important.

However, the resolution of DVR is related to display on the monitor. The better resolution of DVR, the less requirement to monitor's size.

 

For example, DVR resolution 1024 x 800, then it is quite good when displaying on 7' or 12 inch monitor. However, if it is 705 x 288, it is very bad when displaying on 19 inch monitor. Above all, both of them are good while displaying at small size of picture(frame).

[tesc_cctvpro 0]

Your supplier would be correct.

 

The ultimate displayed resolution would depend on the entire system. Camera, DVR and Display Unit.

 

At this point 4CIF is about the highest capacity DVR, and only until very recently have we started to see HD capable monitors outside the professional CCTV arena.

 

If you are purchasing anything above 480TVL for use with DIY or consumer grade hardware, you are likely wasting your money.

 

I am confident that when placing a 480TVL and 580TVL camera alongside one another on your DVR you will see no perceivable difference between the two - because the system will max out at 480TVL - if you are even getting true 480TVL.

[cctv_down_under 0]

520 TVL was ony brought out to hype up the market, the human eye will see very little difference between 480TVL and 520TVL - In fact the human eye takes more notice of Height than width - its just how we work - the standard resolution for aanalogue differs based on what country you are in IE what video standard - for example in Australia we use 768x576 PAL - but in USA they use NTSC standard with a different resolution - the confusing bit is that a DVR with an analogue capture card (generally) can at best only capture the full standard IE best a PAL Analogue can ever do is 2 Fields integrated into one frame and a size of 768 x 576 - however - with IP cameras the playing feild has changed somewhat - we are now talking about a digital signal and are able to do whatever resolution the IP camera supports (within reason) MP IP Cameras are only fairly new to the market.

 

The reason your device only records at 640x480 is becasue this is a good fit between the two most popular standards...IE no need to manufacture chips that do NTSC but cant do PAL etc and also is due to the original limitation of the PCI Bus speed - becasue this resolution can be cropped it often can suffer Frame Interlacing issues in that lines can be seen in the recording of fast moving objects - a lot of manufacorers have fixed this with Software Interlacing though