Dome vs Conventional

[chewingyu 0]

I am not sure if the title is correct. If not, can moderator make the change so that others can benefit.

 

Now, back to the question:

 

I am sometimes torn between speeddome cameras and those little conventional cameras housed in dome enclosure. I mean, which is better or when should one use either one? What would be the factors for consideration?

[VST_Man 1]

requirement + install location = camera

[chewingyu 0]

thanks but please elaborate.

[rory 0]

Speed Dome, or PTZ, will cost much more than a fixed Dome, and you have moving parts so facture that into it also.

 

If there is noone to man the PTZ then it would have to be on a tour, without some fixed cameras, you would more than likely miss incidents.

 

If you can afford it, use fixed domes, or any fixed camera, then add PTZ only if you need it, or can afford it, and if you dont have any way to man the PTZ, then dont even bother with it, spend the money elsewhere like more HDD space or better power regulation.

 

Rory

[baywatch 1]

PTZ cameras have their uses and can be quite effective when controlled by contacts or sensors to zoom in on doors or gates etc.

As Rory states they are best when manned but they can be effective in slowly touring large areas if its not easy to put in multiple cameras.

Usually it is more effective & cheaper to put in more fixed cameras that have the advantage of not looking the other way as an incident occurs.

[chewingyu 0]

Yes, I know the advantage of having PTZ over fixed or still cameras. What I wanted to know was when does one choose a Speed dome over a conventional PTZ housed in dome enclosure. I mean, speed dome is definitely more expensive and I believe any fault would would require changing the entire speed dome. This is costly!!

 

So, what is the wisdom in choosing speed dome over normal PTZ cameras?

[chewingyu 0]

Wait a minute...is speed dome the same as those small cameras housed in dome enclosure??

I am confused.....help!

[rory 0]

Speed dome is a PTZ .. just a name the chinese call it

 

Basically there are Fixed Dome Cameras, and then there are Pan Tilt Zoom Dome cameras. Some cheap versions of Domes exist where they zoom digitally but have a movable pan, these are PT only, and are typically OEM or found in places like kmart, etc. however even some of the big brands have a version of this also, such as GE Security, but they also have a large line of real PTZs.

 

Dome enclosures for PTZ cameras will be larger due to the movement of the camera within the dome enclosure, while Fixed cameras can fit in smaller dome enclosures, and if they just have a fixed lens, not a varifocal lens, then they can fit in even smaller enclosures.

[AVCONSULTING 0]

Most PTZ dome cameras these day are speed domes. Pelco, Sensormatic,

Vicon, Samsung, Panasonic, Bosch, etc are all classed as speed domes.

 

Perhaps you are thinking about the old days when you would buy a Videolarm empty dome and then put in a standard PTZ but that is hardly done anymore.

 

So if you are getting an integrated PTZ system then you will be getting a speed dome type setup.

[chewingyu 0]

Ohhhh, so they are all basically the same.....

 

Dome = speed dome = ptz cam in dome enclosure ?

[cctv_down_under 0]

That is correct Chew!

In fact the old style is exactly the same, the simple fact is you have to control left, right up and down and zoom in and zoom out, previously you bought a motor that did the movement of the camera and then you put your camera on it and mounted a zooming lens that was also controlled in the same mannor, there were few joysticks and you had a button for each control and a BLOODY wire for each option.

 

Nowadays they build it into one unit and they usually use a voltage variance to drive the motor of the pan tilt head and the lens etc etc, some even do it up the coaxial cable Coaxatron and Bilinx spring to mind.

 

You do still see the old style cams sometimes these days as you may need a PTZ to look upwards (airports etc) and then you revert back to the old style.

 

Simply put, by the time you buy a zoom lens (and focus it) and a pan and tilt head as well as a controller and an enviromental enclosure it would have been cheaper to buy a speed dome as a kit!

[baywatch 1]

An advantage of the speed dome over conventional ptz is also that people cannot see which way it is looking, unlike the older ptz setups.