DVR or NVR?

So what's the difference between a DVR and an NVR? They are both video recorders, right?

These 2 terms cause a lot of confusion in the security industry. DVR stands for Digital Video Recorder. These types of recorders take the analog video stream from ordinary video cameras and convert them to digital bits before saving them to a hard drive. DVR's are considerably better than analog tape recorders used in the past at searching and retrieving video.

An NVR (Network Video Recorder) on the other hand records IP cameras. In an IP camera the digital conversion takes place at the camera and the data is sent digitally over cat 5, wireless, or fiber to the NVR.

So which is better?

It depends on your application. If you need a high frame rate and the cameras are looking at a relatively small area, a DVR with analog cameras has the advantage of high frame rate at low cost. You can afford more cameras and get the coverage you need.

If you must have the highest possible video quality with the most resolution you need megapixel video cameras which are only available in the IP variety. IP cameras are also available in standard resolution but these are rapidly becoming obsolete.

Available in 1.3, 2, 3, 5 and even 10 megapixel resolution these megapixel IP cameras capture image quality many times that of regular analog cameras. Although they may cost a little more you get what you pay for; they can do the job of multiple high resolution analog cameras, providing enough resolution to allow you to digitally zoom on playback to make out fine details.

Some recorders are hybrid, accepting both older analog cameras and newer IP cameras, allowing you to update your system gradually.