Security Cameras

CCTV is the use of security cameras to transmit video to a recording unit, usually connected to a monitor for viewing. Security cameras can be used for your home or business as a general deterrent for intruders, to reduce crime, as surveillance for health and safety issues or to provide accepted evidence in the case of litigation.

Our customer service includes an emergency after hours service which operates 24 / 7 all year round. All of our systems carry a twelve month warranty and we offer cost effective maintenance agreements, once this period has expired, so you can keep your system fully functional. Every CCTV System will be installed to the Irish standards, PSA 2006:12.

The most common systems used to be analogue systems, however the most popular systems are now High Definition and IP systems. Cameras on this system can be set to record continuously, or only on detection of motion or both.

Recordings are stored on an internal hard disk drive on the Digital Video Recorder (DVR), or Network Video Recorder (NVR on IP Systems). You can then search back and access footage with a few clicks of a computer mouse, identify important events and save them onto DVD’s or USB drives (memory sticks).

More advanced CCTV systems can work alongside motion sensors to detect intruders, alert a remote monitoring station and contact keyholders and the Gardai. All systems now provide the facility to view remotely from a computer or your phone.

Security Systems pay for themselves!

Most retailers see crime reduced by nearly 90% on the introduction of CCTV
Point of Sale monitoring, link your till to your CCTV system
5% shrinkage per business is the acceptable industry average. This means that if your business has a turnover of €1,000,000 per year, you are losing €50,000 from your profits every year
Hall Alarms can provide a system for a fraction of this cost, which means it will pay for itself in the first year and continue to reduce shrinkage every year thereafter, adding pure profit back to your bottom line

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Tribrid System – Futureproof by Combining Turbo HD, IP and Analogue

The Hikvision Turbo HD DVR offers simultaneous connections to Turbo HD, IP and analogue cameras, auto-detecting the incoming signal and recording accordingly. This means that existing systems can be upgraded simply by replacing the current cameras and DVR while new areas may be covered with the addition of IP network cameras.

Turbo HD CCTV

Standard Analogue CCTV users can now enjoy HD resolution without having to change their existing RG59 Video cabling infrastructure with Hikvision’s launch of its Turbo HD Analogue solution. This revolutionary technology supports latency-free (no picture “delay”) 1080P High Definition up-to 500 metres of coaxial cable and offers seamless compatibility with traditional cameras, and IP cameras.

The Hikvision Turbo HD product family consists of a comprehensive range of Hikvision DVRs (digital video recorder) and 1080P cameras, including Bullet, Dome, PTZ Dome, Turret, Vari-focal, Vandalproof and Low-Light units. This system is ideally suited to upgrading existing standard analogue definition systems at low cost. It retains the ease-of-use of an analogue system while offering up to 1080P High definition video output.

A customer can upgrade their system in parts, as budget becomes available. First we recommend upgrading the recording unit and then as budget is available, the cameras can be done. As this system can work with your existing old technology cameras and the new HD cameras together, you are not forced into changing all the cameras together. DVR are available in various sizes, 4, 8, 16 and 32 channel.

High definition IP CCTV – Better quality pictures

As technology has advanced, so has the quality of security camera systems. High definition systems are now the most common in new installations. IP CCTV uses megapixel technology. These systems record in much greater detail, giving better image quality for the customer on live footage and especially on playback. You can also zoom in on recorded footage, meaning you need less cameras to cover bigger areas. IP systems also provide better facial recognition, as the information is recorded in higher detail enabling better zoom in on detail. Pictures from a 3 megapixel camera will be over four times the quality of the best analogue camera.

Wired Vs. Wireless Connection

There are two main types of connections for CCTV cameras to the monitor or recording device, they consist of either a fixed cable or a wireless connection.

Fixed Cable Connection

Fixed cable connection means that your camera will be physically connected to your monitor or recording device via a co-axial cable, most of the time they are similar to your normal home TV cables.

Wireless Connection

Most wireless CCTV cameras use the 5.8 Gigahertz frequencies to transmit their video images to a monitor or DVR (digital video recorder). Usually, frequencies can be slightly changed to have more than one group of cameras in a specific space. Wireless CCTV cameras used at this frequency can easily transmit through most walls and obstacles; however each individual location will have its own operating limits. Most wireless CCTV cameras can send data up to a range of about 5 KM, however many will more likely work well when transmitting less than 150 feet. (A clear line of sight transmission will always be required).

Obviously a wireless connection allows you greater freedom to place your CCTV camera almost anywhere. While wireless CCTV cameras transmit their video images to a digital video recorder or monitor. All of these types of cameras must be connected to an electrical outlet. There is however some CCTV cameras that are battery operated.

Types of CCTV Cameras

All our CCTV Installations are installed and maintained to current regulations. (P.S.A. 2006-12)

There are many types of CCTV cameras, they can be categorized by the types of images they are able to capture, the amount of frames they can take per minute, the type of connection to the monitor or video recording device, whether they are able to move position, and special functions they can provide.

Types of Images: CCTV cameras generally take colour video images. In addition, all of our CCTV cameras will have night vision capabilities which allow a CCTV camera to view and record low light images using special technology. IP cameras are becoming more and more popular as their price decreases, as they can have mega-pixel super-sharp clarity and can be connected to a standard CAT5 or CAT6 network, most have POE (Power Over Ethernet) capabilities, meaning the cable from the camera can also carry power to the camera. This reduced the installation cost as no power supply units are needed.

Frames per Second: Frames per second means the amounts of full frames that a video camera captures and sends to a recording device or monitor per second. While most CCTV camera systems are easily able to capture 30 or more frames per second (25 fps is considered real time), the amount of digital storage would be enormous to record every moment of everyday. For most installations, speeds of 2 to 12 frames per second are more than enough to catch and record a perpetrator committing a crime.

Pan Tilt Zoom (PTZ) Cameras: These types of CCTV cameras allow a person controlling the surveillance of an area to move the camera remotely, usually with a radio or wired controller. Most moveable cameras allow the person monitoring it to move the camera from right to left (pan), up and down (tilt) and from a tight angle to a wide angle (zoom in & out).

Cameras with Special Accessories: Certain CCTV cameras have special functions which are made for specialty uses. For instance, there are extremely small surveillance cameras that are used for covert observation (Nanny Cams). There are cameras that are made for night viewing, cameras that are vandal resistant and cameras that are specifically made for indoor or outdoor uses.

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