Hi, I will be purchasing a CCTV camera soon, but I want to know whether these specifications are good enough for a decent quality camera with good night vision. The night vision is the most important part for me and its general quality.

30 LED lights
Pickup Device: 1/3 CMOS Image
System: PAL / NTSC
Horizontal Definition: 380 lines
Scan Frequency: PAL 50HZ /NTSC 60HZ
Minimum Illumination: 0 LUX
Sensitivity: +18DB-AGL ON-OFF
Daytime (Colour) / Infrared Night (B/W)

In particular, I would like to know what the difference is and how big the difference is between CMOS and CCD, or is it the same thing? Also, how big is the difference between 380 lines and 420 lines? One more thing is that this camera has 30 LED lights... would this be enough to view at night about 15 - 20 metres ahead? The more LED lights, the further the camera can see at night?

Thanks a lot for your help.

[ZippyCat]

I wouldn’t touch a CMOS CCTV camera with a barge pole; they’re useless. You should also take the manufacturer’s specifications with a pinch of salt; they are often meaningless as there are no benchmarks for testing. IMO the only time you should part with your money is if you are purchasing a professional branded camera, the models often purchased by Joe public are a false economy. I know this may not be what you wanted to hear, but you would be squandering your money on any CMOS camera. Your best bet would be to aim for a 480 line + CCD day/night camera, which for a domestic installation would reasonably cost £150 - £200, although these are still short of a decent mid to high-end commercial camera.

Luckily yesterday, I went ahead and paid the extra amount for a CCD camera 480 lines, so thanks for the advice.

[JagoPlasma]

good choice on the ccd front, cmos struggles at the best of times but is hopeless at night.

id of recommended a watec with atleast 0.003 lux (unless you can get a good illuminator)
You should keep the IR illuminator seperate as ones built into the camera tend to be rubbish
Also try to use a glass lense if you can afford it for night time as it helps alot!

[ajm007]

kev which camera did you get and what is it like?

its a CCD camera with about 30 LED lights. One of those that looks a bit like a hair dryer

[ajm007]

Do you have a model number for it?