We first introduced our unique megapixel recording technology in 2005 and have continued to improve it ever since. The incredible clarity provided by megapixel far surpasses that of analog NTSC/PAL cameras and is a good reason for many to try IP cameras for the first time.

Comparing Pixels

Many people today use megapixel cameras in their personal life for digital photography, while those in the security industry are just getting started with this exciting technology.

To understand the difference between  what you might see from a traditional analog camera and a newer megapixel camera we can compare the effective pixels each camera can produce as follows:

• A standard resolution NTSC analog camera with 380TVL would theoretically produce an image that is 480 X 380, or 182,400 pixels which is roughly 1/5 of a megapixel!
• A high resolution NTSC analog camera with 520TVL would be considered 480 X 520 which is equal to roughly 249,600 pixels of around 1/3 of a megapixel.
• A 2 megapixel camera produces an image which is 1600 X 1200 pixels for an equivalent of 1.920,000 pixels or roughly 2mp.

If we zoom into a comparison of the uncompressed images it would look something like this: 

Standard Resolution NTSC Camera (380 TVL)	High Resolution NTSC Camera (520 TVL)	2 Megapixel Camera Image
See an expanded example by clicking here.

 Using Megapixel Today

All it takes to get started using megapixel technology today is a megapixel camera and a recorder that is able to capture the true clarity and detail provided by this new technology.

If you are holding off on using megapixel because you:

• Are not ready to move 100% to a full IP camera solution.
• Don’t want to lose current investment in analog cameras.
• Are concerned about the large size of megapixel video.

You might be surprised to know that integrating megapixel into your existing camera solution is actually quite simple and affordabe, without losing your current investment in cameras if you have the proper DVR.

Vigil DVR’s from 3xLOGIC provide:

• Full hybrid recording allowing analog cameras, standard IP cameras, and megapixel IP cameras to all be recorded on the same system without any additional hardware.
• Provides recompression of the megapixel images using our AZTECH codec resulting in files which are 1/10 the size of normal megapixel video with out visual loss in quality.

Advantages of a Hybrid Solution

Typical NVR software (software that records only IP cameras) has a significant drawback since most manufacturers require you to add expensive and clunky video encoder boxes (servers) to convert your analog cameras into IP cameras so the NVR can record them.

With a hybrid system, the video encoders are conveniently built into the box, providing a cleaner, more affordable solution. This allows you to record your existing analog cameras at the highest resolution and frame rate possible.

A hybrid system will also allow you to make a staged deployment of IP cameras as you see fit, as prices come down, and as technology improves without any loss of investment.

Making Megapixel Affordable

The single biggest drawback of megapixel technology today is the size of the video files. Most megapixel cameras provide their best images using compression based on the JPG standard which are quite large. Even cameras utilizing the newer MPEG4 or H.264 technologies still require extreme amounts of storage in order to save the video for any length of time.

3xLOGIL has spent the better part of the last ten years developing a compression codec (AZTECH) which was designed specifically for surveillance video, and as a result provides significantly better peformance both in quality preservation and reduction in video size by up to a factor of ten.

The following chart compares the size of AZTECH compressed megapixel video to the video files produced by an IQeye camera itself.