10 reasons for cloud backup – part II.

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Do you want to know more about advantages of connecting a security camera to the cloud? Let’s continue.
(Missed the part one? Read it here.)

6. THE LOWEST TOTAL COST OF OWNERSHIP (TCO) 

When comparing the cost of any two options (cloud vs. NVRs), one must look at all the costs involved, even the ones that are not so apparent. Below we’ve listed all possible costs you should be aware of:

• Hardware – The cost of the NVR
• Maintenance – The cost for upgrades, expedited service, license renewals, training, and security audits and inspections
• Installation – You’ll have to consider the cost of installation, wiring, power, configuration, and training
• IT department’s time/cost to implement installation – This includes product evaluations, vendor selection, setting up network security configurations, collecting and drafting documentation, and finding rack space, power, and a network. This all combined with the loss of working hours, which could be better spent on critical tasks.
• Scaling the business – The cost related to the operational inefficiencies and ongoing labor associated with having different systems, often found in organizations experiencing quick growth or those which have multiple branches or offices (see “Scaling and Flexibility” below).
• Capital Cost for redundant / protected storage – RAID Storage option on NVR or external storage arrays
• Cost due to electricity consumption – The power consumption of an NVR will vary greatly and a lot depends on the number of HDDs installed. A typical 16 channel NVR will consume anywhere from 30 to 250 watts (per what?). At $0.10 per kWh, this equates to an annual cost of anywhere from $26.00 to $219.00.
• Risk / Cost associated with theft floods and fire – What is the cost of time spent trying to recover your lost video(s)? Will this missing footage cause a loss in revenue? Will this hurt your company’s goodwill or brand?
• Physically protecting the NVR – This may include the acquisition of a secure location, door locks, card access to storage room, lock box, etc.
• Productivity cost associated with NVR downtime – Lost productivity associated with NVR failures, updates, license renewals and general maintenance. There may also need to be overtime paid to employees that manage these interruptions.
• Annual NVR software upgrades – IT Department’s time for doing security due diligence, coordinating activities, upgrading software, and implementing security procedures, patches and documentation. This also includes the maintenance fees paid to the security integrator.
• Replacement – You may need to eventually replace your NVRs when they fail or become obsolete. This includes the time needed to re-evaluate business needs, make a proper product selection, acquire RFPs, and the costs of the new NVRs themselves.
• Acquiring capital – Cost associated with obtaining capital, including interest on a loan or leasing fees.
• Saving video clips – Cost associated with safely securing selected video clips and sharing them, including the time needed to save & download, establish security protocols to maintain the chain of evidence, and for protected storage.

When all that is considered, using a cloud service, such as Angelcam, brings down the overall TCO.

7. SIMPLE PREDICTABLE BUDGET 

Sometimes it is difficult to make a TCO calculation (see above), and with evolving technology and ever-changing business needs and regulations, many simply want to lower the risk of their video surveillance investment and have a more predictable and scalable solution.

Angelcam Cloud recording is subscription based and therefore, eliminates much of the cost associated with servers, installation, maintenance and software licenses. It also does away with the cost of IT personnel constantly maintaining server security, software updates, license renewals, infrastructure, and data protection. Cloud-based recording eliminates all of these costs and therefore allows for simpler budgeting.

In addition, cloud-based recording offers the most scalable storage solution possible. With Angelcam, there is no constraint on the amount of data coming from a camera. As long as you have adequate upload speeds, you can send the highest quality streams for recording and no longer need to worry if you will exceed your storage capacity.

8. SCALABLE & FLEXIBLE SOLUTION FOR YOUR GROWING BUSINESS 

Growing businesses, especially those that expand to different locations, need to consider the lifetime cost of scaling. For example, if you were to purchase an NVR one year and then the following year add the same surveillance at other locations, those new cameras may not be compatible with the new locations. On the other hand, if you were to purchase different camera brands for multiple locations, those new cameras may not be compatible with each other or your previous ones.

Even if the brand you choose can accommodate these new locations, consider that NVRs are constantly being updated and discontinued. So the cost of scaling will likely include the cost associated with managing different hardware, ongoing network security, software licenses, training, and installations.

In contrast, recording to the cloud with Angelcam not only eliminates all of these costs, but also provides operational efficiencies, a single interface for all users, and, best of all, a future-proof solution that will forever evolve and improve without wasting your organization’s time.

9. HIGHLY SECURE

It is understandable why some people are concerned with the security of videos in the cloud, but cloud companies are aware of the dangers of the internet, and they invest heavily to insure data is not compromised and that their users are protected from viruses and malware. Angelcam utilizes Amazon’s S3 cloud, so our customers receive the security benefits of this leading cloud provider.

When one considers all aspects of cloud security they may discover that cloud recording is the safer and more cost-effective solution.

10. FALSE ALARM REDUCTION WITH VIDEO VERIFICATION 

Did you know that 99% of alarms are false alarms? Video Verification is a feature that aims to reduce the number of false reports, by verifying the existence of an emergency before alerting the authorities. This is accomplished by sending a video to the user and central monitoring station when an alarm is triggered. This ultimately results is a much faster response time and avoids fines associated with false alarms, which exist in some municipalities.

Traditional video verification solutions are proprietary and only work with certain cameras. Additionally, there are indirect expenses related to the integration of these alarms to the central monitoring stations. The result is generally an expensive solution, which many times does not match the needs of the user.

Launching soon in the US, Angelcam’s Video verification product will feature all the benefits of our cloud architecture, including working with most cameras and not requiring expensive integration with CMS software. This will help pave the way for a more cost-effective and flexible video verification solution.

When you consider just these 10 reasons, it’s easy to see why more and more businesses and individuals are connecting to the cloud every day and taking advantage of all the benefits that come with that. If you have any further questions, about cloud solutions or the compatibility of your camera with the cloud, please contact our support team at any time, as they’ll be happy to help you.

Mike Farnan
Vice President of Sales at Angelcam

Mike is an experienced industry expert, who has spent years in the Security Camera division of Philips and Bosch, where he was responsible for Product Management, Sales, and Partner Relations. He also co-founded App-Tech Corporation, a security integration company, where he spent the past 10 years before joining Angelcam. Mike is always excited to “talk shop”, so if you ever wish to discuss industry challenges or your company’s cloud future, feel free to get in touch.

10 reasons for cloud backup

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Ever wondered why there is such a fuss about the cloud these days? How someone can possibly trust in something that’s intangible and send a stream from their IP camera there? Well, you might be surprised, but there is actually “something” about it. Read our expert Mike’s comparison of cloud and DVR/NVRs that are commonly used, mainly because of habit.

The advantages of the cloud in a nutshell:

1. Protection against hard drive failures

DVR/NVR‘s record video on hard drives that will eventually fail and many times these failures are discovered right when you need the video.
DVRs/NVRs can provide an extra level of protection by utilizing redundant storage space but this adds significant cost. In addition, these systems require more rack space, generate more noise, heat and consume more electricity.

2. Long retention time

DVRs and NVRs have limited storage capacity. Inevitably, as more cameras are added and higher resolution cameras employed, the overall retention time of the NVR is reduced. In other cases, you might simply want one, two or more years of storage from just a few cameras to protect yourself against fraudulent claims, product recalls or for any number of other reasons.
With cloud recording, you have the most flexible and scalable storage solution. Simply select the retention time needed for each camera and know that it is safely stored in the cloud.

3. Protection against fire & theft

The most obvious reason for cloud recording is to ensure that video evidence won’t be lost or stolen. However DVRs/NVRs can easily be stolen, fires and floods can destroy them.

4. Compliance

Some industries are regulating security. The cannabis industry is one example. Each state that has legalized marijuana has included specifications for security and ensures compliance with state inspections. Since the loss of video evidence is not tolerated in this industry, many states have direct or indirect requirements for off-site backup storage.
With cloud recording, the video is stored in real-time at an offsite location. Therefore if there is a theft, fire or flood, the video is safe.

5. Easy access & sharing

People today are always on the move and for them to remain productive and responsive, they need easy and immediate access to their video – no matter where they are. Once an important piece of video is discovered, it will then need to be shared with others. Traditional NVR systems can do all of this, but they require a connection back to the NVR system.
To make sure these remote connections are secure, your IT department or security vendor needs time and diligence to do things properly. This may include firewall, router and NVR configurations along with software installations, PC configurations, and training. In addition, each connection back to the NVR will consume bandwidth and rob performance from the NVR, so if you have multiple remote connections you may experience a slow and unresponsive system.

In contrast, with cloud-based storage systems, the video resides in a cloud, so many users can simultaneously access the live or recorded video stream without any performance degradation.

For instance, if you have a camera with build in Angelcam ready firmware, it’s safely connected to Angelcam cloud by using an encrypted channel. So it’s only you who can remotely view and store a video from it. The magic is in no port forwarding, no exposure a stream of your camera to the public internet. Angelcam stores videos in Amazon S3, the industry’s most-trusted service. Everything happens through HTTPS to protecting your data and privacy.

In addition, sharing video clips couldn’t be easier. Once a video clip is saved, all one needs to do is enter the email addresses of the individuals that you want to share the video with. These users will get a link (no downloads necessary) and be able to play the video from any device with any internet connection.

Wondering what other five reasons might be? The hint is that they are related to cost and business issues. Read about them here.

And don’t forget to visit our website www.angelcam.com to see how we can help connect your camera to the cloud.

Mike Farnan
Vice President of Sales at Angelcam

Mike is an experienced industry expert, who has spent years in the Security Camera division of Philips and Bosch, where he was responsible for Product Management, Sales, and Partner Relations. He also co-founded App-Tech Corporation, a security integration company, where he spent the past 10 years before joining Angelcam. Mike is always excited to “talk shop”, so if you ever wish to discuss industry challenges or your company’s cloud future, feel free to get in touch.