New Online IP Camera Selector and Comparison Tool

In the physical security industry, we’re often too quick to jump to technical specifications to help us determine the right product or system for a particular deployment. Before you dive into that level of detail, it’s always a good idea to start with some basics, such as what you or your customer will be using the video for, how long you will need to store the recorded video, whether you need to capture audio as well, and so on. You’d be surprised how many projects get too far down the process before someone realizes that there’s some confusion about what’s actually needed, which simply slows the project down until those basics are clarified.

Starting with some fundamental questions was top of mind when we began planning our new IP Camera Selector and Comparison tool. Built for all visitors to our website – including prospective and existing customers and partners – we wanted to make it easier for you to quickly sort through our IP camera portfolio to find the camera or cameras most likely to fit your application.

Rather than asking if you need a 2MP or 5MP camera, or requiring you to choose from different video compressions, the IP Camera Selector starts with the basics, such as:

• Do you want to install the camera indoors or outdoors?
• Do you need a Pan-Tilt-Zoom (PTZ) capability?
• Will the camera need to work well in low light?
• Will it be installed in an area with varying lighting conditions?
• Do you also want to record audio and integrate with alarms?

Find your recommended cameras
I love the simplicity of this approach, which allows you to narrow down to the recommended cameras from our portfolio in seconds. You can use the drop downs selections provided to sort by one of the choices or all of them – making it easy to view all of our recommended outdoor IP cameras, or find the best fixed, high-definition, outdoor, box camera built for high-performance in varied and low lighting with support for alarms and audio – and in a fraction of the time it took me to key in that entire list!

Compare specifications
Once you’ve found the camera or cameras matching your basic criteria, you can use the tool’s comparison feature to get more detail and view those technical specifications we all love. The feature lets you compare specifications for as many as 5 March Networks IP cameras at one time, presented dynamically side-by-side.

Simply check the “Compare” box for the cameras you want to evaluate, and the “Compare Cameras” button will instantly appear. Click that button and you’ll immediately be served the information you need.

For added convenience, the name of each camera displayed by the tool is hyperlinked. Once you’re ready for further information on a specific camera, just click the hyperlink and you’ll land on the webpage dedicated to that camera, allowing you to do further research and download the datasheet. To reset the tool, simply click on “View All Cameras”.

We think this new IP Camera Selector and Comparison tool is a great addition to our website and hope you’ll use it often to get the IP camera information you need quickly and effortlessly.

Check the tool now and let us know what you think!