Active Deterrence is a video security alarm system. It can proactively deter intruders outside the perimeter and help prevent potential crimes with built-in features like AI-powered Smart Motion Detection SMD Plus, alarm siren, warning light, two-way audio and real-time notifications. Powered by the manufacturer awarding-winning deep learning algorithm, it provides high accuracy intrusion alarms and sends real-time event notifications. 

Now is even better with the latest 4K Active Deterrence IP Turret Camera with Red & Blue Strobe Light and Smart Illumination.

Cameras with low-lux ratings are the norm in the market. You may have seen security camera manufacturers using specifications 0.75 lux@F1.5 to show how outstanding their camera can reproduce image in low light condition. Claims of 2 lux, 1 lux, 0.75 lux and even 0 lux are not uncommon. What do these ratings really mean? What is a lux?

In a nutshell, the lux is the metric unit for measuring the amount of light that falls on an object, and is the European equivalent of the British foot-candle (or lumen). Specifically, 1 lux equals the amount of light that falls on a one-square-meter surface that is one meter away from a single candle. 10 lux equals the amount of light produced by 10 candles one meter away.

Lux ratings are widely, and unfortunately, used to define low light performance, with the lower the lux rating, the stronger low light performance. Here's what this commonly looks like on manufacturer specifications: For instance, a camera with 0.02 lux is supposedly 'better' in low light than a camera with 0.05 lux.

WDR has become more readily available in Security Cameras in the last couple of years. But you may ask, “What is True WDR (or WDR) and why do I need it?

Cameras needed light to generate an image. With too much light, the image was washed out, too little light and the image was too dark. If you had an environment with even lighting, the camera could adjust its iris opening size or its shutter speed to get the right amount of light. However, our offices and our homes have a wide range of lighting. The cameras had a tough challenge. If the camera restricted the amount of light it took in (to optimize for the bright areas) the lower light areas would be too dark. If it chose the opposite approach, optimizing for low light areas, the bright side would be washed out.

That's why the Wide Dynamic Range (WDR) technology came out for help. In a nutshell, it’s the ability to produce high quality images across a broad range of light levels. In other words, the light coming in from a window may be much more intense than the light by your coffee machine. True WDR cameras that work with a shutter speed technique and two images. The camera takes pictures of both areas and stitches them together, giving you a better-quality image. 

True WDR cameras make a big difference in environments that have varying light levels. It is important to be able to capture the image of someone’s face as they walk into a dimly lit office from the bright sunlight outdoors. A subject’s hairstyle, clothing and details around him are crucial when studying the video surveillance footage.

With higher levels of light versus lower levels, you want a high performing WDR. Unfortunately, light measurements are not standardized and it’s the discretion of each manufacturer to determine what measurement to use. The generally accepted unit to measure in surveillance is the decibel (e.g., 58dB, 113dB, etc…). The higher the number, the better. The generally accepted dB level for a camera to be considered True WDR is 120dB.