Indoor and outdoor CCTV cameras

Looking for an easy-to-install surveillance camera system? ManoMano offers affordable cameras of various types (wired camera, IP camera...) and quality (camera SONY)! Discover our broad selection of HD cameras and our inexpensive complete video surveillance kits. You will find the security video camera that suits you!

To be alerted to unwanted intrusions at home, to know what's happening in your house in your absence or in the baby's room, to record the course of a break-in, there's nothing like video surveillance.

The first question to ask when buying a camera is "where am I going to place it?" Make sure the cameras are waterproof if you plan to put them outdoors.

Analog camera, IP camera, what are the differences?

Analog video surveillance systems are equipped with analog cameras whose only role is to capture images and send them to a recorder (also called "storage unit") via an analog signal. These systems consist of one or more cameras, a monitor (screen), a recorder, and wiring that allows image transfer using so-called coaxial cables. There is a wide choice of analog cameras. They are generally economical, and the images are smooth and easy to manage. Recorders nowadays are connected to the Internet to enable you to access the images at any time.

More modern, the IP camera has its own IP address and connects to your local network via an Ethernet port and increasingly via Wi-Fi, this is called a wireless IP camera.

What does the image quality of a camera depend on?

- The lens: if the technical description of a lens is rather opaque, remember that a CCD sensor offers better image quality than a CMOS sensor.

- The image definition: it's the number of pixels the camera records (often in 640x480, sometimes in 1024x768)

- The image resolution: it's the pixel density assigned to a portion of the image. Resolution is often expressed in "lines". It can be considered that beyond 600 lines, the resolution is very high for a surveillance camera.

- The minimum lighting required for the camera to record: this value is expressed in Lux. The lower the value, the better the camera is able to produce high-quality footage even in darkness. As for night vision, its effectiveness depends on the number of LEDs and their power, as well as where it is positioned (more effective indoors).

And what about sound?

An IP camera should have a microphone to be able to record sound and when this is the case, background noise should be minimal, and conversations need to be close to the camera to be intelligible. With an analog camera, you sometimes have the option to connect a microphone to the cameras (if they have a dedicated output) or to the recorder.

A few caveats regarding the use of a video surveillance system:

Your camera should only film your house or the private paths leading to it (excluding paths serving other houses), and the decision to install a camera must obtain the consent of the occupants of this house. If your camera films a public area (even a restricted one, like the sidewalk in front of your gate), you must notify the CNIL, which will then grant or deny you a prefectural authorization.