Most video surveillance systems we all know and use today are based on a technology called CCTV. CCTV, or Closed-Circuit Television, is basically a form of video cameras usage that transmits a signal – or multiple video signals – to a specific place or device. The technology is not uncommon in the world of surveillance systems, although it has been developed even further to allow additional features to be added to the solution.

There are a lot of CCTV surveillance systems from top suppliers on the market. Choosing the best one is simply a matter of understanding your needs and finding the perfect solution that fulfills those needs perfectly. The streams of surveillance videos are transmitted to a recording or monitoring server, usually a DVR recorder, and are displayed on a set of monitors.

There are a lot of additional features offered by modern CCTV surveillance systems. Aside from standard live monitoring, you can now record surveillance videos and archive them accordingly. The cameras used by most solutions are also equipped with better video processing modules, allowing high quality videos to be streamed instantly to the server.

Recording-side, different compression formats including standard DivX and H.264 are used to keep the surveillance video size low enough for optimum use of storage space. If you are getting a high quality DVR recorder as part of the surveillance system you plan on using, you can also back up surveillance videos to standard DVD discs and store them safely over an extended period of time. Since hard drives are used to store media files internally, there is no need to invest further on video tapes and other storage media.

Now that you know the basics of CCTV surveillance systems, you can go ahead and look into different solutions. Make sure you take your time and compare options before picking the best one according to your needs and preferences to enjoy maximum benefits.