Guides
DVR and NVR: which recorder your system needs
A DVR records analogue cameras over coaxial cable. An NVR records IP cameras over network cable and usually supplies their power too. DVRs are cheaper for small systems with short runs; NVRs give higher resolution, simpler cabling and easier expansion on larger premises.
Cabling is the real difference
A DVR needs coax for video plus a separate power run to each camera. An NVR needs one network cable per camera, carrying both. On a long run or a big building that single-cable advantage adds up fast.
Resolution ceiling
Modern analogue systems reach 5MP and are perfectly good. IP systems go further and handle multiple high-resolution streams more gracefully. For four cameras in a shop the difference rarely justifies the cost.
Expansion
Adding a camera to an NVR is a cable run and a port. Adding to a DVR means a coax run and a power run. If you expect to grow, IP is cheaper across the life of the system.
Hybrid recorders
A hybrid takes both, which is the sensible route when you have working analogue cameras and want to add IP coverage on the entrance without replacing everything.
What is the difference between a DVR and an NVR?
Can I use my old coax cable for new cameras?
Often yes. Modern analogue-over-coax cameras reach 5MP on existing cable, which can save a full rewire. We test the existing runs before recommending it, because old cable is not always in the condition people assume.
Which is more reliable?
Both are reliable when installed properly. Failures come from cheap power supplies, poor cable joints and unventilated recorder positions far more often than from the recorder type.
Need this doing?
IP cameras use network cable instead of coaxial, carry power over the same cable, and give higher resolution than analogue systems. They suit larger premises, longer cable runs and anyone who may add cameras later. A four-channel IP system starts around PKR 95,000 installed.
IP camera installation — what it costsRelated pages
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