How Long do Security Cameras Last?

(00:03):

One of the most common questions we get asked is, "How long will my security cameras last?" There are two types of cameras. There's consumer-grade and there's professional-grade.

(00:12)

Consumer grade is sold through mass merchants and we know their names, Lorex, Blink, Nest, Ring, Arlo, Q-See, and Swann. Consumer-grade products mean they pick the price before they build the electronics. They know the price points that are going to sell. So they pick a price point, they make sure they got lots of margin in it, and then that dictates what electronics they put into the cameras.

(00:38)

Professional equipment's just the opposite. They calculate and design the electronics so that they'll last a long time, and give you professional performance. And then the price of the camera is based on the cost of those electronics. You got to ask yourself, "Did I buy consumer-grade security cameras or did I buy professional-grade security cameras?"

(00:58)

The next thing that's going to affect the life or longevity of it is where it's located, where it's mounted. There are some things that are going to shorten the life of a security camera as also the techniques used to install the security camera. But let's hit the whiteboard here and we'll write down a few things that hopefully it'll give you some good guidance.

(01:16)

So we've got our consumer-grade products listed here, and some professional-grade products. The thing that you can really tell about how a product is made is, first of all, is it a plastic or metal housing? Most of these are plastic. Think about what the UV light's going to do to that. A product sitting out there, baking in the sun for four or five years, really ends up looking pretty poor. Metal and professional electronics can withstand long-term UV exposure hence the warranties.

(01:46)

Look at the consumer-grade warranties. Lorex, one year. Ring, Arlo, Blink, all one year. How long can you expect those cameras to last? Legitimately if they're installed properly, two to four years.

(01:58)

Professional-grade equipment is different. We lead the industry with the longest warranty of five years. Axis, the next biggest warranty is two years.

(02:09)

Why can we do five years? Because we engineer our products. We write the specifications, we choose the electronics, and we know that they're engineered to last. If it's installed properly, there's no reason why you can't get seven to 10 years out of a Backstreet Surveillance product, or generally any professional quality camera should last just seven to 10 years. Consumer grade, get ready to buy another one in four years.