EnGenius launches new outdoor networking and video surveillance systems
The EnGenius EDS5110 one-megapixel day/night bullet IP surveillance camera delivers 720p resolution and up to two simultaneous video streams to reduce the number of camera installations required. It can record video using three different codecs: H.264, MPEG-4, or Motion JPEG. The camera is outfitted with infrared LEDs that enable it to capture images up to 32 feet away in complete darkness.
The camera's housing is IP55-certified to protect it from dust and water-jet incursion, so it should withstand not just rain and snow but being washed down with a hose. It's equipped with a microSD memory card slot, so it can store up to 32GB of video or JPEG images locally. An ePTZ (electronic pan/tilt/zoom) feature allows the user to digitally zoom in to capture an object or activity of interest.
The camera comes bundled with either a 2.4GHz wireless access point (EnGenius model EN8012) or a 5GHz wireless access point (EnGenius model ENS8015). Each kit comes with video management software that can support up to 16 channels of live viewing, recording, and playback. The APs and camera achieve their phenomenal range by using narrow-bandwidth channels (5- and 10MHz), versus the wide channels (20-, 40-, or 80MHz) that conventional 802.11b/g/n/ac equipment uses).
Designed primarily for corporate and school campuses, as well as hotel and resort properties, the surveillance systems don't include a cloud component. The $299 price point, however, renders them very affordable for tech-savvy consumers with the knowledge to configure their routers for remote access.
New outdoor 802.11ac access points
EnGenius also announced today a pair of new weatherized 802.11ac access point/client bridges. As with its new cameras, EnGenius's ENS1750 and ENS1200 AP/bridges are housed in IP55-certfified enclosures that protect them from dust and water jets. Each is outfitted with a gigabit ethernet port and support power over ethernet (PoE) to simplify installation in locations where power outlets are not available. Simply run CAT5 cable from a PoE-compatible router or switch or use a stand-alone power injector and enough voltage will travel along the cable to power the AP.
The EnGenius ENS1750, $500, is a dual-band model with three transmit and three receive antennas to provide up to 1300Mbps of throughput on the 5GHz frequency band and up to 450Mbps of throughput on the 2.4GHz band. The $400 EnGenius ENS1200 is also a dual-band model, but since it's a 2x2 device, it's limited to providing throughput of up to 866Mbps on the 5GHz band and 300Mbps on the 2.4GHz band.
Both APs utilize automatic band steering to detect dual-band clients and will automatically move them to the 5GHz band to reduce traffic congestion on your wireless network. And each can be configured to broadcast up to 16 SSIDs, so that users can be assigned to different virtual networks based on their network-access privileges.
As with the video-surveillance system, EnGenius's new 802.11ac access points are targeted at corporate customers, but there's nothing about them--apart from the price tags--to prevent a tech-savvy consumer from deploying them if you need that much networking power outdoors. EnGenius also offers four 802.11n outdoor APs that are much more affordable, ranging in price from $100 to $110.