What Is A DVR Capture Card Software

A DVR card looks very similar to the normal video capture card that is found in many personal computers. In terms of functioning, however, there are vast differences between the two. DVR video capture cards come with a software which can be utilized to record and display information from many cameras at the same point of time.

DVR cards are installed in computers so as to let them function as DVR systems. They are generally used in surveillance systems to monitor images and video. DVR cards process the information they receive from the source, for example, a camera. This information is then transferred to a storage device, like a hard disk.

Once installed into a computer, the DVR card becomes active after it is recognized by the computer system using DVR software. After the card is properly installed, it allows the user to capture images and videos on to the hard drive. The signals thus recorded can be viewed instantly or store it for later retrieval. In a surveillance set up, there are various video-out ports. The output from multiple cameras is fed into the card through these ports. Thus, a whole surveillance system can be created using these DVR capture cards.

The storage type, too, can be chosen according to need. DVR cards can capture images in a range of 'frames-per-second', also called fps. You have the choice to select fps from 30, 60, 120, 240, and 480. Your storage capacity is affected by your choice of fps, which directly influences the duration for which you can record. In a hard disk with around 80 GB space, you can record up to 320 hours at 30 fps. Similarly, if you have 80 GB of hard disk space, you can record up to 80 hours at 120 fps and so on.

Old DVR cards till two years back supported only a limited number of cameras, which meant that more cards had to be installed in case the number of cameras was increased. This led to frequent system crashes. Today, on the other hand, modern cards come with built-in enhanced processing power which lessens the burden on the system and drastically increases efficiency.