Editorial Guidelines

1. Label a standard as a standard and a convention as a convention

The EN 62676-4 DORI thresholds, the IEEE 802.3 power classes, the ANSI/TIA-568 cable limits and lens geometry are published standards. "One camera per entry point", typical bitrate for a resolution, and a fourteen to thirty day retention target are industry conventions. Every page states which it is resting on, because a convention presented as a standard is a false claim.

2. Return nothing rather than invent a figure

Every calculator on this site is built to say "not computable" instead of showing a zero, and every table renders an unpublished value as an explicit refusal. If a manufacturer does not state a camera's infrared range or its low light performance, that is what the page says. A reader planning a camera position around a plausible invented number is the worst thing this site could cause.

3. Never claim testing we did not do

We do not test products in person. Recommendations come from published specifications, the applicable standards, and verified owner reports, and every roundup says so plainly.

4. Exclude products that fail on the merits

Copper clad aluminium cable is outside the wiring standards for powered runs. A switch with a sixty watt budget cannot run eight infrared cameras. A relabelled recorder carrying another manufacturer's model number has no support path. A network camera whose maker does not ship firmware updates is a liability on a home network. All of those are excluded, and the reasons are recorded in the catalog source.

5. Say who should not buy something

Every build guide names who it is wrong for, and every roundup has an honest account of where each pick runs out. Credibility comes from talking people down, and a recommendation that never says no is an advertisement.

6. Treat law and privacy as accuracy, not as boilerplate

Audio recording is legally different from video, cameras pointed at a neighbour or into a private space are a real problem, and a cloud camera means somebody else holds footage of your home. Those belong in the guidance where a reader will act on them, not in a disclaimer nobody reads. We speak in terms of the categories of rule that exist and tell readers to check their own jurisdiction, because this is not legal advice and the law varies.

Corrections

If a number here is wrong, tell us and it gets fixed. Numerical corrections are the most valuable thing anyone can send this site.