Enhanced Search, Video Quality, and Management Features Now Available on All Verkada Cameras

More actionable search experience

New motion search experience with trajectory analysis

Our latest-generation camera models have improved accuracy and reduced duplicate search results. This is made possible by using the computer vision (CV)-enabled chipset on these cameras, which allows for the use of larger and faster CV models. These models can identify the movements of people and vehicles and combine the detections over multiple frames. As a result, our latest camera models yield 50% more detections, and there is a 70% reduction in duplicate detections.

“Verkada’s motion algorithm is a step ahead of many other commercially available solutions. At our institution, we have found revenue and efficiency use cases beyond the typical security protocols because of this high level of accuracy.” - Will Clements, President & CEO, Bank of Southside Virginia 

Our user interface in Command has been significantly improved. Previously, users had to navigate to the motion tab and select a portion of the camera frame to see events with motion in that region. Then, they had to click into a video result to replay the clip.

Customers can now replay videos instantly by hovering over a search result, enabling them to quickly review the situations they are interested in. Additionally, for footage captured by the latest generation of camera models, trajectories of each detected person can be viewed in Command. The trajectory analysis feature helps to expedite the scanning of numerous search results.

Redesigned history player

We redesigned our history player to facilitate faster and more accurate investigations. Instead of defaulting to a history player timeline view that is 2-hours long, users will be directed to a more focused 10-minute timeline view that makes it easier to locate events that occurred at a specific time. Additionally, motion events are indicated by blue bars at the base of the player, with the height of which visually indicates the quantity of motion events at that time. 

Moreover, we have improved the video scrubbing experience by matching thumbnails more precisely with their associated video. Clicking on a thumbnail will now play the video exactly from the displayed point in time. 

The redesign also includes more visible and discoverable icons for frame jumping, playback speed adjustment, and zooming to review crucial details. In the multi-camera view, users can zoom in by clicking on specific cameras and navigate events and alerts within the history player.

Revamped profile page

The Profiles page has been revamped and is now known as the People of Interest page. With the new user interface, users can add tags to each Person of Interest, making them easily searchable. Notes can also be included to offer context regarding the identification of a Person of Interest. Depending on the level of detail included in the notes, they may disclose information about the individual's past conduct. Previously, it was necessary to navigate to the Alerts page and find the desired profile in order to assign an alert. However, now users have the ability to create alerts directly from a Person of Interest page, which was not previously possible.

Enhanced video quality with ensured compatibility

The process of compressing video is a crucial component in ensuring high-quality video content. This is done by partitioning video frames into smaller squares, individually compressing each square, and then transmitting the compressed video over a network. Verkada’s platform now supports H.265, a cutting-edge compression technology that offers up to twice the video quality. H.265 preserves important details such as faces and numbered license plates without consuming more bandwidth, and also improves digital zoom quality. Most importantly, Verkada's hybrid cloud solution allows us to utilize cloud transcoders for assessing compatibility and ensuring seamless video streaming, irrespective of the end user's device compatibility.

Verkada used to employ H.264, an earlier compression technology that compressed all sections of the video using a fixed number of uniformly sized squares. However, this approach did not effectively preserve the details in the video or compress areas with no motion. The only way to improve video quality with H.264 was to increase the video bitrate, which consumed more bandwidth.

In contrast, H.265 employs a more advanced approach that adjusts the number and size of compression squares based on the amount and regions of motion in the video. Inactive elements of the video, such as walls or the sky, use fewer and larger squares, resulting in less bandwidth usage. Conversely, dynamic portions of the video, such as faces or people, use more and smaller squares to retain finer details. By optimizing the number of compression squares through motion analysis and implementing sophisticated motion prediction methods, H.265 delivers higher quality video while using less bandwidth and is better suited for higher resolutions like 4K.

Until now, H.265 was only viable for NVR-based security systems because end-user devices lacked consistent support for playback. Verkada has overcome this limitation and now stands as the sole hybrid cloud security provider to transcend this gap and make H.265 available to all customers and camera models.

This remarkable feat is made possible by our hybrid cloud architecture, which combines cameras equipped with specialized encoding hardware and cloud transcoding optimized for real-time latency and performance. When Verkada cameras capture footage encoded in H.265, it is transmitted to the cloud where our cloud-transcoder intelligently determines the browser compatibility of the end-user. Based on this information, we deliver the most appropriate video coding, with H.265 being the default in most cases. If H.265 is not supported on the end-user’s device, we quickly transcode the video to H.264 with minimal latency. Whether the video is delivered in its original format or transcoded, all end-users will experience enhanced video quality on their preferred devices when reviewing the footage.

Ease of management

Streamline fleet management with camera notes

Managing a large fleet of cameras in enterprise-scale deployments can be a daunting task. Keeping track of the purpose of each camera, locating the PoE cable and port that connects a specific camera to the IDF closet for maintenance, and knowing what actions to take such as cleaning the lens or changing the feed orientation can be quite challenging.  As a result, some customers have had to manually label and add notes to their cameras with sticky notes and tape.

In Command, we now offer a "Notes" section under camera information, designed specifically to simplify fleet administration. This feature allows admins to add notes indicating each camera's purpose and the necessary maintenance or troubleshooting actions.

Limit bandwidth consumption with Enterprise Bandwidth Manager

We now provide customers with more flexibility and control over their bandwidth usage, whether it's managing consumption during peak hours or prioritizing essential systems. Customers can restrict the total bandwidth consumed by all Verkada cameras at a site using the Enterprise Bandwidth Manager (EBM). 

Users can access this option through the Manage Sites Page or by clicking the site menu and selecting the "Manage Bandwidth" button. By entering the maximum upload bandwidth that Verkada cameras can consume in Command, EBM will automatically start to monitor and manage all bandwidth-consuming processes. If a process exceeds the maximum bandwidth, such as a new video stream, EBM prevents it from running until sufficient bandwidth becomes available. 

Ready to learn more? 

Starting today, customers will have access to these new features and improvements. To learn more, read through our many knowledge base articles.