Once upon a time, surveillance cameras and other such monitoring systems were reserved for the wealthy. Ordinary people would marvel at rich entertainers the likes of Elvis Presley, who would often sit in the control room of Graceland, glued to the surveillance monitors. Not only were early surveillance systems costly, they were also bulky, using large cameras with internal moving parts that needed a power source and hard wiring, along with a control center comprised of various CRT television displays. Even into the 1990s, cameras were sill above the reach of the average Joe, although they did start sprouting up in businesses such as convenience stores and banks, who couldn’t afford not to have them.
While the situation where it pertains to American manufacturing losing steam over the years and succumbing to a slew of cheap overseas factories is relatively bleak, it has one distinct upside. Never before in history have consumer electronics been so economical to purchase, and never has there been such a diverse selection of affordable electronics products within the reach of the average working American.
As a consequence of this offshore manufacturing boom, surveillance cameras and their associated parts and systems have become accessible to almost everyone. Most of these systems don’t even require installation of any kind – they are truly plug and play systems that cost in the hundreds of dollars rather than in the tens of thousands of dollars of just decades past. At this point in history, high tech surveillance systems are available to you, and you can have the tactical advantage they bring without having to be rich, a celebrity, or even Elvis, for that matter.
