New security camera can survive arctic cold, desert heat, industrial explosions, and the apocalypse (probably!)
(Image credit: SAMCON)
We love a good tough camera, but SAMCON's latest outdoor security camera takes toughness to a new level, as it's explosion proof! The intended use isn't really to capture surveillance in volatile war zones - the best spy cameras could be a better choice for that. Rather, the blast-proof ExCam IPQ1785 is meant for dust or gas explosion risk zones - chemical plants, oil refineries, power plants, mines, and many other high-risk environments where conventional surveillance cameras would be obliterated should an explosion occur.
To achieve this level of toughness, the camera is housed in a special blast-proof stainless steel housing. Wiring is also uprated to maintain integrity in extreme conditions, while extremely robust, scratch-proof and impact resistant borosilicate glass protects the camera lens. You can even option the camera with a mini wiper to keep the glass clean!
The ExCam IPQ1785 can operate in temperatures between -60 and +60 degrees Celsius, with special ceramic heaters ensuring ice doesn't build up on the camera when operating at freezing temperatures.
And it's not just robustness that sets this PTZ camera apart. Respectable camera specs include 1080p recording, 32x optical zoom, auto focus and auto aperture control, as well as night vision with automatic day/night switching. An on-board microSD slot enables video to be recorded within the camera, or it can be transmitted via the wired Ethernet connection to remote network storage. The Ethernet connection is the only cable necessary to connect to the ExCam IPQ1785, as being a PoE camera it uses Power over Ethernet technology to supply power.
With this being a camera marketed explicitly at industrial applications, you can't simply order one of these apocalypse-grade cameras from your favorite camera store. Pricing is therefore not readily available, but we have found a UK supplier offering a variant of the ExCam IPQ1785 for a cool £10,600 ($14,700 USD)!
Ben is the Imaging Labs manager, responsible for all the testing on Digital Camera World and across the entire photography portfolio at Future. Whether he's in the lab testing the sharpness of new lenses, the resolution of the latest image sensors, the zoom range of monster bridge cameras or even the latest camera phones, Ben is our go-to guy for technical insight. He's also the team's man-at-arms when it comes to camera bags, filters, memory cards, and all manner of camera accessories – his lab is a bit like the Batcave of photography! With years of experience trialling and testing kit, he's a human encyclopedia of benchmarks when it comes to recommending the best buys.
