Understanding Onboard Storage

Topics included in this article:

• Overview
  • Storage Capacity
  • Max Bitrate
  • Resolution
  • Motion
• Helpful Links
• Contact Support or Sales

Overview

The amount of footage a Rhombus camera can retain is influenced by several factors, including the camera's storage capacity, recording bitrate, resolution, and the amount of motion captured within its field of view. Understanding how these settings affect storage can help you estimate retention periods and optimize recording quality for your deployment. This article explains the primary factors that determine onboard video retention and where to view the relevant storage and recording information in the Rhombus Web Console.

Note: To access the information described in this article, navigate to a camera from the "Devices" page.

Storage Capacity

Rhombus cameras are available with a variety of onboard storage capacities, which are listed on our camera comparison page. The storage capacity of a specific device is displayed in the "More Details" section below the video player.

Max Bitrate

This setting limits the maximum amount of data the camera can store and upload per second. To comply with this limit, the camera automatically reduces image quality to decrease the size of the recorded footage. For more information, see our article on Camera & Image Settings.

Resolution

Resolution refers to the amount of detail a camera can capture and is measured in pixels. It also determines the total number of pixels in the recorded footage. Higher resolutions capture more detail, allowing images to remain sharp when viewed at larger sizes or when digitally zoomed. Because higher-resolution footage contains more pixels, it also requires more storage space.

Motion

Camera footage is encoded using the H.264 codec, which compresses video based on the amount of motion between frames. As a result, footage containing more motion generally requires more storage after compression than footage with little or no movement.

Storage usage depends on the camera's configuration and the amount of motion within its field of view, which can make it difficult to estimate how many days of footage a camera can retain. Cameras monitoring frequent movement, such as people or vehicles, consume storage more quickly than cameras observing relatively static scenes. As motion increases, the amount of retained footage decreases.

Note: To access motion statistics, hover over the ellipsis menu in the upper-right corner of the video player, click "Layers," then select "Stats for Nerds."

Helpful Links

• Camera & Image Settings
• Clone Camera Settings
• Device Settings and Information

Contact Support or Sales

Have more questions? Contact Rhombus Support at +1 (877) 746-6797 option 2 or support@rhombus.com.

Interested in learning more? Contact Rhombus Sales at +1 (877) 746-6797 option 1 or sales@rhombus.com.