• Channels: buy for the cameras you'll have in two years, not today. Most DVRs also take IP cameras on top of their coax channels.
• Resolution tier: HQHI records up to 3K/5MP Lite. HUHI handles full 5MP. HTHI records true 8MP on every channel.
• Drive bays: these decide how long you keep footage, not the channel count. 8MP footage is about four times the data of 1080p.
• PoC (power over coax): /P and /PXT models power the cameras down the same coax, so there's no separate power cable. Needs Hikvision PoC cameras.
• AcuSense or not: iDS models tell people and vehicles apart. Plain DS models don't.

Why is a modern DVR worth a look?

On AcuSense (iDS) models, the smart detection runs in the recorder, not the camera. Your existing analogue cameras gain people and vehicle detection without being replaced. If your alerts have become noise, changing the recorder alone often fixes it.

Which cameras go with it?

A DVR records Hikvision HD analogue cameras over coax. IP cameras need an NVR instead. Before you order, check:

• Both recorder and cameras are PoC, if you want power down the same coax.
• The camera resolution matches the recorder tier. An 8MP camera on an HQHI recorder gets scaled down.

Send us your camera list and we'll confirm it fits.

Where can I learn more?

The model letters decide what a recorder can do, and they aren't obvious. Our Hikvision DVR buying guide explains HQHI, HUHI and HTHI, PoC cabling and storage. It also covers two traps: HUHI recorders record full 8MP on channel 1 only, and on the four-bay models perimeter analytics run on fixed channel numbers, not any channel you choose.

All recorders here come without hard drives. See our surveillance hard drives and size them with the CCTV storage calculator.

Moving from coax to IP? See our NVR range, IP cameras and NVR buying guide.