In a video surveillance setup, cameras are typically connected to the NVR or recording servers via Ethernet, coaxial or fiber cables. Yet in certain places, for example rural and remote areas, laying cables can be quite difficult. In these scenarios, cameras that can connect to cellular networks, for example 5G networks, can come in handy.
A migration to cellular networks
In video surveillance, there is an increase in demand for cellular connectivity. This is quite understandable as laying cables or setting up Wi-Fi can be challenging in certain use cases.
“While Ethernet continues to be the gold standard for providing connectivity, organizations require security coverage in areas that aren’t easy to wire. Think parking lots, construction sites, buses, and temporary festivals. Running cable to these locations can be cost-prohibitive, and in some cases, not feasible at all,” said Pete Pacent, Director of Product Management at Verkada.
This is where video surveillance can benefit from cellular connectivity, as video can be streamed over existing cellular networks instead of a wired infrastructure.
“The surveillance industry is clearly moving toward greater use of cellular connectivity, especially in applications where wired infrastructure is difficult, expensive, or impossible to deploy. Ethernet-based systems will continue to dominate large campuses and enterprise networks, but cellular-enabled cameras are increasingly becoming the preferred choice for remote, temporary, and rapidly deployable security applications,” said Aditya Khemka, MD of CP PLUS.
He adds: “At CP PLUS, we are seeing strong demand for cellular surveillance across highways, construction sites, mining operations, solar farms, agricultural land, railway projects, and critical infrastructure installations. These environments often lack reliable wired networks or Wi-Fi coverage, making cellular connectivity a highly practical alternative for remote surveillance in particular.”
Indeed, the benefits of cellular connectivity in video surveillance have triggered an increase in adoption. A recent report by Frost & Sullivan attests to that trend.
“Frost & Sullivan observes growing adoption of cellular-enabled surveillance solutions, particularly in environments where traditional network infrastructure is unavailable, difficult to deploy, or lacks the flexibility required by end users. According to Frost & Sullivan’s Frost Radar: Mobile Surveillance, 2025, demand is increasing for infrastructure-independent surveillance solutions that enable real-time situational awareness across dynamic and distributed environments,” said Mehek Mehta, Associate Consultant at Frost & Sullivan.
Mehta notes the research highlights use cases across construction sites, utilities, retail, law enforcement, and critical infrastructure, where rapid deployment and operational flexibility are essential. “This is contributing to the increasing use of cellular connectivity as part of modern surveillance architectures,” she said.
Cellular connectivity for video surveillance: 4G vs. 5G
Video surveillance can work in both 4G and 5G cellular networks. The latter, also known as fifth-generation mobile technology, offers better performance and addresses some of the challenges and limitations in 4G, which include bandwidth constraints, higher latency and network congestion issues.
Especially, bandwidth is a key concern, as bandwidth constraints in 4G may limit the transmission of high-resolution video, which is needed for certain advanced applications.
“For standard surveillance applications, 4G networks are generally sufficient where video quality is not a critical requirement. However, advanced applications such as face detection, face recognition and ANPR (automatic numeric plate recognition)/LPR (license plate recognition) require higher-quality video streams and greater bandwidth availability,” said Sumit Aggarwal, Founder of i2V Systems.
5G, on the other hand, effectively solves these challenges. It offers faster upload speeds at 50-200 Mbps compared to 5-20 Mbps under 4G. This, in addition to a much wider bandwidth, allows simultaneous transmission of multiple high-resolution video streams, even at 4K. 5G also allows lower latency and handling of dense camera networks.
“5G represents a major leap forward for the surveillance industry because it addresses many of the limitations associated with earlier cellular generations. Compared with 4G, 5G offers substantially higher throughput, lower latency, improved reliability, and the ability to support a much larger number of connected devices simultaneously. This enables smoother transmission of high-resolution video, faster alarm delivery, and more responsive AI-driven analytics,” Khemka said.
Aggarwal concurs. “The significantly higher bandwidth available with 5G enables cloud-based processing for advanced analytics applications, reducing the dependence on edge computing and supporting a greater number of high-quality video streams. Applications such as face recognition and ANPR/LPR can be deployed more effectively, with multiple cameras operating simultaneously without the limitations commonly experienced in 4G environments,” he said.
Yet it should be noted that despite 5G’s increased adoption, the conventional Ethernet- or fiber-based video security systems will not go away. “5G is not replacing fiber-based CCTV systems. For campuses, factories, airports, and commercial buildings, fiber remains the preferred option. Cellular networks provide flexibility where wired infrastructure is difficult or uneconomical,” said R. Nandakumar, Founder of ATSS.
The rise of 5G cameras
Today, many end user organizations connect their cameras to 5G via routers. But increasingly, vendors are rolling out 5G cameras, which can have direct access to 5G networks and can stream video to different destinations.
“A 5G camera operates similarly to a traditional IP camera but includes an integrated 5G modem that enables direct connection to a cellular network. Devices typically use either a physical SIM card or an embedded SIM (eSIM) for network authentication and connectivity,” Mehta said. “Once connected, video can be streamed to multiple destinations depending on the deployment model. These include cloud-based video management systems, enterprise security operations centers, network video recorders, private data centers, or edge computing platforms for local processing and analytics.”