The Specialist 2.0
2MP Vari-Focal Dedicated License Plate Recognition Camera
Usually ships the same business day if ordered before 2PM EST.
![](/images/diy-or-install3.png)
No Problem
Whether you plan to DIY install or want us to do it for you, we're as flexible as you need.
Get a Custom Quote for Equipment or Installation
The Specialist is a long range, white light, bullet camera with a LPR software built into it. This camera, when paired with one of our supported NVRs can detect license plates, take snapshots of the plate, and transcribe the plates using optical character recognition. This allows you to easily see plates, search for plate numbers, create lists, and more! Check our videos and info below. The Specialist is specifically designed for license plate operations, for general surveillance check out the similar Archer 2.0 model.
Resolution
![1080p HD](/images/1080hd.png)
1080P @ 60 FPS; 1920 × 1080
Detect: up to 450 ft
Recognize: up to 350 ft
Identify: up to 300 ft
Processing Power and Compression: Not All 1080P
Cameras are Created Equal
Weather
![weatherproof](/images/wizard/outdoor.png)
IP67
Full protection from dust, rain, snow, dew, frost, and sprinklers.
You can
even submerge it for a few minutes.
Temp
![temperature rating](/images/wizard/temperature.png)
Extreme Cold Temperature rated from -40°F to 140 °F
Humidity rated between 10 and 95%.
Lens
![varifocal lens](/images/wizard/archer-v2-angle-of-view.png)
Long Range Motorized Varifocal: 4.7- 47mm
58.9° - 5.7° of coverage
Digital
Zoom and Optical Zoom
Fixed vs Varifocal Lenses
Day/Night
![night footage](/images/wizard/night.png)
White Light up to 150FT (No IR)
Larger image sensor for low light
Color video possible until 0.001 lux
Special
![special features](/images/wizard/gears.png)
NDAA Compliant
License Plate Recognition Capabilities
Alarm Input and Output
Audio Input and Output
Audio Input/Output FAQ
60FPS Ultrasmooth Video
True WDR (up to 120 dB)
Sample Photos taken by the Archer 2.0 v1 model, which features similar optics. Note: these images are for reference only - we don't recommend the Specialist for most general surveillance operations. The maximum license plate range when the Specialist is zoomed in fully is ~150FT. Press ESC key to close.
4.7mm at 1080P - the widest angle (65 degrees) |
10 FT | 20 FT | 50 FT | 75 FT | 100 FT |
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47mm at 1080P - fully zoomed in, smallest angle of view (9 degrees) |
50 FT | 100 FT | 150 FT | 200 FT | 250 FT | 300 FT | 350 FT |
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![detection](/images/lens-distance/detect.png)
Detect someone up to 450 feet
"Detecting" a face means being able to tell that a human face is in the picture.
![recognize](/images/lens-distance/recognize.png)
Recognize someone up to 350 feet
"Recognizing" a face refers to being able to say "I have seen that person before" - even if you don't know or can't place who it is.
![identify](/images/lens-distance/identify.png)
Identify someone up to 300 feet
"Identification" refers to being able to make out identifiable marks with enough certainty to make a sketch or claim.
What makes the Specialist 2.0 Unique:
![LPR Capability](/images/icons/2022-blue/lpr-specialist.png)
License Plate Recognition (LPR) Capability
This camera supports License Plate Recognition (LPR)
This camera when combined with a supported SCW NVR can automatically detect and log license plates.
Plate Search - Search for plates by day of the week / time or search for specific plate numbers.
List Management - Create and import license plate lists, create alerts of events when certain plates are detected. You can even let white listed plates into a third party gate using the alarm relays.
Up to 150FT - The Specialist's powerful zoom allows you to read plates up to 150FT feet away.
White Light - The Specialist has a built in white light up to 150FT away, allowing it to illuminate plates.
No Fees - There are no additional fees to use the LP operations with a supported SCW NVR! Check the specs tab to see supported NVRs.
To learn more about the feature set - check out the videos in the video section above.
License plates require specific parameters to accurately and reliably detect plates - please follow our Specialist 2.0 Guide.
![Wide Dynamic Range](/images/icons/2022-blue/wdr.png)
Wide Dynamic Range (WDR)
This IP camera has Wide Dynamic Range.
Wide Dynamic Range splits each frame/image into many boxes and it scans for in inaccuracies and adds the right amount exposure to create a balanced and high resolution video shot. Very useful when recording in situations where there can be a large difference in light levels.
![low light image sensor](/images/icons/2022-blue/low-light-sensor.png)
Larger Image Sensor for Superior Low Light Performance
This camera has a 0.37 inch image sensor, which is larger than most competing products. (The industry typically uses 0.33 inch image sensors.)
A larger image sensor allows more light to be absorbed, allowing the camera to take color photos as it gets darker, (a lower lux rating). Lux is the measurement of light in an atmosphere. Twilight is about 3.4 lux. A full moon is somewhere between 0.05 and 0.36 lux, depending on cloud cover. A moonless night is somewhere around 0.001 to 0.002 depending on cloud cover. Adding lighting like flood lights, night lights, or streetlights will increase lux in your area.
This camera can take a color photo all the way down to 0.02 lux (much of the industry can only take a color photo at 1 lux), but that may require some adjustments to your shutter settings...
Lux is a complicated subjective measurement, so please read our knowledge base article on why why lux ratings are useless for brand A to Brand B comparisons, but great for comparisons within a brand..
![bitrate](/images/icons/2022-blue/bitrate.png)
Bitrate - 1080P
At 1080P and 30 FPS, while recording at H.265, this camera should use 3 Mbps of the NVR's bitrate budget. (With H.264, it should use 7Mbps).
Did you know: The processor in an NVR has both an incoming and outgoing bitrate. Incoming is for recording video and outgoing is for watching it remotely. All of our NVRs have at least 5Mbps per channel in incoming bitrate, and many models can have extra bitrate. Your NVR's spare incoming bitrate is what determines if it can record channels at higher-than-1080P resolution, use specialty panoramic cameras, or many other things (see individual NVR models).
![audio in and out](/images/icons/2022-blue/audio-in-out.png)
Audio In / Outs
This camera has both an input and output for a microphone and speaker.
To connect an external speaker and microphone, just twist the speaker wire / microphone wire together in the same way that you connect speaker wire for a stereo. There are four wires in total; two for each connection, a sound channel and a grounding wire. The wires are labeled.
![micro-sd card](/images/icons/2022-blue/micro-sd.png)
MicroSD Card Slot
This camera supports MicroSD for onboard storage.
MicroSD cards allow for storage on a standalone camera or for backup. Backup footage is a good idea for cameras that are on the network, not plugged in directly to an NVR, especially any cameras operated over wireless links.
SCW recommends high endurance MicroSD cards. MicroSD card is not included. For maximum supported size card, check the specs tab.
MicroSD cards are a less reliable form of storage than NVRs and we do not recommend they be used as a substitute for an NVR.
![weatherproof rating](/images/icons/2022-blue/weatherproof.png)
Weatherproof Housing
This camera has a Weatherproof Housing.
It has been rated at IP67 which means that International Electrotechnical Commission’s (IEC) international standard 60529 has rated this camera housing as having full protection from dust and safe from water damage up to powerful jets of water and immersion up to 1 meter up to 30 minutes.
This camera can be safely used outdoors.
Attention: The IP67 rating covers the camera's housing not the cable. Don't ever submerge cables. Please follow our RJ45 Waterproofing Guide for weatherizing your cable connections.
![Motion Detection, Continuous, and Event Recording Modes](/images/icons/2022-blue/clock.png)
Motion Detection, Continuous, and Event Recording Modes
You can record your SCW cameras continuously, via motion, or even via VCA (video content analysis) events like intrusion detection.
You can create individual schedules for each camera, including hours for motion recording mode, hours for continuous recording mode, hours for event recording mode, or even hours when that camera is off completely.
![Commercial-Grade Aluminum Molding](/images/icons/2022-blue/aluminium.png)
Commercial-Grade Aluminum Molding
This camera is commercial-grade and is made of cast aluminum and ceramic molding, instead of the typical plastic molding common in the industry.
This product has passed vibration tests, can withstand an electrical surge up to 6,000 volts, and the casing will prevent intrusion of both dust and water into the internal component space. The screws and mounting hardware are made of stainless steel that has passed SUS410 salt spray anti-corrosion testing. We use automotive-grade LEDs and anti-reflection glass (which means better infrared results). In short, this camera is going to hold up over time.
Admiral Line Camera Features:
![plug and play](/images/icons/2022-blue/plug-and-play.png)
Plug & Play with Admiral & Imperial NVRs
This camera will plug and play with our Admiral and Imperial line of NVRs.
Please note that our camera models with model numbers in the 26xxx format record in the new, more efficient H.265 compression codex and are intended to work with our Imperial and Admiral NVRs.
![email alerts on motion](/images/icons/2022-blue/email-alerts.png)
Get Alerted when there's Motion
With this camera and an SCW Admiral or Imperial NVR, you can send Snapshot Email Alerts.
You can set up your recorder to email a series of pictures to you when motion is detected by one of your SCW cameras (or if one of our other VCA events is observed). You can choose specific dates and times for these alerts to be active and other times for these alerts to be ignored. Some Snapshot email options are based upon your current recording mode.
![Motion Detection, Continuous, and Event Recording Modes](/images/icons/2022-blue/clock.png)
Customizable Motion Detection Recording
With this camera and an SCW Admiral or Imperial NVR, you have video analytics-based motion detection.
Motion detection can also be used to send you email alerts when motion is detected or to record when recording on motion events. You can modify the sensitivity level so that more or less movement is required for the motion detection to trigger. You can create inclusion areas (places where you care if there is motion) and define the rest as exclusion areas (places where you don't care if there is motion). So, for example, you could create a motion based alert to notify you if someone was in your yard, but ignore them if they were on the sidewalk or in the street.
![](https://www.getscw.com/pub/media/wysiwyg/1259580_Graphics17_121721_1.png)
No Recording Delay; See What Happened before Motion was Detected
Many consumer-grade cameras use PIR sensors to trigger a camera to turn on when something gets close enough to the sensor. This is a bad design as there's a slight delay (0.5-3 seconds) that can cause the camera to not record what happened. Our cameras not only don't have a recording delay but allow you to record up to 30 seconds before the motion.
Don't miss out on important motion events: go back in time, before the event, to understand why it happened.
![Cloud Firmware Update](/images/icons/2022-blue/cloud-firmware.png)
1 Click Firmware Update
Tired of chasing down firmware from the manufacturer, downloading the firmware, uploading the firmware to the device, and then restarting the device? Don't bother!
This device checks for firmware and then downloads and installs it, itself, with one click.
![3 year warranty](/images/icons/2022-blue/warranty.png)
3-Year Warranty
This camera has an industry leading 3-year warranty. This camera can also be upgraded to a 5-year warranty.
![Anti Reflective Glass](/images/icons/2022-blue/anti-reflective-glass-min.png)
Anti-Reflective Glass
This camera has Anti-Reflective Glass.
Anti-Reflective Glass allows better light transmission vs standard glass. Standard glass cameras often come with a foam ring around the lens to prevent infrared light from bouncing back off the glass and entering the lens. This bounce-back can cause extreme differences in infrared lighting, which makes some items too bright and others too washed out if the ring is loose, ripped, or removed. Anti-Reflective Glass prevents this issue. Also, people have a tendency to accidentally destroy, damage, throw away or lose these foam rings. Anti-Reflective Glass reduces maintenance and user error.
![Auto Grade LEDs](/images/icons/2022-blue/auto-grade-led.png)
Auto Grade LEDs
This camera has Auto Grade LEDs.
Many IP cameras include low-quality infrared bulbs that fail over time. This camera has Automotive Grade LEDs, and you should expect the same sort of longevity from them as the headlights in your car.
![Headlight Compensation](/images/icons/2022-blue/headlight-compensation.png)
Headlight Compensation
This camera has Headlight Compensation.
Vehicle headlights directly into the camera lens can render many cameras useless. Headlight compensation reduces glare and overexposure due to car headlights.
At SCW, we try not to use the misleading term "License Plate Camera." The term "License plate cameras" is used rather flippantly by the security camera industry, has no real definition as a term, and can sometimes mean simply the presence of HLC; be careful with companies offering a simple solution to a very complex task of capturing license plates.
For more info, please read our knowledge base article on What they don't tell you about License Plate Cameras.
![Automatic Defog](/images/icons/2022-blue/defog.png)
See through Fog with Automatic Defog
This camera has Automatic Defog.
Our automatic defog feature allows you to cut through fog, air pollution, and other atmospheric haze.
![Adjustable Shutter Speed](/images/icons/2022-blue/shutter-speed.png)
Adjustable Shutter Speed for Customizable Performance in Low Light
This camera has an Adjustable Shutter Speed in a range between 1/30s to 1/100,000 of a second.
The shutter in a camera controls how long the camera takes to take a picture, but faster doesn't mean better. The faster that a camera shutter opens and closes, the more likely that you will get a clear, blur-free image. The longer that the shutter is open, the more light you let in and the better your image will be in low light. Shutters that are open for an extremely long time allow you to take color pictures at night/twilight without having to switch to infrared mode, but can result in motion blur.
There's no one-size fits all approach to shutter speed, so we give you full control (and free tech support) to set it up the best way possible.
![Extended Transmission: 750 Foot POE](/images/icons/2022-blue/extended-transmission.png)
Extended Transmission: 750 Foot POE
This Camera has SCW EasyConnect2.0 which allows it to plug and play with SCW Cameras up to 750 feet away!
Normally, ethernet cable has a limit of ~300 feet. After that you start getting data packet collision (your video data gets all mixed up and hard to figure out the order of the data). With this SCW Admiral NVR and any of the SCW Admiral Line Cameras, you can extend that distance up to 750 feet. This feature requires both our cameras and NVR to work together.
When plugging a camera into a normal POE switch or POE injector, the normal ~300 foot limits will still apply. SCWEasyConnect 2.0 only available on SCW NVRs and some SCW POE Switches.
Note: When extended transmission is enabled, data flow from the camera must be under 10Mbps.
![H.265 Recording](/images/icons/2022-blue/h265.png)
H.265 Recording
This device can record in H.265
H.265, also known as High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) or MPEG-H Part 2, is the video compression standard which replaces H.264. HEVC was a collaboration by many parties including Apple, Microsoft, Cisco, Dolby, and the Moving Picture Experts Group. In comparison to H.264, H.265 offers about double the data compression ratio at the same level of video quality, which means both substantially improved video quality at the same bitrate and lower storage requirements.
H.265 saves hard drive space and increases the quality of an image by splitting the screen into a grid and only updating the sections that changed from the previous frame. This focuses nearly all of the processing power of the camera on the areas of the screen with activity. The image quality differences of H.265 is most noticeable in situations such as attempting to watch your camera remotely if your internet upload speed is slow.
You can also record in H.264 if you need backwards compatibility.
![ONVIF Conformant](/images/icons/2022-blue/onvif.png)
ONVIF Conformant
This device is ONVIF Conformant.
ONVIF is an open industry standard encoding language for the interface of IP-based physical security products.
![Power over Ethernet](/images/icons/2022-blue/poe.png)
POE (Power over Ethernet)
This camera can be powered via an ethernet cable.
POE allows a Cat5 cable to both carry data and power, making it so that you only have to run one cable. You will need either a POE injector, a POE switch or one of our NVRs with built-in SCWEasyConnect POE to power a camera via ethernet.
**There is an optional wall plug adapter on most of our camera models. This wall plug adapter is only used by clients who cannot run POE cables.
![UL Listed](/images/icons/2022-blue/ul.png)
UL Listed and FCC Certified
This product is UL Listed and FCC certified
UL is a safety consulting and certification company headquartered in Northbrook, Illinois, and provides safety-related certification, validation, testing, inspection, and auditing of SCW products.
The Federal Communications Commission has certified that the electromagnetic interference from the device is under limits approved by the FCC.
American-Based Technical Support after the sale. For FREE. Forever.
Real review from Larry, who had this to say:
The most important part of a purchase like this is the support for technical assistance when there is a question or when there is a problem, and they always exceed expectations!
All of our equipment comes with Free Technical Support that is US based (Our Warehouse and Staff are located in Asheville, NC). We're happy to help you via chat, email, screen share / remote support sessions, and phones. Our number is 866-414-2553 and we're open from 9-7 M-F (EST).
![scw support included](/images/features/scw-team-2018-550.jpg)
The Specialist 2.0 26BV2M-WL-LP Specs
Specifications |
26BV2M-WL-LP
|
Image Sensor
|
1/2.8” 2 Million Pixel, Progressive Scan CMOS
|
Processor Manufacturer
|
NDAA Compliant M-Star
|
VCA / Smart Features
|
License Plate Capture
|
Min. Illumination
|
0.001lux (F1.6, AGC On)
0 lux with IR on |
Shutter
|
Auto/Manual, 1/25 to 1/100,000 second
|
Lens
|
4.7~47mm,AF automatic focusing and motorized zoom lens
58.9° - 5.7° Field of View |
Day & Night
|
White Light Only (NO IR CUT FILTER)
|
Digital Noise Reduction
|
2D/3D DNR
|
Wide Dynamic Range
|
True WDR @ 120dB
|
Video Compression
|
H.265, H.264
|
Camera Streams
|
Main Stream: up to 1080P (1920*1080): Max. 60 fps Sub Stream: up to 720p Max. 30 fps; Mobile Data-Sensitive Stream: up to D1 (720×576): Max. 30 fps |
Max. Image Resolution
|
1920×1080: 2 Megapixel
|
Frame Rate
|
60FPS Maximum on Mainstream
|
Image Settings
|
Saturation, brightness, contrast, sharpness, backlight compensation, region of interest, evaluative metering.
|
BLC
|
Yes, zone configurable
|
Alarm Trigger |
Plate List, Motion detection, tampering alarm, network disconnect, IP address conflict, storage exception |
Interoperability |
TBA |
Communication Interface |
1 RJ45 10M/100M Base-TX Ethernet |
Operating Conditions |
(-40°F ~ 140 °F) Humidity 10 - 95% (non-condensing) |
Audio I/O |
Bare Wire Audio Cable |
Alarm Output |
1 input; 1output - 1 relay output, withstand voltage: AC 125V/0.3A, DC 30V/1A |
Alarm Input |
2 inputs, supports level/Boolean, with max level up to DC 5V |
Power Supply |
12 V DC+25% or -10%, PoE (IEEE802.3 at) |
Power Consumption |
Max. 20W |
Weather Proof Rating |
IP67 |
Dimensions |
15.2“ x 4.96“ x 5.1” |
White Light Range |
Up to 150FT |
Weight |
4.5 Lbs |
LPR Info |
|
LPR Max Speed |
15MPH Maximum |
LPR Max Distance |
~150FT when fully zoomed in |
LPR Capability |
Detect, snapshots, logging, lists, when combined with a support SCW NVR |
Supported NVRs |
ADM8P8-V3R, ADM16P16-V3R, ADM16P16-V3R, ADMP16P16-V3R, ADMP32P16-V3R and IMP32-V2, IMP64-V2, IMP64-16S, IMP128, IMP256 |
List Info |
Supports import, export, lists can contain up to 20,000 plates. Allow and block list capability. |
Setup Info |
LPR setup must be done on camera's web interface - requires a Windows only plugin. Windows only setup. |
Most popular downloads related to The Specialist 2.0 - 26BV2M-WL-LP
![Specialist Guide](/downloads/lpguide.png)
This manual covers license plate guidelines, setup info, and operations for the Specialist 2.0
![spec sheet](/downloads/spec-sheet.png)
Spec Sheet for the Specialist 2.0
This spec sheet covers the key camera and LPR specs
![How to Bench Test Your IP Camera - a Guide](/downloads/benchtesting.png)
How to Bench Test Your IP Camera - a Guide
It is very, very important that you always bench test IP cameras before installing them. This will help you determine if you accidentally cut an ethernet cable during installation.
![The Quickstart Guide to SCW IP Cameras and NVRs](/downloads/qsg-snapshot.png)
You should get one of these in your shipment when you order, but sometimes it is nice to have a digital version.
![User Manual for SCW's Admiral line of IP Cameras](/downloads/ip-camera-manual-image.png)
User Manual for SCW's Admiral line of IP Cameras
You should get one of these in your shipment when you order, but sometimes it is nice to have a digital version.
Please see our support portal for a full list of all technical bulletins, user manuals, and software.
Installation Guides related to The Specialist 2.0 26BV2-L 26BV2M-WL-LP
For LPR setup, check our Setup Video on Youtube or Specialist 2.0 Guide
![installation safety guides](/images/installation/portal/safety.jpg)
Our products are really safe, but if you are going to drill into a wall - for any purpose - you need to stay away from your electrical lines and turn your power off.
![drilling for security cameras guide](/images/installation/portal/drill.jpg)
Learn what bits your need for Brick, Stucco, Vinyl Siding, Sheetrock, Wood, etc.
![cabling for security cameras guide](/images/installation/portal/cabling.jpg)
Learn how to run cable better than the pros. From Raceways to Conduit to Terminating RJ45 to Extending Cable Distance.
![Mounting Bullet Cameras on Walls](/images/installation/portal/wall.jpg)
Mounting Bullet Cameras on Walls
In this guide, we will be installing a bullet camera on a wall.
![Mounting Bullet Cameras on Ceilings](/images/installation/portal/bullet-ceiling.jpg)
Mounting Bullet Cameras on Ceilings
In this guide, we will be installing a bullet camera on a ceiling.
![Mounting Bullet Cameras on Soffits](/images/installation/portal/bullet-soffit.jpg)
Mounting Bullet Cameras on Soffits
In this guide, we will be installing a bullet camera on a soffit.
![Mounting Bullet Cameras with Electrical Box Mounts](/images/installation/portal/electrical-box-mount.jpg)
Using Electrical Mounting Boxes
Our electrical box mounts are used to give easy access to your connections, hide them inside the junction box, and allow you to drill a smaller hole in your wall. If you want to run EMT or FMC conduit they are necessary to run conduit straight to the camera.
![Mounting Bullet Cameras with Pole Mounts](/images/installation/portal/pole-mount.jpg)
Mounting Bullet Cameras to Pole Mounts
In this guide, we will be installing a Hornet Pro bullet camera on a pole.