Note: we have now replaced the Sharp DVD-based system with a Swann, which is more portable and has better cameras with more powerful IR illuminators.

We have finally succumbed to getting one of these things. Part of the reason for the delay was that the standard approach to a paranormal investigation these days (as defined by the TAPS team and others) is to base everything around the deployment of Infra Red cameras - lots of them - then to hit record and "go dark" for the investigation. We have not entirely bought into that as a valid procedure.

The problems with it are:

• It takes a lot of time to set up and to take down afterwards; the more cameras, the longer it takes. That's not to mention troubleshooting time.
• It requires people to monitor the system all the time during an investigation.
• There's a lot of reviewing necessary afterwards, which mainly involves looking at multiple screens of nothing happening for hours on end.
• What has anyone ever recorded on one of these systems that even comes close to rewarding the time spent on the above? Very little - mostly just a bunch of dust orbs & vague shadows.
• That paranormal activity is somehow more visible under IR illumination is an assumption only, at this point.

We do not employ the DVR system on every investigation, and we certainly don't base our investigative procedure around it. It comes out when there's a defined target area to investigate and record.

Nevertheless, a DVR system is a useful tool and good to have available. So far, it has proved itself useful in eliminating non-paranormal causes for things, such as verifying that no uninvited person entered the investigation site when we weren't looking.