The size of the recording is mainly determined by its bit rate. The higher the bit rate, the better image and audio quality, and the bigger the file size. Vice versa.

Estimate Storage Time with Online Calculator

A fast and convenient way to estimate recording duration using the Reolink Storage Calculator.

Refer to: https://reolink.com/lp/storage-calculator/ 

Estimate Storage Time with Manual Calculation

A detailed method to calculate recording duration based on bitrate and hard drive size.

Note:

  1. The table below shows how long the Reolink NVR can record 24/7 under different Bit-Rate and HDD capacities. The bitrates of the main and sub-streams can be freely combined, so the table below only lists the bitrates of the main stream for reference.
  2. Calculating storage time, we need to consider both the bitrate of the main stream and the sub-stream.
  3. If it is a camera with dual lenses, the wide-angle lens and the tracking lens, along with their respective main and sub-streams, need to be included in the calculation.
  4. Motion-based recording makes more efficient use of storage, resulting in longer retention time than 24/7 recording.
Bit-Rate/kbps Total Recordings Channels Maximum Video Length for 2 TB HDD/days Maximum Video Length for 3 TB HDD/days Maximum Video Length for 4 TB HDD/days Maximum Video Length for 6 TB HDD/days Maximum Video Length for 8 TB HDD/days Maximum Video Length for 12 TB HDD/days
4096 1 48 72 97 145 194 291
4 12 18 24 36 48 73
8 5 9 12 17 24 36
16 3 4 6 9 12 18
6144 1 32 48 65 97 129 194
4 8 12 16 24 32 48
8 4 6 8 12 16 24
16 2 3 4 6 8 12
8192 1 24 36 48 72 97 145
4 6 8 12 18 24 36
8 3 4 6 9 12 18
16 1.5 2 3 4.5 6 9

 

The following sections demonstrate how to calculate recording duration for both single-lens and dual-lens cameras. Choose the camera type that matches your device to perform the appropriate calculation.

  • Single-Lens Camera Recording Time

    Assuming the hard drive is 3 TB, the bitrate of the main stream is 6144 kbps and the bitrate of the sub-stream is 512 kbps, and then using a camera to simultaneously record both the main stream and the sub-stream.

    1. Formula

    Recording Duration (hours)=Storage Capacity (TB)×8×1,048,576Bitrate (kbps)×3600

    2. Variable Explanation

    • Storage Capacity (TB): The hard drive capacity, in terabytes (TB).
    • Bitrate (kbps): The bitrate of the video file, in kilobits per second (kbps).
    • 1 TB = 1024 GB
    • 1 GB = 1024 MB
    • 1 MB = 1024 KB
    • 1 KB = 8 kb
    • 1 hour = 3600 seconds

    3. Calculation Steps

    1. Convert the storage capacity to bits: 3 TB=3×1024×1024×1024×8 kbit

    3 TB=3×1024×1024×1024×8 kbit 3 TB=25,769,803,776 kbit

    3 TB=25,769,803,776 kbit

    2. Calculate the recording duration using the formula: Recording Duration=25,769,803,776(6144+512)×3600

    3. Simplify the calculation: Recording Duration=25,769,803,7766656×3600

    Recording Duration≈1014.28 hour

    Conclusion

    So, using the camera to simultaneously record both the main stream and the sub-stream, it can store recordings for approximately 42 days.

  • Dual-Lens Camera Recording Time

    If your camera is a dual lens camera, let's take Reolink TrackMix PoE camera as an example.

    To calculate the storage time for the TrackMix PoE camera, we need to consider the bitrates of both lenses' main and sub-streams. Assuming the hard drive capacity is 3TB, here are the detailed calculation steps:

    1. Convert the storage capacity to bits:

    3 TB=3×1024×1024×1024×8 kbit

    3 TB=3×1024×1024×1024×8 kbit 3 TB=25,769,803,776 kbit

    3 TB=25,769,803,776 kbit

    2. Calculate the total bitrate:

    Wide-angle lens main stream bitrate by default: 6144 kbps
    Wide-angle lens sub-stream bitrate by default: 1024 kbps
    Tracking lens main stream bitrate by default: 4096 kbps
    Tracking lens sub-stream bitrate by default: 1024 kbps

    Total Bitrate=6144+1024+4096+1024=12288 kbps

    3. Use the formula to calculate the recording duration:

    Recording Duration=25,769,803,776 kbit12288 kbps×3600 s/h

    4. Simplify the calculation:

    Recording Duration=25,769,803,77644,236,800

    Recording Duration≈582.22 hour

    Conclusion

    The TrackMix PoE camera can store approximately 24 days of video recording on a 3TB hard drive.

With accurate bitrate input, you can easily estimate storage time and optimize your recording strategy for your Reolink NVR. To expand your NVR’s storage capacity, refer to How to Expand the Capacity of Reolink NVRs for more details.