Channel vs Port

[Nformer]

Can someone help me understand channels vs ports. Are they the same thing?

When looking at some NVRs such as this one NVR5232-16P-4KS2E from @EMPIRETECANDY and I got confused. It is listed as a 16/32 channel

I looked on the specification from the manufacturer. I understand there are two models but both models only have 16 ports. Am I missing something?

 

[alastairstevenson]

Can someone help me understand channels vs ports. Are they the same thing?

Yes and no.
To explain -
Channels are the logical slots used to connect to IP cameras. The number is the maximum number of cameras that can be connected to the NVR, by design.
Ports are usually physical PoE ports located on the NVR itself, into which cameras can be plugged. The quantity of this is always equal to or less than the number of channels the NVR is designed to handle.

As an example - a 16-channel NVR with 8 PoE ports allows you to mix and match the camera cabling between a combination of connecting to the 8 ports on the NVR and cameras located on the LAN somewhere based on the physical topology of the location where the cameras are installed.

 

[mat200]

Note: some cameras have multiple lenses - for example the dual lens starlight mini-dome starlight, which is effectively 2 cameras in one camera body. Thus for that one dual camera you would need 2 channels.