Understanding The Difference Between Consumer Grade
And Professional Grade & Law Enforcement Grade Investigative Gear

"The Difference In Grade Is Much Like The Difference
Between A Hotdog And A Great Steak Dinner!" - By Ralph Thomas

It's important for professionals to understand that there is a huge difference between professional grade gear and consumer grade gear so you know and understand what it is you are buying. The devil is always in the details and it's important for you to look at the specifications of each piece of gear you obtain to make sure it is right for the job that you are doing. Here are some tips so you know and understand what the difference is.

A) Simply put, consumer grade equipment is manufactured for consumers who have a one time use for a certain piece of investigative gear or want home use out of a piece of investigative gear. Higher end professional and law enforcement grade gear is designed for the professional.

B) Professional grade and law enforcement grade equipment is built for extended heavy and repeated use. It tends to be more rugged and tends to not malfunction after it gets banged around a little.

C) Consumer grade equipment is designed in a manner to keep the price down as much as it can be and is generally not designed for heavy extended and heavy repeated use. Although consumer grade equipment can often be used and is designed to be used more than one time, it tends to burn out over repeated heavy use and can not take the banging around that professional grade equipment can take. Generally speaking, it is not as rugged as professional grade and law enforcement grade equipment and it's life of use will not be as long.

D) There is often a huge and wide gap between the specifications between professional and law enforcement grade equipment and consumer grade equipment. It's important to pay attention to the details in the resolution ratings, lux ratings, options and features and battery consumption capacity.

E) Professional And law enforcement equipment tends to have features and options that you can use with various adjustments that are just not present on consumer grade equipment. This can have a huge impact on end results that your clients or the court sees. Consumer grade equipment is generally just not designed with high end results in mind and in our opinion, needs to be kept out of court rooms and legal presentations.

F) Professional And law enforcement grade equipment is often upgradable when it comes to it's firmware. As technology and features improve, you can sometimes upgrade the software and firmware that runs your gear. With consumer grade gear, you just throw it away and buy the upgrades with a new feature.

G) Professional and law enforcement grade equipment usually comes with a warranty and can usually be repaired. Consumer grade equipment is made in a manner in which it is sold for price and if it breaks down, you just throw it away and obtain a new one. It stands to reason that professional grade equipment is going to cost you more up front but it's been proven time and time again that in the long run you are going to save a lot of dollars when starting out with professional grade gear since the lower end gear will just not last as long and professional grade gear and is generally not firmware upgradable.

H) When it comes to innovation, we believe LawMate Brand sets that standard when it comes to professional and law enforcement grade equipment. What generally happens is LawMate invents a new product and within a year there is a cheaper knock-off or look-a like in the market place. This is just a general business cycle that happens to everything. LawMate was the first with a professional and law enforcement grade button camera, professional grade pocket DVR that powers cameras, Stealth Cell Phone, key chain video recorder , Eyeglass/Sunglass camera that wasn't so funky looking, wide dynamic range high definition button camera, the first Law Enforcement Grade CamStick, the first high grade cell phone detectors, and the first high grade keychain audio recorder. All of LawMate brand inventions tend to get knocked off in consumer grade models that are of course cheaper but it's important for the buyer to know and understand the difference when it comes to various grades of equipment.

I) It's important to note that if you are on a limited budget and top quality is not your primary concern when it comes to investigative gear, there is nothing wrong with using consumer grade equipment even sometimes for professional use as long as you know and you understand exactly what it is you are buying. We know that as your profession moves forward, you will step up to a professional grade of gear once you use some of it. Because of this, we do carry some non-LawMate brand consumer grade equipment for those just starting out and/or are on a limited budget.

"As Long As You Know The Difference Is As Clear As Night And Day Or
Like The Difference Between A Hot Dog For Dinner And A Great Steak Dinner,
You Are Fine. Just Make Sure You Know What You Are Getting Before You Buy!"

Here is an example of comparing a consumer grade covert video camera system and a professional grade camera system. We urge you to look closely at the difference between the two models so you will understand the difference.

Consumer Grade Invisible Secrets PhoneCam DVR
Although this is a great piece of quality consumer grade gear, it's consumer grade.