WatchGuard announced today that the California Highway Patrol has placed an initial order for 2,000 overhead-mounted WatchGuard DV-1s. The WatchGuard DV-1 is a digital police in-car video system that records high-resolution digital video in real time onto rewritable DVDs that play on regular DVD players. This order represents the largest single digital in-car video purchase ever made by a U.S. law enforcement agency.

Previously, the California Highway Patrol had not made any broad investments into analog (VHS tape) in-car video technology. Instead, the agency elected to wait for a digital in-car video solution that would be practical for their agency. These first 2,000 WatchGuard DVD-Video systems will be installed over the upcoming months and will include two cameras, an amplified cabin microphone, and a dual transceiver wireless microphone system.

“This new order from the California Highway Patrol is very exciting for WatchGuard Video,” explained Robert Vanman, WatchGuard’s president and C.E.O. “In addition to this CHP order, we’ve received sizable new orders from 10 other state patrols over the past few months. As a result, WatchGuard is increasing production staffing in order to accommodate the significant influx of new orders.”

The WatchGuard DV-1 is a sophisticated digital in-car video system. However, it is also one of the simplest to operate. An important feature of the WatchGuard DV-1 is its ability to protect and backup recorded video using a dual drive redundant architecture. In addition to the DVD drive, an internal hard-drive captures days of backup video providing fail-safe protection. Because the WatchGuard DV-1 is independent of a centralized server system, it can operate autonomously for extended periods of time eliminating the need for users such as CHP officers who work in remote areas to return to headquarters frequently to download video.