A USB webcam is a camera that connects to a computer, usually through plugging it in to a USB port on the machine. IP camera connects directly to your network вroadband router in the conventional wired way using CAT-5 cable (RJ-45) or some models also have a wireless connection too. This type of webcam does not need a computer to connect to the Internet as it has all the electronics needed for this built in. This makes the camera very reliable as there is no PC involved or separate operating system, just its own embedded program which is usually Linux based. IP cameras are commonly used for surveillance but unlike analog CCTV cameras, they require no local recording device, only a local area network.

Most IP cameras are webcams, but the term IP camera or netcam usually applies only to those that can be directly accessed over a network connection, usually used for surveillance. Some IP cameras require support of a central network video recorder (NVR) to handle the recording, video and alarm management. Others are able to operate in a decentralized manner with no NVR needed, as the camera is able to record directly to any local or remote storage media.