18 Channel CCTV Power Supply Port Box, Distributed Output DC 10A 12V Power Supply,for CCTV DVR Security System and Cameras, UL Listed

Great to have if you have tons of cameras, etc. Was not hard to set up and get it going. So far it has worked well and I haven't had any issues.

This is a pretty run-of-the-mill take on a standard CCTV power distribution box. Boxes like this are used when you need to supply 12V to a number of remote devices, like CCTV cameras, security systems or other low-voltage industrial systems. They are important because a 10A or higher power supply has a large potential to supply energy to remote devices, so a wiring fault that causes a short circuit could be catastrophic without protection.These boxes are made by many different manufacturers, and they can be broadly grouped into two types. One uses traditional cylindrical fuses, where a fault actually ruins the fuse and it needs to be replaced to make that channel operate properly again. The other uses a special type of resettable fuse called a PTC, where basically a thermal element heats up and breaks the connection if a short occurs. That's what this box is - if a short circuit condition occurs, the channel will go back to working again once the fault is resolved.The fuses on this board are rated for 1.1A, which is a pretty good amount per channel. The main power supply is rated for 10A, which is distributed across the channels. So you have a power budget to spend; the sum total can't exceed 10A, and no individual channel can exceed 1A at most (the manual rates each one at 0.55A, which is the total power divided 18 ways.)I have two complaints about this box. The first is that the knockout configuration that allows wires to go in and out is more limited than some others I've used. There are only two knockouts on the right and three on the top, but none on the left. They also don't come with protective rubber grommets to prevent wires from being damaged by the sharp metal edges, so you'll need to source and install your own.The other complaint is that the internal AC-DC power supply is pretty entry level quality. I don't see visible safety certifications on it, and looking through the top of the casing, the internal circuitry is about half as complex as a top tier brand like Mean Well would be. It's also wired to the main board by two low-gauge wires instead of one thicker one, which is an odd choice.I think this is an okay choice and don't have any concerns about using it, but I will probably pick a different brand in the future. If I was putting this in a mission critical environment, I'd consider swapping out the provided power supply for a name brand, keeping the PTC distribution board and metal casing; 12V/10A supplies are a pretty standard part and it should be straightforward to mount a different brand in the same location.