We turn a smartphone into a surveillance camera

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We turn a smartphone into a surveillance camera

If you have a sufficiently old and unnecessary smartphone at home, then do not rush to throw it away. It is possible he will gain a new life. For example, such a device can be turned into a full-fledged surveillance camera. The result is an advanced IP camera through which it is comfortable to watch what is happening in the apartment when you are at work or on a trip.

Why you need a smartphone with video surveillance function
Life is unpredictable, so you need to be prepared for any of its turns. And sometimes situations arise when a hidden camera could seriously help. Just for this, we suggest making a remote IP camera from a smartphone:

• Cooking food. The user is in the living room and cannot follow the cooking process in the kitchen;
• Baby monitor function. You urgently need to leave, and the baby remains at home alone;
• Security. A great way to protect your home from intruders during their absence;
• Covert surveillance of people.

Of course, some may find it much easier to buy a surveillance camera. But in this case, you will have to pay a really substantial amount, because such devices are definitely not cheap. But when using an ordinary smartphone, there will be no financial loss at all. And this is an indisputable advantage of this method - the wonderful transformation of one gadget into another.

What do we need
Of course, you need a smartphone with Android or iOS. It can be of any year of release. The brand does not play a role either. The main thing is that the phone should at least turn on. Now we need to use special programs that are easily downloaded through the built-in digital stores. With their help, a direct broadcast of sound and pictures is carried out directly from the camera of the smartphone itself to any third-party device. If desired, the resulting video can be saved in the cloud service for later viewing the footage.

Another important feature of these applications is the ability to track any movement near the camera. To do this, notifications are used to warn the user about such situations.

The setting is as follows:

1. Install the program on the smartphone from which you plan to monitor, as well as on the device that will receive the video signal;
2. Both devices must be tied to a single account;
3. Turn on the observation mode on the smartphone;
4. At any time, we connect to the smartphone’s camera through the second device.

What difficulties exist
It is worth noting that this method of "transformation" has its own "side effects". So, no one can guarantee that the transmitted signal will be stable and high quality. In this case, the smartphone is able to hang corny, which will lead to a temporary break or a complete loss of signal. If the phone is not connected to an electrical outlet, it will quickly discharge. Therefore, it is highly desirable to find electricity near the place of placement of the gadget or connect a portable battery.

Motion sensors do not always work correctly, which can limit the available functionality. As for the quality of the transmitted signal, it largely depends on the state of wireless networks, as well as on the load on the server. Does all this scare you? Then you can safely create a video surveillance camera with your own hands!



The best applications for transforming a smartphone into an IP camera

Alfred
Alfred is a simple and universal program that will make a real video surveillance camera out of your phone. The application has a pleasant and concise interface, as well as intuitive controls. If necessary, there is the opportunity to open access to observation for your friends. Even if the application cannot boast of the function of non-stop recording of video materials, it is able to save small clips with movements in the frame.

In the paid version, you can freely choose any available image quality, as well as get additional space in the cloud storage. It is noteworthy that the user is able to rotate the picture and activate the LED flash. Monitor mode offers a number of interesting features. For example, you can remotely request information about a Wi-Fi network, battery charge level, disconnects, and so on. You can activate “night vision” when the image becomes black and white. As you can see, Alfred has quite good functionality.

Here you can find a link to the program for Android, and here - for iOS.

Manything
Manything app allows you to monitor sounds and movements with the ability to program individual functions. Thanks to this, you can make the program start recording automatically when you leave your home. This makes it possible to flexibly configure a variety of parameters using the sensors built into the smartphone.

The paid version provides the ability to connect a large number of cameras, as well as record video in the cloud storage. Unfortunately, on some devices there is a minimum delay (for 1 or 2 seconds) of signal transmission.

The link to the program for Android is here for iOS - here .

Wardencam
Many users choose WardenCam for the highest quality video signal. And we are talking about the free version, while competitors offer similar quality for a fee. All records are conveniently stored in the "clouds" on Dropbox or Google Drive. Using the built-in scheduler, you can schedule the on and off of the camera. As for the start of video recording, this happens at the moment of any movement in the frame. There is also a manual activation of the mode. The free version suffers from an abundance of advertising, but this is easily solved by purchasing the program.

Links for Android and iOS .

IP webcam
A large number of various settings against the background of similar applications allocates IP Webcam. The interface consists of a regular menu, where there are various settings. You can adjust not only the quality of the video, but also its bit rate. There is close integration with various services and utilities. Saved clips are in the device memory. Of course, a full-fledged online broadcast is also possible.

Here is a link for Android .

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