Combining live feeds from different brand IP cams in 1 software application

[TheSentinel]

Hello

I have just registered so I can ask this question. In my house, I have 2 Foscam IP camera's at the moment. I can view the livefeeds of those cameras in FoscamVMS. Thats all fine. However, in the forseeable future, I will be adding at least 2 more IP camera's. The issue I now have is the following:

I would like to not be confined to Foscam.... They work just fine, I have no complaints there, but I would like to add an outside camera which has a floodlight. For this, I was looking at the Netatmo Presence. However, I am assuming that I can not add that camera to the FoscamVMS software since it is not a Foscam IP camera. The reasons for being interested in that camera is 1. it has a floodlight, and 2. it is black. Since the location outside where this camera will hang is also black, I would prefer that over a white camera on a black background.

...Unless there is software out there that will allow me to add multiple cameras from different brands so that I have everything in 1 overview, instead of having to work with different apps. That's why I came here Does this software exist and if so, what would be the best (free) option?

Regards,
TheSentinel

 

[bp2008]

Hello.

I don't know anything about FoscamVMS, but there is a lot of camera software can connect to any IP camera that supports an RTSP stream. The prime example is Blue Iris. While it is not free, it is not terribly expensive and is well worth the money. If you want something free, you could try the free version of the Milestone VMS. It is a much bigger and more complex piece of software than Blue Iris, and its paid versions are much more expensive, but it does have a free version.

I looked up Netatmo and they do not seem to support RTSP streams, making them a poor choice if you want compatibility with third-party applications. They also do not have wired networking, making them a poor choice in general. Wifi cameras are not very reliable and especially as you install more and more of them, they will slow down your wifi network to a crawl. Trust me, you are much better off getting something that supports wired ethernet networking and RTSP streaming (ONVIF support is also a bonus).

 

[TheSentinel]

Hello.

I don't know anything about FoscamVMS, but there is a lot of camera software can connect to any IP camera that supports an RTSP stream. The prime example is Blue Iris. While it is not free, it is not terribly expensive and is well worth the money. If you want something free, you could try the free version of the Milestone VMS. It is a much bigger and more complex piece of software than Blue Iris, and its paid versions are much more expensive, but it does have a free version.

I looked up Netatmo and they do not seem to support RTSP streams, making them a poor choice if you want compatibility with third-party applications. They also do not have wired networking, making them a poor choice in general. Wifi cameras are not very reliable and especially as you install more and more of them, they will slow down your wifi network to a crawl. Trust me, you are much better off getting something that supports wired ethernet networking and RTSP streaming (ONVIF support is also a bonus).

Hi

Thank you for your reaction. Ok, so the software does exist, however, the Netatmo is not compatible with that. Check. That is correct, for the outside camera's I do not have the possibility of getting a cable there without a lot of trouble. I do realize that ethernet connection is much much better, but I do not have that option. Not for the outside camera's at least.

I have no clue what RTSP streaming is, nor do I have any idea what ONVIF support is, but I'm sure I can google that. So, it's back to the drawingboard again for those outside cams Since I live in the Netherlands, there are only a few 'major' IP cam brands that are available here, and then also some brands that 'have IP camera's in their productline, such as the mentioned Netatmo, and Ring for instance.

So, I need to look for a camera that supports RTSP streams and/or ONVIF support?

 

[bp2008]

So, I need to look for a camera that supports RTSP streams and/or ONVIF support?

Yes.

RTSP is the video streaming protocol that has been the industry standard for over a decade, so it is supported by any IP camera software that is not locked in to a specific vendor.

ONVIF is a big set of standards for communication between cameras and NVRs (Network Video Recorders) or VMS (Video Management Software). The idea behind ONVIF is that if your recording device/software supports ONVIF, and your cameras support ONVIF, then they will work with each other.

Dahua and Hikvision are good brands available globally, with nearly everything they sell supporting wired networking, RTSP, and ONVIF. I doubt you will find a floodlight from them though; those are fairly specialized products and not necessarily available everywhere.

 

[TheSentinel]

Yes.

RTSP is the video streaming protocol that has been the industry standard for over a decade, so it is supported by any IP camera software that is not locked in to a specific vendor.

ONVIF is a big set of standards for communication between cameras and NVRs (Network Video Recorders) or VMS (Video Management Software). The idea behind ONVIF is that if your recording device/software supports ONVIF, and your cameras support ONVIF, then they will work with each other.

Dahua and Hikvision are good brands available globally, with nearly everything they sell supporting wired networking, RTSP, and ONVIF. I doubt you will find a floodlight from them though; those are fairly specialized products and not necessarily available everywhere.

OK, so, that is what i'm going to look for then. So, do I understand correctly that IF I were to purchase a camera from either Dahua or Hikvision, I would be able to add them to FoscamVMS since those brands support RTSP and ONVIF, or would I still need some 3rd party software to be able to combine the streams from the individual cams into 1 overview?

I have decided to let go of my wish to have a floodlight built in, so I am going to add one of those separately.

 

[bp2008]

I still don't know anything about FoscamVMS.

You should read the cliff notes. At least the parts that interest you.