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Homekit enabled camera(s)

Kg4zlb

Kg4zlb

macrumors member
Original poster
Dec 11, 2014
46
18
Cape Coral, FL
I was looking to buy the D-Link Omna especially with the price reduction but I think its being discontinued and the reviews are not that great, so is there any other option out there for a camera that is HomeKit enabled?

I have looked at the new Logitech Circle 2 which seems to be a great product (of course some of the reviews are negative) and I understand that it will have the HomeKit enabled function later on; presumably via a software upgrade.

Does anyone have any other product suggestions?

Many thanks
 
Hello,

If you are willing to go DIY, you can setup any IP camera to be HomeKit compatible using a Raspberry PI or an always-on Mac.

I currently have 3 IP cameras setup on HomeKit.
 
abellao said:
Hello,

If you are willing to go DIY, you can setup any IP camera to be HomeKit compatible using a Raspberry PI or an always-on Mac.
Click to expand...

Thanks, that sounds interesting - can you point me to any instructions on the web to be able to do this?
 
Thank you so much - I may take you up on the offer of help!! LOL
[doublepost=1502672045][/doublepost]Before I go the Raspberry Pi route, I see that you also mentioned the ability to do this with an "always on mac" which I have - would this be easier? Thanks again
 
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I found the setup on an always on Mac to be easier, but it can also be done with a Raspberry Pi or Linux box, too. Linux took a little more work for me, due to a lack of familiarity, but I did manage to get Homebridge working on both a Pi and a Linux Mint PC. For some strange reason, I kept getting hung up on a step with Ubuntu, but many do it with Ubuntu as well.
 
are there any "idiot proof" instructions available anywhere because I can't seem to get anything working? Homebridge is easy to install on both the Mac and the Raspberry but the plugins seem a bit delicate; that maybe because I am doing something wrong - the instructions I have been researching seem to be pitched at a level of competence over and beyond mine (as regards the Raspberry) so a step by step guide would be great - is such a thing exists! Thanks
 
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Not really. I first had issues with a plugin because of a bracket or comma that I didn't notice until I copied the script into the json script tester online.
 
iMore has an easy to follow tutorial:
https://www.imore.com/how-connect-non-homekit-devices-homekit-using-homebridge

Update:
Here is a sample config with a working "camera".
Technically, it links to a dummy test video online.
The video URL for your camera will be different from mine.

Code: 
{
    "bridge": {
        "name": "Homebridge",
        "username": "CC:22:3D:E3:CE:30",
        "port": 51826,
        "pin": "031-45-154",
        "manufacturer": "@nfarina",
        "model": "Homebridge",
        "serialNumber": "0.4.20"
    },
    "description": "This is an example configuration file",
    "platforms": [
        {
          "platform": "Camera-IP",
          "cameras": [
            {
              "name": "Test Camera",
              "videoConfig": {
                "source": "-rtsp_transport tcp -re -i rtsp://mpv.cdn3.bigCDN.com:554/bigCDN/_definst_/mp4:bigbuckbunnyiphone_400.mp4",
                "stillImageSource": "-i https://dummyimage.com/600x400/adadad/000000&text=Dummy+Camera+Image",
                "maxStreams": 2,
                "maxWidth": 1280,
                "maxHeight": 720,
                "maxFPS": 30
              }
            }
          ]
        }
    ]
}
 
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I can't work out whether the npm plugin includes the "bridge" part of the config file or whether I am supposed to have the bridge and the description in the config file - and of course its the config file that throws errors!
I have managed to get to the point of HomeKit recognizing a device and I can get the device on the HomeKit app but its not working and saying that I have to add the accessory in the manufacturers app - of course the app will not take the serial number of the device so I am guessing that the serial number of the device needs to be added into the config file as a "device id" - I tried to update the config file with that info but of course I screwed it up and the json tester is not helping me much - maybe just pack it in and try tomorrow!
 
Kg4zlb said:
I was looking to buy the D-Link Omna especially with the price reduction but I think its being discontinued and the reviews are not that great, so is there any other option out there for a camera that is HomeKit enabled?

I have looked at the new Logitech Circle 2 which seems to be a great product (of course some of the reviews are negative) and I understand that it will have the HomeKit enabled function later on; presumably via a software upgrade.

Does anyone have any other product suggestions?

Many thanks
Click to expand...
The question of D-Link Omna being discontinued or not seems debatable. As another thread indicates, the status of the product at the official site remains the same and only the price at the Apple Store is reduced by $50.

That being said, the lack of choice in the home security camera category of HomeKit is disappointing. I'm personally going to wait and see how the Circle 2's HomeKit support gets added before making any moves.
 
I don't think it's being discontinued. Dlink just released an update to their Omna app today.
[doublepost=1503570486][/doublepost]Going to buy my 2nd Omna this weekend now the price has dropped.
 
marklemac said:
I don't think it's being discontinued. Dlink just released an update to their Omna app today.
[doublepost=1503570486][/doublepost]Going to buy my 2nd Omna this weekend now the price has dropped.
Click to expand...

It's a decent update. Among other things we can now disable the LED light on the cam. The Omna account sign up is a good sign that cloud storage may be coming soon.
 
Kg4zlb said:
I can't work out whether the npm plugin includes the "bridge" part of the config file or whether I am supposed to have the bridge and the description in the config file - and of course its the config file that throws errors!
I have managed to get to the point of HomeKit recognizing a device and I can get the device on the HomeKit app but its not working and saying that I have to add the accessory in the manufacturers app - of course the app will not take the serial number of the device so I am guessing that the serial number of the device needs to be added into the config file as a "device id" - I tried to update the config file with that info but of course I screwed it up and the json tester is not helping me much - maybe just pack it in and try tomorrow!
Click to expand...

The bridge part should always be there and you can set the port, pin and username as you like. There's a config-sample.json (https://github.com/nfarina/homebridge/blob/master/config-sample.json) supplied when you install Homebridge. You can just rename to config.json, remove the example accessories and platforms and put in the platform sections written above by @abellao. In fact, it looks like they've stuck with the example for that section so you should just be able to test with that file in its entirety.

Once you've got working you can alter it to be the correct urls for your camera's video feed. When you alter the JSON it's a good idea to validate to make sure the structure is good. You can do that online with something like this site https://jsonformatter.curiousconcept.com.

You'll want to restart homebridge after making any changes.

If you're still having problems post your log here.
 
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Vasilioskn said:
It's a decent update. Among other things we can now disable the LED light on the cam. The Omna account sign up is a good sign that cloud storage may be coming soon.
Click to expand...

Yep, and pinch to zoom was a much welcome addition, as the default zoom level on the camera is very low.

Overall, I have been fairly happy with Omna. It's god some nice features like 2-way audio. And the HomeKit integration is flawless.
 
ctyrider said:
Yep, and pinch to zoom was a much welcome addition, as the default zoom level on the camera is very low.

Overall, I have been fairly happy with Omna. It's god some nice features like 2-way audio. And the HomeKit integration is flawless.
Click to expand...


I bought 2 more at the weekend now the price had dropped
 
ctyrider said:
Yep, and pinch to zoom was a much welcome addition, as the default zoom level on the camera is very low.

Overall, I have been fairly happy with Omna. It's god some nice features like 2-way audio. And the HomeKit integration is flawless.
Click to expand...

How do you deal with turning off the motion detection when you are home. Reviews say this is a real weakness. Maybe iOS 11 will improve things with triggers based on group geofencing.
 
vondo said:
How do you deal with turning off the motion detection when you are home. Reviews say this is a real weakness. Maybe iOS 11 will improve things with triggers based on group geofencing.
Click to expand...

Right now I manage those sort of work flows using homebridge on a pi, with a plug-in called homebridge-people. Homebridge-people uses a combination of geofencing and pinging your devices and the end result is that I have four occupancy sensors to work with, Everyone, No-one, My Name, My GF's name.

You're right though, with iOS 11 I'll be able to ditch that plugin and use the native detection. I already have iOS 11 and can see that it will work fine to replace my current setup. I won't put 11 on her devices until GM though.
 
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vondo said:
How do you deal with turning off the motion detection when you are home. Reviews say this is a real weakness. Maybe iOS 11 will improve things with triggers based on group geofencing.
Click to expand...

I only enable motion detection when I am on vacation or away for prolonged period of time.
 
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vondo said:
How do you deal with turning off the motion detection when you are home. Reviews say this is a real weakness. Maybe iOS 11 will improve things with triggers based on group geofencing.
Click to expand...

iOS 11 does indeed fix this. I have mine set to detect motion when I am away from home, it works perfectly
 
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Feenician said:
Right now I manage those sort of work flows using homebridge on a pi, with a plug-in called homebridge-people. Homebridge-people uses a combination of geofencing and pinging your devices and the end result is that I have four occupancy sensors to work with, Everyone, No-one, My Name, My GF's name.

You're right though, with iOS 11 I'll be able to ditch that plugin and use the native detection. I already have iOS 11 and can see that it will work fine to replace my current setup. I won't put 11 on her devices until GM though.
Click to expand...
So there are HomeKit accessible settings to turn on and off the motion detection? I think even that was not clear from the reviews. Good to know.
 
vondo said:
So there are HomeKit accessible settings to turn on and off the motion detection? I think even that was not clear from the reviews. Good to know.
Click to expand...

I don't have an Omna (though I am thinking of pulling the trigger on one) so don't know if it has that property. My Phillips motion sensors do when exposed through Homebridge, though the Apple Home app doesn't expose it for some reason.

However, that's not the way I'd write that rule anyway. Home in iOS 11 will allow you just to say "If no-one home AND motion is detected THEN do x, y and z". Much simpler than enabling and disabling things I think.
 
Last edited:
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marklemac said:
Yep iOS 11 sorts all this out. My 3 Omna's are running really well :)
Click to expand...

Does your HomeKit app display preview feed from Omna cameras? Mine has starting showing black screen since 1.3 firmware upgrade (just posted a separate thread about that).
 
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