Set up security cameras in Home on iPhone
- June 7, 2024
- Apple
Table of Contents
When you add a compatible camera to the Home app, you’re asked to choose streaming and recording options and assign the camera to a room. By default, the camera is marked as a favorite and appears in the Home tab. To edit those settings later, touch and hold the camera button, then tap to see these options:
- Room: A camera can be located in a room inside your home, or you can create a room for an outside location such as your front porch or back yard.
- Notifications: Tap Notifications to choose when you’ll receive a notification (at any time when you’re not home, for example), when motion is detected, or when a clip is recorded. You can also choose to allow snapshots in notifications.
- Streaming & Recording: Options include Off, Detect Activity, Stream, and Stream & Allow Recording.
You can create separate settings for when you’re home and when you’re away. For example, when you’re home, you might choose to stop streaming and recording for a camera inside your home, but continue to stream and record from an outdoor camera.
Note: The Home app uses the location of devices belonging to members of the home to switch between Home and Away modes. For example, when you leave for work with your iPhone, the camera switches from the When Home settings to the When Away settings.
- Recording Options: Your camera can record when any motion is detected or when specific motion is detected. When you choose Specific Motion, video recording is triggered by the motion of people, animals, or vehicles.
Tip: Choosing a specific motion, rather than any motion, results in fewer clips (and fewer clip notifications) and less video to review. For example, choose People, and your camera won’t capture the movement of leaves on a tree or a squirrel leaping from branch to branch.