How to Use Phone as CCTV Camera Without Internet?

It’s possible to use smartphones as closed-circuit television cameras because they have built-in cameras at the front and back.

However, to do this, you typically need an internet connection, so the question is, can you use a smartphone as a CCTV camera without WiFi?

Yes, you can; you need to leverage the power of the lenses in the front and back of the smartphone and stream footage via a local network.

So, if you have at least one old Android or iOS phone tucked away in a drawer, you can use it as a CCTV camera instead of leaving it be or selling it for a fraction of its original price.

However, you need an app to act as the bridge between the transmitting and receiving devices. Let’s look at how to do this for both Android and iOS smartphones.

Android

Primary Device

1. Open PlayStore on your Android and type IP Webcam. This is a free app on PlayStore to help you use your old Android device as a CCTV camera.
2. Next, download the app on your mobile. By downloading the app, you give it access to your Android’s front and back cameras, which is necessary to allow you to set up your Android as a closed-circuit television camera.
3. Then, open your Android settings and activate the mobile hotspot.

4. Connect the local network established by the mobile hotspot to the device you want to stream footage on, which can be another smartphone, PC, or tablet.

5. Launch the application on your mobile and follow the prompts. (You can password-protect the app to prevent intruders).
6. You can change some settings like video preferences, including chunk size (the length of each CCTV recording), cleanup (delete older clips once your smartphone’s memory is full), and video format (either MKV or MP4).

Secondary Device

1. Open any browser on the device you’ve connected to the mobile hotspot.
2. Next, enter the IP address you can see at the bottom of your old Android smartphone and click enter. (You don’t need to begin the IP address with ‘/video.’)

3. Now, the IP webcam page should appear on the screen of your second device.
4. Enter the username and passcode you set up on the app.

5. Next, scroll down and click ‘Use JavaScript to update frames in the browser.’

6. Now, you can enjoy using your old Android smartphone as a CCTV camera.
7. If you wish to record the footage appearing on your screen, you can scroll down, give the clip a name and press the record button.

iOS

Primary Device

1. Download the IP Camera Lite on your iPhone.
2. Next, launch the app, click on the three-line menu in the upper right corner of your screen, and click on ‘Settings.’
3. Scroll down till you find ‘user & passcode.’ Enter a new username and passcode.

4. Head back to the main menu and press ‘Turn on the IP server.’
5. Next, give the app all the permissions it needs, including your camera.
6. Click on the ‘Share’ button in the upper right corner of your screen.
7. Write down the IP address you see on your screen.

Secondary Device

To stream the footage being recorded on your smartphone, enter the IP address you copied from the app on a browser on any device (smartphone or PC). The IP address should look something like this: ‘192.168.72.208:8082/video.’

Now, you should start streaming the footage being recorded by your iPhone. You can record it for free using a screen recorder app or buy the premium version of the app.

Stream Using VLC Media Player for Both Android and iOS Streams

1. Open the VLC player app on your PC or smartphone.
2. Look for the ‘Media’ tab and click on ‘Network Streaming.’

3. Enter the IP address either from your Android or iOS mobile device. Note that the ‘/video’ is necessary for this to work on the VLC media player.

4. You might run into an error when you try to live stream on the VLC media player; however, you can click on ‘View Certificate’ to start live streaming.

Note that when live streaming on VLC, you can’t record the footage; the best you can do is take screenshots. So if that’s a deal breaker for you, use the browser method.

In conclusion, you can avoid discarding or storing your old Android or iOS smartphone in a drawer and instead use it as a CCTV camera.

The good thing is you can view a live stream of what the old phone is recording and save it for future use; you can view the footage on another smartphone or your PC.

See Also

How Many Cameras Can You Have on a Blink System?

Best Spy Cameras

How to Setup Wyze Outdoor Camera?

How to Use an Old iPhone as a Security Camera?

How to Detect Spy Cameras With Your Phone?

4 Best Outdoor Wireless Security Camera System with DVR