Let's talk about how to view CCTV footage on mobile phones (Android/iPhone).
The process varies slightly depending on the type of camera, DVR, or NVR you have. Still, in most cases, different security systems manufacturers follow similar ways to search for and export footage from recorders, cloud and micro SD cards.
In this article, I explain what are the apps used for security cameras.
Best App for Watching CCTV Footage on Mobile Phones (iPhone and Android)
Generic App for Smartphones
There are some smartphone apps, such as the TinyCam, which works with different camera brands. Still, most smart cameras use only proprietary Apps.
The picture below shows an example of different brands (Samsung, Wyze, Amcrest and Hikvision) connected to the TinyCam App.
TinyCam can communicate with security cameras and smart cams using the manufacturer's proprietary protocol, ONVIF, RTSP, and P2P.
The big advantage of using TinyCam is that you can view cameras from different brands from a single app; however, the disadvantage is the lack of resources offered by proprietary software such as microSD card reading and video analytics.
==> To learn more about protocols use on security cameras, read the articles: What is RTSP protocol and What is ONVIF protocol.
Oh, yes... you can also use the TinyCam App on your Smart TV and view all the cameras from there; this is awesome, isn't it?
Proprieraty App for Smartphones
OK, the App for a security camera is the one offered by the manufacturer.
Unless you have a cheap non-branded camera, usually the seller has an Android and iPhone App that can connect to the camera for live view and management.
Let's say you have Reolink cameras; guess what? The best App is from Reolink. The same is true for other brands such as Lorex, Hikvision, Dahua, Wyze Cam, etc.
The picture below shows an example of a Reolink camera displayed in the App.
With a proprietary App, it's possible to use all the camera features, such as turn ON/OFF alarms and lights, use bidirectional audio, record the footage on a micro SD card, or in the cloud much more.
The picture below shows another example of a proprietary app for smartphones.
This one is used to view the Soliom cameras.
As you can see, the App alerts about the events such as motion detection and allows the user to quickly retrieve the footage recorded in the micro SD card.
Conclusion
Now you know how to view CCTV footage on mobile phones
Everything depends on the type of cameras and features you want.
Sometimes the proprietary software is better, but on the other hand, the TinyCam software can help you to view all the different cameras in a single App.
I hope this article can help you; please share it with your friends.