• Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer

Richard Mackney

Creative Technologist

  • Home
  • Archive

Jun 10 2009

Self powered WiFi webcam

(As this is an old post from 2009, please note that I now use £60 WiFi security cameras with solar batteries and a MiFi)

I like the idea of IP based webcams that can exist without being connected to a PC, but they are still fairly expensive. I’ve always thought that it must be fairly simple to use an old mobile phone and create a remote webcam using it’s inbuilt camera. Hopefully you would be able to place the phone anywhere and use it’s inbuilt battery to send pics to the web – ideally using WiFi, but also using GPRS or 3G if required. The only limitation would be the battery life of the phone and pluging it into a power socket or car 12v battery/solar panel may still be possible, even if the location is remote (greenhouse, garage, log cabin 😉

After a tweet from @chilliupnorth I found the software solution … WebCamera Plus– Use your PDA/Smartphone as webcam. I gave it a test and found it worked really well – it also streams live video from the phone directly to the serving machine (which can then re-distribute back out to the internet)

If you are are interested in a wireless, self powered camera then check out some of these:

Here are a couple of screenshots of a great iPhone app called Live Cams from @barryegerter. You can use it to link to your own IP cam and control the pan, zoom and tilt in private or you can connect to a massive list of public cams and take control!

Written by Richard Mackney · Categorized: Blog, Tech · Tagged: Mobile, Power, Tech

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Footer

A Campervan travelogue, adventures of a nano brewery and articles for my digital media company

VolksCamper Pacific Way Brewery Fish Media

  • Home
  • Archive
This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.Accept Read More
Privacy Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT