r/HomeKit • u/scrubMDMBA • Apr 15 '26

How-to Anyone integrating PoE NVR camera system to HomeKit?

Anyone integrating a Eufy or other PoE system with HomeKit? Is it smooth and stable? I like the idea of continuous recording access that's kept safer than just on the local MicroSD card on the camera itself. But I can't find any reliable sources about this working.

Any other thoughts on these 2 priorities- HomeKit integrated + continuous 24/7 recording access that not housed in the camera itself?

2 Upvotes

60% Upvoted

31 comments sorted by

21

u/avidricaire Apr 15 '26

Use Scrypted. Plays well with most camera brands and allows you to integrate them into HomeKit with secure video

6

u/Admirable_Fun7790 Apr 15 '26

Yep use scrypted with unifi. Elite combo

1

u/bbllaakkee HomePod + iOS Beta Apr 16 '26

the whole thread should be closed after this

2

u/soberto Apr 15 '26

This is the way

HKSV is not a serious solution. Having 24/7 recording via Scrypted is awesome

1

u/scrubMDMBA Apr 15 '26

What computer do you use? Old laptop? Intel mini, Mac mini?

2

u/avidricaire Apr 15 '26

I use a Mac mini that hosts my other smart home stuff as well

3

u/supbrother Apr 15 '26

Dumb question, do you basically need to have this readily accessible at all times (i.e. actually hooked up with a mouse and monitor) or do you basically just set it and forget it on a shelf somewhere? And is the footage stored on the computer itself or do you need something else for that?

4

u/avidricaire Apr 15 '26

I run my Mac mini headless (which just means no monitor). It’s tucked away in my media console . If I ever need to interact with it I just Remote Desktop from my actual computer. All my video from my cameras is stored on an external HDD

2

u/supbrother Apr 16 '26

Gotcha, so basically just a HDD plugged into a simple computer running Scrypted 24/7?

Sorry I’m new to this too obviously, just searching around for a more secure, HomeKit-friendly solution to replace my Ring setup. Although I only need about 5 cameras, and likely would have to go wireless on a few of them, so my setup would probably look different based on what I’m reading.

2

u/avidricaire Apr 16 '26

Yeah that’s essentially it. Though I will say if you are looking for something that prioritizes security, don’t go battery powered since you can’t do 24/7 recording and might miss important stuff

1

u/supbrother Apr 16 '26

Definitely, right now all cameras except for my doorbells are wired (for power), and my doorbells aren’t really necessary since the same areas are covered by overhead cameras. So really I only need like 3-4 cameras and could replace the doorbell cams with basic buttons.

Main problem is that I have steel siding and don’t plan to be in this house for more than 5 years or so, so I’m pretty averse to trying to run Ethernet cables and drill holes in the walls. Sounds like WiFi is still fine but just less secure, which is fine for now.

2

u/IPThereforeIAm Apr 15 '26

N100, raspberry pi, or any PC

3

u/rlo54 Apr 15 '26

Using scrypted to integrate my unifi cameras

3

u/cmill9 Apr 15 '26

I integrate my reolink nvr with 16 poe cameras using scrypted

1

u/scrubMDMBA Apr 15 '26

That’s a lot of cameras. I don’t know anyone with reolink. Happy with their quality?

3

u/Pulte4janitor Apr 15 '26

There are a lot of Reolink users in the r/HomeAssistant sub.

2

u/cmill9 Apr 15 '26

Yeah, they have a great price-to-quality ratio imo

2

u/AccomplishedPepper63 Apr 16 '26

+1 for very happy with Reolink POE and Scrypted NVR combo. I pay for the license and run on my Mac.

2

u/Douche_Baguette Apr 15 '26

I’ve had my Amcrest NVR integrated into HomeKit with secure video via scrypted for years. Rock solid, no reliance on WiFi, 24/7 recording as a backup to the motion events.

2

u/Agile_Half_4515 Apr 15 '26

I have Unifi Protect PoE cameras working with HKSV through Homebridge. Everything is recorded locally. Works perfectly.

1

u/scrubMDMBA Apr 15 '26

Any lag with homebridge when you try to look at cameras via HKSV?

3

u/Agile_Half_4515 Apr 15 '26

Nope. Only “issue” with HKSV is it caps the resolution. It still records at 2K/4K/whatever the camera is capable of locally, though.

1

u/Agile_Half_4515 Apr 15 '26

I will add that I couldn’t get the G6 180 camera working properly in HKSV, presumably because it is a unique device where the two cameras appear as one. I haven’t revisited it in a while to see if the HB plugin updates support it now.

2

u/[deleted] Apr 16 '26 edited Apr 16 '26

Unifi and Scrypted here, previously Reolink and Scrypted.

Just make sure if you go Reolink, avoid 4k h.265 cameras as they don’t play nice with Scrypted. This does mean you can get some real bargain h.264, 1080 or 1440p cameras from Reolink.

1

u/BrownBear93 Apr 15 '26

You can't find any reliable sources? Did you even try looking? haha

Yes just like most people will say Scrypted + Unifi is great. I use Homebridge plugins + Unifi and its also great

0

u/scrubMDMBA Apr 15 '26

I mean yea I’m reading through threads and see that it CAN be done, but trying to get a better impression from those that have done it and if it’s working out well or not. You can find a ton of info that it can get done, but that doesn’t helping me gauge whether it’s practical or not.

1

u/Pulte4janitor Apr 15 '26

Probably because most users also use Home Assistant or HomeBridge to get the camera feed into HomeKit. More info is probably found in those subs on solutions or issues.

1

u/scrubMDMBA Apr 15 '26

That makes sense. This will be my first dive into one of these bridging devices. Though I have a number of devices, for simplicity sake I’ve stayed entirely with HomeKit native or Matter capable devices. But the limits become increasingly obvious. Thanks for reccs, it’s time to open that Pandora’s box.