<div dir="auto">I use Amcrest cameras as they support open standards like RTSP and ONVIF that allow you to tap into the direct video streams and use your own NVR (Network Video Recorder).<div dir="auto"><br></div><div dir="auto"><a href="https://support.amcrest.com/hc/en-us/articles/360052688931-Accessing-Amcrest-Products-Using-RTSP">https://support.amcrest.com/hc/en-us/articles/360052688931-Accessing-Amcrest-Products-Using-RTSP</a></div><div dir="auto"><br></div><div dir="auto">Make sure the specific cameras you buy are compatible for this, as some of the AI cameras had some weird setup requirements that didn't work.</div><div dir="auto"><br></div><div dir="auto">Their doorbell does optionally connect to their Amcrest Cloud and app so you can do easy notifications and talk on your phone. I expect you could set this up on Home Assistant yourself and not use their cloud service at all.</div><div dir="auto"><br></div><div dir="auto">The cameras are rebranded Dahua Chinese cameras so if you're paranoid (I am), make sure all the cameras are on their own VLAN and denied all outbound traffic/access to the Internet and can only talk to the NVR. I can confirm this works fine, and the cameras are easily managed through a web interface.</div><div dir="auto"><br></div><div dir="auto">For NVR software, I've used ZoneMinder, Shinobi, and Frigate. ZoneMinder was incredibly CPU intensive and difficult to set up. Shinobi wasn't bad, and had a mobile app. Frigate seems to be the new hotness, but I don't think there is an official app.</div><div dir="auto"><br></div><div dir="auto">For drives, check out the Surveillance grade disks like the WD Purple, as they're meant for continuous writing.</div><div dir="auto"><br></div><div dir="auto">Hope that helps!</div><div dir="auto"><br></div><div dir="auto">Jason </div></div><br><div class="gmail_quote gmail_quote_container"><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_attr">On Wed, Jan 28, 2026, 1:00\u202fPM Paul Nijjar via kwlug-disc <<a href="mailto:kwlug-disc@kwlug.org">kwlug-disc@kwlug.org</a>> wrote:<br></div><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex">Somebody (whom I won't name, but who I think is on this list) was<br>
wondering whether anybody here uses a privacy-preserving video<br>
doorbell as an alternative to Ring. Apparently Amazon shares video<br>
footage from Ring doorbells with law enforcement or ICE or something,<br>
and that makes people unhappy.<br>
<br>
I don't think we have covered this topic explicitly in a KWLUG<br>
meeting, but I could be wrong. Does anybody know?<br>
<br>
Even if we have not covered it, do people have suggestions? I know<br>
there are some doorbells that save to SD cards and not the cloud. I<br>
guess the goal would be to have control over the video so it does not<br>
touch a cloud server that could be redistributed to ICE.<br>
<br>
- Paul<br>
<br>
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