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The software for the Vivitar IP Cameras can be split up into two categories. The Device End and the Client End. The Device End consists of the firmware of the IP Camera, in this case, Linux running a specialized software. And the Client End consists of the app running on the smartphone, wether this be iOS or Android is completely up to the user as the app is supported on both platforms. For the sake of all my testing and usage I am using the Android version of the app.

The Client End

The client end of the software consists of (in my case) a Android app that actually has quite a few options to choose from. After creating a account it brings you to a neat looking screen that gives you access to devices you have tied to your account. At the bottom you can click to add a device.

Clicking the Add new device button brings you to a screen with a list of device types that you can add. It really shows you how broad of a spectrum Vivitar has when it comes to the devices they make. For the sake of this device it's a no brainer. It's a IP Camera!

It asks you what device to add and then has you put in the password to the Wifi network you are connected to at that very moment. Then after that it tells you to reset the camera which is done by, you guessed it, holding down the Reset button on the back of the camera. Then it starts searching for that camera, and I will get to how it does that but it is kind of interesting in my opinion. Once the camera is connected you will be able to view and control the camera. And that's where what I say about the camera pretty much stops. As, well... I can't connect to it! That's right! It's unusable. Bricked, dead in the water, doodoo. The hardware itself works perfectly fine, but for some reason the device isn't being seen by the app. This started a few months ago when I picked this project back up. I had it tied to a account logged in on a LG phone I had, and that was fine and dandy but however I noticed I could no longer connect to the camera. So it was a shock to me that I could no longer add it to that account nor could I add it to a new account. And that brings us to... (pause for effect)

← 1. Hardware| → 2.1. Device Software