Android-RTSP-IPCam-Viewer: A Java repository from warren-bank

RTSP IPCam Viewer

Android app to watch RTSP and RTMP video streams; these formats are typical of inexpensive IP security cams.

Background

tinyCam PRO by Tiny Solutions LLC
- is great
- is the defacto standard for this kind of app
- is inexpensive ($4 MSRP, occasionally $1 on sale)
- cons:
  - none
    - this a personal quirk..
      - I prefer to not add Google account(s) to most of my Android devices
IP Cam Viewer by Robert Chou
- has pretty good reviews
- is the go-to free option for this kind of app
- available variations:
  - limited functionality w/ ads
    - Basic
      - uses Google's in-app purchase to upgrade
    - Lite
      - uses an unlock code to upgrade
  - full functionality w/o ads
    - Pro
      - $4 MSRP
- cons:
  - size of APK is over 25MB
  - requires a lot of permissions
  - most buttons/features are crippled
    - open a prompt to purchase pro license
  - basic functionality is (imho) not very impressive
there are no (good) open-source options

Goals

an extremely light-weight open-source app
- minimal features
- minimal UI
ability to add video streams
- data structure:
  - required fields:
    - name
    - low-res video stream URL
  - optional fields:
    - high-res video stream URL
    - is enabled?
- data import methods:
  - manual entry via dialog
  - import via text file (JSON format)
display of enabled video streams:
- list view of low-res video streams
- grid view of low-res video streams
  - number of columns is configurable
- full-screen view of a single high-res video stream
  - (TBD) ability to zoom/pan
  - (TBD) ability to record to external SD card

Notes

minimum supported version of Android:
- Android 4.1 Jelly Bean (API 16)
when videos are displayed in list/grid views:
- Android status bar is visible
- audio is disabled
- video playback controls are disabled
when a video is displayed in full-screen view:
- Android status bar is hidden
- audio is enabled
- video playback controls are enabled

Usage

activity: list of all video streams
- action bar
  - icon:
    - click to add new video stream
  - overflow menu: Open List
    - display all enabled video streams in a single-column vertical list
  - overflow menu: Open Grid (2 col)
    - display all enabled video streams in a two-column grid
  - overflow menu: Open Grid (N col)
    - display a dialog to allow the user to specify the integer value of N
    - display all enabled video streams in a N-column grid
  - overflow menu: Read File
    - display a file chooser to allow the user to specify the path to a JSON file
    - parse the JSON to obtain an ordered list of new video streams
    - append the new video streams to the list of all video streams
  - overflow menu: Exit
    - exit the application
- any video stream in the list
  - swipe (left or right) to remove
    - permanently deletes record of the video stream
  - drag (up or down) to change ordered position in list
    - modified order is persistent
  - click (single, short) on the checkbox to toggle: enabled
  - click (single, short) on the name to edit
activity: list of all enabled video streams
- any video stream in the list
  - swipe (left or right) to remove
    - temporarily hides the video stream
    - its record is not altered
    - the video stream will be visible once again when the list is recreated
  - drag (up or down) to change ordered position in list
    - modified order is temporary
    - the order of records is not altered
    - the video stream will appear in its original ordered position once again when the list is recreated
  - click (single, long) to toggle: pause/play
  - click (single or double, short) to open in full-screen view
activity: grid of all enabled video streams
- any video stream in the grid
  - click (single, long) to toggle: pause/play
  - click (single or double, short) to open in full-screen view
activity: full-screen view of a single video stream
- video surface
  - click (single, short) to toggle: display of the video playback controls
    - which are automatically hidden after a brief timeout

warren-bank/Android-RTSP-IPCam-Viewer

RTSP IPCam Viewer

Background

Goals

Notes

Usage

Screenshots

Credits

Legal