Cameras: Apple Home guide

⬇ Download free PDF: HomeKit Secure Video Camera Guide

HomeKit Secure Video cameras analyze footage on your home hub and store it end-to-end encrypted in iCloud.

How to choose

• You need iCloud+: the 50 GB plan covers 1 camera, 200 GB covers up to 5, 2 TB or more is unlimited.
• Recordings cover the last 10 days and don't count toward iCloud storage.
• A home hub (HomePod or Apple TV 4K) is required.

Top picks

Apple Home setup, step by step

1. In the Home app, tap the Add (+) button, then tap Add Accessory.
2. Scan the QR code or enter the 8-digit Apple Home code (Matter devices use an 11- or 21-digit code), or hold your iPhone near the accessory.
3. If the device was already paired to another Matter app, tap More options and select it.
4. When asked to add the accessory to your network, tap Allow. Assign a room and a name (Siri uses this name), then tap Continue and Done.
5. Tap the camera tile > Settings > Recording Options for When Home and When Away > Stream & Allow Recording.
6. Turn on Activity Notifications: Home Settings > Cameras & Doorbells.

Tesla tie-ins

• Point an outdoor camera at the driveway to complement Tesla Sentry Mode. New: turn Sentry off at home and let the camera watch the car.
• Use "Specific motion" notifications for vehicles to know when the car arrives.

Sentry Mode at home: let your home cameras take the night shift

Sentry Mode keeps your Tesla’s cameras and sensors powered while it’s locked and in Park, and Tesla says power use may go up while it’s on. In a parked spot at home, that often isn’t worth it: swaying trees and passing neighbors can set it off all night. A better split is to let a HomeKit Secure Video camera watch the driveway or garage, and save Sentry for parking lots. These steps follow Tesla’s Owner’s Manual (Sentry Mode) and Apple’s Home app camera guide.

1. Save your Home address. In the car, tap Navigate > Set Home. Tesla says the car must be parked within about 1,640 feet (500 m) of that spot to count as home.
2. Turn on Exclude Home. Tap Controls > Safety > Sentry Mode and turn on Exclude Home. Sentry then won’t switch on by itself at home. Exclude Work and Exclude Favorites do the same for your other saved places.
3. Need it for one night? Turn Sentry on by hand on the touchscreen or in the Tesla app, or say “Sentry on.” Tesla says a manual change overrides the exclusion until your next drive.
4. Prefer a quieter Sentry? Turn off Camera-Based Detection under Controls > Safety > Sentry Mode. Tesla says the car then saves clips only when it detects a physical threat, instead of also reacting to what the cameras see.
5. Point a home camera at the car. Add a HomeKit Secure Video camera in the Home app (see the setup steps above). Under Recording Options, choose Stream & Allow Recording and record when specific motion is detected. Apple says that means people, animals, vehicles or a package delivery, so a moving branch shouldn’t start a clip.
6. Draw an Activity Zone around the driveway. Tap the camera tile, open its settings and tap Select Activity Zones. Outline the driveway or garage bay so motion out on the street doesn’t count. Activity Zones only work when the camera records on specific motion.
7. Tune the alerts. In Home Settings > Cameras & Doorbells, turn on Activity Notifications for that camera. You can limit them by time of day, by whether anyone is home, or by type of motion.

Using our Garage NFC recipe? Shortcuts recipe 8, Good Night turns Sentry on at bedtime. A manual switch like that overrides Exclude Home until your next drive, so drop that step if you’d rather let the house camera handle nights at home.

Halloween note: Tesla’s new Trick or Treat mode (in Toybox, software 2026.38.3 or later) plays spooky sounds and flickers the lights when someone walks up to the parked car. While it’s on, the car warns that Sentry Mode, the security alarm and walk-away lock are disabled, and the cameras stay awake, which uses extra energy. Lock the car yourself, let the driveway camera record the evening, and turn Trick or Treat off before bed. It also switches off when you shift out of Park or the car enters Low Power Mode.

Real-world example

Helpful gear

Real-world examples

Summarized in our own words. Links go to the original posts.

Checked against: Apple: HomeKit Secure Video · Apple: add an accessory · Apple: set up security cameras in Home · Tesla: Sentry Mode · Not a Tesla App: Halloween Mode

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