Private prototype setup

Ready for the room.

The camera app is being tested privately. The App Store release is on hold until the real devices and room workflows are verified.

1. Add each camera from its app.

Sign in or create an account on the app’s welcome screen. Verify your email, then sign in. Your shared Events dashboard opens automatically. Open Devices, name the device, and choose Add this device as a camera. Use the same account on each iPhone, iPad, or Mac laptop build. The browser dashboard manages devices; it does not turn a browser tab into a person-detection camera.

2. Open the camera, then position it.

On the Camera tab, choose Rear, Front, or Both on a compatible device, then tap Open camera to position it. Lighting, alarm and recording options are grouped under Camera settings. Your choice is saved on this device. Disarm before changing lenses; you can switch while positioning the preview. The preview helps you point the lens at the entrance; it is not detecting or saving alerts yet. Use a ventilated, stable stand and a charger. Mac laptops use their available camera. Test in the room’s actual light, including after dark.

Choose what this camera watches for.

In Devices → settings gear → What to watch for, select People, Dogs, Cats, Cars, Trucks, Motorcycles, Bicycles, or General movement. Choices apply to the device you configure; set them separately on each camera. People starts on. Disarm before changing choices and select at least one type before arming. Only selected types trigger saved events and the optional alarm. People and pets use Apple Vision; vehicles use an approximately 8.9 MB model on the device. Movement compares frames and can react to shadows, trees, or camera movement. These options need testing in your actual view, especially on older devices.

Optional: save continuous footage on this camera.

Open Camera → Camera settings → Continuous recording before arming. Enable recording and choose an eight-hour rolling history or, where available, retention until your storage limit. Choose 1, 4 or 8 GB. Video stays silently on this camera, while event photos and clips upload separately. The oldest footage is overwritten; Zurcit keeps at least 500 MB free. Open the Recordings tab to watch saved video. Choose the camera and day, then use the timeline, play/pause, seeking, zoom and full-screen controls. Keep the app open, the device unlocked and connected to power. Pauses leave gaps.

3. Test the alarm.

Open Devices → settings gear → Test alarm. Use the device’s volume buttons to set an audible level, and disconnect headphones or Bluetooth speakers if you want sound in the room. Turning on the detection alarm gives you a 30-second exit delay after you arm.

4. Tap Arm and leave the room.

Tap Arm on the Camera tab. With the detection alarm on, wait for the 30-second exit countdown. Watching for selected detections means the camera is receiving frames and running detection. Disarm stops detection and leaves the preview open so you can adjust it.

Keep Zurcit open and plugged in.

On iPhone or iPad, open Settings → Accessibility → Guided Access and enable it. Return to Zurcit, then triple-click the side button or Home button. Configure the session to avoid display auto-lock. Keep the device plugged in. On iPhone and iPad, locking or leaving the app pauses the camera. Temporary camera interruptions try to resume automatically while Zurcit stays open. After a lock, app switch, or overheating pause, reopen it and re-arm after resolving the issue. On Mac, monitoring can continue while another app has focus, but the laptop must stay open and powered.

5. Open live view and try the speaker.

In Devices, check Allow remote viewing & control on the camera. It starts on for new setups; if you previously switched it off, turn it on once. Open the Video wall tab in the app or the web dashboard. Available cameras connect automatically in the app. Multiple signed-in devices can watch the same camera together; closing one viewer leaves the others connected. Tap a camera for a larger view, Talk, and sounds. The wall’s options menu lets you reconnect or stop live views. Private camera links also open an individual viewer. The camera and viewer can use different Wi-Fi networks or cellular data; both need adequate internet coverage. With build 12 or later on both devices, allow Local Network access for direct live video on the same Wi-Fi. The feed shows Live · local Wi-Fi when connected directly. On different networks, or Wi-Fi that isolates devices, Zurcit uses its private internet feed. Build 16 adds faster in-app playback and catches up to current video after a slow connection, instead of replaying old footage. Internet video still has some delay; AirPlay and browser playback can buffer longer. Tap Talk on the viewing device or browser, allow microphone access on the viewing phone, then tap again to stop. Enable Allow live room audio in Devices on the camera to hear the room, then choose Listen in the native viewer. All live views start muted. Sound buttons play through the camera device’s output.

Add an Arm & Disarm widget

On iOS or iPadOS 17 or later, sign in to Zurcit and add your cameras in Devices. Touch and hold your Home Screen, choose Add Widget, and select Zurcit’s Camera Arm & Disarm widget. Touch and hold it, choose Edit Widget, then choose a camera. Arm and Disarm open Zurcit to send the request using your account. The widget shows the camera’s last reported state, not a continuous live status. The camera must keep Zurcit open with remote controls allowed; a widget cannot wake a locked or closed camera app.

TV viewing and new-event chimes

In Video wall, choose View on TV for Apple Screen Mirroring instructions. For one camera, expand it and tap AirPlay. Your LG TV must support AirPlay or use a compatible receiver. Pinch to zoom and drag around an expanded camera; its controls stay below the video.

On Events, tap the bell and enable Chime for new detection alerts on the device you are watching. Events arrive automatically while Zurcit is open. Enable Apple push notifications in Account → Event alerts for new-event alerts when the app is closed.

Event sounds on this device

Open Events → bell or Account → Event sounds on this device. Enable chimes, choose Gentle bell, Double chime, or Attention, and set the sound level. The device-volume slider sets maximum loudness. Tap Test sound to check your speaker or connected audio output. New events from any camera sound on every screen while Zurcit is open, including expanded live view. Attention lasts four seconds; event chimes are separate from the camera’s room alarm. Enable push notifications in Account → Event alerts to receive camera alerts when the iPhone or iPad app is closed. Choose Email alerts and Push alerts separately for each camera in Devices. Push sounds follow your device’s notification settings.

6. Walk through and check evidence.

Leave during the countdown, walk into view, and verify the alarm, local snapshot, playable clip, and event email. Try a quick crossing, different distances, partial obstruction, dim light, interrupted Wi-Fi, and low volume. These are tests, not measured reliability claims.

Manage and delete.

In Devices, rename or remove cameras. The settings gear opens alarm settings and local recording deletion. The upper-left account icon opens sign out, password changes, and Delete account permanently. An optional reason helps us improve, but you can skip it. Deleting one account preserves other accounts’ local recordings on the same device. Sign-out also preserves your footage and camera registration for your next sign-in. Disarm first and wait for recording and email delivery to finish. Cloud deletion needs internet access; delivered email copies and offline devices’ local recordings remain until you remove those copies.

Need help? support@zurcit.com.

Remote Arm and camera locations

In Devices, turn on Allow remote viewing & control. Keep Zurcit open on screen with camera permission allowed. From your other signed-in device, select the camera in Video wall and choose Arm or Disarm. The viewer waits for the camera’s response and displays its actual result. Remote Arm waits briefly for a clip that is finishing, then opens the preview before arming. Remote Arm can reopen the camera while Zurcit is on screen; it cannot reopen a locked or suspended app.

Choose Set location & viewing cone in Devices. On the camera device, switch on Enable location for this device and allow location access; its pin saves and appears on Video wall → Map automatically. You can also search for a place or hold the map to place a pin, then tap Save location & cone. Point the cone in the direction your camera faces. In Video wall, choose Map to see your cameras and select one to view. Live video automatically adjusts when the camera device rotates. In Devices, Update location opens a map and list of your cameras’ saved positions. Tap a camera to enable location or enter an address or coordinates if GPS is unavailable. Choose Request fresh location to update an online camera after its location switch and permission are enabled. Update status refreshes its battery and connection status. Locked or closed apps cannot answer these requests. Pins stay at their saved positions until updated; cones are placement guides, not measured detection range.

Your shared Events screen shows the photo as soon as it uploads. The recorded clip appears automatically when it is ready. New detections save red labeled detection brackets in the image and 10-second clip. Tap Play clip to review recorded footage.

In Devices, tap a camera for grouped monitoring, alerts, audio, status/location and management controls. Rename device and Update location are clearly labeled buttons. Remove device shows what will be permanently deleted: its camera connection, cloud event photos/clips and backed-up recordings. Other cameras, your account and subscription stay in place. Removal works offline, although an active upload may need to finish first.

Use Sort for name or online status, or touch and hold a camera and drag it up/down. Your order is saved to your account. If this phone asks you to add a camera despite an old entry still existing, choose Reconnect existing camera and select this phone’s original offline entry. Do not choose another phone’s entry. This rotates the lost source connection and keeps cloud history and any local footage still present; it cannot restore files already erased.

Plans, trial, and your recordings

Compare Free, Scout, and Guardian: $3.99/month for people detection and 30-day cloud history; $11.99/month for all available detections and six calendar months. Free covers two cameras with live video up to 360p and on-camera motion indication only: no saved events, recording or cloud alerts. Scout adds people and motion events, Full HD up to 1080p and 30-day event history. Guardian includes all available detections, Full HD up to 1080p and six-month event history. Scout covers seven cameras; Guardian covers unlimited registered cameras. Scout lets you review continuous footage on the recording camera. Guardian adds playback from any device on your account and weekly arming schedules. Eligible subscribers get a one-week Apple trial, then the chosen monthly plan renews unless cancelled. Purchases and restore are managed in Account → Zurcit plans & subscriptions. Apple confirms your local price and trial eligibility.

Cloud history stores detection photos and short clips. Scout continuous footage stays on the camera. Guardian also backs up completed sections within its selected storage and loop limits. New events use the plan active at capture; older events keep their original expiry. Existing private-test cloud events retain seven days. Helpers invited to selected cameras do not need a subscription.

Hear the room

On the camera device, open Devices → this camera → Allow live room audio and allow microphone access. Recording starts only while that camera has a live viewer. In the native video wall, select the camera and tap Listen; views start muted. Use Mute to stop. Switching cameras or leaving live view mutes the room. Talk sends your voice through the camera’s speaker. Audio travels privately through AWS on Wi-Fi or cellular and may not line up exactly with delayed video. Browser and TV video remain silent, and event clips do not contain room audio.

Let someone help for a while

Open Devices → Share with a friend or relative. Choose cameras, an expiry, and whether your helper may use Talk and alarm sounds. Create the invitation and share the link privately. Your helper opens it in Zurcit without signing up or paying. They see live views and new events from the selected cameras; keep the app open for guest event updates. The countdown shows when access ends. Remove access early from the same sharing screen.

During private testing, helpers also need access to the Zurcit TestFlight build. Each link works for one guest device. Create another invitation for another helper.

Review continuous footage · Guardian across devices.

Scout and Guardian can enable continuous recording in Camera → Camera settings or Devices → camera settings. Scout keeps an eight-hour loop; Guardian can keep footage up to the chosen storage limit. It records silently while armed and overwrites the oldest footage at the limit.

With Scout, review footage on the camera that recorded it in the Recordings tab. With Guardian, open the Recordings tab on any account device, or Recordings in the web dashboard. Choose a camera and day in your viewing device’s local time zone, then move through the saved-footage timeline. View longer recording on an event opens footage at that event’s timestamp, if it is still saved. Use the slider, ±10 seconds, Event moment, and Earlier/Later sections to review the context.

Guardian privately backs up completed sections while Zurcit is active on the recording camera. Leave the app open until Recordings shows that its backup is complete. Backed-up footage can play on another account device even while that camera is offline. If footage has not backed up, reopen Zurcit on the source with remote controls enabled to transfer it. Your viewer downloads the requested section before playback. Backups follow the selected 1, 4 or 8 GB storage and rolling-history limit; cloud event history is separate. Preparation, download progress, cancel, and retry are shown. Pauses leave gaps. This footage is for the owning account; helper sharing covers live views and shared events.

Arm on your weekly schedule

With Guardian, open Devices → camera → Arming schedule. Enable it, choose the camera’s time zone, and drag across the days and hours to select armed periods. Start on a selected cell to clear hours. Day buttons select or clear a whole day. Tap Save to apply.

Selected hours arm the camera; clear hours disarm it. Manual Arm or Disarm lasts until the next hourly boundary. The optional exit countdown still applies. Keep the camera powered, unlocked, with Zurcit open and remote viewing & control enabled. A schedule cannot wake a locked or closed app. Changes reach the camera when it next connects.

Use front and rear together.

On compatible iPhones and iPads, the main Camera screen offers Front, Rear and Both. Choose Both while disarmed, open the camera, position both views, then Arm. Zurcit checks the actual front/rear combination and available capture resources; it does not depend on dual capture in Apple’s Camera app. Apple’s MultiCam support begins with compatible iPhone XS, XS Max and XR devices, and is also checked on newer phones and supported iPads.

Both views appear side by side, labeled Rear and Front, in the preview and Video wall. Each view is analyzed independently for the detections included in your plan. Saved event photos, clips and continuous footage contain both views when recording is enabled. Free keeps live video and on-camera motion only; Scout and Guardian recording and playback limits still apply. One device remains one registered camera. Quality adapts to device and connection limits; each pane is not guaranteed Full HD. A missing camera feed pauses capture rather than presenting a frozen view as current.

Disarm before switching modes. Both needs visible lighting for each view. Rear LiDAR and automatic lighting are available in Rear mode. Keep the device powered, unlocked and Zurcit open, and test both views and saved footage on your actual device before relying on them.

Urgent low battery emails

Scout and Guardian warn you when a camera reports 15% battery or less, then again at 5% or less. The subject starts with URGENT: Battery low and identifies the device and its battery percentage. At 5%, the email tells you to plug it in now.

Enable Devices → camera → Email alerts. Keep Zurcit open on the camera so it can send fresh battery updates. No warning is sent while charging. Each threshold sends once per discharge cycle; charging above 20% resets the warnings. If the first report is already at 5% or less, only the critical warning is sent. A powered-off or suspended device cannot report a new battery level.

Check lighting and depth before arming.

In Camera, open Camera settings → Lighting & depth. Zurcit checks actual hardware support automatically; you do not need to choose your phone model. Rear LiDAR and automatic flashlight lighting are rear-camera features. The front camera needs room lighting.

On a compatible LiDAR device, enable Depth-assisted movement, reopen the preview and let it learn an empty view. Keep the device fixed, indoors, with a clear doorway within about four metres. Walk through in the lighting you will use and check for Depth movement seen. Missing or poor depth data is shown as unavailable. A ready stream alone does not establish reliable detection.

Optionally enable Light up detected movement. In dim conditions the rear flashlight turns on for 20 seconds when movement is detected, with a short exposure-settling period before an event is saved. The light is visible. In total darkness an ordinary camera cannot reliably trigger it; LiDAR-assisted movement needs a real placement test. Heat, reflections, obstacles, distance, and an unavailable flashlight can prevent reliable monitoring. Depth detects changes, not identity or night-vision video.