One correction to what I wrote above — I was too generous.
Live view working for a couple of minutes and then dropping to unavailable is exactly what the earlier versions did too. So from my side the observable behaviour hasn’t changed: video comes up, runs briefly, device goes unavailable. Something other than the ISAPI reconnect loop must be tearing the connection down.
Hi Mithrandir86,
Version 2026.8.12 is now available in Test. I found a second path that kept ISAPI active: the door station returns HTTP 200 with an XML statusCode 3 error, which the app incorrectly accepted as valid device information and then changed the stored type from VIS to Unknown. That allowed the ISAPI health checks and retry messages to return.
The new version recognises that XML error, recovers affected Unknown devices back to VIS, and keeps them in RTSP-only mode without ISAPI health checks or retries. Please test again after the Hikvision login lock has expired. The two key checks are whether Live view stays available and whether Retrying automatically (x/3) no longer appears.
If Live still drops or Homey becomes unresponsive, please disable the app again and report it; then we know the remaining issue is in the RTSP/video lifecycle rather than this ISAPI path.
Hi,
I’m testing the Hikvision SDK v3 app and I’m having an issue with Live video. The camera connects successfully and Homey shows the stream as “Live”, but the video itself remains completely black.
My current Hikvision settings are:
Substream: H.264
Resolution: 640 × 480
Frame rate: 25 fps
Variable bitrate
Max bitrate: 256 Kbps
I-frame interval: 50
SVC: Off
RTSP: Enabled
HTTP: Enabled on port 80
Authentication: Digest/Basic
The main stream is also H.264 at 2560 × 1440, 25 fps and 4096 Kbps.
Snapshots appear to work, and Homey seems to establish the Live connection, but no video is displayed on my iPhone.
Has anyone experienced the same black Live video issue? Are there specific substream, bitrate or I-frame settings that work reliably with Homey WebRTC?
I have the same problem!
Hi Brian,
Adding the camera works and the Live stream comes up correctly — then after a while it drops. Screenshots attached: stream running, “Retrying automatically (1/3)”, then (2/3), then “Device unavailable — Invalid username or password”.
So your two checks: Live view does not stay available, and “Retrying automatically (x/3)” still appears.
Good news though — the hub did not freeze this time. Homey stayed responsive and only the door station went unavailable. That part is fixed.
Happy to keep testing.
Test version 2026.8.13 is now available.
@Joost_E and @EdNL: Automatic Live-video selection now tries the H.264 substream (102) before the high-resolution main stream. You can also select Substream manually in Advanced Settings.
@Mithrandir86: please enable RTSP-only mode in the door station’s Advanced Settings. This permanently disables all ISAPI requests, snapshots, events and connection checks for that device, while keeping Live RTSP video.
Please let me know the test results.
Confirmed working. Enabled RTSP-only mode in Advanced Settings, restarted the app — Live view has been stable ever since, no “Retrying automatically” messages, and the device has stayed available.
Hi Brian,
Quick update so you don’t chase this one: Live view is black this morning, but it is not your app.
The same happens on all my ONVIF cameras — black live video, snapshots still fine. Homey updated its firmware yesterday and everything worked before that, so this looks like a regression in Homey’s video pipeline. Others are reporting it on the forum too. I’ll report it to Athom.
RTSP-only mode itself is holding perfectly — the device stays available, no retry messages, no hub freezes. Your fix works.
Thanks again for the quick turnaround on all of this.
Hi Brian, can you help me out with the kv6113 doorstation?
I dont seem to get it work
Thanks
I will de this week. Thank you already.
Hi Eugene, add the KV6113 using its local IP address, the device’s local username/password, HTTP port 80 and RTSP port 554. Make sure the substream is set to H.264. Leave RTSP-only mode disabled initially; only enable it in Advanced Settings if Live view works but the device keeps becoming unavailable. For doorbell events, enable “Notify Surveillance Center” in the Hikvision event settings.
