Blue Iris Reviews

I have several homes..and the cameras keep going down. They often go down at the same time so I have 2 different firms that need to talk and find out what’s going on. When we called for help, KEN the “independent developer DEMANDED money just to explain why his own software was not working. THEN to beat all, his new “update” SHUT DOWN ALL of the video we had for the last 6+ months - on BOTH HOMES. This guy doesn’t care abou this clients and APPLE should not sell this ...it’s just bad and when the owner/developer doesn’t care, it a big deal.

We tried and tried to get it to work...but when one needs to “buy more support”, and BOTH homes go down - the problem is not ours...it’s his.

FIND ANY - ANY - other product to buy - but not Blue Iris...it’s just truly the worst tech based product in our homes.

It seems my previous negative review was deleted. In brief, I recommend that you use the built in html based BI browser as the navigation is mush more straightforward and bug-free.

With the latest update, BlueIris crashes and restarts (so if I had spent some time finding a certain alert vid, I must now start over with that process) whenever I rotate from vertical to landscape or back on my updated iPhone 11. The problem with that is in landscape view, navigation is extremely frustrating and in vertical mode the format obviously is not ideal since half the screen in nav controls. Since I cannot rotate to switch between views, BlueIris has no use for me.

Can I please get a refund? This is coming from somebody that recommends Blue Iris, just not this buggy app.

BlueIris has a couple glitches for sure that I have come across. Plus the Tech support from this company is very hot & miss. I have been waiting 2 weeks for an answer to a simple question. Cant get a reply. I am using BlueIris with 2 different servers. My home & my business so when I get an alert from the business for example. If I click on the alert to open it up sometimes it will duplicate my home server so I will have 2 home servers and the work one with be deleted. Very frustrating. Also sometimes it wont connect to the server remotely saying it can’t connect and when I get to the server in question there doesn’t seem to be anything wrong but I will have to go through the remote wizard again to get it working. Needless to say I can’t delete my actual camera remote app as it is very reliable. It is a backup for when not if the BI app fails. They got my 10$ though. I guess they put my email address on blocked.

Just paid for BlueIris. It connects to my Blue Iris server, but it has a couple of serious defects. The count of notifications on BlueIris icon is always incorrect until I go into BlueIris - doesn’t automatically update. More serious, even though all notification settings are activated, BlueIris does not create any lock screen or other notifications, making it useless for home security / alert scenarios.

Given how long it’s been since BlueIris has been updated, it’s likely that it is not able to deal with the iOS13 changes to app notifications. In any case, while the Windows software is really good, BlueIris is NOT worth the money. Hopefully BlueIris developer will ship a major update but until then, look for another solution for mobile alerts with your Blue Iris server.

To start off. We used BlueIris for about a good year. App has served well with minimal errors and has proven a sturdy app with playback being smooth and almost live playback speed on the viewing side. Viewing recordings is almost seem less as well with no studdering. It’s probably our nvr spec but it will not playback 4K level video unless you wait 4 hrs.

Nightmare side. Apple did something that goofed up a tls version 1 ssl support and it cause a month of issues. I believe we have it sorted but it will pretty much only send notifications with no thumbnail but let us login. To view.

U will get a positive experience just expect a longer time to get it ironed out

I have been using BlueIris for over a week. I like it overall and it is stable. As I review recordings I miss using the slider to go back and forth while watching the recording.

It is a bit tedious to go from 16x to -16x by pushing buttons instead of sliding. And only other thought is that it will stop each time you choose a new speed. Like some old features along with some new ones.

When I upgraded my PC to Blue Iris v5 I had trouble getting BlueIris to stay connected to the server. It would connect with my log in the 3 seconds later it would disconnect me. If you have the same problem try making the LAN IP address https instead of the default http. Not sure why I don’t have to do that for WAN but that’s what worked for me.

BTW If you have trouble getting it to connect at all then run the remote access wizard which will help you get port forwarding correct on your router.

Ken & Team

It has handled everything, everywhere, for every reason.
Install sites are blown away at ease of use, ability to fine tune to any environment and handled 99% of the cameras on the market.
I don’t know of any camera , BI has not work with…

Remote View is always spot on, and never difficult to figure problem out when they occur. When they beyond that, the Team
responds in force and quick.

Just thank you, Team , for the time willingness and sincere skill sets you & programming Team has invested ,

All of You have made a lot of Lives better in Starke Florida,
Change the future for many, especially us.

Offenders had no idea how good Blue Iris is.
Just saying…empirical data suggests it works well.

Cheers , much Love Team
Rob

Been running this for years now and it’s solid 100%. Very reliable never had any issues, it’s always there when I need it to be. Ran sever up to 3 months solid with no restarts and still reliable. One option to consider adding would be Picture in Picture mode on iOS to keep a selected camera open over other apps. Thanks for such a great app!

App runs great, but honestly nothing beats the web gui version, I’m asking the developer if it’s possible to add the timeline feature with the trigger markings to make video searching easier on the mobile and iPad app, also can you guys add the auto patrol function at least to the iPad version? These features will put BlueIris on par or even better than the big name companies, google etc.

Seen some negative reviews on here, but gotta say the Blue Iris IOS app has worked great for me. The only issue I’ve had is alerts seem inconsistent on some of my cameras, but that may be from not having them configured correctly. Otherwise, BlueIris is reliable, responsive, and very intuitive to use. Worth the $$$ and much cheaper in the long run than what most smart cameras charge for monthly cloud access.

I’ve been testing remotely for about a week and it has been rock solid for the basic function of viewing motion alerts—definitely worth the price! I have much to learn regarding the various features and configuration of Blue Iris NVR and the iPhone app but I’m already a believer because core functionality on both work so well. I’m getting ready to work with Support for using a Samsung/Hanwha PNV-9080R and it will be worth the effort. I’m moving to all 4K+ cams and I’m optimistic the foundation can handle it. So much better than my old dedicated NVR which was full of bugs!

My NVR has robust hardware (8th gen I7 / 32G RAM) and responds well—the responsiveness continues to be good using the remote app, so it seems well designed. I was under the impression the NVR supports H.265 so it would be nice if the remote does also as do my new 4K cams. I’m not sure about the description saying no router config needed...I set up port forwarding for remote access to NVR as documented, but it works just the same.

The developer is open to feedback and continues to update both to the PC app and this mobile app. The UI isn’t perfect but it functions well and offers a lot of customization for notifications and alerts. BlueIris is developed and supported by one person so response times for support emails aren’t always fast, but there’s also a number of forums, message boards, and FB groups with other users who can help.

I’ve had a BI setup for over 5 years. While I’ve had minor qualms with it here and there, it’s got significant bang-for-the-buck.

Like several other comments, most recent software updates have introduced new features or settings which has somehow dropped the automatic counters on the phone app. However, BlueIris is powerful, software is extremely powerful, and the software runs with professional runtime without crashing. It’s been quite reliable for us.

The downside of flexible software is that there is a higher learning curve. It’s really not for the faint of heart. Folks wanting something easier to set up might look elsewhere. The developer is advised to remember his target market as he makes changes, and watching for the competitors and see what they are doing. I’ve considered going to another system but to date, BI has still been the best fit for our use.

The server software running deep stack is a home run imo. BlueIris could use some similar attention. For the most part it works but on occasion seems to have a hiccup here and there. Since I don’t have a static ip I’m also running noIp so who knows. It updates all the time and I also renew each month. So not sure, but overall for what you pay vs what you get. Can’t really complain, pretty much enterprise type software for super cheap cost and the deep stack part makes me want to cry tears of joy as it has pretty much eliminated all the false triggers…

This program, and its support system, is unsurpassed and in a league of its own. It integrates all your cameras into a single app for desktop and mobile viewing, both at home and away. I have 4 different cameras around my house and the idea of having to use 4 separate apps to view them is not an option. BI puts them all together, allows for live streaming, remote alarms, voice exchange, and free storage to your own hard disk. This just can’t be matched. Support is great via email and remote access is available with priority support. Ken, his software and his team are a seamless part of my home monitoring and I’d pay double for what I get from them.

I have been using Blue Iris for many years now and I appreciate both the dedication to the platform and the great support offered. I am someone who cares about my privacy and values having local automations. I have relied on Blue Iris to help keep my family safe and give us piece of mind and it does exactly that while allowing flexibility of control and the integrations that I depend on. The newer AI features are amazing and I had to do very little to adopt them. Well done and keep up the great work!

The platform isn’t for everyone (requires some technical aptitude) but it has served me very well over the years and only continues to improve with time.

This works seamless for me. Now, I run the Windows version as a service - which seems best for me. Also, when I move from WiFi to LTE I do get a blip - but that can't really be blamed on BlueIris - my network signal is changing - down/then up. I just back up or move forward on a camera and voila! all perfect (whoops-said it again).
I'm running 4 POE fixed lens, 2 Wired PTZ's and 2 wireless PTZ's - never see any glitch. Have recently started having 100% issues not being able to reach via WAN. All IP’ have stayed the same, removed and added forward rules, removed and reinstalled on a different PC - still no luck. Once I figure this out - an answer will come immediately!!
Thanks and keep up the good work. Worth every penny.

I was slightly hesitant to buy BlueIris since a lot of recent reviews have low ratings, but I’m not disappointed at all. As long as you have the server (works with v5) and your cameras configured properly, all the functions of BlueIris work perfectly. Even 3D push notifications (notifications with an alert image) work perfect, and if you have an Apple Watch, the alert image notification pops up on your wrist without ever having to pull out your phone or laptop to see what triggered the alarm. The UI is a little outdated but all the critical features like streaming options for LAN vs WAN/LTE, browse alerts and clips, do basic management of the server, and getting alerts all work perfect which makes this the perfect companion app for Blue Iris. A+

I've been using this app along with my Amcrest cameras for years now and could not recommend a better system. It's a little technologically advanced in the beginning, BUT TRUST ME... You will not find a cheaper alternative with the options you have with this app. Anything you can do with a $1,000+ system you can do with this (and much better too). BlueIris is worth the $10 and I highly suggest getting it.