FAQ
What is CorvoCam?
CorvoCam is a remote-camera platform that turns a spare Android phone into a dependable long-duration camera. Time-lapse is its first mode; you monitor and control it from any phone or browser.
Is it only a time-lapse app?
No. Time-lapse ships first and motion detection is built in, and the same device grows new modes over time — project monitoring, security checks, wildlife watching.
Do I need a subscription to use CorvoCam?
No. CorvoCam is a free download with every feature free for 14 days, then one payment that unlocks it for good. Nothing in CorvoCam auto-renews, and there is nothing to cancel.
What do I need to get started?
A spare Android phone to act as the camera, power for it, and the CorvoCam app. Your everyday phone — Android or iPhone — or any web browser becomes the viewer and remote control.
Does it really keep capturing with the screen off?
Yes. On Android, capture runs inside a foreground camera service and keeps its schedule with the screen off, always indicated by a persistent notification. It needs one permission: allow CorvoCam to ignore battery optimization when the camera offers it. On battery, some phones also ask to let CorvoCam wake them on time, so they can sleep between photos. Some manufacturers add their own battery manager on top of Android’s, and on those phones it can still throttle scheduled captures — shots may be missed. That is the phone’s power management, not something CorvoCam can override. If a phone’s camera stack cannot run the advanced engine, CorvoCam uses a compatibility engine and says so on the camera screen; there the screen has to stay on, and you can press Dim to black it out while capture continues. If the phone restarts, CorvoCam is updated, or Android closes the app, capture pauses and the camera phone shows a notification. Tap it and the job picks up on its original schedule. If a camera stops reporting during a job, for any reason, your viewer phone is alerted within about 15 minutes of the first scheduled photo it misses. Outside the capture hours you set, there is no alert.
Is CorvoCam only for construction time-lapse?
No. Job-site time-lapse is where CorvoCam started, but it is a remote-camera platform: renovations, real estate, workshops, gardens, wildlife, boats, cabins — any long-running scene you want to watch or film. Motion detection is already built in, and more modes are on the way.
Can I see what the camera is seeing?
Yes. Your viewer shows the newest photo moments after the camera uploads it, so how current it is follows your capture interval — a five-minute time-lapse means a new photo every five minutes, and a shorter interval brings it closer to now. The full photo gallery and every compiled video are a tap away.
Who owns the footage?
You do. Photos are captured to the camera phone’s own storage first, and compiled videos stay on the camera phone. Photos that sync to the cloud so your viewer can see them stay private to your account — no ads, no data sales. See the privacy policy for the full picture.
What happens when the site has no internet?
Capture keeps running. CorvoCam is offline-first: photos queue on the camera phone and sync when a connection returns. Remote view and control need the camera online, but the footage itself never depends on it.
How long can a time-lapse run?
Weeks to months. Cap local storage with automatic recycling of already-synced photos and get alerts if battery or storage runs low; you can also restrict capture to scheduled working hours (including overnight windows).
Which platforms does CorvoCam support?
The camera role runs on Android — that is where a dedicated phone can capture reliably for weeks. Viewing and control work from Android, iPhone and any web browser.
What happens when the camera phone runs on battery?
With photos a minute or more apart, the camera phone sleeps between photos to save power, and its screen turns off on its normal timeout; some phones first ask to let CorvoCam wake them on time, and stay awake between photos until you allow it. Your viewer shows it as sleeping, with the time of its last photo. A change you send — Start, Stop, new settings or a video — usually reaches it within seconds, and the camera phone shows a short notice when one arrives. If it can’t be woken early, for example when notifications are off on the camera phone, the change lands with its next photo, so a Stop may take one more photo first; your viewer shows the time it will apply by. Once a job has slept, each photo sets its own exposure until that job ends, and the finished video smooths the brightness. Plugged in, the camera phone stays awake and answers at once.