How to connect Xiaomi camera to your computer: all ways + problem solving

Xiaomi cameras are some of the most popular video surveillance devices, thanks to their combination of price, quality and functionality, but many users are faced with the problem of how to display images from the camera to the computer screen for recording, streaming or remote surveillance. In this article, we will analyze all the current ways of connecting - from simple USB-connection before setting up streaming over the network.

It is not a Xiaomi Mi Home Security Camera 360.°, Xiaomi MiJia 1080p Xiaomi Smart Camera C400 — The connection principles are similar, but there are nuances, like not all cameras support direct. USB-PC connectivity is like a webcam, and some require additional software, and we tested each method in practice and put together step-by-step instructions for typical errors.

If you want to stream a camera video to OBS Studio for streaming, burn it to a hard drive, or just watch the room through VLC Player, you'll find work solutions here, and if something goes wrong, there's a section at the end of the article that shows common problems and ways to fix them.

1. Connecting Xiaomi’s camera to your PC via USB (like a webcam)

The most obvious way is to connect the camera to your computer with a USB-Type-C or Micro-USB cable (depending on the model). However, not all Xiaomi devices support UVC (USB Video Class) mode, which allows you to use them as a regular webcam. For example, the Xiaomi Mi Home Camera 360° 1080p will not be recognized as a webcam when connected directly, but the Xiaomi Smart Camera C400 can (subject to updated firmware).

To check the compatibility:

1. Connect the camera to the PC with a cable from the kit.
2. Open Device Manager (Win + X → Device Manager).
3. Look in the Camera or Image Processing Devices sections – if a new device (such as a USB Camera) appears, then UVC mode is supported.

If the camera is not detected:

• 🔌 Try another one. USB-port (preferably) USB 3.0 - blue).
• 🔄 Restart the camera by turning off power for 10 seconds.
• 🖥️ Install the driver. USB Video Device from Microsoft Store (for Windows) 10/11).

⚠️ Note: Xiaomi cameras with a battery (such as Mi Home Camera 2) when connected to a battery USB It can be discharged, not charged, and for long-term use, it's better to connect it to a network adapter.

Connected the cable to USB 3.0 port

Checked the Device Manager for a camera

Updated USB Video Device Driver

Rebooted the camera and PC

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2. Wi-Fi connection via Mi Home app

If USB-The method didn't work, and the most reliable way is to connect over a LAN, so you need to have a camera and a computer on the same Wi-Fi network:

• 📱 Mi Home app (installed on smartphone).
• 🌐 Stable Wi-Fi connection (2.4GHz – most Xiaomi cameras don’t support 5GHz).
• 💻 Program for viewing the stream on the PC (for example, VLC Player or iSpy).

Step-by-step:

1. Connect your camera to the network via the Mi Home app (if you haven’t already).
2. In the app, go to camera settings → Shared → Local Network and turn on the option.
3. Copy. IP-Camera address (displayed in About Camera section).
4. Open up. VLC Player on PC, select Media → Open up. URL enter the address of the view: rtsp://[IP_camera]:554/stream1 For example: rtsp://192.168.1.100:554/stream1.

If the stream doesn’t open, try alternative URLs (depending on the model):

⚠️ Note: If you have a Chinese version of the camera (firmware) CN), RTSP It can be disabled by default. It requires a global firmware flash to activate it.

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If IP-The camera address changes frequently, fix it in the router settings (DHCP-This will eliminate the need to search for a new address every time.

3.Using ONVIF for Professional Integration

ONVIF allows you to connect Xiaomi cameras to video surveillance systems like Blue Iris, Synology Surveillance Station or ZoneMinder, a method that is suitable for organizing a multi-camera system or recording archives on the NAS.

How to turn on ONVIF on the Xiaomi camera:

1. Open the Mi Home app, go to the camera settings → Sharing → ONVIF.
2. Turn on the protocol and write down the login / password (by default often admin/123456).
3. Add the camera to your surveillance system by specifying: 📍 IP-camera. 🔐 Port: 80 (HTTP) 554 (RTSP). 👤 Login/password in paragraph 2.

Example of settings in Synology Surveillance Station:

1. Open the control panel. → Cameras → Add → Add IP-camera.
2. Select ONVIF from the protocol list.
3. Enter. IP-Address, login/password and click Search.
4. Once detected, select the desired stream (usually H.264 or H.265).

4. Connect via the Mi Home cloud (without a local area network)

If the camera and the computer are on different networks (for example, you want to watch your home from work), you can use the cloud service Mi Home.

How to set up:

You can use video from the cloud to record:

• 📹 Built-in functionality of Mi Home (save events on the movement).
• 🖥️ Screen capture programs (e.g., screen capture programs, OBS Studio with source Capture Window).

⚠️ Note: When using the cloud, Xiaomi limits free traffic – after exceeding the limit, the video quality decreases to a high level of traffic. 360p. For Full. HD You will need a Mi Home Security subscription (from 99) ₽/month).

5. Connect Xiaomi camera to OBS Studio for streaming

If you are a streamer or live streaming, you can display the image from the Xiaomi camera in the video. OBS Studio. Any of the previous methods will do that (USB, RTSP or ONVIF), but it's easier to use RTSP-flow.

Instructions for OBS:

1. Add a new source → Media source.
2. In the field, insert the Local file RTSP-camera address, for example, rtsp://192.168.1.100:554/stream1).
3. Turn on the tick Use hardware decoding (reduce the load on the processor).
4. Adjust the source resolution to your stream (ideally 1280×720 or 1920×1080).

If the video slows down:

• 🔧 Reduce bitrate in camera settings (e.g., from 4,000 Kbps to 2,000 Kbps).
• 📶 Switch the camera to a wired connection (Ethernet adapter for Xiaomi sold separately).
• 🖥️ V OBS Choose a codec NVENC (if you have a video card NVIDIA) hardware-coding.

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It's better to use streams. RTSP, not USB-Connection – this way you avoid driver problems and get a more stable flow.

6. Solving common problems

Even with the right setup, errors can occur, and here are the most common ways to fix them:

Critical error: If Windows delivers error code 43 after connecting the camera to USB, it means the driver crashes. The solution is to roll the driver back in Device Manager or install it manually through Zadig (instructions on the official website).

If none of the methods worked:

• 🔄 Reflash the camera on the global firmware (instructions are on the forums) 4PDA Xiaomi Community).
• 🛠️ Check the camera on another device (like a smartphone) – it may be the problem in the device itself.
• 📧 Contact Xiaomi with error logs (how to collect them - see WEB. FAQ).

7.Alternative programs for working with the Xiaomi camera

Besides VLC and OBS, There are specialized management software IP-camera:

• 🎬 iSpy is a free program that supports movement, recording and notifications. RTSP and ONVIF.
• 🖥️ Blue Iris – a paid solution for professional video surveillance (there is a trial period).
• 🌐 TinyCam Pro is a mobile app for Android, but there is also a desktop version for Windows.
• 📡 Home Assistant – Smart Home System with Xiaomi Camera Integration xiaomi_miio.

Example of settings in iSpy:

1. Download the program from the official website.
2. Add a new camera. → choose IP-support-camera RTSP.
3. Enter the stream address (e.g. rtsp://192.168.1.100:554/stream1).
4. Set up motion detection and notifications via email or Telegram.

Home Assistant will require:

1. Installation of the component xiaomi_miio through HACS.
2. Add the camera to configuration.yaml: camera: - platform: xiaomi_miio host: 192.168.1.100 token: YOUR_TOKEN name: Xiaomi Camera Living Room
3. Token can be accessed through the Mi Home app and the MiHome-Extractor tool.

FAQ: Frequent questions