Hi everyone. I’m struggling to get my B0507 cameras working properly and hoping someone here can point me in the right direction. I’ve got 3 units fresh out of the box.
The main problems:
The web service interface is really unstable — it will randomly disappear from my laptop and I lose all access to the camera. I can’t reliably stay connected long enough to do anything useful.
Even when the interface does load, I can see the camera preview just fine, but I cannot find any button or option anywhere to actually start recording video. Am I blind or is it just not there?
These cameras are for a research project and I need to get them operational soon. Any help would be massively appreciated.
Hey, happy to help untangle this. You’re actually running into two separate issues, so let me break them down:
Issue 1 — Interface instability/disappearing:
This sounds like a network address stability problem. If you’re connecting the B0507 directly to your laptop’s Ethernet port (a peer-to-peer connection), there’s no DHCP server on that link to assign and maintain a stable IP address. The connection will drop whenever the IP lease expires or the link renegotiates, which explains the interface randomly vanishing.
Fix: Connect the camera to a router or network switch via Ethernet instead of plugging it directly into your laptop. The router’s DHCP server will hand out a stable IP and the interface should stay reachable.
Issue 2 — No Record button:
You’re not missing it — it genuinely doesn’t exist. The B0507’s web interface is designed for live preview and stream distribution only (RTSP / HTTP / WebRTC). There is no built-in recording function on the webpage.
Fix: You record by pulling the RTSP stream with FFmpeg. Here’s the command:
Thanks for the detailed explanation — that makes sense about the record button. But unfortunately the network side is still giving me grief.
I connected the camera to a switch via Ethernet like you suggested, but the interface still keeps disappearing. It works sometimes, but not consistently at all. Maybe slightly better than the direct connection, but still unusable for actual recording sessions.
A couple of questions while I troubleshoot:
I don’t need live streaming — I only need to save recorded footage to an external drive attached to my laptop. In that scenario, does the computer just need to be powered on, or does it need an active network/server connection the whole time?
If I go the SD card route and store video directly on the cameras’ internal memory, what’s the proper connection setup for that, and how do you activate recording to SD?
Also — I should mention that I’m working outdoors with no access to an indoor network. I’ve got the 3 cameras connected to a PoE switch, plus a laptop. Where does the laptop fit into this chain to keep the interface stable?
Good questions. Let me address what I can right now:
On the SD card recording front — I’ll need to check with our engineering team about whether direct-to-SD recording is supported on the B0507 and how to configure it. I don’t want to give you incorrect steps. I’ll follow up on that.
Regarding the outdoor setup — the key variable here is whether your PoE switch is also acting as a DHCP server. A lot of basic PoE switches are just Layer 2 devices, meaning they pass traffic but don’t assign IPs. If that’s the case, even with the switch in the chain, the cameras may still be struggling with IP assignment unless something upstream is handling DHCP.
Can you describe your exact outdoor cabling? Which devices are plugged into which ports, and does the switch itself have any management interface or DHCP capability? Also, is there any Wi-Fi available at the outdoor location, even if it’s weak?
Alright, here’s the full picture of what I’m working with:
I’m using 3 Arducam King Kong cameras (B0507) to track bee movements inside a netted outdoor enclosure. The physical setup is:
[ King Kong 1 ] --+
[ King Kong 2 ] --+-- Ethernet (PoE) --> [ PoE Switch ] -- Ethernet --> [ Laptop ]
[ King Kong 3 ] --+
The PoE switch and laptop each have their own separate power supply. There is Wi-Fi available outdoors — the signal isn’t super strong but it’s decent enough.
I only need offline recording, no real-time streaming. Videos can end up either on the laptop’s external hard drive or on SD cards inside the cameras — whichever is more reliable.
Now, I’ve done some more testing and made an interesting discovery about the network issue. I tried using Windows DHCP via Internet Connection Sharing to avoid needing a router:
Control Panel → Network & Sharing Center → Change adapter settings
Enabled “Allow other network users to connect through this computer’s Internet connection”
This gives the laptop’s Ethernet port an IP of 192.168.137.1 and the camera picks up something in the 192.168.137.x range. I can actually SSH into the camera via Putty just fine — so basic connectivity works. But as soon as I run the ffmpeg command against port 8082, it throws a connection dropout error almost immediately.
It really seems like having an actual internet router/modem in the loop is mandatory for a stable RTSP connection on port 8082. Without one, ffmpeg just can’t hold the stream.
Is there any known workaround for this? An internet router is not practical in my outdoor field setup and I’m running out of ideas.
That’s really useful debugging — thanks for being so thorough. What you’re seeing with Windows ICS is actually a known limitation. ICS is designed for basic internet sharing (web browsing, email) and doesn’t handle sustained, bidirectional streaming protocols well. The camera’s RTSP server on port 8082 needs consistent two-way communication that ICS just isn’t built to maintain, hence the dropouts even though SSH works fine.
A possible path forward for your outdoor setup: a small portable/travel router. These are inexpensive, often USB-powered, and can run as a standalone DHCP server without any internet connection at all. The key thing you need is a proper DHCP server maintaining stable IP leases on the local network segment — the router doesn’t need upstream internet access, it just needs to manage the LAN. Something battery-powered could work directly in the field.
Also — I’ve sent you an invite to the Arducam Discord server via private message. There are community members there who’ve done similar outdoor/field deployments and might have practical hardware recommendations for portable DHCP solutions.
I’m still waiting on engineering feedback regarding SD card recording. Will update you as soon as I hear back.
Thanks, I’ll look into a portable router — that might be the way to go.
In the meantime, two new problems have come up with the B0507 cameras and I’m hoping you can help:
1. Lens swap needed: The stock lens isn’t going to work for my application. I need to capture fine details on subjects (bees) at distances between 1 and 5 meters. I’m thinking something in the 20–70mm focal range, or a flexible zoom like 15–70mm. I need 3 lenses total for my three cameras. What compatible options are available for the B0507?
2. FPS settings won’t stick: When I go into the camera settings and try to change the frames per second, the new value doesn’t save. I select a different FPS, apply/save, and the camera just keeps recording at the default 30 fps. The setting reverts every time. Is this a known bug?
Also attaching a screenshot of a connection error I keep getting when trying to reach the camera’s general address:
Thanks for the thorough report. I’m splitting these across the right teams internally:
Lens inquiry → forwarded to our sales/optics team. The B0507 uses a CS-mount interface, so there should be compatible lenses in that 20–70mm range, but they’ll need to match one to your specific working distance and field of view.
FPS settings not persisting → sent to engineering for investigation. That definitely sounds like a firmware-level configuration bug — the setting should save and apply. I’ll let you know what they find.
You should hear back within about 3 working days on both items. In the meantime, if you can share more detail about lighting conditions, approximate subject size, and the field of view you need, that’ll help narrow down the lens options faster.
Happy to provide more context on the lens requirements. I’m doing research in Sensory and Behavioural Ecology — specifically tracking individual bee behaviour inside a netted outdoor enclosure. The cameras need to resolve enough detail to distinguish and follow individual bees at working distances from about 1 meter out to roughly 5 meters. A flexible zoom like a 15–70mm would be ideal since it gives me framing flexibility without swapping lenses in the field, but honestly anything that can deliver clear, identifiable detail at those distances would work. I need 3 of whatever lens ends up being the best fit.
Appreciate the extra detail — that helps a lot. Our sales team has reviewed your requirements and before the engineers can make specific lens recommendations, they’re asking that you complete a project inquiry form with as much detail as possible about the application. I’ve sent the form to you via private message — please fill it out and send it back when you can.
To summarise where everything stands right now:
Network/interface stability: The core finding is that a proper DHCP server (i.e. a router) is needed for stable RTSP streaming on port 8082. Windows ICS won’t cut it — it can handle SSH but drops the RTSP connection. A portable/travel router running as a standalone DHCP server (no internet needed) may be the solution for your outdoor field setup. Still open — no confirmed fully-offline workaround yet.
Recording: FFmpeg pulling from the RTSP stream with -c:v copy is the method. SD card recording capability is still being checked with engineering.
Lens selection: Forwarded to the optics/sales team. Please complete the project inquiry form I sent via PM — that’s the next step to get a proper lens recommendation for your bee-tracking application at 1–5m on the B0507.
FPS settings not saving: Under investigation by engineering. Will update once they’ve had a chance to reproduce and diagnose.
