You can control all Burrel cameras remotely by sending SMS (text message) commands directly to the camera. Remote control is also possible remotely through the app, with certain restrictions. You can find more information about remote control through the app in this article.
Requirements
To control your camera remotely via SMS, it requires that:
- The camera subscription includes SMS (text messages)
- The camera settings are correct:
Menu -> Wireless-submenu ->
Phone. Here must the phone number from which SMS commands are sent and to which the camera sends a reply be saved. Save the phone number in the format 0401234567.
SMS control: Always
Note! If you have a camera supporting Burrel+ (SMS PRO-manufactured after Sep 2021, S22WA, n24 or e24) remember to save your changes made to camera settings directly on the camera by finally selecting "UpLoad settings" on the same Wireless-submenu.
- SMS commands are sent to the SIM card/subscription phone number in the camera. If you do not know the number, you can find this in the confirmation letter sent by the operator. If necessary, the operator will help you further.
- The camera is armed in other words camera power switch in ON-position. The exception is camera S22WA, which is armed with a delay of 5 minutes in ON-position unless camera is armed manually. You can find more information about this here.
All possible SMS remote commands for your camera can be found in the camera user manual. You can find manuals for all cameras still on sale in PDF format in this link.
Note! Of all camera functions, SMS remote consumes the most of its power supply. If SMS remote is on, we recommend connecting the camera to an external power source (external battery or AC power). You can find accessories needed in our webstore, which you can find here.
We recommend turning SMS remote off if this feature is not in use. In addition, we also recommend turning off the SMS remote in camera settings even if the camera is only used for recording pictures or/and videos not for sending them.
The most common camera notifications and error codes
After receiving a SMS and being able to operate the command succesfully, camera usually responds to your phone according to the sent SMS command. For example if you send a camera a SMS in order to add an email to camera settings, and camera is able to add the email you wanted, you will get a respond "Email added". The camera is able to respond only in English.
Below is a brief summary of the most common notifications and error codes your camera might use to respond to your phone when using SMS remote:
- Rejected, incorrect mode
Check that the camera is armed and in right mode when it is receiving SMS remote commands. If the camera is e.g. in SETUP-mode, when it should be in ON-mode, the camera gives this error message. In addition, check that your phone number is correctly saved in the camera settings under "Phone" (Wireless-submenu).
- System Busy
This notification comes if the camera e.g. is already working on a SMS remote command and the camera receives a new one. The camera can only execute one remote command at a time. Wait until camera compeles the first SMS command.
If this notice appears with a photo request (*500#), we recommend to check the trigger interval in Trigger-submenu in camera settings that it is set to at least 1 minute. If the camera is connected to 2G-network, trigger interval can be 3 minutes or even longer, to give the camera enough of time to process and transmit the picture before taking a new one. If a lot happens in front of the camera when the trigger interval is too short and/or the camera receives a picture request as SMS at the same time, this may cause this error message and the camera to jam. Then must camera usually be rebooted on-site.
- Executive fail
This error message usually appears if there has been a problem with the network connection, e.g. short outage. In addition, the absence of your phone number in the camera settings (Wireless-submenu -> Phone) may give this error message, as well as problems with the SD-card, such as its overflow, breakage or incompatibility.
- Picture sending
Camera respond to photo request *500# . The camera is on, connected and receiving the SMS command. The camera sends the photo to the location (phone, email, Burrel+) you have specified in the camera settings as SendTo (Wireless-submenu -> SendTo).
- Picture sending, but the picture doesn't arrive
If the photo does not appear to e.g. your email even if the camera notifies "picture sent", there is no single reason for it. We recommend checking your spam folder and security settings in your email, after which we recommend checking the following settings on the camera:
- Camera-submenu -> Mode. If the mode is video, change the mode to either "Photo" or "Photo&Video". The image is smaller as a file, so it is more likely to arrive. Please note that the 2G network can only transmit images.
- Wireless-submenu -> Image Quality. Try different image sizes. The smaller the file, the better it will arrive. Large image size is a challenge, especially in a weak 2G network.
If you still do not receive the image, we recommend that you review our recommendations for general action later in this article. In addition, we recommend checking whether the camera is transmitting a picture when detecting movement in front of the camera. Sometimes, there may be a common sending issue that might be resolved when following the steps mentioned.
- No SMS respond at all
If you do not receive any respond to your phone from your camera to a sent SMS remote command, the most common reason for that is that camera is not receiving the SMS sent. Check the subscription, camera settings and mode, and phone number mentioned at the beginning of the article. Please also check the power status.
However, the camera may work normally even if the camera does not send a reply. In some subscriptions the response mode may be turned off, and therefore the camera does not send a separate notification/SMS to the phone when it receives a remote command. Send SMS command *209#1# to your camera which turns the respons mode on. If necessary, we recommend contact your own operator.
General actions in case of issues
Below are some common steps we recommend you to take in case of a problem.
- Restarting the camera. During an on-site reboot, the camera regains the network connection and settings, which resolves several error situations. This is done by moving the power switch, so this action can only be done on-site and directly on the camera. Reboot cannot be done remotely by any means.
- Settings. Check camera settings and Sending-submenu that in "Phone" you can find the phone number from which SMS are sent, and "SMS control" is On or Always. If you have a camera with Burrel+, have you remembered to save your all changes to the server as well (Wireless-submenu -> UpLoad Settings)?
- Power supply. Camera must get enough of power in order to work. E.g. if the image transmission is interrupted due to lack of power, you do not get any separate notification about this to your phone. The camera attempts to send a file only once.
- SD-card. If the SD-card is full, broken, or incompatible, the camera will not work. Check the SD-card. Try formatting the current SD-card in camera settings and/or try a completely new SD-card from a different brand. Instructions for formatting and our recommendations for a new SD-card can be found here. According to our observation, microSD-card in adapter may cause interference with SMS control, so we do not recommend using this in the camera.
- Subscription. Check that camera subscription has right features. If necessary, try another SIM-card with a different subscription in the camera. If you try a different SIM.card in the camera, make sure the pin code query is turned off. To do this, insert the SIM card into the phone, and then check this in the phone settings.
- Firmware. Check that your camera has the latest firmware available and, if necessary, update your camera. This link takes you to our firmware support site, where you can find update instructions and latest firmware versions for all Burrel cameras.
- Operator interference notices. If there are known disturbances in the network connection, e.g. construction work, operators usually indicate these on their own websites. We recommend that you familiarize yourself with your operator's interference notices before contacting Burrel Technical Support.
Note! The more different channels are used to control the camera remotely, the more likely it is causing different functional interferences such as changes to camera settings are not saved permanently. That is why we recommend you to use Burrel App as much as possible in controlling your camera remotely, if your camera is added to the App.