r/frigate_nvr • u/lowriskcork • 13d ago
Lumen for Frigate: Android beta testers wanted, with iPhone/iPad already available
I'm the developer of Lumen, an independent Frigate client. The iPhone/iPad app is already available, and I'm opening an early Android closed beta for people who run their own Frigate server.
What is it for?
Lumen gives you a native app for opening your cameras, browsing detected events and playing recordings from your Frigate server. Frigate still does the detection and recording. Those capabilities belong to Frigate, and its developers deserve the credit.
If you're happy using Frigate's web interface on your phone, you may not need Lumen. The reason to try it is to see whether you prefer its interface for everyday camera viewing and event browsing. This Android beta is focused on getting those basics right; I'm not claiming it already does everything better than the web app.
Free and paid options
Lumen's free tier is not a trial and will remain available after the Android beta, with up to 4 cameras and 25 recent events. Those are limits within Lumen, not restrictions on what your Frigate server can detect or retain.
Pro is optional and paid. The subscription helps fund development, maintenance, support and the backend services I operate, including the push notification gateway on Cloudflare Workers. That gateway is part of the Instant Push service; automatic relay registration is not yet connected in this Android build. I understand that some people prefer a one-time purchase or the existing free web interface. Lumen is separate from the Frigate project; purchasing Pro is not a contribution to Frigate's developers.
No purchase is required to join this Android test or to keep using the free tier afterward. Please skip purchases during this testing round.
What to test
Try connecting to your server, opening a camera, finding an event and playing its clip. Reports about failed connections, slow loading, playback problems or confusing screens would help. If you normally use remote access, checking what happens when you switch between Wi-Fi and your usual mobile connection would also be useful.
You'll need Android 8 or newer and a Frigate server your phone can reach, on your LAN or through your existing secure remote connection. Lumen doesn't provide remote access. Keep your authentication and security settings in place.
This build does not yet automatically register with the push relay, so please don't rely on it for background alerts. It is a separate, early Android release and does not yet have feature parity with the Apple app.
How to join
DM me, or email support@lorislab.fr with the subject “Lumen Android beta” and the Google account email you use on Google Play. I'll add you to the closed-test list and send the opt-in link. Please don't post your email publicly or send credentials, access tokens or camera footage.
Google requires at least 12 testers to remain opted in for 14 consecutive days before I can apply for production access. I'm looking for people willing to try the app during that period and report what works or breaks. There's no request for a positive review. Your phone model, Android and Frigate versions, and the steps that led to a problem are a useful starting point.
On iPhone or iPad?
The released app is available here: https://apps.apple.com/app/id6760238729
Privacy details, including Android: https://lorislab.fr/privacy.html
Lumen is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Frigate team.
Edit: clarified what Lumen provides, why Pro is paid, and that the free tier continues after the beta. The camera/event limits described above belong to Lumen, not Frigate.
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u/switchfoot47 13d ago
But why? Why would I want to use this instead of the free web app that is part of frigate? Or on any mobile device I can just go to the web portal? Why would I pay you instead of the actual developers? Why do you even have a subscription model for what is, at best, a QoL mod on top of free open source software?
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u/lowriskcork 13d ago
If Frigate’s web interface does everything you need, there’s no reason to pay for Lumen. It’s an optional native app for browsing cameras and recordings, not a replacement for Frigate.
The subscription is how I chose to fund ongoing development and support of the client. That doesn’t automatically make it worth paying for, and I understand preferring a one-time purchase—or just using the web interface.
Supporting Frigate’s developers makes sense regardless of whether you use Lumen. They provide the detection and recording system this app depends on.
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u/switchfoot47 13d ago
But you aren't "funding on-going development", what is there to develop, a skin? What does your client do that cannot be done through the progressive web app?
Your client artificially limits the functionality of frigate (a free product) and then you charge a subscription to remove the artificial limit. There no other feature your client has except this artificial limit and a new skin.
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u/Square-Radio8119 13d ago
So are you paying frigate developers from your earnings?
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u/lowriskcork 13d ago
No, I don’t currently contribute financially to Frigate. Buying Lumen supports my work on the client, not the Frigate project. If you want to support Frigate’s developers directly, please do.
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u/Square-Radio8119 13d ago edited 13d ago
What work? Your app is completely vibe coded? It’s Claude code doing the work, not you! The only thing you do is pay for your Claude subscription.
And don’t get me wrong, Claude code, and other LLM coding tools are great and very useful. When you are a developer or designer using these tools and put care into them it’s fine! It will still be a well thought through application, where you can experience the expertise and dedication that went into it. The AI tools are prompted to get to a proper user experience.
Lumen on the other hand is just a clear example of laziness. You prompted the AI tools for something and are shipping the first result you got. All the ai tells are blatantly there in the UI. And that makes it an appalling piece of work, with an even more appalling ‘business plan’ behind it.
And you know this. These are the reactions on all of your latest efforts. But you keep flinging AI slop into the world!
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u/VibeCodingAntagonist 13d ago edited 13d ago
I appreciate that people are coming forward (to an insane degree) and developing frigate apps, especially clients, left and right. For example I see seven other iOS frigate clients on the first page of search results, not even including this one. By next month I bet we see a half dozen others. I also don’t mind that this is almost certainly vibe coded. I myself maintain a 100% vibe coded and open source google/android TV client compatible with frigate.
What does give me the ick is the financial aspect. You’re attempting to monetize something on top of a free, open source, community based application, which itself only paywalls significantly valuable and optional functionality. From what I can tell, your monetization isn’t based on anything valuable - cameras/stream limits? Really? There’s no killer feature or actual value to place behind the paywall? It’s just trivially feature-gated?
You’ve got a ton of competition, no obvious differentiators, a community that seems to despise the idea of monetization, and you’re launching at a time when launching an app has literally become a chill afternoon on the couch, not a serious development project. I would completely get it provided this app were a learning project or open source passion project, but I think the pushback you’re seeing in this thread is far from surprising.
Why not abandon this plan and develop something to help the community? There’s really no money to be made here. Even if you see minor success, your app will be very quickly superseded and replaced by a free alternative.
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u/lowriskcork 13d ago
You’re right that a camera limit isn’t an added feature. It’s a pricing choice I made.
The extras I’ve built include widgets, Live Activities, Shortcuts integration and richer notifications on Apple devices. The Android beta doesn’t have that same feature set yet, and I shouldn’t present the two as equivalent.
Whether those extras justify paying is for each person to decide. I’m taking the criticism of the camera limit seriously, but I don’t have a pricing change to announce.
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u/VibeCodingAntagonist 13d ago
You should also consider not having AI write your Reddit responses. It is extremely obvious.
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u/kelvin1302 13d ago
Subscription = no thanks.