Shelly is best known among smart-home fans for its compact Wi-Fi relays and energy meters – devices built around local control. With the Shelly Camera the manufacturer brings that philosophy to video surveillance: local control instead of subscription lock-in. Here is what makes the Shelly Camera special, how to integrate it into Home Assistant and a NAS, and who it is for.
Local control instead of subscription lock-in
The biggest difference from many well-known surveillance cameras is the concept. Vendors like Ring (Amazon) or Nest (Google) often tie their cameras to paid cloud subscriptions – without a subscription, key features are limited. Shelly, by contrast, is known for its „local first“ approach: at their core the devices work locally on your own network, without data necessarily passing through a third-party cloud. It is exactly this approach that makes the Shelly Camera interesting for anyone who wants to keep their video data in their own home.
RTSP and ONVIF: streams for NAS, NVR and Home Assistant
Open standards are key for local use. The Shelly Camera is expected to support RTSP (Real Time Streaming Protocol) and ONVIF – the de facto standard for cross-vendor network cameras. That lets you embed the video stream directly, without going through an app, into:
- a Network Video Recorder (NVR) for continuous recording,
- a home NAS (e.g. from Synology or QNAP) with surveillance software,
- or directly into Home Assistant as a local camera source.
If you already run a NAS or NVR, you save every cloud fee and keep full control over recordings and retention.
Integrating the Shelly Camera into Home Assistant
For Home Assistant an RTSP/ONVIF camera is straightforward: using the generic camera or the ONVIF integration you add the local stream by URL, then show the image on your dashboard, use it in automations (e.g. a snapshot on motion) or link it with other Shelly devices. Since Shelly already has a large, active Home Assistant community, clean integration is to be expected.
Tip: for smooth streams and reliable recording, go2rtc or Frigate are worth adding in Home Assistant – both work excellently with RTSP cameras and enable, for example, local object detection.
Availability, models and the older „Shelly Eye“
Shelly announced the new camera line ahead of the Light + Building 2026 trade fair (March 2026). Concrete model variants, technical details and prices are being revealed step by step – for up-to-date availability it is worth checking Shelly’s official channels. Separately, there was already an earlier Wi-Fi camera called Shelly Eye; if you search for it, pay close attention to the model and how current it is.
Who is the Shelly Camera for?
It is ideal for anyone already in the Shelly or Home Assistant ecosystem who values data sovereignty: no forced cloud, local recording to a NAS/NVR and open standards. If, on the other hand, you want a pure plug-and-play camera with a finished manufacturer app and no setup of your own, a classic cloud provider may get you there faster – but often at the cost of an ongoing subscription.
Frequently asked questions
Can you buy the Shelly Camera already?
The new camera line was presented around Light + Building 2026 and is being rolled out gradually. It is best to check the exact availability of individual models directly via Shelly’s official channels or specialist retailers.
Does the Shelly Camera work without a cloud and without a subscription?
That is Shelly’s stated approach: local control without subscription lock-in. Via RTSP/ONVIF the stream can be used locally on a NAS, NVR or in Home Assistant without necessarily needing a paid cloud.
Can the Shelly Camera be integrated into Home Assistant?
Yes. The local RTSP stream is added via the generic camera or ONVIF integration. For recording and object detection, add-ons like go2rtc or Frigate are suitable.
Can I store recordings on a NAS?
Yes, as long as the camera supports RTSP/ONVIF. You can then embed the stream into the surveillance software of a Synology or QNAP NAS, or into a separate NVR, and record locally.