Comparison

DS cam vs IPCam Plus

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

DS cam

Monitor and receive alerts from your Synology surveillance cameras. Control PTZ, patrols, and lens functions in real-time. Easily filter recordings and manage essential tasks like disabling cameras or deleting snapshots.

Highlights
  • Real-time camera monitoring
  • Alert notifications
  • PTZ, patrol, and lens control
  • Advanced recording filters
  • Essential management tasks
  • Snapshot management
Features
Read full description

You must own a Synology NAS or NVR to run this app, and be running the latest Surveillance Station to get the complete set of features. DS cam makes it possible to monitor and receive alert notifications from all your surveillance cameras set up on a Synology DiskStation. Smart features such as PTZ, patrols or lens control allow for perfect control of your cameras in real-time, while advanced filters make it easy to pinpoint any specific event from large lists of recordings. You can even perform all essential management tasks, from disabling a camera to unlocking and deleting a snapshot. Find all detailed features about the app on our website: www.synology.com > Solutions > Surveillance > Surveillance Mobile > Specifications https://www.synology.com/dsm/7.2/software_spec/surveillance_station

About

IPCam Plus

Access and view live video feeds from multiple ABUS IP cameras directly on your smartphone or tablet. Control PTZ cameras, save images, and stream recorded footage from SD cards. Supports various ABUS camera models and multiple languages.

Highlights
  • Live video streaming from up to six cameras
  • PTZ camera control (pan, tilt, zoom)
  • Save and share video snapshots
  • Access recorded footage from SD cards
  • Organize cameras into groups
  • Multi-language support
Read full description

IPCam Plus with improved user interface Convenient access to your ABUS IP cameras when out and about allows you to watch all videos live. The free Universal IPCam Plus app is optimised for smartphones and tablets and displays video images from up to six network cameras at once. Alarm outputs can also be controlled via the app. Users can log in both via touch ID or using a six-digit PIN code. Camera view and online functions The camera views can be selected individually by creating groups. If multiple cameras are saved in the app, you can switch between them in single or multi-screen simply by swiping. The integrated online help function can display explanations for the control panels, for example. The online update function can be used to update the internal camera database quickly and easily, so that new camera models can be recognised reliably. Live image access and transfer via MMS or email The user-friendliness of iPhones or other similar devices is of course retained; simply tilt the mobile device to the side to view videos in landscape mode. When live-streaming, simply click to switch between different quality settings. Images can also be saved from the live cast. The relevant image is stored in the image folder on the end device and can be sent easily via MMS or email. If the video files are recorded directly on the camera SD card, the recorded material can be viewed via the app. There is no need to download the entire video; the desired areas can simply be selected and then streamed on the device. Control of PTZ cameras A particular highlight is the ability to control pan tilt zoom cameras using the buttons displayed in the live view. The app can also be used to configure preset positions for the cameras, and to change these at any time if necessary. Complete camera tours can also be started and stopped this way. Wide selection of languages The app supports German, English, French, Dutch and Danish. This application supports the following camera models: - TVIP11502, TVIP11552, TVIP11560, TVIP11561 - TVIP21502, TVIP21552, TVIP21560, TVIP22500 - TVIP31001, TVIP31501, TVIP31551, TVIP32500 - TVIP41500, TVIP41560 - TVIP52502 - TVIP61500, TVIP61550, TVIP61560, TVIP62500 - TVIP71501, TVIP71551, TVIP72500 - TVIP81000, TVIP81100, TVIP82000, TVIP82100 - TIP82900, TVIP83900, TVIP86900 - TVIP91100, TVIP91300, TVIP91600, TVIP91700 - TVIP92100, TVIP92300, TVIP92500, TVIP92600, TVIP92610, TVIP92700 - IPCB42500, IPCB42550, IPCB71500, IPCB72500 (HTTPS and SD-Card Snapshots requires Firmware 5.3.4 or above) - IPCB42501, IPCB42551, IPCB62500, IPCB72501, - IPCB24500, IPCB34500, IPCB64500, IPCB74500, - IPCA22500, IPCA32500, IPCA52000, IPCA62500, IPCA62505, IPCA72500 - IPCA33500, IPCA63500, IPCA66500, IPCA73500, IPCA76500 (HTTPS and SD-Card Snapshots requires Firmware 5.3.2 or above) - IPCS82520 (HTTPS and SD-Card Snapshots requires Firmware 5.3.3 or above) - IPCS82500 (HTTPS and SD-Card Snapshots requires Firmware 5.4.12 or above) - IPCS10020 - IPCB42510A, IPCB42510B, IPCB42510C, IPCB42515A, IPCB44510A, IPCB44510B, IPCB44510C - IPCB62510A, IPCB62510B, IPCB62510C, IPCB64510A, IPCB64510B, IPCB64510C, IPCB68510A, IPCB68510B, IPCB68510C - IPCB62520, IPCB64520, IPCB68520 - IPCB72520, IPCB74520, IPCB78520 Important notes: The app requires the firmware on your network camera to be up to date, so you may have to update the firmware before you start. Intensive use of the live-streaming function can increase battery consumption, causing the end device to heat up. In the case of remote connections, additional costs may be incurred depending on your provider. The video performance will depend on the transmission bandwidth. The privacy policy can be found here: https://info.abus-sc.com/legal-documents/ipcam-plus/dsgvo-ipcamplus.html The terms of use can be found here: https://info.abus-sc.com/legal-documents/ipcam-plus/terms-ipcamplus.html

Screenshots

DS cam4 screens
IPCam Plus4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: DS cam at every 4 months against IPCam Plus's every 14 months. DS cam also leads on review sentiment (32% vs 17%). IPCam Plus's advantage is iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

DS cam ships an update every 4 months, IPCam Plus every 14 months. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and August 6, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
DS cam versus IPCam Plus: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDS camIPCam Plus
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.0 (172 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews31.8% of reviews — better16.7% of reviews
Number of ratings172 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 4 months — betterEvery 14 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.012.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size85 MB29 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSynology Inc.ABUS Security Center GmbH & Co. KG

Customer experience

DS cam

All ratings172 ratings
Positive41.3%
Neutral14.0%
Negative44.8%
Written reviews283 reviews
Positive31.8%
Neutral18.0%
Negative50.2%

IPCam Plus

Written reviews18 reviews
Positive16.7%
Neutral5.6%
Negative77.8%

Bugs and requests

DS cam

Reported bugs

16 issues
  • Regular app crashing
  • Cannot scroll back in timeline without issues
  • Event viewer rarely works
  • Keeps buffering
  • Crashes constantly
Show 11 more
  • Battery drain
  • Push notifications not reliable
  • Cannot click on push notifications
  • Cannot download h265 videos
  • Notifications missing thumbnails
  • Slow login process
  • Loses remembered connections
  • Slow to connect
  • Notifications stopped working
  • Crashes iPhone 14 Pro
  • Incompatible with older Surveillance Station versions

Requested features

11 requests
  • Selective motion notifications
  • Custom notification sounds
  • Ability to categorize alerts
  • Live scrubbing on timeline
  • Bookmarks and advanced filtering
Show 6 more
  • Ability to download h265 videos
  • Faster login process
  • Ability to retain remembered connections
  • Apple TV app
  • Dark mode for all screens
  • Ability to quickly switch between cameras

IPCam Plus

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

DS cam

No in-app purchases

None

IPCam Plus

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is DS cam free?
DS cam is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is IPCam Plus free?
IPCam Plus is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do DS cam or IPCam Plus have ads?
Neither DS cam nor IPCam Plus shows ads.
Which is updated more often, DS cam or IPCam Plus?
DS cam ships an update every 4 months, and IPCam Plus every 14 months. Most recently, DS cam was updated on September 24, 2026 and IPCam Plus on August 6, 2026.

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