CameraView vs zmNinja
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted video surveillance options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
CameraView
Android library for camera capture and streaming apps
VS
zmNinja
Cross-platform mobile and desktop client for ZoneMinder
| Feature | CameraView | zmNinja |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Video Surveillance | Video Surveillance |
| License | MIT | GPL-2.0 |
| Language | Java | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | source | binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 5,128 | ★ 1,080 |
| First released | 2016 | 2015 |
| Replaces | Proprietary camera SDKs | Commercial CCTV apps |
Why pick each one
Frequently asked questions
Is CameraView or zmNinja better?
Neither is universally better. CameraView has the larger community, while zmNinja is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are CameraView and zmNinja free and open-source?
Yes. CameraView is licensed under MIT and zmNinja under GPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run CameraView and zmNinja with Docker?
CameraView: check the project docs for container support. zmNinja: check the project docs for container support.