What Should I do if I am Unable to View My Tapo or Kasa Camera?

 

If you have finished the configuration process in the Tapo app but are not able to view the TP-Link camera, this article will help guide you through the steps to resolve the issue.

After completing the configuration process, the Camera will appear in the Tapo app. If the device does not appear in your app, please refer to this troubleshooting article first: What Can I Do if I Can’t Find my Tapo Camera in the Tapo APP?

If you're having trouble viewing or controlling your camera, which may also appear offline in the app, the following troubleshooting steps are recommended:

Case 1: Can’t view or control the camera within the local network

Please try connecting your phone and camera to the same Wi-Fi network, open the Tapo app within the same network, and verify whether you can access the Camera.

If the Camera is still offline, please try the following troubleshooting suggestions:

Step 1

Verify the system LED status of the Camera to see if it is connected to the Wi-Fi Network. You can find detailed information about the LED light status at the end of this article.

Otherwise, reset the camera to factory default settings as per the User Guide, and then reconfigure the camera.

How to reset my Tapo camera

How to reset the TP-Link Kasa camera

Step 2

To verify whether you can access the camera within the same network, ensure that the phone and camera are connected to the same Wi-Fi network. Close the Tapo app and relaunch it.

Please make sure to turn off any VPN connection (if active) and disable Cellular Data on the phone while attempting this. If you have another phone available for testing, try using it and ensure it is connected to the same Wi-Fi network as the camera.

Step 3

Try disabling client isolation, firewall, or access control on the router, and then restart both the router and the camera. These features might block the devices' network connectivity.

Case 2: Cannot view the camera remotely

If your phone can access the camera while connected to the same local network, but is unable to while outside the network, please try the following troubleshooting suggestions:

Step 1

Ensure that the Wi-Fi or cellular network your phone is currently connected to has internet access. You can test this by opening other websites, or simply try using another phone.

Step 2

Confirm the Tapo app has cellular permission (Settings → Tapo app, ensure it is Allow WLAN & Cellular Data).

Step 3

Using a public DNS server may improve the connection. Try changing your router's DNS server settings to 8.8.8.8. If you are unsure how to do this, please contact your router's customer support.

Verify if any firewall or security settings are blocking the connection to the Cloud Server. Temporarily disable any antivirus, firewall, or security software to see if it resolves the issue.

Case 3: Live view is slow or fails to load/Playback not working

In some cases, you may find that you are unable to watch the camera’s live view or playback properly, the video takes a long time to load, keeps spinning, or even fails to load (Error: "Try Again") and needs to be reloaded several times.

For this situation, the following suggestions may help:

Step 1

Ensure that the camera is receiving a strong Wi-Fi signal from the router.

How to check the network connection stability of a Tapo Camera

Step 2

Ensure the camera’s firmware and the Tapo App are up-to-date.

Step 3

Try connecting your phone to the same Wi-Fi network as the camera and see if the camera live view or video playback loads properly.

Step 4

Try a different network on your phone, such as using mobile data or connecting to a different Wi-Fi network.

Ensure the internet quality and signal strength is good on your phone.

Step 5

Try turning off any active VPN connection or try disabling network filtering and security software based on VPN mechanisms.

Step 6

Try a different mobile device to stream the camera if you own one.

Case 4: Live view not syncing /Sound stutters or lag

Step 1

Check the internet quality and signal strength of the phone. Try to switch to another network if the signal is weak or unstable.

Step 2

Check the signal strength of the camera. If the signal is weak, try to move the camera closer to the router.

How to check the network connection stability of a Tapo Camera

Step 3

Try turning off any active VPN connection or try disabling network filtering and security software based on VPN mechanisms, then re-open the app and try again.

Step 4

Lower the video quality.

Step 5

Check whether there are electronic devices around the camera that may cause interference with the signal, try to place the camera away from these devices. For example, a running microwave oven, hair dryer, TV, etc.

Step 6

Check if the video plays normally on the local network.

Tips: Understanding and addressing the status of the camera by checking the LED indicator.

When the camera is offline or inaccessible, its LED indicator is often in one of the following two states:

Connecting to Wi-Fi (Camera is attempting to connect to the Wi-Fi network of the router)

1. If you are configuring the product for the first time, it is recommended that you first check if the password entered during the configuration process is correct.

 

2. If the issue occurs during use, please verify whether the Wi-Fi network of the router is operating normally (for example, whether other devices can connect to the same 2.4GHz Wi-Fi network normally).

 

3. Try to power off and restart the camera to see if its connectivity can be restored.

Note: If you have adjusted the position of the router or camera, it is recommended that you move the camera closer to the router to ensure that it has a good wireless signal.

 

4. We recommend assigning your router's 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi channel to a specific one, such as channel 1, 6, or 11. This can enhance the stability of connected devices in certain scenarios.

 

Connected to Wi-Fi (Camera has connected to the Wi-Fi network of the router but cannot connect to the cloud server via the internet)

1. Please check your Internet network connection and ensure that your other devices can connect to the Internet properly.

 

2. Verify if any firewall or security settings are blocking the connection to the Cloud Server. Temporarily disable any antivirus, firewall, or security software to see if it resolves the issue.

 

3. Using a public DNS server may improve the connection. Try changing your router's DNS server settings to 8.8.8.8. If you are unsure how to do this, please contact your router's customer support.

 

System LED Indication
Most Tapo Cameras		HomeKit version Tapo Cameras
LED	Status	LED	Status
Solid red	Starting up	Solid red	Starting up, video recording or live streaming
Blinking red and green (for Wi-Fi setup)	Ready for setup	Blinking red and blue (for Wi-Fi setup)	Ready for setup
Blinking red slowly (for Wi-Fi setup)	Connecting to Wi-Fi	Blinking blue slowly (for Wi-Fi setup)	Connecting to Wi-Fi
Solid amber	Connected to Wi-Fi or wired network	Blinking red slowly	Connected to Wi-Fi
Solid green	Connected to the cloud	Solid blue	Connected to the cloud
Blinking red quickly	Camera resetting	Blinking red quickly	Camera resetting
Blinking green quickly	Camera updating	Blinking red quickly	Camera updating

 

Please contact TP-Link technical support with the following information if you still can't view the TP-Link camera successfully after the above suggestions.

1) Your TP-Link ID or cloud account.

2) The model number of your TP-Link Cam and its MAC address.

3) The model number of the host router.

4) How frequently the issue happens and the steps you take to address it.

5) Whether you have tried all suggestions listed above or not. If yes, what are the results?