Alfred vs WardenCam vs Call Pet: Best App to Turn Your Old Phone into a Pet Camera

Searching for an app to turn a spare phone into a pet camera, you'll keep seeing the same names: Alfred, WardenCam, CameraFTP, and Call Pet.

This comparison cuts straight to what actually matters so you can pick the right one in a few minutes.

Quick Verdict

You need...	Best pick
Cloud recording and playback	Alfred
Privacy-first, no cloud video	Call Pet
No account or login	Call Pet
Google Drive integration	WardenCam
Best UI and interaction design	Call Pet

Alfred

Alfred is the most widely known spare-phone camera app, with a large user base and plenty of tutorials.

What it does well:

Free tier covers basic live viewing
Motion detection with push notifications
Cloud recording (playback available)
Two-way audio
Works on both iOS and Android

What to know:

Requires a Google account to sign in — no anonymous use
Video is uploaded to Alfred's cloud servers, not end-to-end encrypted
Free version includes ads; full features require a paid subscription
Alfred's privacy policy permits using data to improve their service

Best for: Users who need cloud recording and don't mind video being stored on a third-party server.

WardenCam

WardenCam is built around Google's ecosystem, with recording that goes directly to Google Drive or Dropbox.

What it does well:

Stores recordings in Google Drive or Dropbox
Long-term recording with key event marking
Supports multiple cameras

What to know:

Requires Gmail login — no option to use without a Google account
All video routes through cloud servers before reaching you
Setup is more complex than competing apps
Full functionality requires payment

Best for: Heavy Google users who want recordings automatically archived to Drive.

CameraFTP

CameraFTP targets a more technical audience, with FTP server support and security-focused features.

What it does well:

Self-hosted FTP storage option
Solid motion detection and alert system

What to know:

Dated interface, not beginner-friendly
Requires account registration
Video still passes through servers

Best for: Technical users with a NAS or self-hosted server setup.

Call Pet

Call Pet is the only app in this comparison that was built specifically for pet monitoring and keeps the live media stream off cloud servers.

What it does well:

End-to-end encrypted video: WebRTC protects the direct peer-to-peer media connection with DTLS/SRTP. X25519 + AES-256-GCM protects control and signaling data. There is no TURN or media relay, so the developers cannot access the live media stream.
No account required: The Monitor/spare phone displays a QR code, and the Controller/main phone scans it. No email, no password, no registration.
Free basic monitoring: Normal viewing is not interrupted by forced feed ads; rewarded ads only appear if users choose them as an in-app task to earn membership benefits.
Best UI and interaction design: Built specifically for pet monitoring — the interface is clean, intuitive, and optimized for this one use case in a way general-purpose apps aren't.
Two-way audio with low latency: Talk to your pet naturally, without the delay of a phone call.
Spare phone optimization: The Monitor stays open in the foreground and can use a dark, low-brightness standby display; auto-reconnects if Wi-Fi drops.
Device roles: An iPhone or iPad running iOS/iPadOS 13 or later can be the Controller or Monitor; Android supports the Monitor role only

What to know:

No cloud recording or cloud playback; the Controller can manually record a live session and save it locally
Both networks must allow a direct P2P connection because there is no TURN or media-relay fallback
The Controller must be an iPhone or iPad running iOS/iPadOS 13 or later

Best for: Anyone who cares about privacy, wants zero friction setup, and doesn't need automatic cloud video history.

The Core Difference: Where Does Your Video Go?

This is the most important question to ask about any home monitoring app — and the answer separates Call Pet from the others.

Alfred, WardenCam, CameraFTP all use a cloud relay architecture:

Your spare phone records and uploads video to the company's servers
You stream it back down from those servers in the app

This means a third party holds video footage from inside your home. If their servers are breached, your footage is exposed. Their privacy policies determine how your data is used.

Call Pet uses peer-to-peer architecture:

Your spare phone encrypts the video stream on-device
It goes directly to your main phone via WebRTC
Call Pet does not store the media in the cloud; you may manually record it on the Controller and keep that file locally

Signaling helps the devices establish the connection, but there is no TURN or media relay. The media remains a direct DTLS/SRTP-protected P2P stream, and both networks must permit P2P.

Side-by-Side Comparison

	Alfred	WardenCam	CameraFTP	Call Pet
Free to download	✅	✅	✅	✅
Account required	✅ Google	✅ Gmail	✅	❌ None
Ads	Free tier has ads	No	No	No forced viewing ads; rewarded ads are optional tasks
Video encryption	Transport only	Transport only	Transport only	WebRTC DTLS/SRTP media; X25519 + AES-256-GCM control/signaling
Video storage	Alfred cloud	Google Drive	FTP server	No cloud storage; optional manual recording stays on the Controller
Cloud playback	✅ (paid)	✅	✅	❌
Two-way audio	✅	✅	✅	✅
UI quality	Average	Complex	Outdated	Best in class
Built for pets	❌	❌	❌	✅

Which One Should You Choose?

Choose Alfred if you need cloud recording and playback, and are comfortable with video stored on a third-party server.

Choose WardenCam if you want recordings archived to Google Drive and you're already deep in Google's ecosystem.

Choose Call Pet if:

You don't want footage of your home on any company's server
You don't want to create an account
You don't need automatic cloud video history (manual local recording is available on the Controller)
You want the best-designed pet monitoring experience available

Download Call Pet free — let the Monitor display its QR code, then scan it with the Controller to set up.