Phylax for Android

Phylax is an Android viewer app by sfortis that connects to a self-hosted Frigate NVR and lets you watch cameras and receive event alerts from your phone. It is unofficial and not affiliated with the Frigate project, so it works as a companion client for a server you already run yourself.

The privacy angle is straightforward: there is no analytics, no cloud dependency and no account to create. Credentials are kept in encrypted local storage, and the app talks to your own server rather than routing camera data through a third party. It also supports mTLS client certificates for setups that require mutual authentication.

On the practical side, Phylax switches automatically between an internal LAN address and an external one based on the Wi-Fi SSID you are connected to, which saves manual reconfiguration when you move between home and mobile data. Background notifications carry snapshot thumbnails, and taps route you to the matching view: the Review timeline for alerts and the Explore view for detections. Per-camera, per-zone and severity filters keep the notification stream manageable, with one notification per tracked event.

The app also surfaces server health through CPU and GPU badges in the top bar, expandable to RAM, uptime, per-detector inference and per-camera FPS, plus a connection status dialog with a live latency graph. Version 2.13 was updated on 2026-09-12, requires Android 10 or newer, and the download is 15 MB.

Key features

• Automatic URL switching between internal LAN and external Frigate addresses based on the Wi-Fi SSID you are connected to
• Background notifications with snapshot thumbnails; alerts open the Review timeline while detections open the Explore view
• Per-camera, per-zone and severity filters with a single notification per tracked event
• CPU and GPU badges in the top bar that expand to RAM, uptime, per-detector inference and per-camera FPS
• Connection status dialog showing a live latency graph
• mTLS client certificate support for authenticated server connections
• Two-way talk on doorbell and intercom cameras
• Clip and snapshot downloads to the device
• No analytics, no cloud service and no account; credentials are kept in encrypted local storage
• Built to stay reliable on Android 14 and newer using a SPECIAL_USE foreground service, wake locks and a WorkManager watchdog

How to install

1. Tap the download button on this page to get the Phylax APK (about 15 MB).
2. When Android asks, allow your browser or file manager to install apps — this is the "Install unknown apps" permission for that specific app.
3. Open the downloaded APK file from your notifications or your file manager's Downloads folder.
4. Tap Install and wait for the package to finish installing.
5. Open Phylax and point it at your Frigate server address. The app requires Android 10 or newer.

Phylax is aimed at people who already run a self-hosted Frigate NVR and want a phone client for live viewing, event notifications and server stats. It suits privacy-conscious users who prefer no cloud relay and no account, and who are comfortable granting a foreground service permission on Android 14 or newer.

If notifications behave inconsistently, check that battery optimization is not suspending the app, since it relies on a foreground service, wake locks and a WorkManager watchdog to stay responsive. Set up the internal and external addresses along with the correct Wi-Fi SSID so the automatic switching works as intended, and use the connection status dialog's latency graph when troubleshooting reachability. If your server uses a client certificate, enable mTLS in the app settings before testing notifications.

Phylax is a focused, account-free viewer for a Frigate NVR you host yourself, with smart LAN/external switching, filtered snapshot notifications and useful server telemetry. Version 2.13, updated 2026-09-12, is a 15 MB download for Android 10 and above. Check that your Frigate version matches the stated notification and stats support before installing.