Is ESP32-S3-CAM OV2640 Camera Module Compatible with Home Assistant (ESPHome)?
Compatibility Overview
High-performance camera module delivering real-time RTSP video streams face detection and snapshot image capture to Home Assistant.
Technical Specification Matrix
| Feature / Attribute | Specification / Status |
|---|---|
| Hardware Protocol | DVP Parallel / 3.3V |
| Bridge Required | NO |
| Border Router Needed | None |
| Hardware Capabilities & Peripherals | RTSP Video Stream Snapshot Image Motion Detection Note: these entities come from the ESPHome configuration you flash — each one needs its matching component in that YAML before it appears. |
| Pairing Complexity | Intermediate |
| Factory Reset Instruction | Hold BOOT button while resetting. |
Wire, Flash, Adopt, Check
Wire it up
Follow the bus reference above. The host pins in the configuration are defaults — any free GPIO of the right kind will do, as long as the YAML names the pin you actually used.
Flash the configuration
Create a new device in the ESPHome dashboard (the Home Assistant add-on) and paste the configuration below into it, or save it as emb_esp32s3_camera_esphome.yaml and run esphome run emb_esp32s3_camera_esphome.yaml. The first flash goes over USB. If it is not detected, hold BOOT button while resetting to put it in download mode. Every update after that is over the air.
Adopt it in Home Assistant
Settings → Devices & Services. A node on the same network shows up as a discovered ESPHome device within a minute of joining Wi-Fi; choose Configure and enter the API encryption key from your secrets.yaml. If discovery does not find it, add the ESPHome integration by hand with the node's IP address.
Check it works
The entities on this page appear under the device in Home Assistant and update at the configured interval. The ESPHome log (Logs in the dashboard, or esphome logs) reports the setup of each component and any bus scan results at boot.
ESPHome Configuration
Starting configuration for ESP32-S3-CAM OV2640 Camera Module on ESP32-S3. Untested on hardware — verify wiring and pins against your own board.
# ESPHome configuration for ESP32-S3-CAM OV2640 Camera Module
# Host: ESP32-S3. Pin numbers below are host-side defaults — any free
# GPIO will do, and you should change them to match your own wiring.
esphome:
name: emb_esp32s3_camera_esphome
friendly_name: "ESP32-S3-CAM OV2640 Camera Module"
esp32:
board: esp32-s3-devkitc-1
framework:
type: esp-idf
logger:
api:
encryption:
key: !secret api_encryption_key
ota:
- platform: esphome
password: !secret ota_password
wifi:
ssid: !secret wifi_ssid
password: !secret wifi_password
# Pin map of the ESP32-S3-EYE, which the common ESP32-S3-WROOM camera
# boards (Freenove and the generic "ESP32-S3-CAM") share. Boards from other
# vendors route the sensor differently — check yours against its schematic
# before assuming these.
psram:
mode: octal
speed: 80MHz
esp32_camera:
name: "Camera"
external_clock:
pin: GPIO15
frequency: 20MHz
i2c_pins:
sda: GPIO4
scl: GPIO5
data_pins: [GPIO11, GPIO9, GPIO8, GPIO10, GPIO12, GPIO18, GPIO17, GPIO16]
vsync_pin: GPIO6
href_pin: GPIO7
pixel_clock_pin: GPIO13
resolution: 800x600
jpeg_quality: 12
max_framerate: 10 fps
idle_framerate: 0.2 fps
esp32_camera_web_server:
- port: 8080
mode: stream
Before you flash:
the !secret values come from your
secrets.yaml, and the GPIO numbers are host-side
defaults rather than properties of this part — change them to match how you actually wired it.
Report a Pinout Error or Submit Tested Code Snippets
Found a pin mapping quirk or built a custom ESPHome YAML driver for ESP32-S3-CAM OV2640 Camera Module? Submit a pull request or report corrections to our index.