I am not a Canon shooter but I welcome really any open source efforts on this front; this is one area of tech where open source is really held back by various vendors' intransigence, API and protocol shenanigans (I'm looking at you Sony)
This is kinda cool, but it's similar in function to the canon connect app which feels a little superfluous.
Maybe it connects better - I have a 70d and the connection process is annoying. Iirc it's WiFi direct but you have to connect and manage it yourself, and your phone will get cross there's no internet and disconnect you every so often.
My main camera now is a 90d which uses Bluetooth to connect first and then setup WiFi. Much easier process that makes the app much more useful. Although I've actually got an "unleashed" device that uses usb and hdmi for control, lets you do ramped time lapses and connect multiple cameras. No live view, but I can connect to both the 90d and 70d very smoothly which is more useful in general.
I wrote an iOS app like that, for Nikon cameras, many moons ago. It was a real pain, but I did get it working. The biggest issue, is the streaming video.
I find the smartphone controller options for my Canon t6i so frustrating and dodgy, I gave up on them. The IR remote works for about 20 seconds and then the receiver shuts off for some reason. Practically useless for family portrait selfies.
Instead, I have a shutter release pedal, connected via a 50 foot audio extension cable, to the wired remote port on the camera. It's not compact or elegant, but it's easy, fast and reliable.
FWIW, the venerable Yongnuo RF-602 flash triggers can do this well with the right camera cord connected to the receiver; I think it may even do half-press AF.
I kept a set around with cables for my Nikon D700 and D7000.
since entangle/gphoto2 works so well, I wonder if a clunkier but ultimately easier way to do this would be to use very small form factor embedded Linux system that plugs into the side of the camera and has WiFi. Would need a battery and to be charged and such, and it's overall silly because the camera can do everything this dongle would itself but...
The camera control API (free, but requires registration) that canon offers obviates the need for reverse engineering in my opinion. I wrote something very similar to this using the API, but with added features like those from Magic Lantern (false color, AI autofocus, etc) hope to open source it soon if there's interest.
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It is used for DIY book scanners.
Maybe it connects better - I have a 70d and the connection process is annoying. Iirc it's WiFi direct but you have to connect and manage it yourself, and your phone will get cross there's no internet and disconnect you every so often.
My main camera now is a 90d which uses Bluetooth to connect first and then setup WiFi. Much easier process that makes the app much more useful. Although I've actually got an "unleashed" device that uses usb and hdmi for control, lets you do ramped time lapses and connect multiple cameras. No live view, but I can connect to both the 90d and 70d very smoothly which is more useful in general.
I looked at the canon app on ios, and they have continually eroded all your privacy.
At first, you could give it limited privileges to add photos from your camera to your camera roll.
But updates changed the app, so it refuse to work unless you give full access to every photo on your phone.
this is why we need alternatives.
It is ridiculous that such simple functionality is locked up.
If they use PTP-IP, you can do quite a bit.
Instead, I have a shutter release pedal, connected via a 50 foot audio extension cable, to the wired remote port on the camera. It's not compact or elegant, but it's easy, fast and reliable.
I kept a set around with cables for my Nikon D700 and D7000.