I have fallen in love with the Ring Video doorbells and camera options in recent years. The simplicity of use and the functionality on offer have consistently blown me away. Well, the new Ring Battery Video Doorbell has come in with a great price, packing a whole lot of features and some serious design improvements.
Design improvements? What are you talking about?
The ring video doorbells to date have been pretty consistent, for better or worse. They all had the same shape, all mounted to the wall the same way, and had the same removable batteries that could slide out and be charged using a micro USB cable.
There was plenty to criticize here. From the old form factor of the micro USB port to how far the doorbell stuck out. The newest Battery Video Doorbell has taken a different route. Sure, the front of it looks the same, but there is much more to it than that. Now instead of having a removable battery, you charge the whole device with the USB-C port. This change has meant the device is much thinner than its predecessors.
The one minor niggle is that the new design has removed the possibility of changeable faceplates. You can get it in silver or brown, and don’t change your mind. My old device has a blue faceplate, so it fits with the paint on my wall. This is a minor thing, but I liked this about the older devices.
Changes to installation
These changes also mean installing the device is a little bit different. Where you used to attach the whole device to the wall, now you install a super easy-to-install plate. Then you clip the battery doorbell on, jam a couple of security screws in, and it’s ready to go. Using the specific tool, you pop it in underneath, and the doorbell pops off for charging.
There are pros and cons here. The old way meant your batteries were all compatible with devices, and you had minimal downtime as you could have a spare battery that charges and then swap them over in seconds. Unfortunately, now you take the whole device off to charge, meaning more time the device isn’t watching your front door, and with a five to eight-hour charge time, that’s a lot of time your doorbell isn’t doorbelling. But the tradeoff is it’s slicker, and current USB cables work with it.
What else is new?
As this is the entry-level Ring video doorbell, it’s pretty awesome to see some of the improvements that have trickled down. The Head-to-Toe view is the fancy way of saying 150-degree view both vertically and horizontally. This is damn solid, and with 1440 x 1440 video, you can see some serious detail on it during the day and night.
The other two major features are the customisable motion zones and the privacy zones. These have been available in the higher-end models, but given their usefulness, it’s great to see them in the entry-level model. The motion zones are useful, as you can receive motion alerts when someone is walking up to your door. If you can see something like the road, you may not want to be alerted every time a car goes past. It’s super easy to create and change one on the app, taking all of a few seconds after you get the hang of it.
Privacy zones, on the other hand, are absolutely crucial if you can see other peoples front doors. If you are in an apartment, then this would be especially handy, but from my front door I can see three other people’s front doors. By creating these zones, it puts a black box over where you ask it to. Respecting your neighbors privacy is a good move, and the tech is helping you do it.
Getting all Alexa with it
It may not be overly surprising, but given it’s an Amazon product, it works well with Alexa. Previously I had used the Ring app, but I have been becoming more and more of an Alexa user. As such, testing this out has been a dream. You can say, “Alexa, show me the Front Door” and boom, Alexa shows you the camera you have named the front door. With a device like the Echo Show, this is an awesome and easy way to see what’s going on at your front door. I have been absolutely loving using this.
Should you get one?
If you have been using the previous generation of the entry-level Ring Battery Doorbell, then this is a serious upgrade that is worthy of the price. A lot of the premium features, the expanded view, and the video quality make this a great upgrade at a reasonable price. If you are looking at a doorbell for the first time, this one is a strong contender even against the older premium Ring devices.
The latest Ring Battery Video Doorbell has made some serious improvements for the entry level device. This is a great place to start if you are looking at improving your front door!
