Smart Doorbells Can Also Be Useful If You’re At Home In The Garden Or Anywhere That You Can’t Easily Hear The Doorbell Ring.
A smart doorbell tells you when someone’s at the door – even if you’re not home – and lets you talk to them. The humble thermostat was first to receive the smart treatment, and slowly but surely everything from smoke alarms to door locks are being connected to the internet.
One of the most useful smart home gadgets is the smart doorbell. Unlike the traditional doorbell, a smart one can send a notification to your phone when someone rings the doorbell as well as show a live video feed so you can see and speak to the visitor. This is useful for deliveries: you can ask a courier to wait a couple of minutes if you’re nearby or to leave a parcel in your back garden or with a friendly neighbour.
Plus, a conversation is better (and more secure) than a note left on the front door saying you’re out. Smart doorbells can also be useful if you’re at home in the garden or anywhere that you can’t easily hear the doorbell ring. You simply need to have your phone nearby. As you’d expect, prices vary a lot, as do features and quality. But here is our pick of the best smart doorbells available right now for all budgets.
Best smart doorbells 2021
1 Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2 – Best overall
Pros
- Superb motion detection
- Wide viewing angles
- Great quality video
Cons
- Expensive
- No face recognition / package detection
$249.99
For the same cost as the original 2019 Doorbell Pro, the second-generation adds quite a few new features and improves on video quality and viewing angles so you can see more. 3D motion detection, using radar, allows you to choose how far away motion should be before you get an alert and, along with custom zones, you can practically eliminate any false motion alerts. Night vision is pretty good (no smart doorbell is really good in the dark) and quality during the daytime is excellent. The Ring app isn’t as good as Nest’s but it’s still better than most, and the rich notifications you get with a Ring Protect subscription are great.
2 Google Nest Doorbell (wired) – Best hardwired doorbell
Pros
- Face & package detection
- Excellent HDR video
- Great app
Cons
- Expensive
- No power supply included
$US229
It used to be called the Nest Hello and has been around for a few years but is, surprisingly, still a great choice now. It’s packed with features, offers great-quality HDR footage and is easy to use. The only area we’d like to see improved is motion detection, but you can set up custom zones to avoid lots of false notifications. It’s expensive, no doubt, but if you have other Nest security cameras, then a single Nest Aware v2 subscription cost covers them all and is better value than Ring’s equivalent.
A subscription is required for recording (unlike the newer Nest Doorbell (battery) but it also gives you some useful features such as face and package recognition, and the Nest app is better than Google Home, which you’re forced to use if you opt for the lower-resolution battery-powered model. The app makes it easy to see events as you scroll through the timeline, even if you don’t pay extra for continuous recording (something that isn’t an option with Ring doorbells, or the Nest Doorbell (battery) for that matter).
Installation isn’t difficult if you have a mains socket near your door, as you can buy an AC adapter – but it’s a shame Nest doesn’t include one in the box given the high price. It works with most existing wired chimes and you can also get notifications from Alexa and Google Assistant on your smart speaker and other devices.
3 Ring Video Doorbell Wired – Best budget option
Pros
- Inexpensive
- Slim
- Pre-roll
Cons
- No power supply included
- Doesn’t work with existing chimes
$59.99
If you’re on a budget and are happy to accept ‘good quality’ video rather than the very best available, then nothing can beat the Video Doorbell Wired for value.
It does require AC power at your door, which is great if you already have it, but will cost you if you don’t. It works with Ring’s plug-in mains adapter, so a DIY install is possible if you have a socket somewhere near your front door. Surprisingly, it gives you six seconds of pre-roll, just like Ring’s most expensive doorbell, and this means you see a few seconds of footage before the motion began. While it requires the same Protect subscription to enable recordings, rich notifications and other features, it’s a bargain at this price.
4 Ring Video Doorbell 4
Pros
- Improved pre-roll
- Good motion detection
Cons
- Battery has to be recharged
- Requires subscription
$229
Though very similar to the older Doorbell 3 Plus, the ‘4 has various improvements that make it a better choice. It offers great-quality 1080p HDR video, though unlike the Video Doorbell Pro 2 its wide-angle view doesn’t show your doorstep so you won’t be able to see a package that’s been left there. Motion detection is a step down from the Pro 2, so there’s no 3D feature but you can use motion zones to select what part of the frame to monitor. There’s also a People Only mode which helps eliminate false alarms.
Pre-roll provides up to four seconds of video from before the event began – an impressive feat for a battery-powered smart doorbell. Being battery powered means it’s simple to install, but you will have to keep on top of recharging it and ensuring it’s not going to run out while you’re away. It is possible to connect the Doorbell 4 to mains power, but if you’re going to do that, you may as well buy one of Ring’s mains-powered doorbells.
5 Ring Video Doorbell Pro
Prize: $249
The Ring Pro might be inferior to the Pro 2, but it’s now cheaper, and a good option if you don’t need the improvements found in the latest model. The 1080p video recordings still offer plenty of detail and in our testing, we had hardly any false motion alerts. With its custom motion zones and longer video recordings than battery-powered models, many people will be happy with the Pro for the money, but factor in the additional cost of a professional installation if you don’t have a mains socket near your door where you can just plug it in with Ring’s mains adapter.
This news was originally published at Tech Advisor