Ring Video Doorbell

Ring Video Doorbell The Ring Video Doorbell is, as you might assume, a doorbell with a WiFi enabled 780p HD camera built in. 

I first became aware of the Ring Doorbell in 2014, when I was scouring the internet for an alternative to my monitored Burglar Alarm. I’ll take you back to 2012, when I bought my first house. I paid in the region of £300 up front for my burglar alarm system, plus an additional £20 per month subscription fee for the alarm to be monitored 24/7. 

One evening in December 2014, about a week before Christmas, I was at work for a night shift, when I received an alert from the company monitoring my alarm system. I was informed that motion had been detected in my house. I knew that my wife was out visiting relatives and as I was the last person to leave the house, it was locked and secure. I called my wife to check, she confirmed she was still out of the house. I then called the Police who asked “Are you at home? Have you seen anyone inside your house yourself?”, the answer to both questions was a resounding “No”. The Police informed me that they would not send anyone to my address as it was probably a false alarm. They said unless somebody could confirm the presence of an intruder, the Police won't attend as it may be a false alarm. This was frustratingly understandable. 

I left work immediately. I arrived home to discover that we had been burgled. They had gained entry by smashing through the back door. I called the Police again, who said that they would be round within the hour to report. While I was waiting for the Police I began to question the value of my monitored alarm system. It became apparent that it was not a deterrent to the burglar, and only served as an early warning system. So I began to look for an alternative solution. 

My first purchase was a set of Nest Cameras, which I discreetly dotted around the interior and exterior of my house. I have built up a Smart Home network around these. Interestingly, one of my neighbours said that on the evening of the burglary, they saw a couple of males at my front door at what would have been about 5 - 10 minutes before my alarm was activated. 

During my research period, I became aware of Ring Doorbell and SkyBell . Both are connected video doorbells with similar features. The downside for me was that at the time they were only available in the USA and retailed for around $250 each. Add to that shipping fees and import tax, and you are looking at a hefty bill for something that may not have worked in the UK. 

Fast forward to October 2016 when Ring contacted me and asked me to review the Ring Video Doorbell. Ding Dong, Who's There? The Ring Doorbell comes supplied with all the tools needed to attach the doorbell to your wall, installation guide and app support, spirit level, drill bit, screwdriver, screws and rawl plugs. All you need to provide is the drill. 

The installation was very easy and took me approximately 20 minutes. Linking Ring to your WiFi network is done entirely through the mobile app. The app will walk you through the motion zone and smart alert settings. You have 6 different motion zones over a 180 degree field of view, and can set the distance Ring can see movement from. Distance ranges between 30ft to 5ft, and you can select and deselect motion zones. There are 3 Smart Alert settings: Light, Standard, and Frequent. Each of these determine how often Ring will notify you of motion within the desired field of view. I kept mine on Standard, as Frequent was notifying me every time someone walked or drove past, and Light never seemed to notify me. 

It should be noted that having the motion detection on will have a significant drain on the battery, unless your doorbell is wired to the mains supply. Speaking of the battery, Ring claim that one charge will power the unit for a year. In my experience I'll be lucky to get 2 months out of a full charge. After 4 weeks the battery has dropped to 45% - however this is still quite impressive for an always on, always connected device. 

Ring has a 780p HD Camera with Night Vision, which produces a very clear image day or night (depending on the strength of your WiFi). The night vision is very good, enabling you to see who is at your door at all times. The camera is only activated on either motion or bell push, so you won't be able to open the app and monitor without something triggering the camera. Once motion or bell push has been activated, you will be alerted by your phone, tablet or computer. If your device is set to silent, you will not receive an audible alert. The doorbell will chime, so whoever is at your door will hear a chime, but you won't. Ring do sell an additional Chime unit that plugs into a spare electrical outlet within your house. This is retailed at approx £25.00 - It would be nice if Ring could include a chime with the doorbell unit, as I can imagine that there would be a market for elderly & vulnerable people without smartphones and concerned relatives who wish to monitor who is attending. 

Another really good feature is the ability to talk to whoever is at your door through the app. No matter where in the world you are, if you have a 4G phone signal, you will be able to talk with your visitor. I have only used this feature a handful of times, mostly to talk to the postman or identify people I don't recognise. The sound quality is average. It's good for speech, but if there is a car passing or heavy rain it can be hard to hear what is being said. However 9/10 times I haven't had any problems with communication through Ring. 

HD CAMERA

Always have a clear view of your home's entrance with wide-angle HD video. 

LED RING 

LED ring provides an array of light patterns to indicate the device’s current function. 

SPEAKERS 

Two configurable speakers ensure that not a word is missed, regardless of your surroundings. 

MOTION DETECTION 

Motion sensors activate the camera and trigger instant mobile alerts when movement is detected. 

MICROPHONE

Only hear what matters most thanks to perfectly tuned echo cancellation. 

Because Ring is a connected “smart” device, it has the capacity to receive firmware updates. These updates can add additional features or link Ring into other Smart Home ecosystems (Google Home , Apple Home Kit, Amazon Echo , Samsung SmartThings). Currently there isn't any native connection with these existing platforms, but it is a safe bet to say it will happen eventually. Ring have already indicated this is likely with their own Ring+ ecosystem. Ring can be connected to other Smart Home devices via the If This Then That (IFTTT / IF) application. IFTTT allows Ring to connect with Philips Hue, Nest Thermostat , Evernote, Facebook and many more. 

The Ring Doorbell retails between £120 - £150. Quite a high price for a doorbell. However, it's being sold as more than just a doorbell. It's being sold as the first line of defence against burglary, and crime prevention doesn't come cheap. Ring also offer a subscription service that will store recordings to a cloud server for playback. The price for the subscription is £25 per year or £2.50 per month. In my experience of monitored security, this is extremely good value for money. 

Ring isn't perfect, however. Sometimes Ring will alert you and record triggered motion moments after the person that triggered it has been and gone, so you will end up with a recording of someone walking away from your house. This only happens on average once a week, but it's worth noting. 

As a standalone security device, it's limited as to its usefulness. However no security product is 100% effective. In my experience security devices work best when paired with other security products to provide a multi layered approach, and I think Ring themselves understand this, from looking at the companies they have chosen to partner with for Ring+. 

So, the question is, would I recommend Ring to anyone looking to improve their home security? The answer is yes, I would. The flaws I've mentioned could be fixed or improved with a firmware update, but they are existing flaws that need to be taken into consideration when considering purchase. As an addition to existing home security it could prove to be invaluable. Having Ring linked up to an Internet of Things connected Smart Home acting as a trigger for lights or other devices, it adds a subtle additional layer of security that could act as a deterrent to any would be intruder. 

Device reviewed: Firmware 1.6.125