Ring Video Door Cam

Great hardware and software make modernising your front door’s peephole a breeze.

“When you want to eschew the tech for an old-school peephole, you can still look through the cover (with its one-way, privacy-protection flap) to see who’s there. ”

Ring is more than a doorbell company nowadays. It offers security-oriented smarthome devices that work with some seriously slick software – a far cry from the Gen.1 products of yesteryear which had to contend with flaky smartphones and dodgy internet infrastructure. The company’s new Door View Cam is launching into a much-more mature technological marketplace.

Unlike its predecessors, it installs into a door’s peephole: a tool is provided to remove the existing lens. Next, you’re faced with assembling the components. This might initially look daunting to all but the most experienced Ikea Jedi, however, the quick-start guide walks you through downloading the app and using a QR code to connect to the doorbell. The app then provides short, step-by-step, video guides to walk you through putting it all together. It takes about five minutes.

Once installed, the app takes you through the configuration process. This involves describing the camera’s outlook (is it facing a busy hallway or a wall?), whether you want all motion to be detected or only significant motion (which checks whether an event is significant or a cat walked past) plus, whether there’s an outer door/fly screen. You can reduce the areas of motion detection and add Privacy Zones which, for instance, block recordings of your neighbours’ windows. You can also choose to record the audio from conversations near your door or not. Finally, it lets you invite other users to be notified.

To make full use of the monitoring you’ll need to subscribe to Ring’s Protect service, otherwise you’ll only be notified of real-time events. You get a 30-day free trial of the $15-per-month Premium service which covers all Ring devices on particular premises. A $4-per-month Standard plan covers one device.

The app makes looking back through the day’s recordings very simple thanks to a swipeable timeline and you can click Live View at any time. If an event occurs outside your door that you don’t want to keep being reminded about (gardeners working, for instance) you can snooze motion detection for a few hours.

The very-wide-angle camera is crisp and clear with minimal, fishbowldistortion. At night, the monochrome image offers comparable clarity. We were impressed at how little lag existed in two-way audio communications.

If someone doesn’t press the doorbell, the impact sensor can detect if they knock instead. When you want to eschew the tech for an old-school peephole, you can still look through the cover (with its one-way, privacy-protection flap) to see who’s there.

A second battery costs $49. However, a single charge will last six-totwelve months depending on how frequently it’s used and how sensitive the monitoring settings are. Ringer extensions (called, “Chimes”) are $59 and there’s a potentially-useful ‘Pro’ version for $79 that can also extend the range of the doorbell’s Wi-Fi.

At $299 it represents great value for money and will be a god-send to those who don’t want to miss posties and couriers, or who simply want to add some home security. Just remember that you’ll need the monthly subscription to make the most of it.

Verdict

A superbly designed product that takes home door cams to a new level.