Ring Video Doorbell

By John R. Delaney

I do a lot of product testing at home and receive package deliveries almost every day. Occasionally I'll miss a delivery that must be signed for because I've left the house for a few minutes to drop my son off at school, or run down to the basement for something. Thanks to the Ring Video Doorbell ($199), I haven't missed a delivery in months. This pricey digital homedoorbell uses an HD (720p) camera and your home's Wi-Fi network to sound a chime and send real-time video to your smartphone when someone presses the Ring button. It installs in minutes and delivers high-quality video, thoughaudio quality could be better and the internal battery doesn't last very long between charges.

Design and Features Measuring 4.9 by 2.4 by 0.8 inches (HWD), the Ring doesn't look like a typical doorbell. The upper part of the device is made of black plastic and houses a 1,280-by-720-pixel camera with a 180-degree field of view. It also holds a motion sensor. The metallic lower part of the doorbell (available in Satin Nickel, Antique Brass, Polished Brass, and Venetian Bronze) contains an LED-backlit Ring button that glows blue when you press it and sounds a loud chime that can be heard from the speaker at the bottom of the device, as well from the speaker of any connected mobile devices.

The doorbell comes with a 4.9-by-2.4-inch mounting plate that attaches to any surface including wood, cement, brick, vinyl, and stucco. The folks at Ring give you a small toolkit containing everything you'll need to mount the device, including a level, a screwdriver, a masonry drill bit, weather sealant, and mounting hardware. The doorbell is certified for outdoor use and has an operating range of -5 to +120 degrees Fahrenheit. It connects to your home Wi-Fi network and supports 802.11b/g/n wireless connectivity on the 2.4GHz band.

The Ring has an internal rechargeable battery. To recharge it you have to remove the doorbell (it slides easily off the mounting plate) and connect it to a USB charger using the included cable and the mini USB port on the back of the device. It takes around 10 hours for a complete charge, which is supposed to give you a full year of battery life (more on this later).

App Connectivity The Ring doorbell works with iOS and Android mobile devices, but lacks PC Web browser support. The app isn't very flashy, but it's easy to use. When the Ring button is pressed, your smartphone will ring and notify you that someone is at the door. Tapping the notification opens a live feed that lets you see who is there and gives you the option of accepting or denying the call. If you accept the call you can use the microphone icon to initiate a two-way conversation with the caller. Denying the call ends it.

The main page of the app displays a list of installed doorbells and their location (street address). This page also has a section for viewing and changing your account settings. Tapping the My Devices icon takes you to a page with a map showing the doorbell's location and links to Device and Motion Settings, Recent Activity, and Shared Users pages. The Recent Activity page lists the date and time of all accepted and missed calls as well as motion-triggered events. Tapping the arrowto the right of an event launches a video clip of the event, complete with audio. Recorded video is stored in the cloud, but you'll have to pay a yearly $30 subscription fee to use this feature. Once the video is captured you can play it back using the app and download it to your smartphone (the cloud will hold up to six months of video).

The Device Settings page is where you go to turn on call and motion alerts, check the battery level, and change your location. The Motion Setting page contains a video tutorial on how to set motion sensitivity using the Zones and Range settings. It also has three Smart Alert sensitivity settings that identify repeated or continuous motion to avoid too many (or too few) notifications. The Shared User setting lets you invite additional users, such as family members, so that they can receive call and motion alerts. Missing is an on-demand video feature that lets you use the Ring's camera to take a peek outside without waiting for a call, but there are plans to add this feature at a later date.

Installation and Performance Installation was easy. First I downloaded the app and created an account with my name, email address, and a password. I gave the doorbell a name and confirmed my address and location. Following the instructions on the app, I pressed the button on the back of device, went to my smartphone's Wi-Fi settings, and connected to the Ring's SSID. I then reconnected to my home Wi-Fi and entered my password, and the Ring was connected.

I mounted the doorbell to the wood siding to left of my front door using the included wood screws. It's recommended that you use the existing wiring from your traditional doorbell (if it exists), which supplies power to the Ring and uses your existing door chime, but I bypassed this step in order to test the doorbell's internal battery. The entire setup and installation process took around 10 minutes.

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Ring Video Doorbell