Anybody use Ring? ring.com

[spncity]

Still researching ways to have motion-detected recording and ability to use with app. Has to work with slow (cellular) wifi.

To the techies - would cellular wifi be enough to let the audio / talk work?

www.ring.com

 

[MuirWannabe]

Can’t speak to your specific question. But I do have Ring on my front door and love it for many reasons. It was simple to install and works great. Yields many benefits.
Muir

 

[MichaelB]

I tried a Ring doorbell last year and it didn’t work out well, mostly because my wi-if signal is not robust and it kept going offline. It also seemed to me that the response time was slow.

I’m going to revisit this year, after installing a new home network that has better coverage. I may install a Nest outdoor camera instead of the ring doorbell.

 

[MuirWannabe]

Never thought my home WiFi was that great. But it’s worked perfectly with our Ring. Go figure. Some of the benefits beyond the security video and alert of potential ‘bad guys’ include:
- being alerted when any delivery person arrives prior to them knocking. This is for the pizza guy of course. But also for the Amazon guy dropping off a package. So you know it’s at your front door and get it off the porch once you return.
- being able to get a live view of my front porch and yard when I’m away on vacation. Reassuring to see everything looking normal while I’m gone.
- catching my son having drinking buddies over while we are away and saying all manner of nasty things while hanging on the front porch. Disappointing.

 

[bizlady]

We use Skybell HD- and love it. Great night time vision. We thought it was better looking than Ring, and we did not want to pay for video storage when traveling. We can set sensitivity and get few false alerts.
More info for comparison here: Skybell vs Ring | The Hot Debate - DoorBell Hub

 

[txtig]

DW bought me one for Christmas. The install was easy and it is working well. I like the idea of not having to open the door if a solicitor/sales person comes to my house. We just got a “motion alert” a few minutes ago. It was a squirrel scurrying about on the walkway leading to my front door. I guess that’s our excitement for the day!

 

[Midpack]

We've considered it, and it's all the buzz on our local nextdoor.com, so I have a few questions?

• It might deter a vandal, but I assume it's not going to slow up a pro burglar. And it's probably an "industry norm" nowadays for pros to wear hats/hoodies, baggy nondescript clothing so the video may not help.
• I've read that you only get real time video for free. If you want it taped, there's a paid subscription required, and the tapes are only kept for X hours/days?

Thanks.

 

[CountryGal]

I have had Ring for over 2 years. The battery was starting to go and needed charging too frequently. I upgraded to Ring2, which has clearer video and easier to remove the battery for charging every few months. Love it! Especially when the Christmas packages start to arrive.

Don't know what you mean by cellular wifi.

 

[braumeister]

I may install a Nest outdoor camera instead of the ring doorbell.

I've had a Nest outdoor camera monitoring the patio door area for about a year and a half, and I love it. Superb quality video (and sound).

The only thing to be aware of is that you need an outlet nearby to plug it in, although it comes with a very long cord.

 

[Midpack]

I've had a Nest outdoor camera monitoring the patio door area for about a year and a half, and I love it. Superb quality video (and sound).

The only thing to be aware of is that you need an outlet nearby to plug it in, although it comes with a very long cord.

Doesn't that defeat any security purpose?

 

[braumeister]

Doesn't that defeat any security purpose?

I don't think so. In the first place, the cord is at least somewhat concealed. Second, if someone disabled it, I would later be able to download the video of them approaching and doing so.

 

[MichaelB]

I've had a Nest outdoor camera monitoring the patio door area for about a year and a half, and I love it. Superb quality video (and sound).

The only thing to be aware of is that you need an outlet nearby to plug it in, although it comes with a very long cord.

Yes, that's what's holding me back right now. In our case the cameras will plug in somewhere into the attic, and I don't have outlets nearby. On the plus side, I expect much better wi-fi signal reach up there.

Currently looking at the new Nest HD cameras. Pricey, and not sure the new feature set has that much value. It does look like it micht be a bit more secure, though.

As it pertains to the OP, I like the Nest interface much more than Ring.

 

[txtig]

We've considered it, and it's all the buzz on our local nextdoor.com, so I have a few questions?

• It might deter a vandal, but I assume it's not going to slow up a pro burglar. And it's probably an "industry norm" nowadays for pros to wear hats/hoodies, baggy nondescript clothing so the video may not help.
• I've read that you only get real time video for free. If you want it taped, there's a paid subscription required, and the tapes are only kept for X hours/days?

Thanks.

Ring.com will store the video for free for the first 30 days. After that, it’s $3.00 per month to continue the storage service. I think they keep the most recent 30 days of video on their servers.

 

[googily]

I'm waiting for the Nest version, since I'm already deep in the Nest ecosystem. Supposed to come out Q1 this year.

 

[JoeWras]

I'm paying the $3 per month. Maybe this is "one of those things I can cut" if worst came to worse.

I may get rid of it, but probably not since it allows you to talk through the doorbell. This has come in handy a few times already.

I just obtained a HD 2TB security camera system that blows away the quality of the tiny Ring and is really the only way to do security. Storage is local, no cloud fees. You just have to be sure the thieves don't steal the device! Video can be accessed remotely.

The biggest problem I have with the Ring is the "look back" before the motion event frequently is not enough so the video may start after the UPS man turns his back on my front porch. I think this happens if there is a delay making it to the cloud server.

 

[DrBrisket]

We were given a Ring 2 as a present. After having it installed for a couple of months, my opinion is that it is pure garbage. A hotspot is twenty feet away, so no issues with WiFi connectivity. However, the device simply does not work reliably. Since our free 30 day trial of cloud storage expired, it has become pretty much useless as anything other than a motion detector. Being able to watch live video or using the intercom is dicey at best as the device fails to respond when trying to view the camera either on my local network or remotely. Other times, it can take 30 seconds or more to connect. No other device on our network has issues with connectivity locally or remotely, so after too much troubleshooting, it seems the problems lie with Ring.

 

[Osprey]

Very pleased with Ring. Our local police department recommended it. A package thief in town was caught due to ring video. We were on vacation and were able to track that our driveway was plowed and when packages were delivered.


Decided to pay $30/year for video storage but not sure we need it and may cancel that service.