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TorqueDog · 09-21-2018, 01:41 PM

aaronck, here's a review comparing the Ring Doorbell, Ring Doorbell 2, and the Ring Doorbell Pro:

Ring Doorbell: 2.4GHz Wi-Fi Only, Non-Removable Battery or Hardwired, 720p only, not fully supported for Alexa.
Ring Doorbell 2: 2.4GHz Wi-Fi Only, Removable Battery or Hardwired, 1080p, Alexa support.
Ring Doorbell Pro: 2.4GHz and 5GHz Wi-Fi, Hardwired Only, 1080p, Alexa support.

At a minimum, I'd go with the Doorbell 2. If you already own an original Ring Doorbell, the Pro is a more worthwhile jump up than the 2 IMO.

I installed the Ring Doorbell Pro yesterday. I could not, for the life of me, find the damn breaker that our doorbell chime was on. Whoever did the labeling on our breaker panel was a lazy SOB. Luckily, the voltage is really low for doorbell chimes (12-16v generally), so I threw on a pair of gloves and went to work. The install was incredibly straightforward. The Ring Doorbell Pro has a tiny black sticker on the left side of the device opposite the program button. Remove it, and you'll find a micro-USB port, which you can use to pre-charge the onboard battery which is used for short periods of power loss. Some people who didn't do this report that sometimes the device can take a while to power-up after being connected if you don't.

The notifications are lightning fast and faster than the Nest Hello, which was another consideration. The two-way audio is clear, as is the picture quality. It integrates as a motion sensor with SmartThings so I can do things like have the outside front door light turn on if someone is approaching.

Echo Show/Spot integration is nice too. If we know we're having friends over or waiting for an Uber / SkipTheDishes, we can say "Alexa, show the front door" and our Echo Show in the kitchen will jump to a live view of the Ring so we can meet them at the door. Two features lacking in the Alexa skill for the Ring Video Doorbells is that they do not support two-way audio -- you can hear them, they can't hear you. There is also no way to have your Echo Show or Echo Spot automatically jump to the stream when the doorbell rings, you have to instruct Alexa to show the feed. There is also reduced support for the original Ring Video Doorbell and the original Ring Stick-up Cam.

Overall, really cool product, very happy with the purchase.

BUT... if you've got an NVR and want your video doorbell to record video to it, the Ring family of devices won't integrate with them at all as they only support Ring's cloud recording service. Sadtrombone.mp3. However, Uniden makes a video doorbell called the Uniden U-Bell DB-1 which is ONVIF compatible (Blue Iris, Reolink NVRs, etc.). It's also a lot cheaper than the Ring, but it's also less known. But of the few reviews I've seen, it doesn't look too bad.

09-21-2018, 01:41 PM	#37
TorqueDog Franchise Player Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Calgary - Centre West Exp:	aaronck, here's a review comparing the Ring Doorbell, Ring Doorbell 2, and the Ring Doorbell Pro: YouTube Video Ring Doorbell: 2.4GHz Wi-Fi Only, Non-Removable Battery or Hardwired, 720p only, not fully supported for Alexa. Ring Doorbell 2: 2.4GHz Wi-Fi Only, Removable Battery or Hardwired, 1080p, Alexa support. Ring Doorbell Pro: 2.4GHz and 5GHz Wi-Fi, Hardwired Only, 1080p, Alexa support. At a minimum, I'd go with the Doorbell 2. If you already own an original Ring Doorbell, the Pro is a more worthwhile jump up than the 2 IMO. I installed the Ring Doorbell Pro yesterday. I could not, for the life of me, find the damn breaker that our doorbell chime was on. Whoever did the labeling on our breaker panel was a lazy SOB. Luckily, the voltage is really low for doorbell chimes (12-16v generally), so I threw on a pair of gloves and went to work. The install was incredibly straightforward. The Ring Doorbell Pro has a tiny black sticker on the left side of the device opposite the program button. Remove it, and you'll find a micro-USB port, which you can use to pre-charge the onboard battery which is used for short periods of power loss. Some people who didn't do this report that sometimes the device can take a while to power-up after being connected if you don't. The notifications are lightning fast and faster than the Nest Hello, which was another consideration. The two-way audio is clear, as is the picture quality. It integrates as a motion sensor with SmartThings so I can do things like have the outside front door light turn on if someone is approaching. Echo Show/Spot integration is nice too. If we know we're having friends over or waiting for an Uber / SkipTheDishes, we can say "Alexa, show the front door" and our Echo Show in the kitchen will jump to a live view of the Ring so we can meet them at the door. Two features lacking in the Alexa skill for the Ring Video Doorbells is that they do not support two-way audio -- you can hear them, they can't hear you. There is also no way to have your Echo Show or Echo Spot automatically jump to the stream when the doorbell rings, you have to instruct Alexa to show the feed. There is also reduced support for the original Ring Video Doorbell and the original Ring Stick-up Cam. Overall, really cool product, very happy with the purchase. BUT... if you've got an NVR and want your video doorbell to record video to it, the Ring family of devices won't integrate with them at all as they only support Ring's cloud recording service. Sadtrombone.mp3. However, Uniden makes a video doorbell called the Uniden U-Bell DB-1 which is ONVIF compatible (Blue Iris, Reolink NVRs, etc.). It's also a lot cheaper than the Ring, but it's also less known. But of the few reviews I've seen, it doesn't look too bad. __________________ -James GO FLAMES GO.