Ring Battery Video Doorbell Review (2024)

Product name: Introduction

• Type: Battery (can also be connected with an existing doorbell)
• Connectivity: 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi
• Ecosystems: Amazon Alexa

Entry-level Ring doorbells with fixed batteries have generally been too basic for most, but the Ring Battery Video Doorbell (2024) changes that.

Sure, there are still some of the same limitations (basic motion detection and needing to remove the doorbell to charge, for example), but the head-to-toe video and full integration into the Ring ecosystem make this a surprisingly good doorbell for the price.

I’ve been using it for a few weeks to find out how good it is and to find out who this doorbell is best for.

How it compares:

Ring Battery Video Doorbell vs Ring Battery Doorbell Pro

Ring Battery Video Doorbell vs Ring Video Doorbell Plus

Continue reading to find out more…

Design and installation

• Wider than normal battery products.
• Can be connected to a wired doorbell
• No corner supports in the box

As with the previous version, Ring Video Doorbell (2^{North Dakota}-gen), the new model has a built-in battery, rather than using the quick-release battery that comes with the other battery-powered models, like the Ring Battery Video Doorbell Pro.

As a result, this model is shallower than its siblings, but is significantly wider. That can cause problems if, like me, you have fairly narrow door frames.

There’s no corner shim in the box to help, just a flat mounting plate, although Ring sells one for around $20/£18 if you need it.

This model has a USB-C port on the back to charge the battery.

When flat, the doorbell needs to be removed to charge, requiring the tool in the case to release the retaining clip.

Removing the doorbell to charge it is not always convenient, but there are other options. First, the doorbell has terminals on the back for connecting to a wired doorbell and a doorbell transformer.

In this setup, your existing doorbell transformer will slowly charge the battery.

Assuming you’ve tilted the doorbell correctly so it doesn’t detect too much motion, trickle charging will mean you won’t have to remove the doorbell and it will stay constantly charged.

But be careful. The wired terminals are connected to the back of the doorbell, not the mounting plate. If you need to remove the doorbell, you will also need to unscrew the wires.

Ring also sells a solar mount, which will charge the doorbell automatically, although this option is only suitable for people whose front doors receive enough sunlight.

Under the right conditions, there are enough options that you will never need to remove the Ring Battery Video Doorbell (2024).

Characteristics

• Basic motion detection
• Requires Ring Home subscription for more advanced features

The Ring Battery Video Doorbell (2024) connects to Wi-Fi (2.4 GHz) and appears in the Ring app like any other doorbell from the company.

Without a subscription, the doorbell will ring your phone when someone rings it and you can watch the live stream.

To get the full experience, the doorbell requires a subscription to Ring Home, which enhances motion detection intelligence and adds cloud storage for video recordings.

Ring Home is Ring’s new subscription plan for its video doorbells, security cameras, and alarm system.

It replaced Ring Protect and is similar to Nest Aware, which is the subscription service for Nest Cams, and Philips Hue Secure, which is the subscription service for Hue’s Secure security range. Arlo also has a subscription service called Arlo Secure, so it’s standard practice across all user-installed security systems.

There are three Ring Home subscriptions:

• Basic Home Ring – £4.99/$4.99 per month either £49.99/$49.99 per year.
• Standard Home Ring – £7.99/$9.99 per month either £79.99/$99.99 per year.
• Premium Home Ring – £15.99/$19.99 a month or £159.99/$199.99 one year.

With a Ring Home subscription, video is automatically recorded to the cloud. Go to the Live View section and you’ll find a handy timeline below to scroll through past events.

This section can be filtered by event type and date, so it’s usually pretty quick to find an event you’re interested in, and clips can be downloaded and saved to your phone’s gallery.

In its default setting, the doorbell will send alerts for any motion it detects, but there are options to reduce them.

Activity Zones allowed me to establish areas of the image that interested me, ignoring movement outside of them; and I could turn on people alerts, so the doorbell would only warn me about people.

These can help a lot, but if you live on a busy street, it’s hard to filter out events taking place beyond your front yard.

With Ring Battery Video Doorbell Pro’s radar-based 3D motion detection, you can limit motion detection within your yard, reducing the number of alerts you receive and helping extend battery life.

Incoming rings arrive quickly and an alert is sent to your phone. Clean audio and video make it easy to chat with the caller, but there are also Quick Replies so you can send a quick, predetermined response, like “Hello! “We’ll be right there.”

This doorbell is compatible only with Amazon Alexa and Echo speakers can be used as wireless doorbells; If you have an Echo Show 8 or Show 5, you can open the door directly without having to take out your phone.

Performance

• Clear video in daylight
• Color night vision is a bit hit and miss
• Useful head to toe image

The main problem with the previous version of this product was that it recorded video at a resolution of 1920×1080 in landscape mode, so you couldn’t see callers very clearly.

With the Ring Battery Video Doorbell (2024), there are the same number of pixels, only the video is recorded at a resolution of 1440 x 1440 (150° horizontal and vertical viewing angles), providing a more useful view of feet to head.

Although it is a cheap doorbell, the quality is quite good. During the day, callers are clear and in focus, although image quality and resolution tend to decrease with distance.

There’s an option for full-color night vision at night, although I found I needed more ambient light than was available, even though there was a bright streetlight outside my house.

Instead of being in full color, my night images had a strange green cast and the video was quite soft.

I preferred the standard infrared night vision option.

I didn’t get much range with this mode, but for callers up close, I could see them clearly.

Final thoughts

It’s all a matter of what you want and your setup. If you have a wired doorbell and other security cameras covering your front yard, the Ring Battery Video Doorbell (2024) is an affordable upgrade that you can plug in so you don’t have to remove it to charge.

It records pretty good videos and callers are clear and crisp. If you need more control over motion detection and higher resolution video, the Ring Battery Video Doorbell Pro is a better choice. If you don’t want to pay for alerts, the Eufy Video Doorbell Dual might be a better option.

how we test

When we publish our reviews, you can be sure that they are the result of “living with” long-term testing.

Smart video doorbells typically live within an ecosystem or range of products that all supposedly work in harmony. Therefore, it is impossible to use a security camera for a week and render a verdict.

Because we test smart home kit all day, every day, we know what matters and how a particular video doorbell compares to alternatives you might also be considering.

Our reviews are complete, objective and fair, and of course, we are never paid directly to review a device.

Read our guide to our video doorbell review process to learn more.

Frequently asked questions

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