Best Video Doorbell

mutley74

I dont currently have a video doorbell, just a simple self powered doorbell. 

I have used Ring before at a relatives house which works fine but realise there is a subscription fee. 

I see theres a few makes Eufy, Blink and Ring. 
Which ever I choose like to hook up to my Alexa device and Phone. 

Looking for recommendations. 
Battery or powered? (if powered one that comes with a plug in transformer and cable. 

Do the battery ones need regular charging or are they are as good as they e..g Eufy S200 says the battery lasts 120 days. 

I welcome any feedback. 

Keithy13

We have Eufy battery doorbell. We find it works well, had it about 2 years now with no issues. 120 days battery life is a bit ambitious, I would think it is more like 80 to 90 days, longer in summer less in winter, although you can monitor the battery level in the app. There are a number of configuarable options in the app including geofencing and setting the area from which it will record/alert.
Another advantage of non cloud based storage is only you can access recordings.
We went for the battery model due to not having power supply near the door and also we would have had to drill through the uPVC doorframe. Bear in mind the doorbell transmits its signal to the in home unit which is connected to your wifi and you would also need an SD card for storage. 

Browntoa

I use blink , currently on offer on Amazon.

I don't have a subscription, all videos are saved on a usb drive connected to the sync unit. I can still remote view and answer the door bell .

Mines powered from the existing doorbell wiring and mains transformer 

Rosa_Damascena

Whichever you get Muttles, make sure its well positioned and not overly sensitive.

My Ring doorbell is great but drives me nuts in the winter as it picks up each and every emission from my GCH vent...and that of my neighbours. I can switch it off but that rather defeats the point.

EssexExile

Rosa_Damascena said:

Whichever you get Muttles, make sure its well positioned and not overly sensitive.

My Ring doorbell is great but drives me nuts in the winter as it picks up each and every emission from my GCH vent...and that of my neighbours. I can switch it off but that rather defeats the point.

I wish my boiler was smart enough the press the doorbell.

Futuristic

Eufy. One time fee, no subscription and works well enough. We have the original one hard wired, no issues. They have one with dual cam with one facing down great if you get parcels left at door.

Amaozn have Prime event next week and they prob have discount on those then. 

FFHillbilly

Black Friday is the right time to buy a video doorbell

[Deleted User]

Keithy13 said:

We have Eufy battery doorbell. We find it works well, had it about 2 years now with no issues. 120 days battery life is a bit ambitious, I would think it is more like 80 to 90 days, longer in summer less in winter, although you can monitor the battery level in the app. There are a number of configuarable options in the app including geofencing and setting the area from which it will record/alert.
Another advantage of non cloud based storage is only you can access recordings.
We went for the battery model due to not having power supply near the door and also we would have had to drill through the uPVC doorframe. Bear in mind the doorbell transmits its signal to the in home unit which is connected to your wifi and you would also need an SD card for storage. 

hmm not quite true, Eufy were caught with their pants down on this one.

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2022/11/eufys-no-clouds-cameras-upload-facial-thumbnails-to-aws/

https://www.theverge.com/23573362/anker-eufy-security-camera-answers-encryption

mutley74

On the Eufy doorbell can one access recordings remotely via the app? As That be a useful feature so I can rewind any recordings when away from home if required or at my parents. 

joeypesci

Avoid Blink, they are awful. 

IvanOpinion

We have a Ring doorbell, the camera is great, the microphone is great, the detection is great.
 
The only problem I have is that it sometimes takes up to 2 minutes for a notification to hit my phone, by which time the person has gone. Mrs. O. has exactly the same phone and she gets notifications within a few seconds.  It is funny when we answer the door, based on Mrs O's phone, welcome the person in, get seated and then my phone alerts me.