The smart revolution is at your doorstep. Literally. Wifi-connected video doorbells let you see a live stream of your front door. Better still, they send instant notifications to your phone when someone comes calling. To help you pick one that’s right for you, here are the best smart doorbells you can buy in 2017.
Best Smart Doorbell: Buying Advice
People arriving unannounced on your doorstep was once a common occurrence. Now that sort of behaviour is just weird. Texting or calling ahead has won. And this goes some way to explaining that sudden burst of anxiety you feel when your doorbell chimes and you’re not expecting anyone. See also: Best Retro Fridges 2017: Get the BEST American-style Fridge Freezer for your Kitchen.
Video doorbells are a great way to combat this. If you have one installed you can see who’s on your porch before deciding if you want to answer or not.
Of course, this is nothing new. Video doorbells have been around for a couple of decades now. The progress is that a smart doorbell connects via Wifi with your smartphone/tablet/laptop/connected device.
With a smart doorbell, you can interact with a visitor from any room in your house… or anywhere in the world! If, for example, an Amazon delivery driver comes when you’re unavailable, you can use your smartphone to explain where your designed safe hiding place is.
Best Smart Doorbells: Features to Look Out For
Two-way audio: You can speak and hear your visitor as well as they can you.
Motion sensing: – A smart doorbell will kick into action when it detects a motion in its range.
Cloud recording: – Footage will automatically be backed up in the cloud for several days.
Snapshot ready: – Allows you to that a picture of your doorstep during the video stream.
Night vision: The smart doorbell has a way of capturing footage in low-light scenarios.
HD video: A pixel density of at least 720p for image clarity.
On-demand video: This feature lets you view your smart doorbell’s stream at any time via your smartphone app.
The 4 BEST Smart Doorbells
1. Vuebell Smart Doorbell
Price: £95
The Vuebell requires wired power as there is no battery option. However, this is better in the long run as you won’t have to change the battery every month or two. Vuebell has been designed with work with a wide power source AC (10-24V) and DC (10-36V), so it should work fine with the wiring from the vast majority or existing doorbell power sources.
- 8 LEDs (works at night up to 18 feet away)
- Wifi connectivity
- iOS and Android apps
- Motions Sensor
- Two-way audio
- HD camera
- 185-degree horizontal and 120-degree verticle viewing angle
2. Ring RVD2
Price: £179
If you don’t want to have a wired smart doorbell, this is a great choice. It comes with two rechargeable batteries that last up to six weeks at a time. Combine this with its quick release cover and you should experience practically zero downtime. The only downside is the actual doorbell itself. If you want something that actually makes a noise in your house, you need to pay an extra £24 for the Ring Chime.
- Wifi connectivity
- 2x rechargeable batteries
- 2x Faceplates to make your house’s colour scheme
- On-demand video steam
- iOS and Android apps
- HD 1080p stream
- Two-way audio
- IR night vision
3. PHYSEN Wifi Enabled Video Doorbell
Price: £138
This smart doorbell does it all. It requires a little bit of installation work but has the ability to run on an existing standard wired-doorbell setup. What’s unique about the PHYSEN smart doorbell is that it comes with a built-in ethernet port giving you the option of how you want to rig it.
- 720p HD video
- Wifi connectivity
- 160-degree viewing angle
- IR-assisted lighting – visible up to 3m in low light scenarios
- Night vision
- Two-way audio
- On-demand video stream
4. Whitelabel Smart Video Doorbell
Price: £69
If you’re not looking to spend a lot of money, but still want smart doorbell functionality, this is the product for you. The Whitelabel Smart Video Doorbell runs off AA batteries, which last a few months before the need replacing.
- iOS and Android app
- 720p HD video
- Wifi connectivity
- Battery operated
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