Honorable Mentions
Photo: Simon Hill
We have tested several other video doorbells. These are the ones who narrowly missed out on a spot at the top.
Doro Home doorbell for £150: A simplified smart doorbell for seniors is a good idea, and Swedish manufacturer Doro is doing something right with the Hemma. It is a battery-powered doorbell that is easy to install and use and offers a resolution of 1,440 x 1,440 pixels with a decent frame rate (30 fps), local recording via a microSD card and a plug-in ringtone that loud enough to be heard throughout the house. It worked reliably during testing and the app is deliberately simplified, with a handy option to forward calls to a trusted friend or family member (they also need the app). The two-way audio works well, there’s a handy zoom feature when live streaming, and there’s a siren to scare people away. It’s simplified so there are no privacy zones or package alerts, and it can be too sensitive for busy front doors, although you can set it to only alert on doorbells. Battery life is decent, although the battery is not removable, so you’ll have to remove the doorbell to charge it or use a portable charger. Unfortunately it is only available in the UK and Europe.
SimpliSafe Video Doorbell Pro for $170: If you’re looking for a solid security system, SimpliSafe is probably on your radar, and for people with a SimpliSafe setup, the Video Doorbell Pro fits the bill. Former WIRED reviewer Medea Giordano found it touchy at first, but after an update she said it worked almost perfectly, sending quick alerts and providing a good, clear view of her porch. The maximum footage is 1080p, but the camera supports HDR to reduce glare and has a 162-degree field of view. While it must be wired and you’ll need a subscription starting at $5 per month to record video, SimpliSafe also offers the option of professional monitoring (starting at $32 per month), which is a rarity for doorbells and might make sense is when you have a complete security system with you.
Ring Battery Video Doorbell Pro for $230: Amazon brand Ring’s top-of-the-line battery-powered doorbell almost received a full recommendation. It offers high-quality, crisp videos with HDR support and color night vision. Notifications were quick and accurate, and the two-way audio quality was relatively high quality. I appreciate the ability to set multiple movement zones, including a potentially handy bird’s eye view zone that lets you define range. The preroll feature captures a few seconds before each clip (albeit at a lower resolution), which can be helpful. Since there’s no local recording option, you’ll need to subscribe to Ring Protect for $5 per month ($50 per year) for a single camera. But you also get a generous 180-day video storage, extensive notifications and person and package detection. But all these bells and whistles come at a price, and battery life was disappointing (three weeks). You can mitigate this by purchasing a second battery to replace, as it is replaceable, or opting for the Wired Doorbell Pro instead (although we haven’t tested it yet).
TP-Link Tapo (D230S1) Smart Battery Video Doorbell for $120: For people looking for a local storage option that doesn’t require a subscription, this Tapo doorbell is worth a look. Notifications arrive quickly and include a still image, video quality is excellent even at night, and the indoor hub accepts a microSD card and doubles as a bell. The downside is that it’s clunky and the built-in AI (which is supposed to recognize people, pets, vehicles and packages) is unreliable.
Hard to recommend
Photo: Simon Hill
We didn’t like every video doorbell we tested. These are the ones we don’t recommend.
Reolink Video Doorbell (Battery) for $146: We liked the Reolink wired doorbell listed above, so I was excited to try out the first battery-powered model, but it was a disappointment. It offers up to 2K footage with a 1:1 aspect ratio, giving you a full view of the porch, but it lacks HDR and the frame rate is relatively low (15 fps). I like the no-subscription option, but that requires inserting a microSD card into the doorbell itself, and that doorbell is relatively easy to remove. Reolink recommends up to five months of battery life, but mine ran out in less than two months and the rechargeable battery inside isn’t removable, so you have to remove the doorbell to charge it. Considering the somewhat confusing app, relatively slow loading times and connection problems, this is not recommended.
Ezviz EP3x Pro for £133: This is a much better looking doorbell than Ezviz’s previous models, and it’s nice to see solar panels as an option for doorbells, although you’ll need a porch that can catch some rays. The video quality is good and you get a split view (like Eufy above) that includes packages or cats waiting at your front door. The distortion correction works well and there is optional color night vision with integrated light, although this only works at close range. I appreciate the 2FA with fingerprint login and 32GB of onboard storage (cloud storage is optional). Unfortunately, if you use the solar panel you will not be able to connect to your wired bell. The lack of HDR is disappointing, human detection worked a bit poorly (my cat pinged a lot), and I had issues with notifications not getting through on some Android phones (even after following Ezviz’s instructions, they worked on my Xiaomi never reliable). 14Ultra). This model is not yet available in the USA.
Botslab Video Doorbell 2 Pro for $170: The flaky setup process required a few reboots and the physical installation was no better as the included screws were so cheap that one of the heads actually broke off. The camera has a fisheye effect, but you can correct it with different views. I liked the VR mode, which offers a 180-degree view of your porch. It has a handy plug-in chime, alarms seem reliable, there’s an HDR option, and you can record locally (32GB included) or in the cloud. You can also set a detection area, which can be handy for cameras pointed at the road. But the app is confusing, with an AI tab that lists different skills available for purchase. There is login history and a limit of two devices logged in at the same time, but no 2FA, so it’s not recommended. It is versatile, but also relatively expensive.
Wyze Video Doorbell Pro for $100: The Wyze Video Doorbell Pro (7/10, WIRED review) was our budget recommendation, but with reservations. It alerted reliably, delivered clear videos, and had precise AI for people detection, but you need the Cam Plus subscription (starting at $3/month). This camera model was not affected Vulnerability that Wyze was unable to fix or reporting to customers for three years, but most recently after repeated security breaches by Wyze Make thousands of camera feeds available to other customersit’s hard to recommend his cameras more.
Swann SwannBuddy Video Doorbell for $150: This doorbell comes with a wireless, battery-powered chime and the option of local storage, but that’s where the positives end. Video quality is poor, the app loads very slowly and glitches, and the doorbell often doesn’t register movement. I found the battery life disappointing. I also have to question the decision to provide local storage via a microSD card inserted into the doorbell (the doorbell would make more sense and be more secure).
Ezviz DB2 video doorbell for $180: The Ezviz DB2 is an affordable video doorbell with a plug-in chime. It works quite well, but is very clunky and kind of ugly. The video footage is detailed, but I had issues with bright areas being blocked out when the sun was shining. The app is solid and loads quickly, pressing the doorbell triggers a call on your phone, and you can record locally by inserting a microSD card into the bell. Unfortunately, it offers very limited ability to define movement zones – a big problem if you live on a busy street. I also found the battery life to be subpar and difficult to remove.
