The Best Smart Doorbell Cameras of 2023: Arlo, Ring, and more
By Linus Tan
Published Jan 2023
Ranging from smart home locks to smart home security cameras, modern surveillance systems are more versatile, automated and controllable than ever with access right from the palm of your hand. One of the most effective ways to increase your home's security is the addition of a smart doorbell camera.
Serving two purposes, a video doorbell camera lets you see and speak to people who approach your front door and record footage of visitors whether you're away or at home.
If you're wondering what is the best smart doorbell camera out there, we've done the research and put together a list for you to consider.
Best Overall: Arlo Essential Wired Video Doorbell
✓ 1536 x 1536 HD video resolution
✓ 180-degree wide viewing angle
✓ Smart motion detection and alerts
✓ Built-in 90dB siren alarm
Best for Features: Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2
✓ 1536 x 1536 HDR video quality
✓ 150-degree vertical & horizontal view
✓ 6-second pre-roll clip alerts
✓ Dual-band Wi-Fi
Best for Battery-Operated: Eufy Security Video Doorbell 2K (Battery-Powered)
✓ Crisp 2K image resolution
✓ 160-degree wide viewing angle
✓ Easy wire-free installation
✓ Up to 4 months of battery life
Best for Recognition: Google Nest Doorbell (battery)
✓ Smart recognition with Nest Aware
✓ Vertically-oriented field of view
✓ 3:4 video aspect ratio
✓ Easy installation
Best for Budget: Ring Video Doorbell Wired
✓ 1080p daytime & nighttime video
✓ 155-degree field of view
✓ Smart motion & object detection
✓ Cloud storage with Ring Protect
#1 Best Overall: Arlo Essential Wired Video Doorbell
Arlo Essential Wired Video Doorbell
We highly recommend the Arlo Essential Wired Video Doorbell for its excellent performance overall. Compared to other video doorbell cameras, this model had the lowest rate of false alarms due to its accurate motion detection. It is also easy to install and features a high-quality video with a 1536 x 1536 resolution and a 180-degree wide viewing angle, making it the perfect choice for any home security system.
Design
The Arlo Essential Wired Video Doorbell is a sleek and attractive device, with a black faceplate and white exterior. It stands out from the crowd with its larger size, measuring 12.7 cm in height, 4.3 cm in length, and 2.5 cm in width. This is slightly larger than the majority of other smart doorbell cameras available, meaning it will take up a bit more space on the wall or doorframe but still remain rather unobtrusive.
Arlo Essential Wired Video Doorbell
Features & Performance
Taking a look at its comprehensive feature set, it’s easy to understand why the Arlo Essential Wired Video Doorbell is ranked highly in its category. It features HD video, two-way audio, a built-in siren, and motion detection zones and delivers accurate alerts every time. With their subscription that starts from $3 a month, Arlo Secure, you can also get access to enhanced capabilities such as custom alerts, cloud storage and more.
One of the favourite features of the Arlo Essential Wired Video Doorbell is the video’s square aspect ratio. Coupled with its 180-degree wide viewing angle, you get a full frontage view of your doorway that even allows you to see critical areas like packages on your doorstep. Most other video doorbell cameras feature a landscape view, which may cut off important angles and defeat the purpose of having it.
Another worthy feature that helps the Arlo Essential Wired Video Doorbell stand out from competitors is its impeccable motion detection software. Having a video doorbell camera is a great way to protect your home and keep you alerted, however, that needs to be balanced out with accurate security notifications so that you don’t miss out on actual incidents or get alarmed for unnecessary things. As a pioneer in the smart home security space, Arlo has perfected the art of detecting and identifying motion alerts. It can differentiate the motion between people, animals and cars, and further distinguish between cars passing by or turning into the driveway. The accuracy of motion detection gives you peace of mind knowing that you have a smart pair of eyes to watch your house while you’re away.
The Arlo Essential Wired Video Doorbell comes with a companion app that you will use to access most of the primary features. During setup, the app will even guide you through installation and thereafter you can adjust things like motion sensitivity and recording times. In order to unlock more features in the app, you will have to subscribe to Arlo Secure.
Arlo Essential Wired Video Doorbell
Potential Dealbreakers
If you're looking for cloud storage, you may be disappointed to learn that the Arlo Smart plan doesn't offer any free storage. You'll need to pay a subscription fee of $3 per month to access the features of this plan. That said, you do have the option of local storage using a compatible Arlo SmartHub or Base Station.
Additionally, the Arlo app might require a bit of a learning curve and is not entirely intuitive, but it's worth investing the time in getting familiar with it as it offers many useful features and functions. Lastly, as a wired doorbell camera, installation is required.
Conclusion
Overall, the Arlo Essential Wired Video Doorbell checks all the boxes you need in a great doorbell camera at an extremely reasonable price, putting it on top of the list and a favourite among many.
Arlo Essential Wired Video Doorbell
Best Overall
✓ 1536 x 1536 HD video resolution
✓ 180-degree wide viewing angle
✓ Smart motion detection and alerts
✓ Built-in 90dB siren alarm
#2 Best for Features: Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2
Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2
With excellent video quality, speedy performance and a handy motion detection feature, it's no wonder that the Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2 is one of the best smart doorbell cameras on the market right now.
Design
Measuring 11.4H x 4.9L x 2.2W cm, the Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2 is rectangular in shape and has an attractive metallic finish. In the top half of the device, you'll find the camera with a lighted doorbell button just below it in the middle. Featuring dual-band Wi-Fi, this model allows you to get quicker notifications since it receives a far better connection compared to other doorbells.
Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2
Features & Performance
The Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2 offers a 150-degree vertical and horizontal field of view and an astounding 1536p HDR video quality that lets you see visitors from a wide-angle, side to side and top to bottom. This means it shows objects closer to the base of the ground hence making it easier to see packages lying there.
It also features excellent daytime video. Severe shadows are no longer an issue thanks to the HDR setting which makes these shadows visible even under the harsh afternoon sun. At night, the Pro 2 uses ambient light from its field of view to provide stimulated colour to the image, increasing details in the footage.
Apart from the tall field of view and detailed video, the Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2 comes with 3D Motion Detection and Bird’s Eye View. The 3D Motion Detection uses radar to detect people up to nine metres away whereas the Bird's Eye View overlays an overhead map and reports a trail of where anyone is walking on your property.
Not only that, the Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2 lets you customise motion zones and motion-sensitivity settings. Once set up, you'll receive person-only notifications and won't be alerted to cars or passers-by. What's good is that it now also has package detection.
The pre-roll is another useful feature where the Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2 shows you a short colour clip whenever someone comes to your door. Though it's a mere six-second loop, it provides a view of the person rather than leaving you wondering who it was.
Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2
Potential Dealbreakers
The Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2 requires wiring to an existing doorbell or plugging into a wall socket, as it does not have a battery option. This might make installation a little more difficult.
Conclusion
Overall, the wider vertical field of view and day and night high-quality resolution makes the Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2 a great wired doorbell camera.
Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2
Best for Features
✓ 1536 x 1536 HDR video quality
✓ 150-degree vertical & horizontal view
✓ 6-second pre-roll clip alerts
✓ Dual-band Wi-Fi
#3: Best for Battery-Operated: Eufy Security Video Doorbell 2K (Battery-Powered)
Eufy Security Video Doorbell 2K (Battery-Powered)
The Eufy Security Video Doorbell 2K (Battery-Powered) is an innovative and convenient home security solution with an easy installation that doesn't require any doorbell wiring. Despite being a battery-powered device, this doorbell camera still picks up many impressive features to be ranked highly on this list.
Design
The Eufy Security Video Doorbell 2K (Battery-Powered) is quite bulky for a smart doorbell camera, measuring 14 cm in height, 5.4 cm in length, and 2.8 cm in width. It has an all-black design, with the camera at the top and the doorbell at the bottom. It also comes with a HomeBase as a range extender for improved connection, so there’s no need to spend any extra here.
Eufy Security Video Doorbell 2K (Battery-Powered)
Features & Performance
The Eufy Security Video Doorbell 2K (Battery-Powered) offers crisp 2K images with a 2560×1920 pixel resolution. You’ll get clearer footage compared to 1080p video doorbell cameras, which could make all the difference if you need to correctly identify faces. It comes with a 160-degree wide viewing angle to capture most of the front door's surrounding area, but it is not as wide and complete as the 180-degree angle in the Arlo Essential Video Doorbell Wired.
The Eufy Security Video Doorbell 2K (Battery-Powered) most prominent feature for buyers is its easy installation that doesn't require any doorbell wiring. If you’re looking for something easy to get started with and not have to arrange and pay for a mechanic to set up your new doorbell camera, look no further. With an impressive battery life of up to four months on a single full charge, the Eufy Security Video Doorbell 2K (Battery-Powered) also ensures that you won't have to worry about power outages or constant recharging. When you need to recharge, it’ll take only up to 4 hours so you’re home will not be left unprotected.
One benefit users appreciate in the Eufy Security Video Doorbell 2K (Battery-Powered) is the option to choose between cloud and local storage for their recordings. Most other doorbell cameras offer an additional monthly subscription service in order to access cloud storage. This is similar to the Eufy if you also want to opt for cloud storage, where you will have to pay about $3 a month. That said, users that don’t want to pay for this can use the included HomeBase station as a storage device to store their recordings.
Eufy Security Video Doorbell 2K (Battery-Powered)
Potential Dealbreakers
The Eufy Security Video Doorbell 2K (Battery-Powered) is a great choice for those who want a battery-powered doorbell. However, it does have limitations - recordings are capped at 60 seconds and if motion continues, a new clip will be recorded. This can result in a time gap between recordings, potentially causing some video footage to be missed. If this is a concern, it may be more beneficial to opt for a wired doorbell camera that runs on a more reliable energy source, ensuring that all motion is captured without any gaps.
Conclusion
Overall, the Eufy Security Video Doorbell 2K (Battery-Powered) offers convenient installation and quality features. There are many battery-powered options available as well, but if you’re looking for the best in this range, this is it. If you're just beginning to explore smart doorbell cameras, this is an easy, hassle-free option.
Eufy Security Video Doorbell 2K (Battery-Powered)
Best for Battery-Operated
✓ Crisp 2K image resolution
✓ 160-degree wide viewing angle
✓ Easy wire-free installation
✓ Up to 4 months of battery life
#4 Best for Recognition: Google Nest Doorbell (battery)
Google Nest Doorbell (battery)
Offering cutting-edge facial recognition and features that used to require a subscription (think video storage), the Google Nest Doorbell (battery) is a substantial rival to the top spot on our list.
Design
The Google Nest Doorbell (battery) is unlike other doorbells you've come across. At 16H x 4.6L x 2.41W cm, the Google Nest Doorbell (battery) is considerably huge with a flat profile. The circular camera and ring button are symmetrically positioned, giving a minimalist look. On the top of the doorbell camera, you'll find a black circular fascia which contains the 145-degree camera along with the microphone and speaker. Though it's dubbed the Google Nest Doorbell (battery), it can be wired or used wirelessly.
Google Nest Doorbell (battery)
Features & Performance
On top of providing accurate colours in both day and night footage, the Google Nest Doorbell (battery) is incredibly detailed so that you can see the creases on your clothes and make out leaves on the trees.
Just like the Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2, the Google Nest Doorbell (battery) has a vertically oriented field of view. While the 3:4 aspect ratio means you lose a bit of view on the sides, its portrait footage lets you see visitors from head to toe as well as packages on the ground.
Other than package detection, the Google Nest Doorbell (battery) is effective in identifying people, animals and vehicles in its field of view. When this device is used with a Nest Aware subscription, you can take it a step further and assign names to faces and vehicles so you'll receive alerts whether it's a stranger or a recognised face approaching your door.
In addition to setting motion zones in the Google Home app which the Nest Doorbell (battery) uses, there are a plethora of customisation options available. One notable feature is you can set it so you'll be notified when there are people or packages left at the door and ignore cars and passers-by. What's more, this comes for free - no subscription required!
Another feature that comes for free is clever recognition tricks. The Google Nest Doorbell (battery) also stores three hours of footage in the local storage. In the Google Home app itself, you can turn on the live view and see the camera's history. It's impressive how the Nest Doorbell (battery) lets you see this either as a timeline or as a list with clever little GIFs which show a brief moment of what happened.
Google expects the Nest Doorbell (battery) to last about 2.5 months. The battery isn't swappable, but recharging is easy with USB-C, taking up to 5 hours for a full charge.
Google Nest Doorbell (battery)
Potential Dealbreakers
The Google Nest Doorbell (battery) lacks the pre-event video capture found in the Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2. Unlike the Pro 2 which continually records a short clip of anyone that comes to your door, motion sensitivity needs to be set to the max in the Nest Doorbell (battery).
Moreover, wireless plug-in chimes aren't available for the Nest Doorbell (battery). If you don't have a compatible speaker or smart display, alerts will be sent via the Google Home app on your smartphone.
Conclusion
Overall, the Google Nest Doorbell (battery) is a capable camera with a unique aspect ratio and effective recognition.
Google Nest Doorbell (battery)
Best for Recognition
✓ Smart recognition with Nest Aware
✓ Vertically-oriented field of view
✓ 3:4 video aspect ratio
✓ Easy installation
#5 Best for Budget: Ring Video Doorbell Wired
Ring Video Doorbell Wired
The Ring Video Doorbell Wired is one you'd want to get your hands on because it offers the same clear video and audio as the other Ring products on our list but without breaking the bank.
Design
An all-black device, the Ring Video Doorbell Wired is small, measuring 10.1H x 4.57L x 2.24D cm. In the centre of the doorbell, the button is encircled by an LED that gives off a constant white glow and flashes blue when pressed.
Ring Video Doorbell Wired
Features & Performance
Daytime and nighttime 1080p video on the Ring Video Doorbell Wired works well. Day vision is in colour whereas night vision appears in black and white. Nevertheless, you're able to make out faces and have clear conversations with anyone at your doorstep either way. While the 155-degree field of view may feel narrower to some, you're still able to get a good view of visitors approaching your door though you don't get a full-length view of people. Once motion is detected or the doorbell has been pressed, the Ring Video Doorbell Wired records this footage at the time of the alert.
With the Ring app, you can quickly access the doorbell's live feed or a timeline of motion and doorbell presses. If you subscribe to Ring Protect, you get to view still images to stitch together what's happened in between motion detection and when the doorbell is pressed. Alternatively, the History option lets you view these events as individual clips.
Other settings you can configure include People Mode (where you won't be notified when motion from animals or vehicles is detected), Motion Zones (activities outside zones you've indicated won't be recorded) and a schedule for when you receive alerts if motion is detected.
Ring Video Doorbell Wired
Potential Dealbreakers
Like the Arlo Essential, the Ring Video Doorbell Wired also doesn't come with free storage. Subscribing to Ring Protect for an additional sum lets you store video in the cloud for up to 30 days.
Conclusion
Overall, the Ring Video Doorbell Wired offers comprehensive app features and great video quality for an inexpensive startup cost.
Ring Video Doorbell Wired
Best for Budget
✓ 1080p daytime & nighttime video
✓ 155-degree field of view
✓ Smart motion & object detection
✓ Cloud storage with Ring Protect
Compare The Best Smart Doorbell Cameras of 2023
Final Thoughts
Being a gateway to your home, the front door needs to be protected with the best smart doorbell camera. Whether you're waiting for your loved ones, monitoring parcel deliveries or watching out for snoopers, a good smart doorbell camera will help to keep an eye out while safeguarding your space.
You can also ramp up your home security in many other ways. We put together a list of the best smart locks and best smart home cameras for you to integrate into your smart home system and take your security a notch up.
If you like to read more on smart doorbell cameras, check out our other relevant guides here:
If you like to read more about Smart Doorbell Cameras, check out our other relevant guides here:
Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2 vs Ring Video Doorbell Pro
Ring Battery Doorbell Plus vs Ring Video Doorbell 4
Arlo Doorbell vs Ring Pro 2 (7 CRUCIAL Aspects to Consider)
Ring Video Doorbell 4 vs 3: Is It Worth Upgrading?
Google Nest Doorbell vs Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2
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