With security being a primary concern for many households, it's no surprise that we have seen a drastic rise in the amount of homes utilizing video doorbells. We'll take a look as some of the benefits, both for security and in daily use, that might help you decide if one is suitable for your home.
Cost:
The cost of a video doorbell can be as little as £40, or reach prices of £200. It all depends on what kind of quality and features you are looking for. The cheaper of the doorbells may present issues like connectivity problems, low quality materials or poor support. When investing in a more established brand like Ring, Arlo or Eufy, you get a much better and hassle free experience.
A further point to mention in regards to costs- Most video doorbells will require an additional cost to fully utilise their potential. From Ring and Arlo charging between £80 & £144 a year for their subscription to cloud-storage only devices, or brands like Eufy or Wansview where you can buy an SD card for local video storage. Be sure to check that the doorbell you want is going to be based off a reoccurring monthly fee, or if you want to just buy the SD card as a "one off payment" to record locally.
Ease of Use:
Again, the difficulty in installing the doorbell, or how well the smartphone app is built, all depends on the price you pay for the doorbell. A lot of Chinese made video doorbells are popular on places like eBay and Amazon due to their low price. You may however pay for this in the long run with a smart phone app that doesn't work correctly, isn't available for your phone make, or simply doesn't have all the features you would expect. Additionally, the cheaper Chinese doorbells run the risk of breaking during installation, having low capacity batteries or limited warranties.
Some of the bigger brand video doorbells will be the exact opposite in this regard. With slim smart designs that blend nicely with all door types, made from robust and weatherproof materials, and a long warranty that shows the company is confident in their product.
Regardless of price, you are also presented with the option of going wired or wireless for your video doorbell. In my personal experience- If you have the cabling already in place from a previous doorbell, then you would be wise to use it. While the batteries for video doorbells are great, and can last anything from 3-9 months, they will degrade over time, and that means more of your time spent swapping over the batteries or charging the video doorbell.
Security:
It would be very hard to argue that a video doorbell doesn't provide any additional security. Statistics show that every 25th burglar will attempt to enter a property by just walking through the front door. Not to mention with the rise of online shopping and Amazon, there's even more of an incentive for potential thieves to have a look around someone's door.
In addition to this rise in online shopping, we now have a lot more strangers showing up at our properties with deliveries. I have personally had couriers "attempt" to deliver packages by standing near my front door and marking the item as "undeliverable". Or on another occasion a courier leaving a box of expensive computer components out in the open, while it was raining. Raising this issue with the courier company is a lot easier when you have video evidence of your claim.
With a video doorbell, you will know exactly who has been at your front door and when. You will be able to talk to them through the doorbell's speaker, and be able to replay any moment that was captured.
Conclusion:
As a long time fan of innovation and technology, I cannot recommend getting a video doorbell enough. Aside from your mobile phone or computer, I can think of no other new technological device that will prove its worth in both security and benefit.