My family bought a ring doorbell recently, and I hate it. The device has refused to initialize properly in the mobile app designed for it, so it’s been useless since we got it. Worse still, the automated voice recording sounds off on a timer day and night. I can hear it outside my bedroom in the middle of the night. It’s installed to the brick of the house, so it’s not like I’m taking it down without having something to replace it with.
What should I get instead? I’d like something my tech-dumb parents can use. Bonus points if isn’t owned by Amazon, and reporting data to the cops without a warrant.
IMO it depends what ecosystem you are in. If you use all Apple devices then probably want an Aquara doorbell so it integrates easily into Apple HomeKit, which an Apple TV or whatever can act as a home base to control the system. If you have UniFi network equipment, make sure it can install the Protect system and get a UniFi doorbell. if you have Android get a Google Nest doorbell. And ya, if your entire house is Alexa enabled already with Echos and Firesticks and the like then a Ring doorbell would be perfect. It all just kind of depends what ecosystem you are in and very few video doorbells work well as an independent system. Ring would be the closest but it can have issues with no other equipment and bad wifi signal and requires a monthly subscription too in order to really do anything with it.
Have you considered selfhosting Frigate? It plays nicely with a bunch of different manufacturers stuff and is local so you don’t have the big companies getting data you don’t want them to have.
There is one very simple alternative called ‘during winter holidays a few kids were singing something similar to carrols… and by a fkn tradition… at 8 AM’. When I opened the door I thought I would kill that kid. Instead I explained why he should never do that again… and ripped out the wires to the doorbell. It was the Christmas before. Never been happier with how the doorbell functions.
have you looked at ubiquiti’s g4 pro doorbell obviously would need thier nvr, but its an amazing customizable in regards to notification and detections, not to mention it has 2 cameras not one, so you can look straight down at packages set out of sight of some doorbells.