QVC's Ring Video Doorbell TSV Review

Update June 2020 - three years later and it's working as it did day one, wonderfully. Hubby emailed the owner/inventor about the internet issues with our floodlight version and he sent us a chime to help with that at no cost. It extends your Wi-Fi. He also followed up a month later. Our side load garage is on the opposite side of the house as our internet modem is and our internet is certainly not the best. This year's Ring Doorbell TSV comes with a chime solving that issue. We depend on Ring's Doorbell and Floodlight and they are really comforting. Now that we have Alexa in three rooms of our house, we can command Ring through her. The funny thing is our dogs know what Ring means when she speaks and they immediately bark. Ring sometimes detects someone before our dogs do. The system is adjustable, it can detect motion from a very long distance. The video is amazing, the width and length of the visual coverage it shows are incredible. Without giving details, there was a crime that occurred in our 100-foot driveway and the video showed who did it and the authorities took action. It was PROOF! No one could deny their actions. It shows our neighbors' houses across the street and the one next to us! Our contract with a security system we hated (Frontpoint) is finally up, so Hubby bought the Ring Security System. Stay tuned for a review on that system. 

This is a review of the Ring Video Doorbell that will be sold as a QVC TSV on July 9th. Its item number is E231001 and it can be preordered for $144.95 or five payments of $28.99. It comes in the colors satin nickel, antique brass, Venetian bronze, and polished brass. Note that it's not made of metal, it's a painted color on plastic. I purchased the satin nickel color last April when it was a TSV and I paid $15 more! Mine came with an extra chime to use perhaps on the second floor, if you can't hear the first floor doorbell or if you have a ranch for on the other side of the house. We didn't find it necessary since our four dogs are our second doorbell and loud enough to hear anywhere in the house, so we aren't using it. Ours came with a one year warranty and this latest TSV comes with a three-year warranty. Note that all models come with a replacement warranty if a criminal steals it. More about that later. You will need wi-fi, a wired doorbell, and a smartphone to use this product.

It took Hubby about thirty-five minutes to install. You'll need to remove your old doorbell and connect this one to the wires and attach it to the exterior wall. If working with electrical wires is unnerving to you, you'll want to hire an electrician or ask a favor of a friend who has electrical experience. It comes with an orange screwdriver to install, so be sure you don't lose it by keeping it in a safe place. Here's a view of it and the inside of the package it comes in:

In order to remove the doorbell without damage, you would need that unique screwdriver which helps deter theft since it's not your standard screwdriver. Ring will replace it if it's stolen, but you'll need to file a police report and show the recorded video. It requires a monthly fee to record your videos for future viewing. The recording fee is currently $30 for a year or $3 per month. 

First impression: it's really cool and it gives a feeling of control and security. I love being able to view who's on our porch without letting them know I'm watching. I also love that we can view our porch on our phone at any time from anywhere. Loving the convenience and security of being able to view it in bed, on the second floor, on vacation, at work, anywhere at any time of the day! After several months of use Hubby is a huge fan while I'm not as thrilled. I have turned off the motion detector notification on my iPhone. My biggest issue with it is it had too many false alarms triggered by birds, moving the American flag, and cars. You can adjust the distance to reduce the number of false alarms for cars and pedestrians, but it still goes off for the flag and birds or anything on the porch. When we were sleeping one of the recorded videos was that of a bird standing on the ring doorbell looking at the camera, so funny. The sound is pretty good and Hubby loves surprising people by talking to them when they arrive. The talk feature is a wonderful security feature for when you are not at home. The guest will assume that you are home since you are talking to them when in fact you may be thousands of miles away! My other issue is when I hear someone coming up the steps and I click on the app and chose "live view" I have found that sometimes it's so slow to load. I get aggravated by it since it won't show me the person on the porch fast enough. That may be due to not getting a very good cell phone service at my home. The picture is very good though not as good as they show on their website and it's fisheye as shown below:

You can zoom in to get a better look. While you can see someone in the distance, you can't really make out who it is until they get closer. It has night vision which is quite impressive for this price point. The live view is also great for when you are waiting for visitors to arrive. In the app, you can look at event history to see what time the motion detector went off and view the activity's recording IF you pay the monthly fee. If you don't pay the monthly fee then you have no access to your videos and it offers a link to activate it by paying the fee. The only way you can view the motion detector activity without paying the fee is live. To do so you would need to turn on the alert on the app and be sure to quickly view the live feed. It also lists all the times when the doorbell was rung. 

My final thoughts: it does what it says it does very well and the quality is impressive for the price. I'm not happy about the monthly fee and worry that it will go up in price since it seems quite low right now. I also worry about the security of them having my recordings. That part feels like a loss of control and security. It would be so much better if they offered the ability to record the videos to our own device. I also worry about its plastic body and how it will stand up to the test of time. I would have preferred a more sturdy metal frame. Ours is shielded from rain since it's on the porch and the wind usually blows away from that area. I would be even more concerned if it was rained on regularly. I recommend the Ring Video Doorbell if you can afford it and you understand that there is a monthly fee to fully use its capabilities. The recorded videos are a huge part of what the product offers, so that's quite a loss if you aren't willing to pay the monthly fee. Keep that in mind when making your decision on whether or not to purchase it. You can also purchase it at some local hardware stores or online at several sites including Costco. The extra offers such as a longer warranty or an extra chime vary, so shop around to see which store has the best offer for your needs. There are also three other models to chose from all of which are more expensive. You may want to look into those if your budget allows. If you purchase it online, don't forget to use Mr. Rebates for cashback. We really want to get the floodlight version soon to place in the area of our property that visitors drive up to. That one is more pricey at about $100 more, so we are waiting on purchasing that one. If you own this product already, I'd love to hear your view on it, please comment below. I would also love to hear a review of the floodlight they offer. If you haven't purchased this product, what aspect is discouraging you from ordering it?

Bargain Alert:

$10 off - ten dollar credit for those who download the neighbor app! No ring device required.

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Have a PEACEful Day!