Best Battery Powered Video Doorbells
/In this post we cover the best battery powered video doorbells. Battery powered video doorbells are completely wireless, battery powered doorbells designed to capture video footage of people at your front door.
Battery powered video doorbells give you the flexibility to install a smart video doorbell even when you don't have any existing wiring for a smart doorbell. This can be a huge savings if you don't want to pay for an electrician to install new wiring for a doorbell which can sometimes be costly and require opening walls to run new wiring.
Why You Should Get A Battery Powered Video Doorbell
If you don't have any existing wiring for a hardwired video doorbell a battery powered video doorbell is a great way to protect your home. Studies show that criminals are more likely to avoid homes with video doorbells and crimes committed on camera are more likely to be solved.
It's also a great way to keep track of when your kids get home or when your dog last went for a walk. I even caught a delivery driver backing over my fence on my video doorbell.
Below we've included our list of best battery powered wireless video doorbells.
Most battery powered doorbells also work with Alexa devices with screens like the Echo Show 5 so you can view the live stream of your video doorbell on your Echo Show. They will also work with TV’s with Fire TV Stick installed or the Fire TV cube so you can pull up the live stream of who’s at your front door on your TV.
#1 Ring Door View Cam
I did a full review of the Ring Door View Cam when it was originally unveiled at CES and I still think that it's one of the best battery powered video doorbells on the market today. The Ring Door View Cam is designed around being installed in an existing peephole. The smart doorbell portion of the device is mounted on the front side of the door and the battery pack is mounted on the rear side of the door.
Related Post: Ring Door View Cam Review
The Ring Door View Cam has a built in motion sensor, records in 1080 HD video footage and allows you to remotely view the footage on the Ring App on your phone. I like that you can look at the footage on the Ring App on your phone inside your home or remotely while your at work on vacation.
The Ring Door View Cam has a button on it in the center that works like a doorbell and can be connected to a remote Ring Chime to ding like a doorbell. You can also connect the Ring Skill to Alexa and use your Amazon Echo devices to ring like doorbell. I highly recommend getting a remote Ring Chime to function like a standard door doorbell chime with your Ring Door View Cam. You can plug the Ring Chime in to any standard outlet. The Ring Chime can also be used to alert you to motion and has a setting that allows you to silence the chime if you have a napping baby or pet that doesn’t like the doorbell.
Related Post: Remote Ring Chime Review
Even if you don't have an existing peephole on your door you can install a Ring Door View Cam on your door. All you need to do is drill a small hole in your door the same size as a peep hole with a 1/2" drill bit and you can install the Ring Door View Cam.
Once installed the Ring Door View Cam still maintains a small viewing peephole viewing port that still lets you look through the peephole manually if you want.
The Ring Door View Cam batteries are rechargeable and designed to last up to 6 months depending on your settings and usage. We recommend getting a spare rechargeable battery so you don't ever have any down time.
I rank this as the top video powered doorbell because it's easy to install and the batteries tend to last longer because they are located inside and not exposed to harsh temperature fluctuations which can degrade batteries.
Another neat feature of the Ring Door View Cam is that you can stream live video to your Echo Show or Echo Show 5. All you need to do is say "Alexa, show me my front door" and your Echo Show will display the live video stream from your battery powered video doorbell.
#2 Ring Doorbell 2
The Ring Doorbell 2 is one of the most popular smart doorbells on the market and I would guess you've probably seen them in your neighborhood.
The Ring Doorbell 2 is unique in that it is battery powered, but also gives you the option to hardwire it if you choose. It provides the flexibility for a battery powered doorbell installation and allows you to upgrade to hardwiring in the future if you choose to do so.
The Ring Video Doorbell 2 provides 1080HD video, a built in motion sensor and allows you to remotely view the footage on your phone.
It runs on the same app as the Ring Door View Cam and had most of the same features. The biggest difference is that the Ring Door View Cam is designed to be installed on the exterior of your home and can be surface mounted. This makes the Ring 2 Doorbell easy to install and can be placed just like a normal doorbell next to your door.
If you use the Ring 2 video doorbell in battery powered mode the batteries can last up to 6 months before requiring a charge depending on your usage. I recommend getting at extra battery so you can quickly swap out the batteries and you don't ever need to worry about missing any footage.
The Ring 2 Video Doorbell is also compatible with the remote Ring Doorbell Chime which will alert you when the doorbell button is pressed. The Ring 2 Video Doorbell also allows you to stream live footage on your Echo Show device.
Ring Doorbell
The Ring Doorbell was the original smart doorbell and it typically comes in at a lower price than the other battery powered Ring Doorbells. This is because it has a lower resolution, fewer features and does not have the dual power source option like the Ring 2 Video doorbell.
The Ring Doorbell will get the job done, but if you can afford it I would recommend getting the Ring Door View Cam or Ring 2 because they have much better video resolution.
Arlo Camera & Wireless Doorbell System
I love Arlo they are great battery powered wireless cameras and provide a great way to monitor your home. What I like most about Arlo cameras is their ingenious magnetic mounting system that allows you to set the cameras in the perfect position.
Since Arlo already makes cameras they came up with a wireless doorbell that works with their cameras. The wireless doorbell is battery powered and wireless and designed to be paired with a wireless battery powered Arlo remote camera. When you press the doorbell button it automatically pulls up the live video feed from the paired Arlo camera on your phone as a notification.
The wireless doorbell also comes works with a remote Alro chime to alert you when the button is pushed. The Arlo system works with both Alexa and Google Home and can display the live video stream on your Echo Show with a screen.
You can get the the entire Arlo battery powered doorbell system including the camera, doorbell and chime as part of a kit that includes everything you need.
Best Battery Powered Doorbell: Summary
If you don't have any existing wiring for a smart doorbell a battery powered wifi video doorbell is a great way to protect your home. I love having a video doorbell on my home and it gives me piece of mind that my home is protected even when I'm on vacation or at work.
It's also a great way to know when your amazon packages arrive and prevent packages from being stolen which can save you money. Some insurance carriers even give you discounts when you tell them you have a video doorbell.
In my mind even if it prevents one theft it's worth the cost of the doorbell and the added security it provides.
Related Smart Home Blog Posts
Doorbell Wiring Troubleshooting