Arlo essential wired video doorbell: Video Doorbell | Arlo Home Security

Video Doorbell | Arlo Home Security

1. Home

2. Doorbells

3. Essential

Wired Video Doorbell

Item No. AVD1001-100NAS

$129.99
$79.99

Optimized for your front door, the Wired Video Doorbell can see a person from head to toe or a package on the ground. Get notifications when motion is detected and view live video on your phone.
Wiring required.
See the Wireless Doorbell.

• HD video with HDR
• Wide 180° viewing angle
• Connects directly to Wi-Fi
• Arlo Secure trial included

Select Color

Select Quantity

1

Find A Retailer

This product has been added to your cart.

Essential

Wired Video Doorbell

Ships on

Your Cart
item(s)

Subtotal

View Cart

Continue Shopping

Tech Specs / What’s in the Box / Warranty

Compare All Doorbells

Rest easy with reliable security at your front door.

Stay connected to your home from anywhere with live video and audio.

Receive instant alerts on your phone when motion is detected by the Wired Video Doorbell.

See more at your front door with a wider field of view.

Connects to existing doorbell wiring for continuous power.

¹

Works with Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant.

With an Arlo Secure plan, react faster and take immediate action.

With an Arlo Secure plan, react faster and take immediate action.

Learn more about Arlo Secure

Feel more secure seeing the complete picture.

With a front door-optimized 180° viewing angle and HDR video quality, you’ll be able to see a person clearly from head to toe, or spot a package on the ground.

See who’s there, even at night.

Night vision helps you get a clear picture of who’s at your door when it’s dark.

Easy to connect – Wired Installation.

Step 1

Turn off power at the breaker and install the included power kit to your doorbell’s existing chime.

Step 2

Next, disconnect your existing doorbell and connect the doorbell wires from the wall to the back of your Arlo Video doorbell.

Step 3

Turn the power back on at your breaker, and follow the prompts on your Arlo Secure App to complete setup.

Reliable security, no matter the weather.

Certified to withstand heat, cold, rain, or sun.

See, speak, and hear from visitors.

Receive a video call when your doorbell is pressed so you never miss a visitor. And if you’re unable to answer the door, guests can leave a voice message, so you can listen remotely at your convenience.

Quickly deter unwanted guests.

Trigger the built-in siren automatically, or manually from the Arlo Secure App.

Works seamlessly with your smart home.

Receive alerts from the doorbell and manage your home security using your favorite smart devices.

Why people love Video Doorbell Wired.

Kenzi

We could NOT have made a BETTER decision … Life and security made easy! Thanks, Arlo!

Robertodos

The doorbell looks great at my front door and it works like a charm.

The wired Arlo video doorbell turned out to be a great purchase.

Jorgito

…The quick notification is amazing, love how it can tell from a person to an animal and it doesn’t send me notifications every second…

Kayla & Brandon

This door bell does everything perfectly! I get a full picture … I can actually see everything, and answer the door is 100% faster!

David

The video is clearer, wider, few false motion alerts … doesn’t drop network connection, and will call when someone rings the doorbell…

Arlo Essential Wired Video Doorbell Details

Max Video Resolution

1536×1536

Video Modes

1536×1536, 1080×1080, 720×720, 1:1 ratio

All Video Features

HDR, SIP video call at doorbell push

Max Lends Field of View

180-degree diagonal

Spotlight

No

Motion Detection

Single Motion Sensor, 110 degree horizontal

Night Vision

Night Vision, high powered Infrared LEDs (850nm) with IR Cut Filter

Indoor/Outdoor

Outdoor UV & Weather Resistant

Digital Zoom

12x

Microphone

Single Microphone Array

Audio

Full Duplex 2-way audio, SIP audio/video call initiated at doorbell press, quick reply messages

Operating Temperature

-20 to 45 degree Celsius

Installation Requirements

Wired doorbell and chime with existing electrical wiring, Voltage between 16V AC and 24V AC, and a 10VA transformer, High-Speed Internet Connection

Arlo Essential Video Doorbell Wired (1)

Power Kit (1)

Wire Extension (1)

Flat Mounting Plate (1)

Angled Mounting Plate (1)

Wall Mount Screw Kit (1)

Security Latch Release Pin (1)

Quick Start Guide (1)

Free shipping on orders over $35 and free returns in the US (excluding Alaska or Hawaii).

Customers have 30 days from date of shipment to receive a refund at full purchase price. Read more on our Terms of Salepage.

View our Limited One-Year Hardware Warranty.

Frequently Asked Questions

This doorbell is designed to capture the blind spots that other video doorbells miss. The 1:1 aspect ratio means that you can see a package on the ground and a visitor from head to toe. The doorbell also offers features such as high-definition video quality, a 180° viewing angle, and full-duplex two-way audio.

To install an Arlo Essential Wired Video Doorbell, you must have an existing wired doorbell and chime with electrical wiring to a chime box. The voltage of the doorbell transformer must be between 16-24V AC. Your Internet connectivity and mobile device must also meet the minimum requirements to use an Arlo system. For more information, visit What are the minimum requirements for installing and using my Arlo system?.

This doorbell requires a connection to a wired mechanical or digital chime to enable continuous power, reduce latency, and capture and transmit videos in real time. In this case, we recommend the Arlo Essential Wireless Video Doorbell for an easier install.

No. An Arlo SmartHub or base station is optional to use this doorbell.

* Savings vary by product, while supplies last.
¹Video Doorbell Wired requires a voltage between 16-24V AC to work.
²Renewal of an Arlo Secure subscription is required to maintain Arlo Secure features after the included trial. These features include cloud storage, object detection, activity zones and video history.
³Emergency Response feature available for U.S. subscribers only.

Arlo Video Doorbell Review 2022: How Does It Stack Up?

Arlo Video Doorbell Review 2022: How Does It Stack Up? | Reviews.org
skip to main content

Search for:

By

Mindy Woodall

Contributing Writer, Home Security & Smart Home

August 24, 2022

6 min read

We may earn money when you click our links.

The Arlo Essentials Video Doorbell is among the latest and greatest video doorbells to hit the market. Arlo offers two doorbell models, a wired and wireless option. Arlo also makes a bunch of other cameras we already love, like the Arlo Ultra 2 and the Arlo Pro 4, so we hoped the doorbell would be a good addition to the system.

And it is! Both of the video doorbell models have some sweet selling points, like an option to go wired or wireless, a 1:1 aspect ratio that lets you see more of your porch, and AI features like package detection. Sign us up.

Arlo Video Doorbell price and details

Amazon.com List Prices (as of 08/24/22 11:13 PST) Full disclaimer
* Local storage requires an Arlo SmartHub base station.

Arlo Video Doorbell features

We love a whole bunch of the Arlo Video Doorbell’s innovative features.

The Wired and Wireless Arlo Video Doorbells are quite a bit cheaper than some other doorbells on the market and they are a good value for the features it offers. Both doorbells offer the same features, the only difference is the power source and price point.

The Arlo Doorbell gives you high-definition video resolution (1080p), two-way audio, night vision, etc. You’ll get a notification when anyone steps on your porch, be it a package thief or friendly visitor.

Play Video

Along with all the standard doorbell cam goodies, the Arlo Wired Video Doorbell and the Arlo Wireless Video Doorbell give you some unique benefits we really like.

Arlo Wired Video Doorbell features: 

• 1080p resolution with HDR
• Two-way audio
• Night vision
• Hardwired power
• 180º field of view
• 12x digital zoom
• Cloud storage
• Person detection
• Package detection
• Vehicle detection
• Emergency calling
• Built-in siren
• Pre-recorded messages option
• Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant integration
• Motion range adjustable up to 16.4ft

Arlo Wireless Video Doorbell features:

• 1080p resolution with HDR
• Two-way audio
• Night vision
• Wireless power
• 180º field of view
• 12x digital zoom
• Cloud storage
• Person detection
• Package detection
• Vehicle detection
• Emergency calling
• Built-in siren
• Pre-recorded messages option
• Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant integration
• Motion range adjustable up to 9. 8ft

The Arlo Wired Video Doorbell and the Arlo Wireless Video Doorbell come with the same features. The only difference between the two is the power source, price, and the motion range. 

1:1 aspect ratio

First of all, the Arlo Video Doorbells have a 1:1 aspect ratio. You’ll notice that the image you get from your Arlo Video Doorbell is a square shape.

That’s because Arlo makes the image just as tall as it is wide. (Most doorbell cameras are much wider than they are tall, which means you can’t see objects on your porch, like packages.)

When we tested it, we found that the Arlo Video Doorbell still lets you see all the way down to the surface of your porch, even with close-up shots.

Phone call notifications

Most video doorbells send you a push notification when they detect motion or a person on your porch. But what if you’re busy and you miss the opportunity to tell the FedEx guy to hide your new Playstation 5 behind that potted plant?

The Arlo Video Doorbell solves this by calling your phone when someone rings your doorbell. That way, you don’t notice a notification 10 minutes later.

There’s a downside to this feature, though: you can’t turn it off. And it can get annoying if you don’t want a phone call every time some neighbor kids think it’s time to play Ding-Dong Ditch.

Smart alerts

If you subscribe to an Arlo Secure plan, then you can get more than basic “motion detected” alerts. The Arlo Video Doorbell can tell you what it sees, as long as what it sees is a person, vehicle, animal, or package.

It’s so much easier to sort through the notifications on your phone if they have more detail than just “motion.” Arlo’s smart notifications let you see when there’s an alert you actually want to pay attention to, like a person coming to visit, rather than just your neighbor’s cat hanging out on your porch again.

Emergency calling

Another cool feature Arlo offers is emergency calling right from the Arlo app. If you open a notification from your doorbell camera and see someone breaking into your house or doing some other nefarious thing, you can call the police right away.

That’s not just convenient; it’s also a safety feature. Normally, when you call 9-1-1, your phone calls the nearest 9-1-1 dispatcher to your current location. But if someone’s at your house, then you want the nearest one to your address, even if you’re not physically there.

The Arlo emergency calling feature calls the 9-1-1 dispatcher closest to your house no matter where you are. You could be sitting at a cafe in Estonia and still call the right station.

Does the video doorbell work with the Arlo Base Station?

Yes, the Arlo Video Doorbell does connect to the base station if you have a camera system. It connects directly to the cloud and in addition to local storage. You can read more about that on Arlo’s website here.

Arlo Essential Wired and Wireless Video Doorbell pricing

The Arlo Video Doorbell is a good value for what you get.

Source: Arlo

At $149.99, the Arlo Wired Video Doorbell is a pretty good value for what you get. It’s quite a bit cheaper than some other smart doorbells on the market, like the Google Nest Hello and the Ring Video Doorbell 3

The Arlo Wireless Video Doorbell is slightly more expensive at $199.99. You’ll pay a higher price for the wireless option, which is usually always the case. So you’ll have to decide if that is worth it to you.

If price is your main concern for a doorbell camera, then you can find cheaper models than the Arlo. The Amcrest Video Doorbell, RemoBell S, Scout Video Doorbell, and Toucan Video Doorbell are all cheaper than the Arlo Video Doorbell. But you’ll miss out on most of the Arlo’s best features.

Arlo Video Doorbell home automation

The Arlo Video Doorbell works with Google and Alexa.

The Arlo Video Doorbell works with Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa. Apple HomeKit users are out of luck—at least for now. Most of Arlo’s other cameras do work with HomeKit, so we hope an integration for the doorbell camera is around the corner.

Source: Arlo

 Arlo Video Doorbell installation

The Arlo Wired Video Doorbell hardwires into your existing doorbell connection. The wire-free option is battery operated.

The Arlo Wired Video Doorbell hardwires into your existing doorbell, which means installation involves some light electrical work. Just don’t forget to turn off the breaker that connects to your doorbell wiring, and you’ll be fine.

Arlo Essential Wired Video Doorbell installation steps:

1. Download the Arlo mobile app.
2. Create an account (or select the option to Add New Device).
3. Install the doorbell power kit in your chime box.
4. Turn off the breaker that powers your doorbell. (Very important.)
5. Take out your existing doorbell.
6. Secure the mounting plate.
7. Connect the wires on the Arlo Video Doorbell to your existing doorbell wiring.
8. Turn the power back on.
9. Connect the doorbell to your Wi-Fi network through the app.

For more information on how to install your Wired Arlo Video Doorbell, follow the instructions in the app or check out the Arlo Essential Wired Video Doorbell user manual.

Arlo Essential Wireless Video Doorbell installation steps: 

1. Charge the battery that comes in the box. 
2. Connect your mobile device to Wi-Fi.
3. Insert the battery into the device
4. Scan the QR code in the Arlo App.
5. Find a place to install your doorbell and mount it.

That’s it! The Arlo Essential Wireless Video Doorbell is $50 more, but you’re paying for an even easier setup. 

Recap: Is the Arlo Essential Wired and Wireless Video Doorbell good?

The Arlo Video Doorbells are one of the best doorbell cams for your buck.

If there was an Avengers-style squad for the best doorbell cameras, the Arlo Essentials Wired and Wireless Video Doorbells would definitely make the cut. It would probably be the Captain America of the group. Or maybe Black Widow. The point is, that the Arlo Video Doorbells are a great, affordable video doorbell option with smart features and high resolution.

Features: The Arlo Video Wired and Wireless Doorbell has a bunch of cool features worth bragging about, including a 1:1 aspect ratio, smart alerts, emergency calling, and a built-in siren. This camera has top-notch functionality.

Pricing: For what it can do, the Arlo Wired Video Doorbell is quite affordable. (Especially when you compare the price to the Google Nest Hello.) But it’s not the cheapest doorbell cam on the market. The Arlo Wireless Video Doorbell is even more expensive. If you are really on a budget, you can find a cheaper option out there. 

Home automation: The Arlo Video Doorbell works with Alexa and Google. We’re waiting on an Apple HomeKit integration.

Installation: Installation is pretty easy for both models. To connect your Arlo Wired Video Doorbell, you will have to remove your existing doorbell and connect to the wiring. If you’re willing to pay more for the Arlo Wireless Doorbell Camera, the installation is even easier and doesn’t require hardwiring.

All-in-all, we’re pretty impressed with Arlo’s contribution to the doorbell camera market. And if you already use other Arlo cameras around your property, then the Arlo Wired and Wireless Video Doorbells will fit right in with your other devices.

Certain content that appears on this site comes from Amazon.com. This content is provided “as is” and is subject to change or removal at any time. Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon.com at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product. Reviews.org utilizes paid Amazon links.

Written by

Mindy Woodall

Mindy has been writing about technology for seven years. She covers all things smart home for Reviews.org, and keeps track of the latest robot gadgets. Mindy attended the University of Utah and her work has been featured on the likes of Parents.com, Digital Care, Hostfully, and more.

Read More

Related Articles

07/26/2023

Is UFC 291 the Card of the Year?

Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje meet for the second time, and Alex Pereira moves up…

About Us

Contact Us

Press

Awards

Our Methodology

Services

Phone Plans

TV Service

Internet Service

Home Security

VPN

Feature Comparisons

Best Home Security Systems

Best Internet Service Providers

Best TV Service Providers

Best Cell Phone Plans

Feature Reviews

Viasat Review

Spectrum Internet Review 2021

Xfinity Internet Review

DIRECTV Review

Vivint Smart Home Security Review

​Don’t miss an update

Stay updated on the latest products and services anytime, anywhere.

Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Site Map |

Back To Top

Arlo Essential

Wireless Video Intercom Review

When we reviewed the Arlo Video doorbell last year, it was praised for its crisp HDR video, ease of installation, and Alexa compatibility. The company’s latest offering, the Arlo Essential Wireless Doorbell ($199.99), offers the same excellent video quality and works with even more smart home devices. And, as the name suggests, it’s now battery operated, making it a great alternative to the Ring Video Doorbell 3 Plus for $229$.99 if you need a wireless video intercom. However, if you can use a wired camera, the Ezviz DB1C is half the price and offers a few extra features, earning it an Editors’ Choice award.

The Essential Video Doorbell Wireless Video Doorbell is similar to the original Arlo video doorbell, but at 5.6″ x 1.8″ x 1.3″ (HWD) it is larger than this model (5.0″ x 1.7″ x 1.0″) ), and taller than the Ring Video Doorbell 3. Plus (5.1 by 2. 4 by 1.1 inches). The extra volume is needed to house the rechargeable lithium-ion battery pack that powers the device and makes installation easy as there are no wires to deal with.

The doorbell has a glossy black finish and has a white side cap and matt black mounting base (also available with black side cap). The bottom half has a circular doorbell button surrounded by an LED status ring, while the top half houses the camera, ambient light sensor, and microphone. On the bottom edge is a small speaker.

Kit includes doorbell and base, battery, corner mounting plate, retainer, battery charging cable and various mounting and mounting hardware. The battery lasts for six months on a single charge and is easy to install: simply insert the locking pin (included) into the hole on the top of the base and remove the doorbell from the base. There are two wiring terminals on the inside of the base that you can use if you prefer a wired power solution, but make sure you have a 10VA transformer that outputs 8-24VAC, a standard requirement for most traditional doorbells.

The camera shoots video at a resolution of 1536 by 1536 pixels and has a 1:1 aspect ratio, allowing you to see everyone at your door from head to toe. It also offers HDR (High Dynamic Range) technology, which helps produce brighter whites, darker blacks, and more vibrant colors. The camera has a 180-degree field of view, 12x digital zoom, a motion sensor with a 110-degree field of view, and an infrared LED for black and white night vision.

Like other recent Arlo devices such as the Arlo Pro 4 Spotlight Camera, the Essential Doorbell features a 2.4GHz Wi-Fi radio and does not require a hub, although you can add it to your existing Arlo Smart Hub system. It also contains a built-in siren that can be activated from the mobile app.

When we reviewed the first Arlo doorbell, it lacked support for IFTTT applets and Google Assistant voice commands, but the Essential model supports both, plus Amazon Alexa voice commands. It also integrates with Samsung’s SmartThings home automation platform.

The doorbell records video and saves it to the cloud when motion is detected or when the doorbell button is pressed, but there are no local storage options like the Ezviz DB1C and it does not have Ring’s ability to capture four seconds of Pre-Roll video before the event will happen. To access the video, you must subscribe to the Arlo Smart plan unless you have a Smart Hub with a connected USB drive. Plan for 2.9$9 a month gets you 30 days of video history and 2K recording for a single camera. You also get access to several additional features such as advanced object and package detection, cloud activity zones, smart alerts, and the e911 call, which calls the emergency dispatchers closest to the address listed in the Arlo app, so you can reach the right staff emergency services regardless of your current location. For $9.99 a month, you get the same features for up to five cameras.

The Essential doorbell is controlled using the same convenient mobile app (for Android and iOS) that is used on all other Arlo cameras. The Devices screen contains panels for each installed Arlo camera, and each panel has a still image with a play arrow. To view the live feed from the doorbell, tap the play arrow. There are mute, snapshot, manual recording, and two-way audio buttons at the bottom of the video screen, and two arrows in the upper right corner that allow you to view the video in full screen.

To access the doorbell settings screen, touch the gear icon in the lower right corner of the doorbell panel. Here you can adjust the Wi-Fi settings, turn on the flicker control if necessary, set the doorbell to silent mode and select an alarm. The video settings allow you to adjust the brightness, turn on HDR and night vision, and adjust the video quality. The activity area settings let you define a specific area that will trigger motion alerts, and the call settings let you mute the speaker and microphone and enable the Leave a Message feature, which instructs the visitor to leave a message if you don’t receive the doorbell. call in 20 seconds.

As with all Arlo cameras, you can set the doorbell to Home or Away mode, which turns motion detection on and off. You can also create a motion detection schedule or change device modes based on your location (geo-fence). To activate the siren, initiate an e911 call, or call someone on your friends list, press the red shield button at the top of the screen.

Clear, bright video

The

Essentials Doorbell is easy to install, especially if you choose to take advantage of its wireless capabilities. To begin with, I charged the battery for a couple of hours until the LED indicator changed from red to green. If you don’t have an Arlo account yet, now is a good time to download the mobile app and create one. In the app, I clicked “Add New Device” on the home screen, selected “Essential Doorbell-Wire-Free” from the list (there’s a separate choice if you’re going for a wired install), and clicked “Continue” after scrolling through the welcome screens.

Following the on-screen instructions to connect the doorbell to my network, I selected my network SSID, entered my Wi-Fi password, and removed the doorbell’s mounting plate to install the battery. I clicked “Continue” and hit the doorbell button to start the sync process. At this point, the LED ring began flashing white, indicating that the doorbell is ready to be set. I pressed continue again and held the phone with the QR code close to the doorbell camera until I heard the chime. I clicked “Continue” and waited a few seconds for the doorbell to be added to my network, then I gave it a name and after a few seconds it was added to my network and my Alexa device list.

Physically installing the doorbell is just as easy, with detailed on-screen guidance to help you determine the correct height and angle for optimal visibility. I used the mounting plate as a template to drill two holes into the door frame and used the included screws to attach the plate to the frame. I inserted the doorbell into the plate and the installation was complete.

The Essential Video doorbell performed well in testing. Daytime video was bright with outstanding image detail and rich colors, while night vision black and white video was very clear and showed excellent contrast.

Motion alerts were fast and the advanced object detection did a great job of detecting the movement of people, animals and vehicles. The packet detection feature also worked well, and the doorbell responded instantly to Alexa voice commands to display video on the Amazon Echo Show device.

Best Wireless Doorbell

The Arlo Essential Wireless Video Intercom is a great choice for homeowners who don’t have or don’t want to deal with low voltage doorbell wiring and transformers. It’s easy to install and delivers crisp, high-resolution video, works with many third-party smart devices via IFTTT applets, and supports Alexa, Google Assistant, and SmartThings. However, you’ll need to subscribe to the Arlo Smart plan to take advantage of some of its advanced features, and it doesn’t offer pre-roll video capture like the Ring Video Doorbell 3 Plus.

Meanwhile, if doorbell wiring is no problem, we recommend the Ezviz DB1C. It’s half the price of the Essential doorbell and offers a few extra features, including dual-band Wi-Fi and local video storage. Plus, you don’t need a subscription to access advanced features like smart motion alerts and custom motion zones.

Arlo Essential Wireless Video Intercom

Pros

• HDR HDR video

• No hub required

• Wired or wireless

• Supports Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant

• Works with many third party devices

View more

The Arlo Essential Wireless Video Intercom is easy to install and offers crisp HDR video, voice control and third-party smart device compatibility.

good doorbell at a great price

Update 2021: HomeKit is now on board

Arlo security cameras are being tested

In our years of testing video doorbells, one thing remains true – a wired connection is the best choice. While battery powered doorbell cameras have their place, if you can plug them in, you’ll be happier. Enter the Arlo video doorbell.

Arlo, the leader in truly wireless home security cameras, previously offered the sound-only Arlo doorbell to match with the Arlo outdoor camera. This solution was unwieldy and unnecessarily complex, so we were excited to see what Arlo could do with a proper built-in doorbell camera.

On paper, the new Arlo video intercom looks perfect. With an impressive 1536 x 1536 resolution, a 180 degree diagonal field of view and a unique 1:1 square aspect ratio, the camera in this doorbell has been specifically designed to capture what’s happening at your front door.

Arlo newbie: Arlo Pro 4 Spotlight camera review

HDR, infrared night vision and 12x digital zoom complete this, and full duplex two-way audio allows you to hear and talk to your visitor.

Unlike most other Arlo cameras, it does not require an Arlo hub to operate, so you don’t need to be part of that expensive home security system to use this inexpensive video intercom (listed in 179pounds, but can be found for as low as £120).

All you need is doorbell wires – 16 to 24VAC – to connect to a damn good setup that includes advanced motion detection, built-in siren and voicemail, plus live streaming and cloud storage for just 3 dollar per month.

We’ve been living with the Arlo Video Doorbell for two weeks now, read our full review.

Arlo took a page or two from the Google Nest book with this sleek, black and white oblong doorbell that looks a lot like the excellent Nest Video Battery doorbell.

• OUR VERDICT: Arlo Essential

Wireless Video Intercom Review

It’s slightly larger than the Hello, but narrow enough to fit on almost any door frame, and has a nice, elegant look that doesn’t scream about a security camera, but makes itself known.

Arlo video intercom comes with flat and angled mounting plate, Chime power kit, screws, wire extensions and security latch release pin.

The installation is almost identical to the Nest Hello installation, only slightly more complicated. There’s not a lot of room to connect wires, and the smaller the doorbell, the more difficult it is to squeeze them all in behind it, making “snapping” the device into place quite a chore. After four or five reconfigurations we were able to make it and the smaller profile is worth a little more effort.

Need more help? Read this: Smart home wiring 101

Most wired doorbells require some sort of bell power kit – an adapter that you plug into the doorbell chime to regulate the power delivered to the doorbell. Installation is simple but requires a ladder to get to your bell. It took us about 30 minutes to install, everything we needed was right in the box, except for two Philips screwdrivers of different sizes and a drill.

The little security pin you put in when you need to pull the doorbell out replaces the need for the security screw you’ll find on Ring doorbells – something we prefer, as if you had lost the special screwdriver that comes with Ring, you screwed up a little.

Budget option: Ring Wired video intercom review

Almost any pin will work with Arlo. However, this makes it less secure.

Arlo has gone all out in the features department by incorporating the advanced AI and machine learning features that make its wireless security cameras so good right into this miniature doorbell. These advanced features, from people detection to package recognition, are on par with $100+ video doorbells, but Arlo doesn’t sacrifice quality.

Our money is on this as on a loss-making leader company. Unlike all Arlo security cameras, the doorbell doesn’t require a hub, and since video calls are arguably the new medicine for smart home entry, we think the company is betting on this device, luring you into its larger, more expensive ecosystem. security.

Budget competitor: Eufycam 2 review

And it can do it, although it works great even if you don’t have any other Arlo devices. The Arlo video intercom is very smart. It distinguishes between people, vehicles, animals, and “other traffic” by sending smart alerts with the reason for the movement, and sending them only for events you want to know about.

You can disable any of the four categories in the settings and the camera still records them for viewing in the library, they just don’t bother you.

Alerts are sent to your phone as a rich notification, including a snapshot of the activity and its type (animal/human/vehicle). You can then press and hold (on iPhone) to zoom in on that photo—with people, animals, or vehicles highlighted—and access a couple of features unique to Arlo: turn on the built-in siren, call 911, or call emergency services. friend if you have configured these features in the app. Or just tap the notification to go directly to the live view.

Budget option: Arlo Essential security camera review

Packet detection and customizable motion zones also help identify reasons why you might need to pull out your phone to see what’s going on at the front door. Though notifications don’t currently tell you which traffic zone the action is in.

Another feature unique to Arlo is the ability for visitors to leave you a voicemail message on your camera. It’s a good idea, but the implementation is clumsy – just a voice prompt that says “To leave a message, press the doorbell button again” if you don’t answer within 20 seconds. It is not clear to the visitor whether his message was recorded or not, as there is no further clue.

You get a notification that you have a message, but clicking on it takes you to the live view, not the message, and then you need to go to your library where it shows up as “missed” ring without indicating that there is a message. In general, it is very easy to miss.

Updated: review Eufy Video Doorbell 2K

Continuing the “doorbell as a phone for your front door” theme, another Arlo signature feature is direct video call to mobile (known as SIP). This means that every time someone presses the doorbell, you get a phone call on your phone, which you answer like a normal call, only without the caller ID (for obvious reasons).

When you “reply” the visitor doesn’t know it until you press the speaker button on the app to talk to them, so you can still safely “view” your visitors and even send a pre-recorded message (e.g. “We We’ll come now” or “Not interested”). While this seems like a good idea, in the end it’s just an extra step towards live viewing.

Arlo is configurable as a security camera in the app, which means you can arm and disarm it (turn it on or off) on a schedule, manually in the app, or with geofencing – useful if you really don’t want to video about how you come and go from home are uploaded to the cloud every day.

There’s a catch: most of these features require the Arlo Smart plan, which costs $3/month and includes 30 days of cloud storage ($10/month if you have multiple Arlo cameras). Without a subscription, as with most cloud cameras, you only get motion alerts, live view and direct video call to your mobile device, and pre-recorded messages.

However, unlike some of the cloud options, there are no recorded pictures or clips here at all, so you really need a plan to get this doorbell to do anything. You have 3 free months to see if it’s worth it.

Buyer’s Guide: The Best Smart Doorbells Affordable

Unfortunately, there is no local storage or Continuous Video Recording (CVR), which is disappointing as other Arlo wired cameras have 24/7 recording capability (at an additional cost). Nest offers this, and Ring tried to do it with their new snapshot feature, but with Arlo, you can only view recorded video if it was caused by motion.

There is support for connecting to the Arlo SmartHub, which can store your recordings locally, but you lose the smart alert functionality. There is also compatibility with Arlo Chime, if you don’t have a mechanical bell and want to hear “ding dong” in your house when someone presses the doorbell, it will cost you 49pounds.

You can connect your doorbell to your Alexa speaker to let it know when your doorbell rings, and watch live and recorded video through Alexa and Google smart speakers with screen support.

As you would expect from one of the best wireless security camera companies, the Arlo Video Doorbell delivers great video quality. Clear and crisp HD video with excellent brightness and good color reproduction thanks to built-in HDR technology. Arlo captures all the detail you need up close, and the 12x digital zoom lets you be in the action from afar.

Ding-dong: Ezviz DB2 review

The square video showed much more of our porch than the Ring 3 Plus doorbell we also installed, but it still doesn’t hit about a foot from the floor, and as a result the missing Peripheral vision was disappointing in our setup, but might not be a problem if you have a narrow doorway.

Responsiveness was excellent, Arlo is owned by Netgear, which knows a thing or two about Wi-Fi optimization, resulting in less than 5 seconds from notification to live view. That’s nearly twice as fast as any other wired or battery powered doorbell we’ve tested. But the motion sensor in the camera slows down. The motion notification took a few seconds longer to send than the Ring 3, meaning we still didn’t see anything or the back of anyone’s head in real time.

Arlo Smart Security Advanced Features: Arlo 4 Spotlight Camera Review / Arlo Ultra 2 Review

However, with built-in 3-second buffering, recorded videos do capture most of the motion you would like to see, so this is basically a problem if you want to talk to your UPS driver for some reason, because usually the visitor will linger for those few seconds to see if you are at home.

As discussed above, the video call feature takes some getting used to, especially if you’re like us and have a real distaste for answering phone calls from people you don’t know. You also can’t turn it off without turning off all notifications. And the voicemail feature needs some work to be properly useful.

Infrared night vision was very good – and even though we got glare from our brick wall right in front of the camera, we could still see the entire street, which is much better than most other doorbells we’ve had. tested.

Our biggest complaint is about sound quality. The pre-recorded voice on the doorbell is static and incoherent, and we noticed a lot of interference when trying to talk to someone through the doorbell itself. When talking on the phone, there was a significant delay, 2-3 seconds, between saying something and being heard by the visitor, which makes any type of conversation on the device difficult.

Ironically, whenever any sound was involved, the video quality also suffered, and the playback of several motion events with sound had significant distortion at first.

Finally, we’re not big fans of the button. There is a delay of a couple of seconds between pressing it and the visitor hearing any noise, and although it lights up with a thin ring of LEDs, chances are people will press it multiple times because they think it doesn’t work. .

Overall, we enjoyed using the Arlo video doorbell, its video quality is excellent, it looks good on our door and we liked how quickly we were able to “open” the door. Compared to the endless buffering we’ve experienced with just about every other doorbell we’ve tested, the Arlo really excels in this area, and we think it’s the most important feature to get right.

During CES 2021, Arlo announced that the video intercom is now compatible with Apple HomeKit.

When synced to your Apple Home, the video doorbell will appear in the Home app and you can use its sensors to trigger HomeKit scenes or automation, such as turning on outdoor lights when motion is detected.

As with the Logitech Circle View doorbell, you can also stream Arlo to your Apple TV and the doorbell will ring any HomePod or HomePod Mini speakers you have when pressed.

Arlo is late to the video intercom game but has some powerful features, including great rich notifications that save you time, a really good price and a fast live view. Like all video doorbells, there are some latency issues and the audio needs a bit of work, but this is a great doorbell camera that won’t break the bank and is worth considering even if you haven’t bought into the Arlo ecosystem.