Video Doorbell 2K (Wired)

This is one of those products that deserves a comprehensive review so buckle up.Short version: This is a phenomenal doorbell and security camera. The camera quality is excellent, audio is crisp, setup is easier than you'd think, and you'll be using a product by a company that actually tries to respect your privacy.Long version:Like many people I have been very concerned with the position Ring has taken on user privacy. Recent media reports say that that they are freely sharing footage with law enforcement and are even working on being able to identify people on a "watchlist with their cameras. This combined with the constant recharging, monthly storage charges, and poor video quality of my Ring left me looking for an alternative.Eufy's device is different than Rings. It appears that Eufy has designed the doorbell to store the footage locally on the device in an encrypted manor. This theoretically means that you, and only you, will have access to your footage. It also means that there are no monthly service charges. Yay!Installation: I'll admit I was initially worried about the installation. My home was built in the 70s and the doorbell system is from that time period as well. Thankfully, the installation was incredibly simple. The included instructions were clear and required simple steps like removing screws, plugging in wires, and tightning screws. I was up and running in 30 minutes with a new sleek doorbell mounted on the included angle mount that gave me a better view than the Ring device I was using.App: The app is well designed and walks you through most issues you'll encounter. If the wiring scares you - it shouldn't. There are very simple diagrams and anyone with a sliver of DIY ability will have no issues. The app responds instantly and I haven't had a single issue with it. Settings are clearly laid out and everything is accessible.Video/Audio: The video quality on the camera is superb and the audio is really impressive. The device holds a good wifi signal and there is almost no delay in footage. Additionally, when someone triggers a motion alert the doorbell crops out their face and it appears in the notification on my iPhone. The sound is perfectly synched up with the video and it is much much clearer than what is on the Ring doorbell. Eufy's HDR works well for me but should only be used in a dim environment. One feature I was thrilled with was the ability to remove "fish-eye distortion". This helps people who mount their device next to a ledge or column. The software automatically flattens the image to compensate without hurting the view of the camera. This one check-box made my video much more useful. The sensitivity of the camera is great and already I'm not getting notifications from passing cars on my road. Another win over Ring.Chime: The interior doorbell chime is good, although I wish it had a way to adjust the volume or play different rings. It's also unclear if it can be battery powered and, if so, for how long. Eufy should probably clarify this.Now i'll talk about what I would change. It may seem like a lot, but none of these items hurt the experience of this excellent product. As Eufy's first doorbell I want to give them suggestions for the next version. At this point I know whatever they put out, I'll be buying it.Here are some minor suggestions I have for the Eufy team:- Since there is no doorbell company competition in the privacy sector, It would be good for consumers to know if anyone at Eufy ever has the ability to access any footage. I know Eufy says they don't - but do they have the capability? Is any footage accessible in the cloud at all? After all, this is a Wi-Fi connected device. As an IT professional, it would be nice to have a more detailed explanation.- The doorbell could use some fun new rings and a way to adjust the volume- It's unclear in the instructions if it is possible to use the doorbell with the home's internal chime.- 5GHz WiFi is really important these days. Especially when many people are in crowded environments the signals can be jumbled. Thankfully the 2.4GHz transmitter in this device is EXCELLENT but it would be nice to have the new standard available.- The doorbell could use HomeKit and/or SmartThings functionality to tie it into the rest of my house. HomeKit Secure Video would be awesome as well.- 4GB of local storage could use a bump. It's a little low. The ability to use a MicroSD card would be awesome and may help Eufy keep their costs down.- A temperature sensor would be nice to see what the temperature is outside- Exclusion zones simply give a small red box that can't be increased in size. I've tried multiple times.Overall, this is a great product. Not only does it deliver on privacy and security but it also smashes the competition in functionality, video quality, setup, and ease of use. I really can't recommend it enough. Great job, Eufy!

Edit to original review: Some neighborhood punk kids decided to steal something off of my porch and they didn't know that I had the video doorbell. I was able to find the kids rather easily since they weren't that smart and they hung around the neighborhood. I used my iPhone to record my confrontation from them, told them they better take me to their parents instantly or I'm going to call the cops. They took me to their home and I had a chat with their parents about how their kids stole things off of my porch. Without this camera I wouldn't have known who did it, so just for this instance alone it's well worth the money. It's been on 24/7 for the past few months and has worked wonderfully with no issues.I've wanted a doorbell camera for a while now for various reasons including, but not limited to, dogs doing their business on my lawn, seeing who's coming to my door when I'm not home, but most of all, for people trying to get into my house either through malfeasance or idiocy. It seems like every other week someone was trying to walk into my house by turning the doorknob (particularly at night) and it seems that one of my neighbors has late night guests that can't read the house number and apparently just walk into homes without even having to knock. I keep a shotgun close just in case but that's of course as a last resort and I always keep my doors locked with multiple locks. Maybe I'm a little paranoid since my city has an extremely low crime rate, but honestly I don't care because my families safety comes first.Anyway, back to the doorbell. I was ultimately looking at getting a Nest doorbell camera from Costco because the quality seemed better and the deal they had seemed too good to pass up as it included 12 months of the premium online camera service (after 12 months you have to pay for the subscription). I was about to pull the trigger but the sale ended and I wasn't going to overpay for something that would probably go on sale again. I started looking into other cameras and saw a video on YouTube about this camera and considering the price and that it came with a chime too (where you have to pay extra for the chime with ring or nest unless it's in a bundle) I decided to get this doorbell camera. Another positive for me was not having to pay for a subscription to utilize it to it's maximum effect. I don't mind that the storage is local because if someone were to steal or break it purposefully they'll have their face recorded prior to breaking it. I look at my system on every alert so I would be able to save the footage needed if they tore the whole doorbell out including the on board storage. All those made it an easy choice and thanks to having an electrician in the family, I was up and running with it in about 10 minutes.I bought this camera in August so I have plenty of time to see the good and the bad and I'm not going to run through every little thing, but there's a lot more good than bad. The bad is that it takes maybe 4-6 seconds to get a notification of the motion, be it a car or the swaying trees or someone coming to the door. That's about all of the bad I can think of. The camera itself is excellent particularly in areas where I was unsure any camera doorbell would do well, direct sunlight and night vision. The night vision is pretty good. It's not perfect but for the price it's very clear on what you can see. I have a large field of view directly out of my front door and I think I can see at least 50-75 feet away using the camera. It's not going to be a crystal clear face but you can see motion and human figures which I think is good for a night vision. Direct sunlight is something I was worried about since some cameras are terrible at it but this one is excellent. I live in the desert and in the summer months, particularly August when I bought the camera, the sun is extremely bright and extremely hot. I am very impressed with how the camera handles direct sunlight. it seems like it's almost designed to "block" the sun so you can see the street, driveway, etc. in front of your house. it's hard to explain but the sun doesn't interfere with what you see and that's a plus to me.To wrap it up, I think it's a great device if you're okay with local storage. I am and I'm going to continue to enjoy this doorbell camera. The only thing I'll add is to update your firmware as soon as you can.