Doorbell Choices

We are building a new house, didn't realize choosing a doorbell was such a big deal. Looking at nest or ring but not seeing the difference or why makes one better than the other. We are not really "connected" people so we really just want a doorbell that records movement and we can see who is there. Can you tell me which? Why?

Being an old gray haired curmudgeon i don't like any alternative that puts my info into the "cloud".  To see who's at the door i just look out a window.  

If i'm not home, what difference does it make?  Some masked individual just stole one of my wife's Amazon packages.   What will the video prove?  (seriously, i live in a low crime rural area, so what i say probably doesn't matter in your world.)

Ignore this post and motor on...

Doesn’t anyone you want in your house already have a number where they can send you a text?   

chandler said:

We are building a new house, didn't realize choosing a doorbell was such a big deal. Looking at nest or ring but not seeing the difference or why makes one better than the other. We are not really "connected" people so we really just want a doorbell that records movement and we can see who is there. Can you tell me which? Why?

There are some good comparison videos on YouTube. I'd like one as well, but haven't pulled the trigger on either. 

What I really want to is to have a true "smart home." Security, thermostat, smoke detectors, garage door with a geo fence, etc, all from the same company and monitored as opposed to a hodge podge solution of a bunch of different manufacturers that all can be controlled by Alexa or something.

We have a Ring at work and I had a Nest at home.  I ditched the Nest at home because I have such a small house that there is no way I would not hear a good old fashioned analog door knock.  I have a couple Wyze cameras on the front and rear patio to monitor the entryways, so the smart doorbell was redundant.

Both of them worked similarly.  I mostly chose the Nest for home because I have a Nest thermostat and it made sense to put all my smart stuff in one app.

Ring comes with a zillion notifications if you don't shut them off.  There is a messaging network to alert you, but in my area, the conversation usually goes something like this:

old white lady across the street:  Everyone be aware; there was a negro with a hoodie lurking around my property
me:  yes, his name is Marcus and he's the Amazon delivery driver who left that package on your doorstep.  He's here now, would you like me to say hello for you?

Later in the day...

old man in an affluent Jewish neighborhood:  Gunshots uptown but the police never came
someone else:  It's July 3rd.  Those are fireworks.

I actually leave those notifications on because they're entertaining.  Something about old rich Jews with their first-world fear of black people and fireworks gives me a chuckle.

We have a Nest doorbell because we already had a Nest thermostat and our TV/data provider gave us a fantastic deal on it.

It was easy to install and works fine.  Picture and sound are pretty clear.  The only issue I have is that while reviewing the visual "hits" for the day, sometimes when you tap on a thumbnail showing something, the enlargement it takes you to may be a different frame after the person / thing has left.  We don't pay for the service so it doesn't keep that data very long.

I have zero experience with others so I can't really compare.

But coincidentally it just buzzed my phone and sent me a wide-angle of the postie delivering my mail.

Curtis73 (Forum Supporter) said:

  Something about old rich Jews with their first-world fear of black people and fireworks gives me a chuckle.

Careful.  Your prejudice is showing.

Simple low-voltage doorbell with a switch illuminated by a state-of-the-art LED for me.

1988RedT2 said:

Curtis73 (Forum Supporter) said:

  Something about old rich Jews with their first-world fear of black people and fireworks gives me a chuckle.

Careful.  Your prejudice is showing.

 

Well, I figure I'll be one of them in about 10 years.   Minus the rich part.

I will NEVER put a smart doorbell device on my house. I have one that goes "ding" if you ring the side door and "dink-dong" if you ring the front bell.

I had no idea that the front doorbell would be so juvenile when I installed it.