Arlo has done the obvious thing and put a camera into its doorbell, something the maker of security cameras somehow failed to do last year. The new Arlo Video Doorbell differentiates itself with a field-of-view that’s both tall and wide (aka, square) in order to show you faces as well as packages dropped in front of the door.
Arlo’s Video Doorbell shows both faces and packages
Heads, shoulders, knees, and toes, too
Heads, shoulders, knees, and toes, too
is a deputy editor and Verge co-founder with a passion for human-centric cities, e-bikes, and life as a digital nomad. He’s been a tech journalist for 20 years.
Arlo’s late entry into video doorbells is nevertheless packed with modern features. For example, it starts streaming video to your phone over Wi-Fi just as soon as the doorbell is pressed. You then have the option to send pre-recorded messages like “leave the package by the door” or “I’ll be right there” in addition to starting a two-way audio conversation.
There’s also a built-in siren that will tigger automatically when someone attempts to yank the doorbell off the wall. It can also be sounded remotely to warn off suspected ruffians and louts. Otherwise, you get a max video resolution of 1536 x 1536 with HDR, night vision, a 12x digital zoom, and motion detection (with activity zones) alerts and recordings.
The Arlo Video Doorbell is for wired electrical installations only, and connects to existing mechanical or digital chimes. Yes it’s user installable, but it’s not as idiot-proof as a battery-powered doorbell like the August View or Ring Video Doorbell 2.
Image: Arlo
The Arlo Video Doorbell is available to preorder now for $149.99, and comes with a free trial of the company’s 30-day recording history service. After three months, it’ll cost you a minimum of $2.99 each month to continue.
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