Amazon owned smart home manufacturer Ring has announced the new Battery Doorbell Plus, amid a storm over essential features being placed behind a subscription paywall.
The headlining feature of the new battery-powered video doorbell, which doesn’t need to be wired into the system, is a wider field of view that will enable homeowners to see a head-to-toe view of folks approaching the door.
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That field of view will include delivered items that are often left on the doorstep out of the view of the other cameras in the battery-powered range.
It’s possible due to the square aspect ratio that’ll show a 150-degree field of view across both the horizontal and vertical axis, which is a big change from the 16:9 aspect ratio used on other cameras. That’ll be joined by high-def video feeds with a 1536p resolution. Previously the range relied on 1080p video. That puts the Battery Doorbell Plus in line with Ring’s flagship model, the Ring Pro 2.
“The expanded view makes features like Package Alerts with a Ring Protect subscription even more useful because you can easily check for deliveries on your doorstep. You can also be notified as soon as a package is detected within a zone you specify during setup,” Ring says in the announcement.
The company is also promising battery life three-times greater than the original and a quick release mechanism to ensure you can whip it out quickly to recharge or replace. In the meantime, you can connect it to a solar panel to ensure it runs while the battery is being replenished.
The Battery Doorbell Plus is available to pre-order today ahead of a release on April 5. It costs $179.99/£159. Just be prepared to fork over for a Ring subscription if you want more than the absolute basic features.
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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
