When you think of video doorbells, also known as doorbell cameras, Google Nest and Amazon’s Ring might come to mind. These two brands make some of the most popular video doorbells you can buy.
However, given privacy concerns, you may be wondering about options from other companies.
“If you’re using a Google Nest or Ring video doorbell, they’re uploading footage to Google and Amazon’s servers,” said Justin Brookman, director of privacy and technology policy at Consumer Reports. “With growing concerns about how Google and Amazon are using the data they collect, consumers may not feel comfortable trusting these companies.”
Ring has been the focus of complaints from privacy and civil rights advocates who argue the company’s policing partnerships harm communities of color and threaten consumer privacy. To address these concerns, the company has made a number of changes in recent years, such as: B. Creating a privacy and security dashboard that allows users to customize settings, enabling end-to-end encryption for select Ring cameras, restricting police ability to request camera footage, and completing a two-year external audit which brought about changes to Ring’s police partnerships and neighborhood watch social network. But privacy and civil rights groups say the changes aren’t enough.
Plus, a few years from now, you might not need a Nest or Ring doorbell camera to take full advantage of the rich capabilities of the Amazon and Google ecosystems. Both Amazon and Google are part of the Matter smart home standard, which makes it easier for devices to work together and take advantage of a variety of smart home ecosystems, including Apple Home and Samsung SmartThings, at the same time. (The standard does not currently support video doorbells or cameras, but they are expected to be added in a future release.)
At Consumer Reports, we test video doorbells from more than 30 brands. Below are the top six Google Nest and Ring doorbell alternatives from our video doorbell reviews. The list is alphabetical and not sorted by rank. CR members can click on the name of any video doorbell for detailed ratings and reviews.
For tips on what to look for in a video doorbell, see our home security camera buying guide. Whichever model you choose, read our guide on how to prevent security cameras from being hacked. And learn how CR’s testing uncovered security vulnerabilities in video doorbells.
