Cons Of A Wired Doorbell:
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More complicated to install than wireless doorbells.
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Older homes may need an upgraded transformer to work with a newer or video doorbell.
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It may be complicated to install, especially if you dont have any experience, and setup requires wiring and drilling.
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It may be difficult to remove once its installed, so youll have to buy a new one when you move.
Pros Of A Wired Doorbell:
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If individual components break down, its easy to buy replacement parts instead of a new unit.
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No interference between other wireless connections.
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It continues to work, even if you have an internet outage.
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Low to no maintenance.
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Many different options for the design, especially different colors, shapes or styles.
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You never need to remember to change or charge the battery.
Agree To Continue: Google Nest Cam And Doorbell
Every smart device now requires you to agree to a series of terms and conditions before you can use it contracts that no one actually reads. Its impossible for us to read and analyze every single one of these agreements. But we started counting exactly how many times you have to hit agree to use devices when we review them since these are agreements most people dont read and definitely cant negotiate.
To use the Nest Cam or Nest Doorbell, you must agree to:
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Nest Doorbell Vs Nest Hello: Battery
With the wireless Nest Cam , you get the same perks and downsides as most wireless doorbells. As an upside, it can attach to your door without requiring hardwiring, making installation much easier. Also, because of its wireless battery, it’ll continue to record during a power outage while the Nest Hello will instantly turn off.
On the other hand, it won’t connect to your house’s chime system unless you hardwire it, meaning you’ll have to rely on your smart displays or speakers to hear anything. And while it has a 7-month average battery life per charge, it likely won’t last that long if it’s activated frequently. Once it does run out of power, you’ll have to unlock it from its mount, take it inside, and recharge it for a few hours. Of course, hardwiring the Nest Doorbell would solve all of these problems.
If you want to hardwire a Nest Doorbell, check this Nest Doorbell compatibility test to see if your home can support one. If so, you could use the Nest Hello with Nest Aware and get most of the same perks as the new Nest Doorbell without worrying about recharging. Then again, the Nest Doorbell gives you the option of either battery or wired installation for a lower price and is more self-sufficient without Nest Aware â so long as you can do without 24/7 recordings.
Ring Vs Nest: Ring Video Doorbell And Nest Doorbell Compared

For many, the top video doorbell comes down to Ring vs. Nest. Here’s how the two compare on price, video quality and features.
Ring vs. Nest: It’s one of the first questions many homeowners ask when shopping for a video doorbell. And it’s not surprising why. Both companies make some of the best video doorbells around, with great image quality and a bevy of features to let you know who’s knocking.
Ring has seven video doorbells, from the $49 Ring Video Doorbell Wired to the Ring Video Doorbell Elite , while Nest offers just two: the Nest Hello and the Nest Doorbell for $179. But selection isn’t everything. Both companies’ models are among the best video doorbells around, so choosing between the two can be tricky. We’ll break down the features and costs of both Ring and Nest video doorbells, to help make your decision easier.
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Nest Doorbell Review: Smart Home Features
At launch, the Nest Doorbell will only work within the Google Home ecosystem, so youll need either a Google Assistant-powered smart speaker or smart display if you want to talk to someone or view a feed from your doorbell.
Other video doorbells, such as those made by Ring and Arlo, will work with both Google, Alexa, and in some cases, HomeKit. Considering that Nests older video doorbell works with Alexa smart displays, its reasonable to assume that the new video doorbell will too, in time.
One workaround is to pick up the Starling Home Hub one of the best smart home hubs which connects Nest products to HomeKit. However, at the time I was reviewing the Nest Doorbell, this integration was not yet available.
One thing to bear in mind though is that Google does not allow video doorbell footage from Nest to be stored via end-to-end encryption. This allows local law enforcement to potentially view your footage at any time, provided that they have Nest’s permission.
Nest Doorbell Review: Design And Installation
While the original Nest Hello wasnt exactly outlandish in its design, the Nest Doorbell is even more minimalist. It has a similar shape a rectangle with rounded ends but has a flat button and a matte finish. The Nest Doorbell is also larger by a few inches to accommodate its battery. It still fit well on my door jamb, but there was a bit of overlap.
The Nest Doorbell comes with a base plate wedge, screws, anchors, and wires should you want to hard-wire it to your door. Installation is fairly simple as a security measure, the doorbell will only turn on once you snap it into its base plate. To remove the doorbell for charging, you must use the supplied tool, which looks like a small key without any ridges. Id rather it be a pinhole, like on the Ring video doorbells, so you can just use a paperclip if you cant find the tool.
I like that the Nest Doorbell can work as a wired unit or just on battery power. However, unlike Ring, Nest does not sell a separate wireless chime, so if you dont hardwire the doorbell to an existing chime, youll need a Google Assistant-powered smart speaker like the Nest Mini if you want to hear when someones at the door.
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How We Reviewed The Nest Doorbell
Google sent us the new Nest Doorbell , which we’ve been testing for two monthsoriginally for our updated Nest cameras review. in the past.) We tried every feature we could find, looked at the video quality, and used it in a smart home environment to see how well it works with other smart devices.
Nest Doorbell during our testsImage: John Carlsen, SafeWise
We performed a basic installation using the battery-powered mode but didn’t use existing doorbell wiring. In addition to our tests, we scoured the internet for tech specs, support articles, customer reviews, and videos for even more context. Read our full methodology to learn more about how we get our information and test products.
Nest Doorbell Review: Video And Audio Performance
Day and night video from the Nest Doorbell was detailed and colorful. I could make out lettering on my shirt, creases in my clothes, and leaves on the trees. Colors were accurate, too. You should have no trouble identifying anyone that comes to your door.
Recent video doorbells, such as the Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2 and the Logitech Circle View, have switched from a traditional horizontal field of view to one thats vertically oriented. This makes a lot of sense, as it allows the camera to show you objects closer to the base of your door, such as packages.
The Nest Doorbell continues this trend. Its 3:4 aspect ratio delivers an excellent view of your stoop. While its 145-degree field of view still cut off about 18 inches from the base of my door, it was on a par with the aforementioned Ring and Logitech video doorbells.
Package detection worked very well. And, not only does the app alert you when it sees a package, but it also alerts you when the package is taken away a critical event if you want to capture a porch pirate red-handed.
As with the Nest Cam, Familiar Face was also spot on when recognizing my mug whenever I stepped in front of the doorbell.
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Nest Doorbell Vs Nest Hello: Specs
While the Nest Hello and Nest Doorbell have fairly similar specs, each has specific advantages over the other that shouldn’t be ignored.
Nest Doorbell | |
---|---|
On-device machine learning | TLS/SSL with 128-bit AES |
The Nest Hello is much more compact, making it stand out less on your porch. But the larger, battery-powered Nest will make criminals take note, especially if you pick an eye-catching color. We’ll note as well that the Nest Doorbell handles colder weather much better and has better water resistance and dust resistance if you live in a particularly rough climate.
Google likely wants to downplay how much better Hello’s video quality is than the new Nest Doorbell.
Despite being much older, the Nest Hello has a better camera sensor, producing 2K-quality footage, a wider FOV, and closer zooming. The Nest Doorbell hits a solid resolution and has a much taller aspect ratio, making it easy to see packages on your porch. Still, other comparably priced, battery-powered doorbells like the Arlo Essential Video Doorbell and Eufy Video Doorbell both hit 2K resolution as well.
As mentioned before, the Nest Doorbell has on-device machine learning that enables it to process AI detection on-device without needing a subscription. Only Eufy doorbells offer a similar perk, giving it an edge over the subscription-dependant Nest Hello.
Why Trust Our Journalism
Founded in 2004, Trusted Reviews exists to give our readers thorough, unbiased and independent advice on what to buy.
Today, we have millions of users a month from around the world, and assess more than 1,000 products a year.
Editorial independence
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.
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Arlo Essential Doorbell Vs Nest Doorbell: Smart Features And Smart Home Integration
Along with cloud storage, both doorbell subscription plans include intelligent alerts and additional security options. By leveraging the power of the cloud, both doorbells use image analysis to determine who â or what is within their view, allowing you to set notification preferences that filter out vehicles or pets. Image analysis also can determine when a package arrives and send a custom notification accordingly.
Arlo’s Secure service plans also include a few additional security features that you don’t get with the Nest Doorbell. One of which is the Emergency Response feature that provides one-tap access to the police, fire department, or paramedics. Another is smoke and CO alarm detection, although this is more tailored for indoor cameras unless your home’s alarms are loud enough to reach the doorbell outside.
The Nest Doorbell plays nicely with Android phones, Chromecasts, and voice assistant devices from Google.
Another thing to consider is the app experience and smart home integration with the two video doorbells. The Nest Doorbell plays nicely with Android phones, Chromecasts, and voice assistant devices from Google. With direct integration, you can use your TV as a large screen monitor for your doorbell, or you can get alerts sent directly to your Nest Hub’s display, making responding or viewing events quick.
Ring Vs Nest: Smart Home Compatibility

One of the advantages of a smart doorbell is that you can link it other gadgets on our list of the best smart home devices. So, for example, you could have your front-porch lights turn on when someone approaches your door at night.
As two of the and best Alexa skills, both the Nest and Ring cameras will work to some extent with both Alexa and Google Assistant. Using voice commands, you can ask about the status of the cameras. If you have the Nest Doorbell, Google Home devices can also announce visitors.
Nest’s video doorbell is also gaining the ability to work with Alexa when you pair the device with Amazon’s assistant, your Alexa-enabled smart speaker will be able to announce if a person or package is at the door.
If you have an Alexa-enabled smart display or a Fire TV device, you can view a live feed from both the Nest and Ring doorbells. It’s handy if you’re in your bedroom and can’t get to the door as quickly as you’d like. Additionally, you can link Ring’s Video Doorbells to a plethora of other Ring products, such as its outdoor lights and motion sensors, so that the doorbell will start recording as soon as some other device detects movement.
Ring also has a partnership with Lutron when a Ring camera detects motion or the button on a video doorbell is pressed, you can program Lutron-controlled lights to turn on. You can also customize the interaction to only occur at night.
Winner: Ring
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Nest Doorbell Battery Video Review
Before we begin with our detailed review, we thought you might want to watch our video review first. Check it out if you want to see the Nest Hello in action, but note that Nest no longer sells Nest Secure, their security system.
In this video, our Chief Editor Gabe Turner unboxes and installs the Nest Doorbell Battery, step-by-step.
Which One Should You Buy
The Nest Doorbell is the better doorbell of the two. While the wired doorbell is older, costs more and lacks offline video, it takes advantage of higher resolution video and is faster at sending notifications to your phone than the Nest Doorbell . The Nest Doorbell also runs on the Nest app, which we found a little easier to use than the Google Home app used by the battery-powered doorbell.
If you use Google Home devices, youll need to opt for one of the two. If youre more of an Alexa fan, youd be better off opting for the very affordable Ring Video Doorbell Wired. If you can spend more, our favourite wired doorbell is the Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2, or the best battery powered doorbell with a 1080p resolution, the Ring Video Doorbell 4.
Senior Staff Writer Hannah joined Trusted Reviews as a staff writer in 2019 after graduating with a degree in English from Royal Holloway, University of London. Shes also worked and studied in the US, holding positions
Editorial independence
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.
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Is Nest Hello Being Discontinued
Google still sells the Nest Hellothe wired predecessor to the Nest Doorbell though it’s now called the Nest Doorbell .
Is the Nest Doorbell worth it?
While both doorbells offer many of the same core features, the Nest Doorbell is superior in nearly every way because it doesn’t require a Nest Aware subscription to use most features. Still, the Nest Doorbell is a better choice for folks wanting continuous video recording with Nest Aware Plusan option not available with the battery-powered version.
Ring Vs Nest: Overall Winner
Nest Doorbell | |
4 | 3 |
When it comes to Ring vs. Nest, in the end, the Nest Doorbell just edged out the Ring Video Doorbell. We preferred its video, as well as the features on the Nest Video Doorbell, such as facial recognition and package detection, many of which are available for free. If you have three or more home security cameras, Nest’s subscription plan is also more cost-effective.
However, the Ring Video Doorbell is no slouch For starters, it’s easier to recharge and has more smart home integrations. It’s also the better choice if you want a wider, rather than a taller and narrower view of your front porch. And, some of Ring’s other video doorbells, while different in price than the Nest, may offer more features that puts it ahead. It all depends on what you’re looking for in a video doorbell.
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Ring Vs Nest: Installation
Both the Nest Doorbell and the Ring Video Doorbell can use either a wired connection or run off internal batteries. This not only makes installation easier but also gives you more options for where you can place it. However, both devices have non-removable batteries, so you have to take the entire unit to recharge it which means you’ll be facing some time when you don’t have a doorbell.
Ring also offers the Ring Chime and Ring Chime Pro as an alternative to a traditional doorbell chime. Ring’s Chimes simply plug into an outlet, and can be programmed to make different sounds based on both detected movement and someone ringing the bell. The Chime Pro also acts as a Wi-Fi repeater, handy if your front door is out of range of your home Wi-Fi network.
Nest does not offer a separate chime instead, you’d need to use something like the Nest Mini if you want to hear the bell ring.
Both the Nest and the Ring took roughly the same amount of time to install. If you want to see how it’s done, be sure to check out our guide on how to install a Ring video doorbell.
Winner: Tie