Ring doorbells continue to grow in popularity and that’s hardly surprising. These internet-connected gadgets clip neatly on the front of homes and offer a constant watch over one of the most vulnerable areas of our properties. They can even send live footage straight to smartphones and ping alerts when the ringer has been pressed so users can chat with delivery drivers when they are out for the day.
These are great gadgets but as we head into the deepest part of winter it’s worth following some simple advice if you own a Ring or have just unwrapped one on Christmas Day.
Like most battery-powered devices, things don’t perform as well when it gets colder. In fact, it’s likely that you won’t get the same long life from your camera during January and February as you will when the sun is shining.
“As we enter the colder months, batteries outdoors tend to drain faster in the lower temperatures,” explained Ring.
The upcoming frost, snow and wintery rain that we all face at the start of each year could mean things don’t last as long and that’s not great if you rely on your doorbell for security and convenience.
Luckily, there are ways to make sure your Ring Doorbell is optimised to help the battery stay juiced up.
Here are some top tips that all Ring users should know.
The first thing to do is quickly check your settings and make sure you’re getting the correct motion alerts.
As you might be aware, Ring devices instantly start recording and sending alerts the minute they spot movement. If you live on a busy road or by a pavement that’s packed with pedestrians that can mean the device is constantly in action which, in turn, reduces its battery life.
To keep things going longer, simply adjust the motion settings to a lower sensitivity so only movements closer to the camera are picked up by the Doorbell.
You can also enable Privacy Zones. These are important areas that the camera needs to see like the front doorstep. If make this area a bit smaller and more specific to the areas you need, the camera will also spring into action. Finally, there’s the option to change Motion Frequency to ‘Regularly’ or ‘Periodically’ to reduce the amount of motion alerts you receive.
Another top tip concerns your Wi-Fi. The weaker the connection the harder the Doorbell has to work to send alerts. That’s why it’s a good idea to make sure you have a booster by the front door which should mean less effort for the Ring to cope with.
“Poor internet connection or frequent signal drops cause your doorbell to disconnect and reconnect again to the network, which requires more energy from the battery. To strengthen the wifi signal, try moving the router closer to where the doorbell is, out of any cupboards and out from behind big items of furniture,” Ring explained.
The last top tip from Ring is to make sure your Doorbell is fully refilled before placing it back on the front of the house. Clearly, the more power in the tank to start with, the longer it will last.
