Arlo Doorbell and Chime

Nest and Ring both have doorbells in their smart product lines so I have been anxiously waiting for Arlo to release a doorbell as well.  Arlo took a different path with their version of the smart doorbell releasing an audio doorbell rather than a video doorbell.  There was a bit of angst in some of the online communities regarding Arlo's decision to release an audio doorbell rather than a video doorbell, but I like the idea.   First, already have Arlo cameras at my doors so I don't really need a video doorbell, it would be redundant.  Second, by releasing a audio only product they are able to keep teh price down, although it is still a pretty pricey product.  Ultimately I think Arlo is aiming this product at existing Arlo customers like me.   I ended up purchasing two doorbells and the chime.

Features:

• Mobile notifications - When someone rings your doorbell, the doorbell calls your phone which activates the Arlo app and you can see who is there and speak to them.
• Messaging- If you are not available, the visitor can leave a message that is saved to the cloud
• The doorbell works with exiting chimes or you can purchase a smart chime from Arlo
• Cloud storage - you get 7 days of free cloud storage for messaging
• Long battery life - Arlo claims the included AA batteries will last a year
• Motion detection - The doorbell works with your existing cameras to detect motion
• Silent Mode - You can silence the chime at night when the kids are sleeping
• Alexa Integration - Alexa Devices will notify you when someone rings the doorbell.  Kind of defeats the purpose of the Arlo chime, wish I would have known this before I bought the Arlo Chime.

Installation:

Installation was pretty straight forward.  I did have an issue getting the app to recognize the doorbell initially but it worked on the third or so try.   Once the doorbell is recognized, you select which camera you would like to pair it with and then screw it into the wall.  I bought the Chime accessory so I cannot comment on how well it works with existing chimes but that part seems easy enough to set up if you need to.

First impressions:

I purchased my two Arlo doorbells and a chime to replace an existing dumb wireless doorbell system that I think I paid $20 for.  The two Arlo doorbells and the chime cost me over $200 so it is a pretty expensive product.  The functionality it gives me over the dumb doorbell probably isn't worth the price but I enjoy trying new smart products so I was willing to pay up.  The one nice piece of functionality is I can assign a different chime to my front and side doors so I know which door a visitor is at if I am home.  It also has a nice led ring that lights up when it detects motion so a visitor can see the doorbell at night.

Issues:

The doorbell button itself does not give the user any feedback, when you press the button there is no click or much movement at all so the visitor may not know whether they pressed the doorbell or not.  Of bigger concern is battery life.  Arlo claims a one year battery life but after having my two Arlo doorbells installed for just two weeks one is at 92% and the other 83%.  At this rate neither will last a year.  Definitely something to keep an eye on, if the batteries need to be replaced a few times a year this may become an expensive product and not at all what I was expecting.

Overall:

If you are an Arlo camera owner and are looking to enhance the functionality of an exiting doorbell you may want to look into the Arlo Doorbell.  It is pretty expensive for the functionality it provides but for a tech geek like me it is just another fun toy for my smart home.  It also looks much nicer than my existing $20 dumb wireless doorbell.  This is evidenced by the trick or treaters at my door on Halloween that I caught on camera commenting that it was the nicest doorbell that they have ever seen.

1/27/2018 - Update

So after having the doorbells and chime installed I wanted to give a couple of updates.  The issue with the doorbell not giving any tactile feedback has sort of been fixed.   The doorbell now plays a chime when pressed, there is a little delay but it is better than nothing.  I would still prefer some movement in the button.

My big issue with the doorbells is battery life.  I have two doorbells installed, side door and front door.  I get very little activity at my front door and much more activity at the side door.  The issue I think is that every time activity is detected the LED is activated which kills the battery over time.  These doorbells were installed in late October and I had to replace the batteries in both doorbells this month (January) so just about 3 months of battery life.   Well short of the 12 months that Arlo claims. I think part of the issue may be the cold weather we had the week before that batteries died.  Living in New England cold temperatures are pretty common so I think the sub zero temperatures may have killed the batteries.   Someone suggested Lithium Ion batteries as they do better with cold but of course are much more expensive.   Others on the Arlo community forums have posted similar issues with the batteries dying quickly.