Amazon Prime Day: 6 things I wish I’d known before getting a Ring doorbell - as price slashed in Prime deal

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Amazon has slashed prices on the Ring video doorbells in this summer’s Prime Day deals. It is a very tempting deal and I know from personal experience, having grabbed one last year. 

But while I had an idea in my head of what to expect once my Ring arrived, it turned out there was plenty I wish I had known before ordering it. Amazon has cut the price by 50% from £99.99 to £49.99 and you can also get it bundled with an Echo Pop for the same price. 

However before you hit that add to basket button, it is worth making sure you know what you are getting into. Here’s six things I wish I’d known before buying my Ring doorbell. 

Consider how you will install it 

In my naivety, I didn’t actually think about how I would go about fitting my Ring doorbell until it actually arrived. Only then did I realise that it wouldn’t actually magically install itself, much to my disappointment. 

Unfortunately I did not own a drill at the time, so my incredible bargain in the Amazon sale turned out to be slightly less incredible when all was said and done. Fortunately, once I had the tools needed, it was actually straightforward to install - and pretty fun to boot. 

But make sure you have thought about how you will fit your Ring doorbell before ordering one. Especially if you don’t want to have to delay installing it. 

Think about best place for your Ring 

We decided to get a Ring doorbell because we live on a relatively busy street with plenty of foot traffic and therefore plenty of eyes on our little home. But because our door is at street level, it means plenty of notifications being pinged to my phone as people come and go throughout the day. 

It also took quite a bit of time to work out the best place to put the Ring doorbell, to get the height right to make sure it is effective. Before you order your own smart doorbell, it might be worth working out the best place to put it once it has arrived - especially if you have multiple doors, or a door that is on the side of a house instead of directly at the front. 

Pick the right notification options 

As mentioned in the section above, I live on a busy street and initially I very much picked the wrong option when setting up my notifications for the Ring doorbell. I went with every time that a person passed and triggered the camera, which resulted in dozens (sometimes even over a hundred) notifications each day. 

You need a subscription 

To get the most out of your Ring doorbell and to properly use all the functions you need a subscription. It came as a shock to me as I’d never heard of it before my device arrived. 

It is only a few quid a month, but be prepared to add it to your likely ever expanding list of subscriptions. 

Make sure you have a plug 

Like so many devices in the year of our lord 2024, Ring doorbell comes with just a charging cable and no plug. Fortunately I have a half a century old (exaggeration alert) Amazon Fire stick and was able to just swap out the cables and use that for charging my Ring. 

So make sure you have a plug that can fit the Ring’s charging cable. Likely given the prevalence of smartphones, you will probably have one lying around your home - but it is worth double checking. 

The battery life is surprisingly amazing 

One of my concerns about the Ring doorbell was how long the battery would last. Especially as it is video heavy and I’ve seen how videos can munch through a phone’s battery in lickety split time. 

But thankfully the Ring doorbell can last weeks before it needs charging. In fact it lasts so long that I always get caught off guard by the notification saying the battery is low. 

To get the Amazon Prime Day deal on the Ring doorbell click here. Let us know what you think if you do purchase one and advice you wish you’d had.