Arlo Video Doorbell (Wired) Review

I have long been a fan of Arlo products, in particular their wireless cameras, and so it was only natural when I decided to extend my smart home set-up by buying their video doorbell.

Pros

Integration with Arlo Base Station and Cameras

This is a great benefit for anyone who has already bought into the Arlo ecosystem.

Automations are connected and other Arlo devices can trigger the doorbell camera and vice versa.

Video Quality

The video quality of the Arlo video doorbell is outstanding.

One distinguishing feature of the Arlo video doorbell is that it’s 180-degree viewing angle and 1:1 aspect ratio allows it to view the ground in front of it, so you can easily make out packages that are dropped off by the door.

Local Storage

You can save videos to the base station, though you do have to provide your own USB flash storage.

Homekit Support

One thing you have to give Arlo credit for is that it stayed true to its word and continued to add Homekit support to many of its devices, including those that didn’t have it initially.

Siren

This is a slam dunk on the part of Arlo. The doorbell has a built-in siren that you can activate via the app or automatically, turning it into a full-fledged security device.

It’s actually something that I have come to expect from Arlo because some of its earlier wireless cameras and base stations already included sirens too.

Cons

Arlo Smart Subscription

When Arlo first started with its wireless cameras, it made a name for itself by offering 7 days of cloud storage at no extra cost. Its cameras were always priced at a premium compared with the competition, so you got the sense that you were paying for the storage in advance. Still, it also offered peace of mind for those of us who don’t want to bother signing up for yet another subscription service and making monthly payments.

Fast forward to 2022 and Arlo has shifted its business model to subscription services. You cannot really hold it against them because that’s what investors want these days and SaaS revenue can help the business stay afloat for much longer.

That said, Arlo is still charging premium prices for the hardware. The video doorbell retails for about $150, so it’s a bit hard to justify the relatively high subscription fees.

Installation

My exterior wall is stucco. It would be nice if Arlo could have a video tutorial available for stucco wall installations as they are a bit more complicated.

One problem I ran into was that the back plate had to be exactly even. This means you have to make sure to put in the screws such that they are the same distance from the wall. Otherwise the doorbell will not fit on the back plate.

Takeaways

I am overall pleased with the product and happy to recommend the Arlo Video Doorbell.