Ring’s first-generation indoor camera was great, but a few years on, they released the second generation of the product. While the first offering was great at the time, the 2nd gen makes it even better.
Many homes are now secured with smart, connected cameras we can view from our smartphones and while outside cameras are common, indoor cameras are far less common.
Our family recently got a new dog and whether you’re monitoring pets, or ensuring you capture the faces of anyone who enters your house without permission, an indoor security camera can be a great addition to your home.
The Ring 2nd Generation Indoor Camera boasts a modern and unobtrusive design that blends well with any home decor. Its compact size allows for flexible placement options, whether mounted on a wall or placed on a shelf. The build quality feels solid, and the camera is well-constructed, ensuring durability over time.
Features
The camera features a number of great features that help make it a really functional camera to secure your home (or business).
HD Video and Night Vision: The offers great 1080p video quality during the day, providing clear visuals. When it comes to night, the video feed switches automatically to use infrared night vision, allowing for accurate monitoring even in low-light conditions.
Two-Way Audio: The built-in microphone and speaker enable two-way audio communication. This feature is useful for interacting with family members or pets at home or even deterring potential intruders.
Motion Detection: The camera’s motion detection capabilities send real-time alerts to your smartphone whenever motion is detected. Customizable motion zones allow you to specify areas of interest, minimizing false alarms.
Live View: At any time, you can launch the mobile app to view the feed from the camera in Live View. We recently did this to check our dog was ok, when away from home. This provided comfort that things were fine and we could enjoy ourselves and not worry about the puppy at home.
Privacy: The Ring Indoor Camera offers privacy features, such as customizable privacy zones and a physical camera cover, giving you control over when the camera is recording.
Integration: The camera seamlessly integrates with the Ring ecosystem, allowing you to access the camera feed through the Ring app. It also supports voice commands via Amazon Alexa, enhancing convenience and accessibility.
Plug-in power: Ring offers many products in both the battery version and powered options. This one is powered, allowing you to set the motion alerts on high, and not have to worry about recharging the battery. While this could limit the maximum potential locations you could place the camera, the cable is generous to enable many applications.
Monitor your pets
Having recently got a gorgeous Australian Cobberdog, I spent the first week, working from home to get her comfortable in the new environment. The following week my wife spent the week working from home. In the third week, we needed to both be at work and here’s where the camera proved invaluable.
Being able to open Ring.com, sign into your account and monitor your cameras remotely is an amazing feature. I could have this run on a 3rd monitor to check in on our new dog and make sure she’s doing ok.
One experience that made me smile was seeing her standing against her cage, I clicked on the microphone button, then simply said ‘Down Emmy’ to which she responded immediately, by then laying down and going back to sleep.
This experience really proved to me how valuable having a remote connection to your home really is when pets are involved. About an hour later I returned home for lunch and had one very excited puppy that got lots of cuddles.
Performance
Setting up the Ring 2nd Generation Indoor Camera is straightforward, thanks to the intuitive Ring app and if you’ve already got existing Ring products, adding a new device is even faster. Personally already use the Ring Video Doorbell and Gen 1 Indoor camera, and the app does a great job fo providing a dashboard to access each of the cameras from the same place.
The camera’s video quality is great, delivering sharp and clear video footage during both day and night. Launching the Live View feature works quickly, something that can’t be said for all security IoT brands.
I particularly love the ability to zoom in on the footage as our dog is a similar colour to its bed (in night mode). This allowed us to confirm she was in her bed and sound asleep.
The motion detection feature works reliably, promptly sending notifications whenever activity is detected and I love that you can specify zones to ignore. There’s also the option to only register a motion event if the motion is identified as a person (Ring Protect Subscription required), great if you want to reduce the amount of notifications with pets around.
There are times when you may want to speak through your phone and have that projected through the camera. The two-way audio feature works great, offering clear and responsive communication, impressive for such a small speaker (located below the camera). I used this to ask our dog to go to bed, which she did. It could also be used to scare off intruders if you were away from home and otherwise would be powerless to do anything to deter them.
There is an alarm option as well that can be activated through the app. This warns you that it is really loud and will likely be heard by the neighbours, something to be aware of if you’re testing it. In the event you do have a break-in, this is a good option as no thief is going to want to stick around with an alarm going off that draws attention to their presence.
Overall, the Ring app is well-designed and provides a friendly user interface for accessing the camera feed, adjusting settings, and reviewing recorded footage.
Issues
The hardware camera cover is an ok feature, but I never used it. I understand why this is confidence-inspiring for some, but feels more for the paranoid than anything else. I guess I’d be selective about where I placed the camera in the first place, rather than relying on a cover to do the work.
While I understand why Ring went with the hardware option, it’s the most sure-fire way to stop footage from being shared unless you’re absolutely ready to, but would prefer a software option as well to remotely disable/enable the camera and audio, perhaps using a pin or biometrics to enable/disabled. This could be enhanced with 2 LEDs on the device to indicate when the camera/mic is enabled. To avoid a criminal from learning to look for these LEDs, perhaps these could be multi-colour and set by the user.
Price & Availability
Ring’s Indoor Camera (2nd Gen) costs A$99.00 from either amazon.com.au and ring.com/au/en.
If you have multiple locations around the home you’d like to monitor, you can buy a 2, 3 or 4 pack of cameras, with the 4-pack priced at A$299.00, making it just A$74.75 per camera.
The cameras are available in both white (reviewed) and black finishes to blend in with your home decor.
Overall
The Ring 2nd Generation Indoor Camera offers a compelling package for homeowners seeking an indoor security solution. With its impressive video quality, robust motion detection, and seamless integration with the Ring ecosystem, it provides a reliable means of monitoring and securing your home.
The camera’s user-friendly interface and privacy features further enhance its appeal. While considering a purchase, it’s worth comparing its features and pricing with other indoor security cameras on the market to ensure it aligns with your specific needs.
Having experienced the camera and enjoyed its features and capabilities, we’ll probably buy another one, as we move the camera at night to monitor our dog’s movement at night. While wall mounting is certainly possible, the rotating base actually provides a great opportunity to position the camera over her bed. The night vision is great, however, our dog did tend to blend into her bed a bit, sometimes giving me a mild heart attack that she’d somehow escaped and was roaming free in our house. The reality is, she was fast asleep.
