Ring video doorbellsare one of the popular smart home devices out there. Once you’ve experienced the ability to see who is at your door, whether you’re at home or not, and even hold a conversation with them, you’ll wonder how you ever managed to cope with a doorbell that couldn’t do anything except make a noise.
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There’s a lot more to Ring doorbells than meets the eye, however. You can tweak the settings in your Ring app to make your smart doorbell even smarter.
Here are 7 ways to customize your Ring video doorbell to make the most of all its useful features.
1Create motions zones
Motion zones allow you to specify which areas that are visible to your Ring video doorbell will trigger motion alerts, and which will be ignored. This is particularly useful if you have areas in view where there is a lot of motion, such as a section of road visible through your gate. By setting up your motion zones to exclude this area, you can dramatically reduce the number of false positivemotion alertsthat you get.
2Adjust the motion sensitivity
A common issue withRing video doorbellsis being inundated with motion alerts. You may suffer from the opposite issue, and not be receiving motion alerts even when someone is approaching your door. In either case, adjusting the motion sensitivity of your Ring video doorbell can help.
3Set up smart alerts
You might not want to get motion alerts every time your cat walks past your Ring video doorbell. Instead, you might prefer to only get alerts when a person is detected. If so, you can set up smart alerts that will only alert you if your Ring video doorbell detects a person. The results aren’t always perfect (my Ring video doorbell is often convinced that the hanging basket is a person) but it can help to reduce false positives.
4Create a package detection zone
Do you ever get packages left outside your door, but the delivery company doesn’t ring the bell to let you know? Then when you finally realize that you’ve got a package at your door, your package is soaked by the rain, ruined, or only remembered after you panic. If these are common feelings,setting up package detectionis a game-changer.
How to set up package detection on a Ring Video Doorbell
Let your Ring video doorbell inform you when you’ve had a delivery.
This feature will send you an alert when a package is detected in a specific zone you set up. You can then bring the package inside, or curse Amazon for delivering your package when it’s raining and you’re at work.
5Add a privacy zone
If you have neighbors directly opposite your home, they may not be too keen on you recording their every movement on your video doorbell. The good news is that it’s possible to set up privacy zones in the Ring app, which are areas within your Ring doorbell’s field of view that won’t be displayed or recorded. It’s ideal for blocking out a neighbor’s door or window. Any motion from your privacy zones will also be ignored.
6Use rich notifications to quickly see who is at the door
When your phone alerts you that motion has been detected, you’ll want to know if it’s someone you know, the local cat, or a man in a striped outfit and a mask, carrying a bag that reads ‘swag’. Using rich notifications allows you to see a snapshot of the view from your doorbell when you get aRing notification, so that you may instantly see what triggered the alert.
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7Set up Quick Replies
If you constantly find yourself having to tell the delivery person to leave your package on your front porch, you might want to check outQuick Replies. This feature allows you to play a pre-set message when your doorbell is rung. Your Ring video doorbell can even record the response from the person who’s at the door, a little like an answering machine. When the doorbell is pressed, your Quick Reply will play through the Ring’s speaker, although you can only choose from one of the pre-set messages; it’s not possible to create your own.
Get more from your Ring video doorbell
The suggestions above are just some of the tweaks you can make to ensure that your Ring video doorbell is set up exactly how you want it. There are plenty of other usefulRing video doorbell tips and tricksthat can help you get even more out of your smart home device.
