The Original Ring Video Doorbell, Reimagined

By Ring on May 6, 2020

A classic is a classic for a reason––it’s tried and true, reliable, and delivers on its promise. Yet every now and then, a classic deserves an upgrade. That’s why we’re thrilled to introduce you to the new and improved Ring Video Doorbell. With 1080p HD video, better image quality in day and night modes, and updated motion zones, this second generation Ring Video Doorbell takes your home security to the next level. And all for the same affordable price.

“We think customers should expect more from their Video Doorbell - better hardware, improved motion detection, and easy installation - but shouldn’t have to pay a premium for it,” said Jamie Siminoff, Chief Inventor and Founder of Ring.

It’s our mission of making neighborhoods safer that inspires us all at Ring to push the boundaries of innovation on behalf of our customers. This commitment to innovation began nine years ago in a small garage in Los Angeles, California.

How It All Started

Back in 2011, Jamie and a few like-minded and ambitious inventors were spending long hours in Jamie’s garage with the goal of creating something cool and important. They didn’t know what it was going to be, but they were determined to find out.

One day, Jamie got frustrated that they kept missing deliveries because they couldn’t hear the doorbell from the garage. He went online looking for a doorbell that connected to his phone, but was surprised that it didn’t exist. So he decided to make it.

As soon as he had the first prototype, he installed it on his own door. One of his first customers was his wife, Erin. She loved it right away, not just for the convenience, but for the security of being able to safely answer the door from anywhere. “This is like caller ID for the front door,” she said. Later, Jamie admitted that, “If not for my wife, the Ring Video Doorbell would not exist.”

The team got straight to work to make the first smart video doorbell a reality for the customers. It was no easy feat to create a brand new device with a video camera that would detect motion and send instant notifications to a mobile app, all in a size small enough to replace a doorbell. On top of that, it turned out that not everybody was as supportive of the idea as Erin, so funding was hard to secure, too.

In spite of all that, in less than a year, the skeleton crew built and shipped the predecessor of the Ring Video Doorbell - Doorbot - to customers. In about a year, 20,000 units were sold in over 85 countries. That laid the foundation for the development of the original Ring Video Doorbell that launched in 2014 and has been our flagship device ever since.

The New Ring Video Doorbell

Since that launch, Ring has grown out of Jamie’s garage into a global community of neighbors dedicated to that mission of making neighborhoods safer. And while we are now proud to offer a whole lineup of smart home security devices, including Ring Security Cameras, Ring Alarm and Ring Smart Lighting, we still continue to innovate on the products our customers already love, like the Ring Video Doorbell.

With the next generation Ring Video Doorbell, you get even more security features -- from enhanced audio quality and crisper night vision, to Snapshot Capture that takes still snapshots at certain intervals throughout the day. This allows you to review on your timeline what’s happened in front of your doorbell in-between recorded events and Live View. The adjustable motion zones now come with an additional near zone, that helps you only receive alerts you care about most. And to make it even easier to remove the battery for charging, we have revamped the mounting system, as well.

The new Ring Video Doorbell arrives with the latest privacy features:

Privacy Zones help you control what you want to see and what you don’t. You can specify areas in the doorbell camera’s field-of-view as ‘off-limits,’ so that the Ring App won't record anything in that area or display it in the Live View.

Modes lets you choose, with just one tap, how your Ring Video Doorbell operates using three different modes: Home, Away, Disarmed.

The Ring Video Doorbell also works with Alexa, so you can enjoy hands-free home monitoring with select Alexa-enabled devices, hear custom notifications, use two-way talk with Echo Dot, launch video with Echo Show, and more.

“Ring Video Doorbell is one of our most popular products, and neighbors love the outsized value it provides,” Jamie Siminoff said. “Today, we take it to the next level.”

The Ring Video Doorbell is now available for pre-order for $99.99.