Doorbell: Which most affordable with no subscription works?

Hi all!

I need your advice on buying a video doorbell to go with my Homey Pro 2023. Here are my requirements (the most important on top):
-Need to be compatible with Homey Pro
-Should cover most of my needs without a subscription
-Should run on DC current (so I don’t have to care about low batteries)
-Should send live video when pressed (viewable on device listed below)
-Should enable two-way communication
-Should start recording on motion detection
-Should have night vision
-Should store recordings in cloud (DropBox, OneDrive, Google disk, …)
-Should cost as little as possible

Viewable on devices:
-My phone ((Android and iPhone) should pop up when someone rings the bell)
-Google Chromecast (Nest hub and/or Chromecast/Google TV)

There’s a lot of options out there but I would like to know which one you would recommend and why. I’m also interested in which ones I should not consider and why?

Thank you for taking your time.

I don’t think a Eufy doorbell supports this, but the other things are supported, make sure you pick the right one that can be powered, not all of them have that option.

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There’s a pretty good mini test of the best door bells of 2021 on this Norwegian site Tek.no (everyone reads Norwegian, right?). With their set of criteria, “Arlo Wire-Free Video Doorbell” won the test. They don’t meet my criteria well…

I assume I could compromise the battery compartment in a battery operated unit, sliding in the small wires providing DC to the unit and close the gap with silicone voiding the warranty for sure, but that would work, right?

If that would work, then I could extend the candidates to include the battery operated unites. Reason why I don’t really want battery operated, is that I live in a tougher climate where batteries don’t operate well, and the unit will be on a cabin where I might be away for weeks… months… It’s usually not practical :- ) Just practical to install.

What did you end up buying?

Aqara G4 works with HomeKit App super good thanks to the developer

Hi Arne. I ended up with Google Nest Doorbell and chose to power it with 24V via wire. Benefits:

  • Easy to mount
  • Looks great
  • Works fast
  • Alarms me and can detect: persons (optional face recognition), animals, vehicles, packages
  • Good integration with Homey Pro

To answer my “requirements”:
Yes: Need to be compatible with Homey Pro
Yes: Should cover most of my needs without a subscription
Yes: Should run on DC current (so I don’t have to care about low batteries)
Yes: Should send live video when pressed (viewable on device listed below)
Yes: Should enable two-way communication
Yes: Should start recording on motion detection
Yes: Should have night vision
Yes*: Should store recordings in cloud (DropBox, OneDrive, Google disk, …)
???: Should cost as little as possible

The cost is as it is. Not among the cheapest doorbells.
Yes*: It stores any recordings for 4 hours for free. If you buy a subscription, the recordings stay as long as you like (I think).

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Also if someone will be looking for some solution, now thanks to Gal and his integration Bticino/Legrand/Netatmo App for Homey | Homey Netatmo Doorbell works really nice.

YES -Need to be compatible with Homey Pro - Bticino/Legrand/Netatmo App for Homey | Homey or Athom implementation
YES - Should cover most of my needs without a subscription
YES - Should run on DC current (so I don’t have to care about low batteries)
YES - Should send live video when pressed (viewable on device listed below*)
YES - Should enable two-way communication
YES - Should start recording on motion detection
YES - Should have night vision
YES - Should store recordings in cloud (DropBox, OneDrive, Google disk, …)

Viewable on devices:
YES - My phone ((Android and iPhone) should pop up when someone rings the bell)
partially - Google Chromecast (Nest hub and/or Chromecast/Google TV) - snapshot can be sent to Chromecast on event detected via Homey app via Homey integration

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I’m intrigued. How have you used the G4 with the HomeKit app. I’ve added it today and can’t see any flow option for a doorbell press. How are you utilising it in homey at the moment? Thanks