Customer Ratings & Reviews

NOTE FOR APPLE USERS: Google's Nest products don't integrate with Apple HomeKit well. For example, with this Nest Doorbell, you don't be able to see images/videos/streaming from the camera using your MacOS/iOS/iPadOS HOME app. You're forced to use Google's native Home app, which is honestly one extra, unnecessary step. That being said, the camera works perfectly well for its intended purpose. I use it inside an apartment complex to keep an eye out for packages while I travel for work/personal trips. Installation is pretty self explanatory. The item comes with a rubber wedge that you can install prior to mounting the doorbell to give it an angle. Installation is a breeze and I'd recommend having a Google Account ready to go through the process. Battery life purely depends on how often it's being used. Mine goes off multiple times a day for packages and neighbors passing by my door but I can still get a solid 3-4 months (estimate) out of it before having to recharge the device. Camera is equipped a wide-angle (vertical) lens. Picture quality is highly dependent on lighting. Because mine is set in a building hallway with clinically bright lighting, the image quality looks great. Locations with lots of shade (awning/porch cover/poor lighting) may cause some image quality degradation. The AI is smart enough to recognize if it's a person, animal, person with a package, etc. A LOT of features are locked behind the Google subscription paywall. Specifically all-day recording. The standard system can do Live Video streams whenever you like. The video RECORDINGS, on the other hand, are short clips that last for however long the moving object is there. If it doesn't sense anything, nothing is recorded. Full history video recordings of clips only go back 24 hours. The subscription will allow for significantly more (you're paying for server space and access to the videos, essentially). Honestly, I have more gripes about the SOFTWARE more than the HARDWARE. The ONLY issue I have with the hardware is that the way to unmount the camera to bring it in for charging is a thin metal "key." It's quite literally a flat metal piece so anyone can just plop the camera off your mount if they had something like a metal nail file on hand.

Really like the simple and clean design of this. IMO it looks a lot better then Ring. Can be put anywhere with Wi-Fi in battery mode, also has the option to be hardwired to your old doorbell wiring in most cases. Has good field of view and allows you to see faces but also packages on the ground. With nest aware you can name people, and when they come to your hose it will say “John is at the door” instead of “someone”. Pretty neat. Only thing I don’t like is there is no option for 27-7 recording like my old indoor nest cams. Sometimes this will start recording an event late, or not at all. Also the resolution isn’t 1080, so picture quality is good, but could be better.

This is an easy to install video doorbell. The video picture is very good. A large area can be seen. I got it on sale and using Google home app is also easy to use.

I only wanted it for the video doorbell and to see when people and deliveries happen. Both things it does well. After having it for a few months I can say the cold weather kills the battery fast. I usually ha e to charge it every 2-3 weeks. But I kind of expected it so it doesn't really bother me too much. The biggest hurdle I had was getting a good mount for it. I got tired of trying what was available and what came with it and 3d printed my own. It came out so much better. I don't subscribe to the additional plans so I can't speak to how they work. It does what I wanted it to.

It works great! The image is very good! The size I ready the idea that it was smaller and the need to use the google home app stead nest it is another con but in general it is an awesome product

Pretty good camera for my first door bell camera. I got a mount from Amazon and was installed easily for the battery operated one. The videos are a bit choppy but I’m unsure if it due to my WiFi. I’ll test it more when I have to charge the battery.

So far so good. It can be a little tricky to install but there are helpful videos all over the internet. The image is clear, audio is good and this is a simple but effective upgrade over a standard doorbell.

The doorbell is good compared to others. I had the doorbell from Vivint and I like this doorbell more because of the extra features. Compared to Ring doorbell I’d say they are about even. That’s my opinion… the battery life lasts about 2 weeks sometimes a few extra days past the 2 week mark, but ours gets plenty of use. BIGGEST ISSUE!! there is a black button on the back of the doorbell that locks the doorbell into place, well it gets stuck and you have try and clean it or wiggle it out…. If you don’t it won’t click to lock into place correctly. I had this issue on the first Google doorbell after about 9 months. Family friend went to ring the doorbell and it fell off the mount and broke when it hit the floor. I turned it over and the darn button was stuck inside. Wasn’t able to warranty it because now it was broken… there are two screws on the back that I use as a safety now just incase that happens again it won’t fall on the floor and I can warranty it out.

This works fine and the video quality is great. The only issue is I get notifications late most of the time but that may be caused by my wifi so I don't know for sure. it works well with my Alexa devices and I love it. I was good that I ordered from Best Buy as I have total tech and they installed it for free. win win

Good buy, easy installation and setup. Would have been nice to have the ability to cast stream to Android tv (Google tv with Chromecast), not sure why Google withdrew this support. Overall a good buy.

Installation was a bit tricky given the completr lack of any written instructions. They do provide a qr code which takes you to a youtube video, butnit still left a few issues unaddressed such as how best to incorporate the house wiring as an option. Also there was no provision of sny operating instructions leaving one to learn as you go.

Handles all weather. Clear image displayed and no delay. The app is a lil slow to load, however.

============================== >>>>> Bottom Line Up front: <<<<< ============================== - Sleek modern “minimalist” exterior design – check, - good quality audio and reasonable field of view video capture – check, - super easy installation and instructions – check & check - Must be married to the Google Ecosystem to unlock ALL of the functionality and special features – CHECK If your ok with having only 3 hours of free "historical" events recorded to the “cloud” (and no means of local/backup storage for them) – I think you’d be hard pressed to find a a better video doorbell camera for the money. Be prepared to pay an extra monthly subscription fee to get anywhere from 30-60 days worth of "cumulative" event history (depending on how much extra you want to pay per month). Battery life was a big concern based off my personal usage settings, and the night time recordings where not as “good” as my previous video doorbell - ( which had better IR illumination and resolution) when compared to this Nest Doorbell. ========================== > Overall Design/Aesthetics: < ========================== Video Doorbells seemingly come into 2 varieties that I have noticed lately – “bar” / “rounded” shaped OR “box” / rectangular shaped. This Nest Doorbell clearly falls into the “bar” side of things shape wise, so if it had a very modern “flat” look to it from my eyes. In this “Snow” color, it matched well with my white door trim and looked right at home. If “Snow” white doesn’t work, the Nest Doorbell can also be had in 3 additional colors to better match your style: Ash, Ivy, and Linen. I really the clean flat overall look it provided over my other video door bell that was essentially a black rectangular box that protruded several inched from my nice white door trim. I also appreciate the inclusion of USB-C as the charging/communications port for the hardware. It is pretty much time for the Micro-USB standard to go away, as USB-C provided so much faster charge times and data transfer rates – and the Nest Doorbell benefits from this by getting faster charge times. Surprisingly there are still several other doorbells out there that use the older Micro USB standard. Installation wise – it could be easier. Everything is provided in the box to get you going, and Google videos and resources really make the whole super painless. Obviously, you need to utilize the Google Home App to control and interact with the Nest Doorbell – which is odd since there is already a Google Nest App – for other devices (which we have in our home – like our Nest Thermostat). It would be nice if they just pick one or the other to not have to manage some Nest Devices in one app, and some Nest devices in the other. Interesting side note – the Nest Camera will not work if it is not firmly inserted into the metal support bracket that is part of the installation process. I was a little to “careful” when locking into place and was surprised to see that I could not fully use the camera in the Google Home App. ==================================== > Personal thoughts /Usage observations: < ==================================== This Google Nest Doorbell (Battery version) checks off a lot of features that I believe most people are looking for in video doorbell “security” camera these days. The filed of view that the Nest Doorbell provides was more of a “tall” vantage point versus “wide” that I was more accustomed to from my previous doorbell. The was super useful to capture packages and events that occurred super low on my doorstep on my front porch. Since I live in a townhome, this was perfect since I didn’t need to see all my other neighbor’s front porches in my recorded events. Take into account the Nest Doorbell’s very useful and accurate “smart” alerts, and I was left impressed with the “smarts” the Nest Doorbell was bringing to the table. Unfortunately, in this default configuration, I was getting A LOT of events recorded at first – since my front townhouse door faces 3 driveways, a busy street, and neighborhood kids constantly playing in very close to our porch and driveway in the background. I really had to dig into the setting to cut back on many of recording options to negate the rate the battery was being depleted from the constant recording. Which in turn made me feel like I was potentially missing out on “events” – just to save battery. I know hardwiring is an option, and I may just break down and do that because I don’t think we will get a month of usage on battery alone. Your mileage will obviously vary based on event recording length and number of activities or “zones” you configure for your use. ========================== >>>>> Closing thoughts: <<<<< ========================== There are some pretty big features missing that I would like to have seen incorporated into the Nest Doorbell – chief among them is some type of option for local storage. I like the idea of having “optional” local storage so my events are not being stored someplace I cannot access them in the event of service outage (not to mention theoretical cloud security concerns). This makes me feel like I have to subscribe to the “Nest Aware” service for an additional monthly fee – to get the most out of things. Especially when you take into account that the “3 free” hours aren’t saved as a series of “recorded events – just a “period of time” – is a real bummer. This means if someone broke into your car at 2:00AM and you woke up at 7:00AM (5 hours later) you wouldn’t have been able to see the footage since the 3-hour window had passed – so again, If you want to actually use it as a “security” device – you essentially need the Nest Aware subscription. To really get the most of out the super awesome smart alerts – you need to have/be a part of the Google ecosystem. We have a good mix of Amazon Alexa, Google Nest, Apple AND Android powered smart speakers and assistant devices throughout our home… so, it is interesting to me that roughly half my devices don’t play as nice with the Nest Doorbell as at all. Overall, I really like the Nest Doorbell for its aesthetics, installation, and relatively good feature set – just remember to get the most out of it you need to: 1. Have Google Devices 2. Pay for Nest Aware subscription Otherwise, there are probably better choice on the market that will let you record in higher definition, save your capture locally and not require additional monthly fees – they just won’t look as good on your front door.

Wish it was connected to the Nest app. The google home app is so bad compared to Nest.

About The Nest Doorbell (Battery) is Google’s easiest to install, most flexible video doorbell to date. It boasts an almost anywhere installation, night vision, automatic alerts, 24/7 live viewing in HDR, video and audio recording, and a free 30-day trial to Nest Aware (if you don’t already have it). Installation I have owned several video doorbells, and this is by far the easiest one I have installed. This doorbell runs off a battery, so you do not have to rely connecting it to a doorbell chime for power (though you can if you would like to). My setup had very few steps to get it operational. You charge it, add it to the Google Home App, and mount it. From there you are just making preference tweaks in the app. Charging can take up to 5 hours. You can add it to the Google Home App while this is happening to save a little time. The mount comes with a flat mount base plate and an optional 20 degree wedge if you want to angle it away from a corner. For me the mounting was just installing the flat base plate with two screws. It took just a few minutes. The camera slides into the base which makes it easy to remove for when you need to charge it. For my setup I am using this as an extra doorbell (and camera) for my backdoor. I already have a video doorbell at the front which is wired to the doorbell chime. The back door is not wired for this, so the battery operation allows me the flexibility to add a doorbell very easily here. There is no chime with the doorbell, so I am notified on my phone app and I have tied them to my Google Home Hubs to announce any rings. Features Here are some of the main features of the doorbell: • 960p video quality with HDR (2 settings for quality in the app) • Night Vision • Can be used indoor or outdoor • Wire free installation – battery powered • Phone alerts for movement • Learning facial recognition (in the settings and with Nest Aware) • Audio recording and speaking My Experience Video Quality - I consider the video quality to be good. 960p is a lower pixel rate than you would typically see, but the HDR addition makes up for picture quality. The lower pixel setting was probably chosen to limit the strain on the battery. There are two video quality settings, and I had to use the max setting for the video quality to feel like it was worth using. The higher quality uses more of the battery power. Audio Quality – The person viewing the camera feed can hear the person on camera clearly while they are close to the camera (5 feet). Sound quality diminishes as things are further away. The bigger issue was when the person viewing speaks there is a terrible echo on the camera side. For instance, if you are talking to the delivery person at your door, you will hear them fine, but they will hear you and their own echo. The echo is louder than the other person’s voice. I reached out to Google about this, but they did not have a reasonable solution of how to fix it. The Nest Cam also does this for me. Recording – Without any additional subscriptions the camera can record 3 hours of events for you to play back for free. Live 24/7 video streaming is also free. You can subscribe to Nest Aware to increase your video storage to 30 days or 60 days. It is important to note that you cannot record in 24/7 mode with this doorbell even if it is configured in the wired setup. If you want to do 24/7 recording you need to look at the Nest Hello. Adding Nest Aware also gives you the ability to use Face Detection. This is something that you help the doorbell to learn. Battery Consumption – The battery consumption seems to be fairly minimal. On max video quality I have used 14% over the course of a full week. My camera was installed outdoors and in a fairly high traffic area (we have a dog to let in and out constantly). These two factors will affect your battery usage. Also, the battery is not replaceable. App Quality – I like the Google Home App that controls the settings. The playback feature is easy to use. Many of the other camera manufacturers have awful playback software. The alerts seem to be prompt as well, but that will be dependent on your internet connection. The Nest Doorbell will not work with the Nest App. You must use the Google Home App. Quick Responses – There are quick responses that are pre-loaded in the app to respond to someone ringing the doorbell. You also have a Quiet Time option to use. Activity Zones – You can control what the camera is looking at to avoid extra recording. There are also types of alerts that you can turn off: People, Animal, Package and Vehicle. Overall The Nest Doorbell (Battery) is a very easy to install video doorbell with good video quality. It really meets the need for people who want a doorbell, but do not have the wiring in place. For me, being able to add the backdoor camera and doorbell is a really nice feature. The biggest complaint that I have is the audio loop issue. Other than that I really enjoy this product. I am giving this doorbell 4 stars.

See what's happening at your door from anywhere and get intelligent alerts about important activity, like when there's a person, package, animal, or vehicle.* And because there are no wires, you can install it yourself.

The Nest Doorbell (battery) is our first smart video doorbell, but not our only product from Nest, as we also have their Learning Thermostat. Since we already have multi-room smart speakers throughout the house and security system hubs with screens, we were hoping to have the doorbell play a chime through them or display its video feed on our existing screens, when the doorbell button was pressed, however, the Nest Doorbell is only able to do this with Google branded speakers, hubs, or screens. Since we don't own other products in the Google IOT ecosphere, we can only get push notifications from the doorbell and view its video on our mobile devices through the Google Home app. Thankfully, a hard-wire kit is included with the doorbell, so we could at least use our wired electric doorbell chime for an audible notification throughout the house, and it would be permanently powered as an added bonus. The doorbell camera itself is quite large as it contains a fairly sizeable battery. The battery is rated to last 1.5 to 6 months depending on the frequency of usage eg. average number of daily events it records and other battery saver settings like video/audio quality and minimum event recording length. When the battery power is low, it will enter into a "low power" mode to conserve more battery until you charge the unit; to charge it, you'll need to take down the unit and plug it in via the included USB-C cable for about 5 hours. The other option is to direct-wire it to a compatible doorbell transformer. As for installation instructions, a link to a video demonstrating the battery operated installation is included in the box, but no written instructions. If you want to perform a wired installation, you'll have to search for those directions on your own, but it's easy to find the video for that process as well. However, one thing that was unclear during my installation was whether or not I needed to install the diode that came with my chime on the wire contacts of the Nest Doorbell; while my chime appeared to be compatible, since I wasn't able to find any information from Google/Nest specifically mentioning installing a diode one way or the other, I did not install it. Other than that, the installation process was pretty straightforward and took about 15 minutes. There’s also an angled wedge included if you need to change the direction the camera faces by 20°. For the most part, the doorbell works pretty much as advertised. When I ring the bell, a notification pops up on my phone through the Google Home app, and I can view the doorbell's live video and audio feed and use the mic to communicate with someone in front of it. The external chime that I wired to the doorbell also starts ringing right away and kind of works, but my problem is that the “length of ring” setting in the app for electronic chimes can only be set in whole second increments, which either cuts off the chime before the melody is done playing (6 secs) or allows the chime to start repeating before getting cut off (7 secs). With my normal mechanical doorbell, I never had a problem with the chime playing the melody all the way through exactly once. The app experience is just okay. During setup, I was a bit disappointed to find that the Nest Doorbell (battery) could not be added to the existing Nest app that is used to control the Nest Learning Thermostat and can only be added to the Google Home app. Doing this took me a few tries too because the Home app wanted to use my existing Nest product to "assist" the setup by passing along my WiFi network name and password, but it kept failing. I ended up needing to remove the Nest thermostat from my account first, enter my WiFi network info manually, and then re-add the thermostat through the Nest app which was then pulled into the Google Home app. After setup, navigating the app is somewhat clunky and it took me a while to figure out how to download a saved event video clip (you have to go into the "event details"). Changing and customizing the settings for the doorbell was pretty easy though. I was also surprised to find that the free 3-hour event recording history is not a cumulative measure of time. Instead, it is a 3-hour lookback period, which means you can view any events that happened in the past 3 hours, but no earlier, even if the amount of recorded footage during this period amounts to only a few minutes. So if I viewed something in the event history yesterday that I wanted to re-watch today, I wouldn’t be able to do so, unless I downloaded the clip during the 3-hour period when it was available to view or had a Nest Aware subscription. The monthly Nest Aware subscription adds benefits like a longer event history period, familiar faces recognition, allowing the unit to announce your frequent visitors' names, sound detection like glass breaking or smoke alarms, and emergency calling to 911. Note that there is no way to enable 24/7 recording (to capture non-event footage), even if you choose to hardwire the unit and get a Nest Aware subscription. The camera itself has local onboard storage for 1 hour's worth of footage, which is helpful if it gets disconnected from the internet and can’t upload it to the cloud right away. I will say that the video footage is clear and crisp with plenty of detail at 960x1280p, and the viewing angle is wide at 160° field of view (FOV) in a 4:3 ratio. The audio picked up from the doorbell is also quite good with decent volume. However, when speaking through the mic in the app, the speaker on the doorbell itself isn't very loud, so sometimes it's hard for your visitor/guest to hear you. You can opt, instead, to respond to doorbell rings with a pre-scripted message that is recited in Google's text-to-speech voice. I also liked that you can select intelligent motion detection options for specific types of events like people, vehicles, animals, or packages versus all motion, and you can also define multiple detection zones within the view for specific event activity and customize the alert settings for each one separately. Overall, I do like having the features of the doorbell, from the high quality video and audio capture, to the intelligent event recording and notifications, which was fairly accurate, though we did find that door-less mail and delivery vehicles often came up as “person” events because the camera picked up the driver inside. You have the flexibility for a wired or battery operation installation, and if you’re already using Google speakers and screens, this doorbell would work seamlessly with them. If you’re like me, and don’t though, you may still be able to hook it up to your existing doorbell chime as a low-tech workaround. The biggest drawbacks for me are the lack of 24/7 and non-event recording, the fact that my wired chime doesn't play through exactly once, and the relatively short "free" event history review period without a monthly subscription.

I got this Google Nest Doorbell battery smart doorbell to upgrade my current smart doorbell. The first thing I noticed is the clean designed, but considerably larger than my current doorbell, probably due to the battery inside. It measures approximately 6.25”x1.8”. Although it’s called “Google - Nest Doorbell Battery”, it can be hard wired as well. I thought the name with “battery” in it was a bit confusing. Setup: Included in the box was everything I needed to install the Google Nest doorbell, USB-C charging cable, wire harness thing to install, screws, mounting plate and It even included a 20-degree wedge plate to mount the doorbell on an angle. This came in handy for me as my doorbell is on the right hand side of the door, visitors would walk up my walkway on the left, this would allow the motion to detect when people are coming to my doorway, not just when they’re already in front. The install was fairly easy, I mounted mine on the bricks, so I had to use a special drill bit and screws. This is connected to my existing “dumb” doorbell chime mounted on the wall. It sounds a bit off, but it could be my chime. Be sure to keep the little “key” handy for those that plan to install it in a spot where power is not available. The setup on the Google Home app was quite simple. Launch the app and follow the steps. It took about 3-4 minutes without any issues. The doorbell has facial recognition feature and recognizes when someone has a package. When the package is removed, it will also let you know the package is no longer seen. For the facial recognition, you have to names the faces that the Google Nest picked up. You do this in the Google home app under Home Settings – Nest Aware - Familiar face detection. The facial recognition feature worked for me sometimes, I would say about 30-40% of the time. Perhaps this will improve over time. To allow other family members to view the camera, in the app, there’s a link “Invite home member”. This will send them a link to download the app and provides the details they need to set this up on their app. One downside is that I could not get this doorbell to work with my nest app, I have nest smoke alarms already, I was hoping I would be able to add the doorbell to the same app. It seems, for now at least, I can’t and a separate app is required. Usage: The HD video quality is very good, in daylight, the video is clear. In low light, the IR’s provide enough light to get a clear black and white image. In the daytime, the camera exposure is very nice, I can see the visitor’s face and I can see the blue skies in the background. The lens is a wide angle lens of course, this allows me to not only see the visitor at the door, but when the motion is triggered, I see my front yard and part of my driveway as well. Conclusion: Overall, the Google Nest doorbell battery is an excellent choice for anyone looking for a smart doorbell. For me, once I got over the size of the device, I found the Google doorbell to be much smarter than my old doorbell! This is a great add-on if you’re already on the Google ecosystem and have their cameras and voice assistant. If you’re in the Amazon Alexa camp, there’s a “Google Home” skill you can add to make this doorbell Alexa compatible. Pros: 1. Clean minimalist design. 2. I like the pre-recorded responses, choose from: “You can just leave it”, We’ll be right there” No one can come to the door”. 3. Facial recognition – it easily recognized members of my family after setting up. 4. Battery or hard wired connection makes this doorbell very flexible. 5. Google Home app allows you to add 3rd party devices (Arlo cameras for example). This is a nice feature, you can eliminate an app and view your cameras in 1 place. Cons: 1. Subscription required if you want videos saved and be able to access. Both plans offer discounts for annual payment. Without a subscription, you can only view 3 hours of events. 2. Don’t have the ability to customize the pre-recorded responses, it would be nice to add “Go away” for those pesky door to door salespeople! 3. The doorbell is on the large side, almost the size of a TV remote control. 4. Could not add camera to nest app, needed to install Google Home to setup doorbell camera.

Let me start by saying I wish there was one video doorbell that would do everything without a monthly service fee... Now that that is out of the way, I do like the Google Nest Doorbell. Full disclosure, after initial testing, I opted for wiring the device because I can. We tested the battery version and determined that we'd really have to tweak the "always on" options down to "mostly off" to get the best battery results (supposedly up to 6 months but totally impossible to predict based on a combination of what settings you choose to leave "on" and how often you have people at your door) and decided to use the wires to take full advantage of this replacement doorbell. We bought this doorbell for two reasons: (1) Our previous video doorbell had a delay of about 8-10 seconds before it would alert my phone (on mobile network) of a visitor. Most people would give up by then. (2) We are heavy Google Home/Assistant users and I wanted to try to "simplify" my smart home devices. I am pleased to say our "alert" time to the in-house chime and Google devices is "instantaneous" and over a mobile network my phone gets an alert within about 3-5 seconds. There was also a third reason: Our previous brand of doorbell confused users between the camera and the logo/doorbell button. Everyone was always pushing our camera for some odd reason. The Google Nest doorbell leaves no confusion between camera and button. Installation was a breeze and starts with the unboxing experience. You have everything you need including a mounting plate, angle adjusting plate, screws, anchors, quick-release tool (helpful if you are using the battery feature), a quick install wiring harness, and a USB-C cable for the initial charging (charger not provided). All told it took about 10 minutes for me to physically install the device. However, before installing, you need to run connectivity process on your phone. Basically, scan a QR code then logon to your Nest or Google Home account and follow the instructions to connect to your wifi and unlock the Google Assistant features. Note that the app will ask you if you plan to use the device via battery or wire. Tools required include a drill (optional--only needed if you need to predrill for anchors), a level (optional) and a phillips screwdriver. Two-wire installation does NOT require a degree in electrical engineering. It was insanely easy. Once installed, we discovered some interesting things. Again, my home is very "Google smart." A push of the button lit up video of the front door on our Google Hub in the kitchen AND turned down the volume on our Vizio Smart TV (YouTubeTV was active at the time). Obviously my mobile phone also received an alert. We are not 100% sure yet how/why the TV muted--which required manual "un-muting." As for features and usability, I can live without the AI "facial recognition" which is part of the paid Nest monthly service. What I do not understand is why Google limits us to only 3 hours of free recording AND HISTORY. That means any overnight action will not be available when you get up in the morning. I wish I could store "unlimited" (realistically up to 7 days of "the doorbell was pushed" or "action detected" video history) video history in my Google One storage subscription. The fact that I do not get at least a TEXT history of things >3hrs ago is frustrating. Ideally I should still be able to see that at 4:15p yesterday someone rang the doorbell--and maybe even keep the screenshot of the person pushing the button. As mentioned previously, response time to my phone when away from the house is better with the Google Nest doorbell than my old video doorbell. The image is clear and the alerts, which can include "package detection" are clear and concise. The "instant response" feature (i.e. "Please just leave the package at the door" or "Give me a minute please...") is nice too. The 145° camera manages to cover most of my patio and captures activity at the mailbox too. I have tightened the "alerting" zone so that I don't get alerts about people walking their dog or cars driving past our house. In the end, while I am EXTREMELY disappointed in the limited recording history, the overall setup of the camera, integration with my Google smart home, and response time for alerts makes this doorbell a keeper...for now.

I think this is the 10th video doorbell I've had, my toughtest requirement is I want no false alarms. I have plenty of other cameras that detect motion and are fairly directional. The issue with all video door bells is they all have a fairly wide angle lens. This allows them to see motions from many locations besides just in front of the door. Many advertise to only pick up humans within x feet (using PIR). I've yet to find one that does just that. I live on a fairly busy street, lots of foot trafic as a school is just down the street. So I must have a camera that allows me to select the area of motion I'm interested in (that works). Well the new Google Nest Doorbell (battery), seems to tick all the right boxes, but I've found until you try it in your own environment you just don't know for sure. I have tired almost all the major (and many minor ones) video doorbells, none solved all my issues (or had too short of a battery life). So what I really want is for the doorbell to be mounted at an angle mostly looking at a wall to minimize false motion from the street. I'm hoping the "AI" in this doorbell really only detects people, and can recognise who it sees, and that its activity zone do what they should. Theft prevention is also a must. Let's start there, the doorbell mounts to a metal plate that is secured to either a wall directly or to provided 30 degree angle block. The fact that this is metal is a plus, as it will strongly hold the doorbell (others have a plastic holder that does not have real strength). The metal plate attaches tightly to the back with a pin through the top (see image) that locks the plate securely in place. There is a larger hole in the bottom that must also slide in place to secure the doorbell. I does hold it securely, it comes with a "key" that you press in the top to release it so you can recharge it (they claim the doorbell only needs to be recharged every 10 weeks - this would be great). So mounting was fairly easy, I got about the field of view I was hoping for. I have many Google "smart home" products so I already had Google home installed (it must be). I also have other Google Nest products, as it's called a Nest Doorbell, so I expected this doorbell to also show up there (long story short it [currently] will not (-1 star, Google don't call it a Nest product if it does not play nice with other Nest products!)) I spent some time with their nice support people trying to figure this out. So the Google Nest Doorbell (battery) must be added to the Google Home app to get it set up properly. This doorbell comes with a 30 trial of Nest Aware (there is the Nest name again). In order to use facial recognition OR the motion zones, you must have a Nest Aware account ($6/mo or $60/yr), for person recognition I understand this, but for the motion zones, this was a surprise (their docs said certain functions require Nest Aware, motion zones were not clearly identified). But the have the most complete set of motions zones of any doorbell, with up to 4 separate zones that can be defined, and you can trigger multiple alerts inside and outsize of each zone (I've not see this sophisticated of zone processing anywhere else. Within each zone you can trigger on people, packages, animals and vehicles. Again very cool, but must pay a monthly fee to use it... But now having tried it, I can tell you it is very accurate, it does a excellent job of recognising people. The user interface for setting up people you know is very easy to use/change. If you have a google home hub, and use the picture frame, people I know, functionality, it similar to this, except (currently) tied to the cameras captured images only. The night time IR processing is also excellent (see image), It's the best I've seen/used. The definition of zones is also easily done with their software. I did have some problems getting the software properly installed. My suggestion is to install and set up the Nest Aware trial before installing the doorbell. It seems (currently) that if then nest aware subscription is not enabled for your google home account when the doorbell is installed, some of the functionality does not appear in the app (can't enable motion zones, but can define). Image quality is excellent, speed of push notiifcation to the phone takes a little over a second, a little more to get 2 way audio, which is loud and clear to/and from the doorbell. The doorbell is fairly thin, but some what tall, I think it's attractive (it come in 4 colors). If it's size really give it 10 week battery life, I'm all for it. Whenever it's recording a small green led can be seen. I think the button at the bottom is obvious as a doorbell, my wife does not. I prefer the simplistic appearance. It does come with a video recording "icon" that could be placed on you window (if required locally). So far it's the best battery powered video doorbell I've found. I do wish it was fully integrated with the other nest products, as it is it can't be fully part of Nest's home/away functionality.