Full description not available
P**O
Not perfect, but good enough that we're happy with it
This is our first video doorbell so we really don't have anything to compare it against but I'd still like to share our experience with it.It arrived a week ago and I started getting it hooked up the next day. It came with two ways to attach the back plate to the wall, screws and a 3M adhesive strip. I chose to use the screws because I was afraid that if I used the adhesive strip might remove the paint if we ended up not liking and removing the doorbell. I think it was the right call as the screws are very thin so the holes are not very noticeable, except that the included screws were just awful. They came with plastic anchors which I didn't use since the screws were going straight into wood. I drilled the proper size pilot holes first and then used a manual screwdriver, not a drill or electric screwdriver, to screw them in but still one stripped out and another completely broke off. I had to use locking plies to get the broken screw out, then I went to Ace Hardware to get better screws which worked great, screwed in with no problems at all.There are two ways to power the doorbell, either hooking it up to the existing doorbell wiring or using the included rechargeable batteries. I started with the batteries until we tried it out a bit, especially because there was no slack in our current wiring so if I used it I couldn't experiment with different height placements. I got it synced to both my phone and the plug-in doorbell chime with no problems. To sync with the phone, the doorbell sends out an audio signal which the app listens for. This is different from all the other smart Wi-Fi devices we have around the house which typically involve creating an account. For viewing the live video feed on your phone you can pick either standard definition or high definition. The standard def didn't look that great while the hi-def came through very crisp and clear, even at night. The audio was also clear, easy to hear both ways.When the doorbell rings you can choose to have it either ring your phone or send a notification (or do nothing). I chose to have it ring my phone and that screen looks similar to the standard incoming call screen where you have a green answer button and a red ignore button. It seemed like sometimes I would get random notifications but I learned later that the random ones were actually motion detection alerts. Unfortunately you can't change the ringtone to differentiate between motion detection and button presses. Even worse is that you can't change the ringtone to differentiate between a phone call and a doorbell notification, so when you hear your phone ringing you don't know if it's a phone call, someone ringing the doorbell, or someone or something moving around in front of the walkway. The delay between ringing the doorbell and receiving the notification is only about a second while the delay for the motion detection seems to be a bit longer and varied anywhere between a few seconds to a couple minutes. By the time I get the motion detection notification and get my phone out to look the delivery guy is either already back in his truck or already driven away. And because it's not recording all the time like an NVR there's no way to go back and see what caused the motion detection to trigger (as far as I can tell).Once you have the doorbell synced to your phone you can share it to other phones using a QR code. The instruction manual says that shared phones can see the video but cannot use audio, but that's not correct. I shared with my wife's phone and she can both hear the person at the doorbell and can talk to them through her phone so they must have updated the app and/or firmware since the instructions were printed. Speaking of updating, the app said there was a firmware update available but when I tried updating it would always just be stuck saying "Downloading0%". The batteries were a bit low so I took the doorbell off the back plate and plugged it into my USB charger (USB cord and charger not included but it uses a standard micro-USB connection). After it was fully charged it didn't seem to be synced with my phone anymore so I did a factory reset and re-synced it. After that I tried updating the firmware again and it updated properly this time. We haven't had any sync problems since then, which has been about seven days so far. If we do have any more problems I'll make sure to post an update.This video doorbell isn't perfect as there's no way to change the phone notification ringtone or distinguish phone notifications between button presses and motion activation or easily download recorded video, but it does have enough cool features like crisp video day or night, clear audio, live viewing anytime, instant ring notification, multiple power options that for only $80 we are plenty happy with it.If you found my review helpful please let me know by hitting that button below otherwise please leave me a comment letting me know what I can do to improve. Thanks a bunch!UpdateI learned that, despite what I said in my original review, this does indeed record video when someone rings the bell and when it detects motion so long as you have a memory card installed. These recordings are marked on the timeline in red so you can scroll back through the timeline and stop wherever you see red to replay the video. Pretty neat!
M**I
Not worth the money or hassle. (Updated in description)
I received the product when it was already getting dark so I took the time to set it up with the app and everything was working fine. I didn't like that when motion was detected a picture isn't taken. With my last doorbell that was a feature that I really enjoyed but I was able to look past it. The next day I went outside to mount the backplate by the front door and attached the doorbell and thought everything was ready to go. I rang the doorbell and my phone never received a notification. I paired the doorbell again and it worked fine for the first 2 rings..after that it stopped sending notifications to my phone again. I went through all the settings in the app and made sure everything was set up correctly, which it was, but it still never stayed consistent with sending notifications. Not only that but the motion detection worked 0% of the time. I stayed walking around my front door for a good minute and it never detected motion even when set on high. I took the doorbell back off and reset it and paired it again and the same issues remained. The chime as well had it's own issues with not staying set on the tone that was selected. That is not a big issue but felt it worth mentioning in the myriad of problems I had with this product. I'm going to be returning this and investing in a better one that actually does what it says it's going to do.Updated 9/22/18 - I returned the doorbell and the company has been in contact with me several times since then. They were very determined to fix the problem. The company offered to replace the doorbell but like I stated I had already returned it. Im leaving on a trip for 2 months in a few days and needed a working doorbell that wouldn't cause me issues while I'm gone. After the company understood exactly what my problem was they offered to send out another doorbell with expedited shipping to try and make it before my trip. I'm updating the review stars to 3 stars for the company actually trying to help.
K**F
Too early to accurately review
Have only used this one day but wanted to list pros and cons as I understand them right now:Pros:- connected readily to wifi ( even though was higher than their recommended 2.4G protocol. we do not have this we have 5 something)- great clear pics, wide angle- night vision looks great too- easy to install- no cloud service needed!- motion detection very sensitive - this might be a con for someCons:- POOR INSTRUCTIONS. They are better than most Chinese/English translations but they are very lacking in detail and sometimes confusing.- Chinese made - Notification on app after motion detected is this: "Notification whether to view". Just oddI have written customer service in hopes they can elaborate on how to use playback, delete stored images etc. Plan to update review as I learn more. Currently on the fence if the savings over the Ring model are worth it - and I've never owned a video doorbell so nothing to compare this to.
R**S
Difficult set up and unreliable
The instructions are clearly translated to English, very limited, and vague. It took an online search and two days of attempts to actually set up the camera and app. There are times it records but there is nothing visible and other times it doesn’t detect movement it should. Occasionally the doorbell rings unprompted. The batteries do not last 6 months! It would be nice if there was a notification feature when they are low, it is up to you to monitor levels through the app. I purchased a battery charger separate because plugging it in takes longer. After charging I had to re-pair to the app and didn’t realize it hadn’t been working because when I initially checked the app it seemed to be working. The batteries quit holding a charge after 3 months of use but the Geree company stood by their warranty and service promise, which was fantastic!
Trustpilot
3 weeks ago
2 weeks ago
