Blink Video Doorbell | 1080p HD video, motion detection alerts, battery or wired, Works with Alexa (Black)

10 reviews for Blink Video Doorbell | 1080p HD video, motion detection alerts, battery or wired, Works with Alexa (Black)

1. 

   Rated 4 out of 5

   team W – February 26, 2022

   
   I am a long-time user of Blink, meaning I am in the “grandfathered” set of customers with free, limited cloud storage for video. Overall, I think if you are already a Blink customer, this is a good addition to your system.Install: I needed one of those “wedges” that turns the camera to face out and using that, the install was pretty simple. I agree with the people that noted that the back plate it comes with (which you still use when installing the wedge) is a little cheap and janky. But the wedge is more sturdy and the resulting install is probably a little bit more solid and better than if I had just mounted the flat plate to the wall.You do need a good sized piece of flat wood to screw everything into. This is not going to mount well to raw siding, curved trim pieces around doors etc. You’d have to attach a small board to the surface of anything like that and then mount it to that board.Power vs. batteries: I have one of those wired doorbells that is old-school, with the metal strikers that hit little chimes, not a digital doorbell. This apparently matters because you need more power and a slightly larger transformer to drive one of those doorbells. In turn, that means the transformer has enough power to power the blink doorbell. If you have a digital doorbell you may (or may not) need to rely on the battery for the cameras. It all depends on how big the transformer for your existing, wired doorbell is. During the setup it asks you what kind of doorbell you have, and has a fairly sophisticated set of settings to make sure that when it sends a signal to the physical doorbell it is sending the correct amount of power to strike the chimes correctly.Set-up: Very easy and painless, almost exactly the same as setting up a regular blink camera. Put in the batteries, scan the QR code, it finds the camera, links it to your existing system/sync module and you are ready to go.Motion Sensor: If you are already pretty familiar with Blink cameras, you know they can come with one of two kinds of sensors to detect motion. Camera based sensors that just detect changes in the picture and more traditional sensors that only detect actual, physical movement. The cheaper Blink mini only has a camera based sensor, while the more expensive units only detect actual physical movement with a dedicated motion sensor. Both kinds of sensors can be triggered falsely by something like blowing leaves, but the camera-based sensors cannot distinguish changes in shadows and light from actual movement and so they have much higher rates of false detection. Unfortunately, the blink doorbell appears to only have the cheaper detector that can be fooled by changes in light. It does, however, have a more sophisticated, narrower grid of zones you can exclude from movement than the older Blink mini. How much this matters to you is going to depend on where you plan to stick the camera – if you point your doorbell camera directly at a busy road and don’t lock out the parts of the image that covers the road, you will get constant alerts from every car that goes by, or every person walking on the sidewalk, etc. So think carefully about where the camera will sit and whether you want one of those wedges to tilt the direction of the thing to keep the camera aimed only at places where you actually want it to detect motion.Video quality: Very good, with a wide angle, almost fish-eye lens, so you get very good broad coverage of the area you are pointing the camera at. There is also a microphone that records sound while you are recording video and it seems to work ok as well. In theory you can use the thing to have a two-way conversation with whoever is at the door, but I haven’t tried that yet. I am, overall, very happy with the camera quality for the price here.Sound Chime/notifications: When you push the doorbell, a chime inside the module itself goes off. It is reasonably loud and lets the person ringing the doorbell know they definitely rang it. The light on the button also lights up briefly to confirm the chime was pressed. Would you, sitting inside the house, hear the chime the doorbell makes outside? Probably, if you are in a small, quiet house. Would you hear it down in the basement of a large house with the TV or music on? Absolutely not. So if you are not hooking this up to an existing doorbell with a properly loud internal chime, then you will want to have it hooked up to your Alexa. I don’t use Alexa so didn’t test that feature. You do get a notification on your phone, when somebody rings the bell, but I think most people will want either a hard wired connection or an Alexa connected to this thing to make sure they always hear the doorbell.What don’t I like?I wish it had the same motion detection sensors as the larger blink cameras. I would have paid more to get that. Because it uses the camera to sense motion there are places where it really won’t give good results. So think very carefully about where you will place this, how often the wind will blow trees and create moving shadows within the motion detection zone, etc.It is annoying that even when the device is hard-wired, the light around the doorbell button isn’t constantly lit. Just as if it were only running on batteries, it only lights up when you press the button. Not a huge deal in my installation, but if you don’t have a porch light on, your doorbell will not be obvious to visitors. It is particularly odd that they put a red LED into the thing which apparently has no purpose other than in the initial setup. The design would be much better if the lighted ring around the button was always lit and then it flashed or turned red when you pressed it. It appears all of the hardware necessary to do that is in the device, but it is not programmed that way. I get that when the device isn’t hardwired you don’t want the button lit, but when it is powered it really should be lit in the dark.For $50, this thing is ok. If you get it on sale, then it is a good deal, at least if you are an existing Blink customer.I am surprised that they killed off the little bit of free cloud storage for new customers. That can’t cost very much to provide these days and it was the key differentiator between Blink and some of these other companies that provide more elaborate, high-priced options. Blink’s claim to fame is that it works well enough and is cheap. But if you have to pay a bunch of money for cloud storage no matter what, I would probably look at the more expensive options vs. Blink. It stops being a compelling value once you start having to pay for video storage.

2. 

   Rated 5 out of 5

   Whose That Guy – November 4, 2021

   
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    If you are like me you are a happy existing Blink Camera user who is thinking about adding the door bell to your existing setup. I had a blink camera setup aiming at my front door so at first I was not too sure that I really needed the door bell. However for the cost I am very glad I got one. There are a couple of things to know:(1) If you are an existing Blink customer, you do not need a second sync module. All you need is the door bell and you can simple add it to your existing account (as easy as adding an additional camera).(2) If you are planning on hardwiring the blink doorbell to your existing doorbells wires. . . . you still have to use 2 AA batteries to power the camera. This did not make sense to me as I figured my hardwires would power it, but sure enough after calling Blink support I realized I needed to put the AA batteries in the camera. The hard wire will allow your blink doorbell to ring the doorbell in your home but will not power the camera.(3) You can turn on motion detection or just have the blink door bell turn on when the door bell is rung. This is a nice feature. If you want to catch anyone that comes to your door (whether they ring the bell or not, you can simple turn this feature on in the app). If you want to save battery life and are only interested in door bell ringers you can turn motion detection off.(4) It has two way audio, meaning you will always hear the person at your door. . . . but you can also choose to speak to the person if you choose. For me the audio the person at the door hears comes across a little staticky, but that could be my phone or the fact that I am using the corner mount.(5) It has more of a fish bowl view so it catches a wide view (meaning it can cover most of your front porch)(6) There is no additional cost to having the Blink doorbell or camera system. Unlike other door bell systems out there, there is no additional cost to the Blink Doorbell. The app is free, cloud storage is free, downloading images or videos is free, etc.If you are looking to set it up with just batteries and no wiring to an existing doorbell system, setup is a breeze (will take two minutes). If you are looking to hard wire it, it is still pretty easy. I am not a handy man and what I know about electricity will shock you (get my joke) but even I was able to hard wire it. Get the doorbell, you will be glad you did. Hope this review helped.

   
3. 

   Rated 5 out of 5

   JSHome1 – October 9, 2023

   
   This door bell is a good addition to your exiting Blink camera system . Blink got everything right with this version. You don’t need to be holding your phone to hear the door bell.I first reviewed this back in 2021 and gave it one star because it was basically just a camera with a door bell button that would alert on your phone. I returned it back then.Fast forward to 2023. Blink has updated the doorbell to use your existing wired door bell chime and also simaltamiously use a blink mini camera as chime , it will also give you a phone alert like their other cameras.Installation wasn’t bad. I have a brick house,but i was able to use the existing screw holes in the brick by first making a 1″ wood back board the size ans shape of theblink camera that that utilized the existing door bell holes in the brick with a center hole for the door bell wire, then attaching the blink mounting plateto wood back board installed. My other option would have to drill new holes in the brick using a masonry drill bit . If your door bell wires are too short, to wire leads with wire nuts are included.I have also read that this can be used without a sync module, I would reach out Blink support if you want to use it in this mode. Blink support is very good with answering pre-sales questions.

4. 

   Rated 5 out of 5

   Steve W. – October 8, 2023

   
   Our old button was broken and didn’t work half the time, it was in really bad shape. I wanted an inexpensive camera replacement that would work with our Alexa system. Installation was easy. I took off the old button and disconnected the wires. Attached the wires to the Blink and installed the button back on the wall. My only complaint is that it didn’t use the same screw holes as the old one. I had to drill a new hole into the stucco siding and use the concrete mount for the bottom screw.. Read through the directions and got it to ring the doorbell and have the Alexa notification. I had ordered the side angle adapter because the doorbell button is mounted of the side wall, not on the same wall as the door. After viewing the camera picture, the adapter wasn’t needed. The camera gave a wide view of the door. We are still working on learning the full features, but we are getting there. Works great with the Alexa, the camera is wide vision and even the night vision is good. It’s nice to hear Alexa announce “Motion detected at the front door”. Carriers often just drop packages at the door and don’t ring the bell, so motion detection is nice. This is really a great doorbell button.

5. 

   Rated 4 out of 5

   Moulli – August 28, 2023

   
   I live in an apartment and was having a decent life over the last few years until some new neighbors moved in and packages started going missing. After confiding with another neighbor (who noticed her own packages were going missing) and taking with a leasing agent, my (friendly) neighbor and I both got ourselves blink doorbells. The day after the doorbells were installed (each of ours facing the other’s door from across the hall as a means to literally watch each other’s backs), the new neighbors got the hint and the thefts immediately stopped. The icing in the cake is that I caught on of her (bad neighbor’s) teenage kids with one of my stolen items on the doorbell within 24 hours of installation and have saved the footage as part of the case I’m building against them. The landlord is aware and can’t wait to have a legal reason to evict them either once I wrap up the evidence that the doorbell so easily collected for me. Thanks, Amazon!What I love: It increased security and provides insight on what’s actually going on outside of our home. It’s also able to run on batteries given that wiring isn’t possible with my particular rented home – I bought a pack of 4 AA lithium rechargable batteries so I can always have a set ready for when the other is ready to be recharged, which is after a couple of months given the frequent use of it with the neighbors consistently setting it off with motion every time they walk past my door. It’s fairly inexpensive as well, only $30-ish annually to have it running. Super easy to set up and use too!What I dislike: The live view isn’t as accessible as I would like. To elaborate, it doesn’t always load whenever I click on the option to use it, and sometimes doesn’t even give the option at all for live view. I also have the motion detection on a higher setting and it still doesn’t always pick up on activity, which I only know given that I can hear when the neighbors open and close their doors when I’m at home, but I don’t get notified on my phone about the activity, meaning that nothing was picked up at all in those moments.Overall, I’m pleased with the product and would highly recommend for anyone who wants to look into a form of security without having to break the bank with a Ring doorbell or others.

6. 

   Rated 4 out of 5

   Yoda – April 28, 2023

   
   I got this video doorbell system to supplement my existing security cams. I already have a relatively robust 4k external security network cams, but the network was missing a reliable front door video doorbell that wasn’t solely motion dependent. Now, with this Blink video doorbell that is activated both by motion & physically pressing the doorbell, it will always send an alert & record when someone is at the front door unlike before when it was a hit or miss that was based solely on motion activation. The video quality, HD 1080, is decent for a doorbell but compared to my 4k cams, it’s not even close. The difference is huge. The image quality of a 4k cam is so much better, both day & night. The night video quality of the Blink system is so grainy it’s almost useless. Good thing I have 4k cams as backups. The two-way audio works well.Installation nightmare…Installation was a fiasco of this relatively easy installation. I made a mockery of the installation primarily due to the fact that there are no written paper instructions. One has to follow the app for the installation that’s primarily picture based. The problem for me was I inadvertently used the wrong side of the corner wedge mount. Both front & back of the corner wedge look almost identical if you don’t pay close attention. I rushed the installation as darkness was approaching…It wasn’t until the next day, when I realized the camera wasn’t flushed with the corner wedge. I kept saying, why there aren’t any predrilled screw holes on the wedge? Duh, it’s because I flipped it & didn’t dawn on me until the next morning…a Homer Simpson dumb moment! 🤔So much easier & faster the second time because I didn’t have to apply so much force as previously in order attach the backplate to the corner wedge. This fiasco would have never occurred if there were paper instructions instead of following mainly pictures on the app for the installation. Other apps that use this method do a much better job. For instance, instructions to install the Chamberlain myQ garage system, which I recently installed is app based. It does a better job because the instructions are well written & reinforced with embedded videos. To mitigate this potential issue, I suggest they place a sticker on the wedge that says “this side, front or back only. ” This system is wired to my digital door chime, however, I had to upgrade to a compatible transformer (16V, 10 VA) from Home/Depot, which I installed myself.No subscription…I brought the complete kit, which includes the sync module 2 & corner mount. It was on sale on Amazon for under $60.00 & plus free shipping. It’s a great deal. I accidentally brought an extra corner wedge mount not realizing it’s already included in the kit. I chose the Blink system over Ring because I’m subscription phobic. I just don’t like the idea of paying for a questionable service in perpetuity. Blink gives the impression that subscription is required & highly recommended for optimal performance & features when in reality it’s not necessary for the most part if you have the sync module2 because it’s only has been a couple days since installation & I’m already being bombarded with subscription reminder notifications. Seemingly, Blink purposely sells the hardware very cheap compared to Ring , hoping they will recoup the costs via a subscription revenue stream. It’s akin to this old marketing ploy, e.g., the razor & blade; give the consumer the razor for free or at a nominal price & charge a premium for the blades.I like the fact that my doorbell is located on the sidewall instead on the front wall or door, which allows a greater view angle of the outside with the aid of the corner wedge mount. This allows me to see part of my driveway. This wouldn’t be possible with a front door/wall mount. The motion sensor reaches far. It goes way beyond 25ft. It was picking up cars that are 50+ ft way. I had to decrease the sensitivity. False alarms appear to be low with this device because most activations thus far have been per real objects. Overall, it’s a nifty gizmo that has properly filled a gap in my security system at a reasonable cost. Thus far, I’m content with this purchase despite the initial brief frustration with the installation.

   
7. 

   Rated 3 out of 5

   Barry Robinson – September 7, 2023

   
   I spent about two days trying to get this to work with my systems and one thing I learned is at the very spot where my existing doorbell button is located so I can use the transformer for power, the wifi signal is weak. This is exacerbated by the fact the Ring doorbell has a VERY weak reception so basically the signal was nil. This, of course, is not good for a device that depends on wifi. I created a new network wifi specifically for the Ring which got me into the ‘yellow’ as far as signal strength and with a data plan, it functions as it should. I was not able to use the module and had to delete the system and start over several times. The lag between the two devices was horrible and there was no way I could take advantage of the on-site storage. Much to my dismay I have to use a data plan and tie up bandwidth. I’m pretty sure this is by design so I question the accuracy of ‘no data plan needed’. For three bucks a month or 30 bucks a year I figured I would just accept the plan and move on but I will not be using any more Blink products. I find this device mediocre at best with a poor night vision and motion sensitivity that’s either too strong or too weak with little adjustment in-between. I would not recommend it. The only reason why I’m keeping the device is so my wife can have access to the door during the day while she works upstairs.1. It’s packaged well and looks nice.2. Setup is pretty straightforward just read the instructions and take your time.3. As is typical with non-antenna devices, range is limited shrinking your options for module placement.4. The wired doorbell option works well should you want to use it instead of just the electronic options.5. I have two porch lights on either side of my door with 40W yellow bug bulbs. The camera resolution is not that good as the lights are over exposing the camera. During the day it’s just okay.6. Live view is very laggy taking way to long to connect and sometimes it wont connect at all. I had to remove the module and just use the doorbell in stand alone mode to fix this problem.7. Motion detection works well, almost instantly, but camera connection may take a few seconds. Removing the module solved this problem.8. The microphone is super sensitive. External audio is loud and clear and unfortunately not adjustable. I can hear dogs barking two blocks away.9. No plan required. The module stores clips and has the option for an external USB device for additional storage (see above).10. The mounting plate could have a better design with a slot in the middle. I was forced to drill a new screw hole and chamfer the edges to get my doorbell to fit my flagstone exterior.I’ll come back with more thoughts as they pop up but to surmise, this is a basic device that will provide a basic service. You will not get constant monitoring but only clips. If the device is armed, motion detection works. If it is not armed it only works as a camera when someone presses the doorbell. If you can wire it to your existing doorbell the transformer will power the doorbell keeping your batteries from being exhausted.

8. 

   Rated 5 out of 5

   RANDY – October 6, 2023

   
   I had preordered this doorbell camera when it first came out and it was a bit of a disappointment. I needed a wireless solution in my mid century home and I’ve had great luck with my Blink cameras.I couldn’t get it to connect with Alexa or the Blink app. I gave up and returned it. A year or so later and it has gotten a lot of good reviews. I ordered it again and all of the issues have been fixed. This doorbell camera works well with Alexa and the Alexa app. I am super pleased and very happy they resolved the issues. The picture quality is that of the Blink cameras and the audio is great. Very little lag. The notifications also appear to be instant.If you need a wireless camera, this is fantastic! Especially if you already live in the Blink universe.

9. 

   Rated 5 out of 5

   Arie – October 1, 2023

   
   The first Blink doorbell we purchased also included the “Sync module 2” and a “30 degree corner”. I wanted to see if I liked it before getting the second one. I then ordered just a doorbell for the other door and ordered a corner because this wasn’t included with the solo doorbell. NOTE: Be sure to order the correct color corner (or wedge) if you go this route because default color is black. The corner turns the doorbell out (left or right) 30 degrees. The wedge will raise or lower the angle of the doorbell (but I didn’t need this as noted by my screenshot). Also, I used caulk to mount my corner to the bricks for a clean look. I’ll touch up the caulking with exterior paint after installing the second doorbell. We are overall pleased with the Blink system.

   
10. 

    Rated 4 out of 5

    Richard A – September 2, 2023

    
    Over all I suppose for the price ( I’ve happened to catch the door bells on sale at almost half the regular price ) this door bell is ok ; that being said, I’ve had BOTH of them being malfuntional, per advice from Blink customer service; they are very fast in sending a replacement at no cost. Both door bells had somewhat of a delayed time in actually capturing motion outside my apartment door ; one door bell was announcing motion when NOTHING was in front of them, but calling Blink customer service is very easy, and they will in a very friendly manner guide you in trouble shooting any issues ( The Blink agents are always courteous, unlike agents at Amazons billing department who have at times been rude. If you weren’t aware, Amazon owns Blink ) P.S. Oh, I must add a note about the batteries; THEY DO NOT last as long as the advertisement says; on my first door bell, I had to replace them in 2 weeks ! Such can become costly should one have to replace them so often; to sum it up, IT’S A GREAT GADGET for the price ! P.S. I live in an apartment where we’re not allowed to put screws in the door ; I just purchased some VELCRO BRAND double sided tape; it attaches to door nice.