The Ring Doorbell--a Real Life Security Story
It was nine pm on a Friday night, and the kids were nestled in their beds. Mom was curled up in bed with the dog at her feet reading a book and feeling her eyelids get heavy. The house was locked, and the deadbolt was thrown.
Suddenly the doorbell rang. The dog barked and ran down the stairs, one of the kids started to cry, and Mom bolted out of bed. Dad unlocked the door to see…nothing. No one. Ding dong ditched.
The following Friday night the kids were once more asleep. Mom was again reading in bed, the dog sprawled out at her feet snoring softly when the doorbell rang again. Dad ran to the door as the dog barked maniacally. “Go get him!” Dad ordered the dog. The dog bolted out the door but instead of running after anyone the dog sniffed the mailbox and delivered a message to his fellow neighbor dogs. No one was spotted. Ding dong ditched again. As before, the youngest child cried in her bed from being woken up from sleep and Mom swore as her few moments of quiet in the house was interrupted by a barking dog and an angry spouse.
The sheer force of annoyance had these homeowners brainstorming immature ways to catch the culprits. Hiding in the bushes in the dark and squirting them with water guns? Setting up the camera app to try to photograph them mid-ring? Since the kids were upstairs in bed and they lacked the desire to sit outside in the dark for hours, they searched for a reasonable alternative. Security issues like this one are common.
This time, the family searched Amazon, found the Ring doorbell and loved the rave reviews. Thanks to Prime shipping and the kit that comes with the few installation materials that it requires to be put up (a screwdriver, the doorbell and an app for your smartphone or computer that will instruct you exactly how to set it up) the new doorbell was installed before the following Friday.
Friday arrived, and the kids once again tucked in bed. Mom was watching Netflix and waiting for the Ring app to notify her that there was motion outside the house. The app alerted her “motion outside,” and she flipped to the live view of the camera just in time to see a thin boy in a hat and sweatshirt run up to the house ready to ring the doorbell. But this time, it was different: you can watch his reaction in the video above. He saw the new doorbell, and immediately turned around and raced down the driveway and away from the house. Burglars, mischief-makers and package thieves do not want to be photographed or recorded. A camera doorbell acts as a deterrent at the very place most burglars hit first--the front door.
In this case, the Ring doorbell halted a recurring case of trespassing and annoyance. The Ring provided opportunities for other benefits, as well. When the doorbell rang, the family could answer the door without actually being seen or standing by the window. They would be away from home and answer their door remotely through the Ring speaker, which doesn't allow the visitor to know f the speaker is just on the other side of the door, or in Cancun.
Since the live camera can be accessed at any time, the street view can also be monitored, and, in one case, the homeowner made a detour from errands to pick up the box they saw delivered to their doorstep.
The Ring adds peace of mind and security to a homeowner and also links to other neighborhood apps, so if suspicious activity occurs, neighbors can be alerted to watch out for the same operation.
The video of the kid who repeatedly rang their doorbell was sent to the local police station to assist in thwarting several crime issues in the area. For less than $200 a repeated annoyance was resolved, and a family’s security returned.
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