ecobee Smart Video Doorbell Camera (Wired) - with Industry Leading HD Camera, Smart Security, Night Vision, Person and Package Sensors, 2-Way Talk, and Video & Snapshot Recording

This was my first time using a video doorbell, and I was initially worried about the wiring. But the setup was surprisingly simple, thanks to the step-by-step guide in the app. I was also pleased to discover that my old mechanical chime continues to function with the ecobee doorbell camera after installing the included chime adapter—it was a nice touch! The video quality is excellent, and the wide field of view provides a great look at my porch. I also appreciate the motion detection range adjustment in the app, which allows me to customize what gets detected, reducing unnecessary alerts. One of my favourite features is the integration with the thermostat. I didn’t expect to use it much, but I love that I can quickly glance at my thermostat to see who’s at the door when the bell rings. Overall, this doorbell camera has exceeded my expectations. It’s user-friendly, reliable, and packed with useful features. Highly recommend!

This doorbell was a BREEZE! It came with everything you need, even screws to hang the bracket up. From unboxing to having it fully set up - not even 10 minutes passed! The audio and video are excellent quality and it picks up motion quickly! The step by step instructions for Installing and connecting to the app were simple and easy. I highly recommend and even bought a second one!

From the start, I appreciated that the packaging was eco-conscious—no plastic materials, which aligns well with the EcoBee brand. Setup was refreshingly simple. The app provided clear, step-by-step instructions, and we were able to get everything installed and working in under 30 minutes. I also like that ecobee offers the option to connect with a professional virtually, which is a thoughtful touch for anyone who might need extra guidance or reassurance during installation. Once installed, using the ecobee app was intuitive. The live video feed is crisp, and I can easily see people passing by—including my neighbors and deliveries. One feature I found especially helpful is package detection. It adds peace of mind knowing I’ll be alerted when something arrives.

Edit: 12/3/23. I upgraded my doorbell transformer about a week ago. I was using one that provided 24vac 20 amp. It was a small generic one that I picked up at Home Depot. I replaced it with an Edwards Signaling 598. Now I’m getting 24vac 30 amp. The old transformer was running very warm and I believe it may have been inadequate for this application. The ecobee doorbell requires a lot of power and my 1950’s Westminster door chime has a Telechron clock built in which also draws constant power. Since the upgrade I have not had anymore issues with the ecobee doorbell going offline. It’s been rock solid stable. I have no idea if any firmware updates have come down as ecobee doesn’t alert you to them. If any more offline issues arise I’ll edit this post again.Edit: 11/21/2023. It suffered its first instance of falling off-line/unreachable. I guess I’m used to this kind of stuff because I was going through it with the WeMo. Sincerely hope that ecobee puts out some firmware updates that add a few more features and stabilityI'm replacing a WeMo Doorbell with this one for a few reasons. WeMo doesn't seem to update or support their product anymore. HomeKit automations have stopped working with the WeMo and for me that's a deal breaker.On to this doorbell, Overall I'm pleased with it. The physical size of the unit is quite large. I'm unsure why it has to be this large but it is. It almost didn't fit on the door frame where my existing button used to reside. The physical button is also very large and unmistakable. It's easy to push and plays a nice melody so that the person who pushed it knows that it's been activated.The video quality is outstanding. It also has a few trick features such as software based pan and zoom to keep a person centered in the frame. It has onboard A.I. Learning for package / people / car / animal detection. It's supposed to be faster and more accurate to detect what's it's supposed to and better at rejecting everything else. Doorbell notifications are played from your existing chime or through one of their premium thermostats. If you have it integrated with HomeKit or Alexa it will also chime through smart speakers. The thermostat also acts as a video screen so that you can see and interact with whoever is at the door.It integrates beautifully with HomeKit and will show alerts on all Apple Devices including AppleTV. However, they crippled one important feature of HomeKit that I personally find reprehensible. They do not allow HomeKit Secure Video recording. If you want recordings from this product you will have to subscribe to the ecobee Security suite. It's $5 a month just for this doorbell. Their Security suite offers more than what HomeKit offers so in my mind they should have marketed that as an upgrade if HomeKit Secure Video doesn't meet your needs. Instead they have blocked all recording behind a Paywall in order to extort more money from you. I've already invested in 2 of their premium thermostats and now this doorbell and it makes me kinda angry that they're doing this. As a work around I've installed a Logitec Circle View camera in an overhead corner of my front entrance to do the recordings and I use this doorbell for everything else. I have enough subscriptions in my life and don't want another. Also, it does not allow for HomeKit automations based off motion or light levels. I was able to do these types of automations with the WeMo and I’m pretty sure that the Logitech Circle View Video Doorbell allows them also based off of my experience with the Circle View Cameras that I own. For my purposes I am able to do the one automation that I really need based off a single doorbell button press. I can have HomeKit turn on a light in my entrance when the button is pressed BUT I had to use a third party App to access that feature. The App is called “Controller” and is available in the Apple App Store. It unlocks hidden features of HomeKit that aren’t available directly in Apple’s Home App. This is the automation that stopped working with the WeMo but it works on this unit.I also wanted to speak to the speed of the notifications. I find that it’s very quick to notify me with notifications on my iPhone, ecobee thermostats and most importantly video pop ups on my AppleTV screen. It works nearly instantly and it works every time. The WeMo was hit or miss with the AppleTV pop ups and that is one feature I must have.

The media could not be loaded. Bottom line up front, the unit works great, but is hampered by the companies need to try to cash grab with their subscription to their “security”, as well as potential quality control issues and longevity issues. The fact that this doesn’t integrate with HomeKit secure video is an automatic 2 star max.Installed Christmas Day and the doorbell worked great for almost 6 months. Aside from the lack of HomeKit Secure Video functionality the doorbell worked great, until it didn’t. One day, I noticed I couldn’t connect to it through the app. So when I got home I took a look and it had a blue ring circling the doorbell. Followed the support steps to reset it and the reset button doesn’t do anything, at all. So I removed power and rebooted the doorbell. Same issue. So I contact support, which is complicated by being outsourced and language barriers, even through the chat. They ask me to bypass the chime adapter, verify the wiring, and transformer voltage. After that’s complete it’s after support hours so I have to contact them again during normal hours. The next support person has me repeat a lot of the same steps, requests more pictures of the equipment and wiring, as well as the transformer. Finally, after 3 days of contacting support, and 3 different support people they decide I need a replacement. To me, if a major part of the unit, the reset button, is non functional, that would indicate that something is wrong with the unit. We’ll see how the replacement does when it gets here.