A couple of months ago, I reviewed the Ring Battery Video Doorbell Pro (2nd Gen) and loved it but unfortunately, personally, I already have a built-in video doorbell, the Ring Doorbell Elite.
In case you missed it, and I’ll admit I missed it too, Ring also announced an upgraded Elite Video Doorbell (the second gen) alongside the Ring Battery Video Doorbell Pro (2nd Gen). This is wonderful news for folks like me who went all in on the built-in doorbell in the first place.
As Ring has upgraded its battery doorbells many times since I installed my original Elite video doorbell, I started to wonder if I’d ever see an upgraded version. I’d even spent much time looking through 3D model sites to find a template to 3D print a cover for the old Elite so I could mount one of the newer Ring wireless models.
Luckily, for people like me, Ring has finally upgraded it to the Wired Video Doorbell 4K Elite (2nd Gen), with all the modern features that have been added to doorbells since the first was released – mine was installed in 2019.
The new 4K Elite (2nd Gen) features:
- Retinal 4K with up to 10x Enhanced Zoom
- Native PoE – this is how it is connected at my house, as I didn’t think to get both power and PoE at the time – lesson to be learned: you can never have too many options.
- Remote gate access – if you have an applicable gate, the doorbell/app can be used to control your gate
- 3D Motion Detection – apparently this provides more precise alerts, although I am not sure how much better it was: alerts worked, as always. *shrug*
- Night Vision – allows the video to be in colour for longer/lower light levels
Installation
As I have already had the hole in the wall drilled for the Gen1 Elite doorbell, installation was super simple – the footprint is exactly the same. Simply remove the faceplate, lever the Gen1 doorbell out after unscrewing it, detach the PoE (and/or power) cable, attach the PoE (and/or power) cable to the Gen2 doorbell and screw it in.
Secure the new faceplate to the base, and you are good to go.
Now, if you don’t already have a hole in the wall from the original Gen1 version, you will need to decide whether you want to make one or just use existing power cables and attach the doorbell to the wall using the mount provided (it does not go into the wall, but rather sits on top of the surface — the easier option).
This also looks simple, but it requires power or PoE cables to already be coming out of the wall. I would have chosen this option had it been available for the first-generation Ring Elite doorbell.
Setup
Setting the doorbell up is exactly the same as with every other Ring doorbell on the market. The app will guide you through setting up the doorbell’s software features and, if needed, through installation for more detailed instructions.
It is within the app that you set up all the features mentioned above and it is incredibly simple – if you follow the Ring prompts. Doing it after the doorbell is up and running – which is also an option – can make it difficult to find the setting you are after because there are so many options that you will have to wade through to find the particular one you want.
How well does it work?
The Ring Doobell Elite Gen1 was a great doorbell in its time. Since that time, seven years ago now, camera lenses and software has improved a lot, so for a camera to be stuck at 1080P is not great.
The new Gen2 is obviously 4K, given its name – Wired Video Doorbell 4K Elite – and the video quality reflects that in both bright and low-light conditions. The detail is exceptional, as expected, especially after testing the Ring Battery Video Doorbell Pro (2nd Gen).
This lets you clearly see facial features, uniforms and more of delivery folks, making the camera even more useful. It can also be used to check delivered parcels in detail, which is handy if you are expecting multiple deliveries.
As you can see in the images below, night vision is amazing. These images were taken with only a small amount of ambient light from the other end of the house. The clarity and sharpness are really good, and that’s another reason it’s been a great idea for Ring to upgrade its wired Elite doorbell.
Two-way talk still works and is possibly clearer than before, although it wasn’t bad before – it just seems to be a lot clearer and the folks at my door can hear me a lot clearer without having to put their ears right up to the doorbell.
The new Elite camera also comes with a trial of the new AI alerts in Ring Protect Pro. The alerts by themselves are easily enough for me, and I don’t need Ring to analyse each and every alert for me and tell me what it is – I have eyes.
The big-ticket item here is the new Smart Video Search feature.
Smart Video Search is powered by Ring IQ, a combination of Ring AI technology and Ring’s in-house expertise. It uses Visual Language Modelling to match text to images, delivering results for any query. It lets users type a search into the app to locate a specific scene, rather than scrolling through all their saved videos and screenshots to find the image or video they want.
Yes, AI is everywhere. Having used the feature for the past couple of weeks, it is good, but is it worth the 100% price increase? I don’t think so. If you pay up front, you can get it for $199 for the year, and although not that much, it is still twice the price of Ring Multi. It really depends on how much you need these AI video search features, and to be honest, I doubt most people would actually *need* these.
Final Thoughts
In my opinion, the Wired Video Doorbell 4K Elite (2nd Gen) is the best doorbell Ring offers but it is also less versatile than its other offerings. You do need power running through the wall to it, either AC power or PoE, and for many folks, that rules out this doorbell.
If you do have power running through your wall, then look no further. If you have the first-generation Ring Video Doorbell Elite, then this upgrade is well worth your money. The night vision and the 4K picture quality improvements sell it, every day of the week.
It looks good, delivers amazing picture quality in any lighting and has every feature you could ever want or need in a connected video doorbell. Quality like this comes at a price though, and at RRP AU$749 it is not cheap, but if you want the best, expect to pay for it.
Scott is our resident open technology expert. If you can mod it, or want to use it your way, Scott has probably done it. From Laptops to phones, headphones and game consoles, he’s played with it and wants to see the next generation.
