One day I would sneak up to my front door and peek through the frosted glass panels that surrounded it to check the ringing doorbell. No visitor was safe from it, not even those impatiently awaiting a pizza delivery, which turned me into a sleepy bear who had suddenly flung the door to his cave open, just like a religious lawyer or a Boy Scout cookie seller.
Instead of drawing United nations In front of the welcome sign on my front door mat, I invested in a video doorbell so I can watch the door guards and little guides as they walk up the steps of my home without leaving the comfort of my couch. I also appreciate the convenience of asking someone to leave my sushi on the porch.
A video doorbell is usually easier to install than a traditional outdoor security camera. But overall, keeping an eye on packages, politely telling people who knock on the door to stay away, and keeping an eye on my son while he waits for the school bus are all things that a good smart doorbell camera, like the Arlo Video Doorbell (2nd Gen, 2K), is a worthwhile investment.
Arlo Video Doorbell (2nd Gen 2K)
The Arlo Video Doorbell (2nd Gen, 2K) delivers crisp, clear 2K video at an attractive price. One of its standout features is multi-power; the doorbell comes with everything you need for wired or wireless installation. The accompanying Arlo HD app gives you quick access to live video, recorded events, and comprehensive customizations.
- 2K video at affordable prices
- Power by battery or wired connection
- Huge and visually unappealing profile
- Video storage requires a paid cloud subscription.
Price, availability and specifications
You’ll find the Arlo Video Doorbell 2nd Gen 2K at a handful of online retailers, and in most places, it’ll retail for around $130 at full price. Of course, it’s available through Arlo, Best Buy, Lowe’s, and Amazon.
What are the good features of the Arlo Video Doorbell (2nd Gen, 2K)?
Easy installation, beautiful app, sharp 2K resolution.
Finding a high-quality 2K video doorbell for under $150 is a tall order, but I was very impressed with the Arlo doorbell’s 2K video quality. Facial resolution remained clear up to 20 to 25 feet away, at which point things started to get blurry.
Installation was quick and hassle-free, and was accompanied by video instructions in the accompanying Arlo app. Within two months of use, the doorbell’s battery was down to 56%, a positive confirmation of the brand’s claim of a four-month battery life. Other standard hardware features, such as a noise-cancelling microphone and speaker, provided clear, low-latency audio. The built-in siren is also quite loud, and will hopefully be an effective deterrent to porch pirates.
The Arlo home security app is currently my favorite. When someone rings the video doorbell, a “call” is sent directly to your phone, and it rings like any other call. You can answer the “call” and speak directly to the visitor, or if you don’t answer, they’ll be invited to leave a voice message. The Arlo app also allows for custom home screen widgets, quick access to the device’s video archives, and smart motion detection and activity zones.
The video doorbell covers the bases when it comes to smart assistant compatibility, with Apple HomeKit being the only major player left. It integrated seamlessly into my Google-compatible home, but most of my controls were done on my iPhone, where the high-resolution Arlo app provides a lot of control.
What’s bad about the Arlo Video Doorbell (2nd Gen, 2K)?
There’s not much to complain about except the aesthetics.
The Arlo 2K doorbell doesn’t leave much to be desired in the features department. We do miss color night vision, but I’m willing to compromise on that feature at this price point. A close competitor, the Ecobee Smart Doorbell Camera (Wired), doesn’t offer color vision either, though it costs a few dollars more.
Read our review
Ecobee Smart Doorbell Camera (Wired) Review: All-around Excellence with One Limitation
This smart doorbell will reach great heights if it is not tethered to its wire.
Most Arlo products share similar characteristics: a mostly plastic body, a white cover, and soft, rounded corners. I’ve been neutral on this with all previous devices from the brand I’ve tested, but this doorbell is my least favorite Arlo product yet, at least visually. The squared-off look stands out more than other doorbells that have replaced Arlo, including the Ecobee Doorbell and the Google Nest Doorbell.
I prefer the matte finish of the Nest Doorbell, or even the semi-gloss plastic of the Ecobee, to the highly reflective, scratch- and fingerprint-prone finish of the Arlo Doorbell. Because the front of the Arlo Doorbell is split into two pieces, it also feels less cohesive and a bit cheaper than its Ecobee competitor.
Read our review
Nest Doorbell Review (Battery): Worthless Without a Subscription
$180 is just the beginning, it’s basically useless without a monthly or yearly subscription to Nest Aware.
I should also mention that there are no storage options outside of Arlo’s paid cloud storage plan. This doorbell isn’t compatible with any of the brand’s base stations, there’s no microSD slot on board, and there’s no amount of free cloud storage, not even a few hours like Google offers. In October 2023, the brand said that base station compatibility was planned for a future firmware update, but we haven’t seen that happen yet.
Should you buy it?
Not the most efficient doorbell, but still a good value.
I recommend the Arlo Video Doorbell (2nd Gen, 2K) for shoppers who can’t do any wiring in their installations but want to explore options outside of Ring or Amazon’s Google Nest. Those two brands are obvious choices for existing Alexa or Google Assistant systems, but the Arlo doorbell also integrates with those smart assistants while boasting clearer video and a more affordable price. Ring’s $150 Battery Doorbell Plus offers only 1.5K resolution and a narrower field of view, but it also includes color night vision. The Google Nest doorbell has lower resolution, but it offers dual-band Wi-Fi, which you won’t get with Ring or Arlo.
There’s also the Ecobee Smart Doorbell Camera (Wired). This option produces a softer, less detailed image than the Arlo 2nd Gen 2K, but it captures a wider range thanks to its 187-degree diagonal field of view and 30-foot night vision, a 10-foot advantage over the Arlo. So the Arlo 2nd Gen 2K, like every other video doorbell we’ve tried, will impress some with its strongest features and disappoint others with a few weaknesses. It’s a great option for Google Homes and Alexa, but users say Ring devices are (clearly) still the better option for Alexa-focused homes.
It’s also not a visually impressive device, and I wish Arlo would embrace the idea of a modest free video archive, especially since many of its devices aren’t compatible with any base stations. Still, the Arlo Video Doorbell (2nd Gen, 2K) won’t disappoint shoppers looking for the best picture clarity at a reasonable price.
Arlo Video Doorbell (2nd Gen 2K)
The 2nd Gen Arlo Video Doorbell offers a rare glimpse into 2K video quality for under $150. Like many other Arlo devices, its biggest drawback is the lack of free video storage options, with no onboard local storage, base station compatibility, or free cloud storage. The 2nd Gen 2K Doorbell is still feature-rich and capable of meeting most users’ needs.
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