If you are in the search for a smart doorbell to increase your home security, you may have heard about Ring and Nest Doorbells who are competing in this field eye to eye with some of the best video doorbells out there.
The 2 companies offer high image quality in addition to some other cool features. With Ring offering 7 models, and Nest offering additional compatible gadgets with its doorbell, you may be hesitant on which one is the most worth it and can deliver your needs.
To help you decide which one is the best for you, we compared Ring vs. Nest doorbell from 7 main aspects:
- Pricing
- Specifications
- Installation
- Video quality
- Features
- Smart home compatibility
- Subscription fees
Let’s dig in!
1. Ring vs. Nest Doorbell pricing
As we mentioned, Nest offers only the Nest Hello, for 229$.
On the other hand, Ring offers 7 models with different specifications and price range to choose from:
- Ring Video Doorbell Wired for 59$
- Ring Video Doorbell 2nd gen for 99$
- Ring Video Doorbell 3 for 199$
- Ring Video Doorbell 3 Plus for 229$
- Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2 for 249$
- Ring Video Doorbell Elite for 349$
- Ring Peephole Cam for 199$, which has an advanced peephole equipped with a security camera
When it comes to price, Ring wins with various price ranges offered to suit different customers.
However, to be fair we will only compare the Nest Hello to the Ring Video Doorbell 3 Plus, as they come at the same price point and have comparable features.
2. Specifications
- Nest Hello offers 1600×1200 pixels & HDR Video quality, while Ring Video Doorbell 3 Plus offers 1920 x 1080 pixels & HDR video quality
- Both Nest Hello and Ring Video Doorbell 3 Plus offers Night Vision
- Both Nest Hello and Ring Video Doorbell 3 Plus offers a 160-degree field of View
- Both Nest Hello and Ring Video Doorbell 3 Plus offers Person alerts feature
- Nest Hello offers Package detection unlike Ring Video Doorbell 3 Plus
- Nest Hello offers connectivity for 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (2.4GHz and 5GHz), while Ring Video Doorbell 3 Plus offers connectivity for 802.11 b/g/n (2.4 and 5GHz)
- Nest Hello offers Noise and echoes cancellation, while Ring Video Doorbell 3 Plus offers Two-way audio with noise cancellation
- Nest Hello can be powered by a wire, while Ring Video Doorbell 3 Plus can be battery-powered or by a wire
- Nest Hello dimensions are 4.6 x 1.7-inch x 1.0 inches, while Ring Video Doorbell 3 Plus dimensions are 5.1 x 2.5 x 1.1 inches
3. Installation
Both the Nest Hello and the Ring Video Doorbell 3Plus take almost the same time to be installed.
- Nest Hello
To power, You will need to install a transformer to power the Nest Hello, unless you already have a wired doorbell. Also, you will need a doorbell chime to hear the ring while at home.
- Ring Video Doorbell 3Plus
On the other hand, the Ring Video Doorbell 3Plus can be powered through a wire or internal batteries for easy installation anywhere. However, you will have to take the doorbells offline to recharge them while on batteries.
For all the mentioned above, we can agree that Ring Video Doorbell 3Plus outperforms the Nest Hello.
4. Video quality
- Resolution: Nest Hello offers a resolution of 1600 x 1200 pixels, which is lower than the 1920 x 1080 pixels that Ring Video Doorbell 3 Plus offers.
- Aspect ratio: the Nest showed more of the front stoop than the Ring doorbell, without the need to install a wedge to angle the camera downward. However, they both can’t get a full field of view down the door base where packages are delivered.
- Both the Ring and the Nest offers HDR quality, 160-degree field of view and infrared night vision
- Both cameras record continuously (Extended video recording), so you can see the full scene from the second the motion is detected
– Through the Pre-roll feature, Ring cam records this video in black and white.
In case you want the Pre-roll feature to record at full resolution and in color, you can get the Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2 for a higher price
– The pre-recording video on the Nest is recorded in full color and resolution, making it easier to check visitors
Regarding video quality, the Nest Hello comes first.
5. Features
Nest Hello and Ring Video Doorbell 3 Plus offer similar features like custom motion zones, person detection and extended video recording.
However, the Nest also offers “Package detection” and “Continuous video recording” unlike the Ring doorbell which only adds the “Neighborhood alerts” feature to its list.
- Custom motion zones
This feature allows the video cam in the doorbell to select areas within the camera’s field of view that should be ignored if motion is detected.
Through the Nest cam you set up a polygonal zone, while the Ring cam lets you only choose from four non moveable zones
- Person detection
By enabling this feature, you can get alerted when the camera detects a person.
The Nest cam puts the icing on the cake by offering facial recognition and the ability to send special alerts when someone you know is at the door.
- Extended video recording
As mentioned above.
- Package detection
The Nest Hello can notify you when a package is delivered and when it has been picked up.
- Continuous video recording
The Nest Hello video doorbell can record continuously 24/7
However, you may need to lower the resolution to not take up a huge amount of bandwidth.
- Neighborhood Alerts
With this feature available on the Ring Video Doorbell 3 Plus you can view videos from other Ring users in your area or post one yourself.
It all depends on your priorities, but we prefer the Nest Hello when it comes to features.
6. Smart home compatibility
Smartbells can be linked to other smart devices to help create scenes like putting on front-porch lights when someone comes near your door at night.
You can use voice commands with both Nest and Ring cams to communicate with both Alexa and Google Assistant.
You can ask your voice assistant about the camera status or complete some cool tasks, which depends on the camera model you are using.
After reviewing the smart home compatibility features in both Nest and Ring, we feel like the Ring wins in this competition.
7. Subscription fees
To record videos through your door cam continuously or to receive person alerts, you will need a monthly subscription.
Nest Aware cloud-recording solution subscription starts from 6$ a month and gives you many benefits including storing 30 days of event history from an unlimited number of cameras at one location. Or you can get the Nest Aware Plus for 12$ a month.
Ring offers its basic subscription plan for 3$ a month per device and a premium plan for 10$ per month that supports unlimited cameras.
Nest cloud has the edge on this one.
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At the end…
The Nest Hello edged out in video quality, features and Subscription Fees. While the Ring Video Doorbell 3 Plus edged out in installation and Smart Home Compatibility. It all comes down to your priorities.
