Skip to main content

The new Blink Video Doorbell offers two-year battery life, person detection

Blink Video Doorbell installed
Blink

The Blink Video Doorbell is a popular choice for frugal shoppers, and its next-generation successor is looking to follow in its footsteps. Available today, the new Blink Video Doorbell offers a remarkable two-year battery life, an improved field of view, a reworked design, and the low price of just $70.

If you’ve ever been shopping for an affordable video doorbell, you’ve probably stumbled upon the old Blink Video Doorbell. Available for just $60, it was a great alternative to premium devices from Nest and Ring. Blink is looking to build on that success with the new Video Doorbell. Its price has crept up $10, but it also picked up some nice new features. The biggest improvement is its field of view — it’s been enhanced to a 150-degree head-to-toe perspective, compared to the 135-degree horizontal view of its predecessor.

You’ll also benefit from smart notifications with person detection when bundled with a Blink subscription plan. Other notable features include a two-year battery life, a streamlined installation process, and the availability of black and white models. Of course, it also syncs with Alexa and Echo devices, allowing for hands-free monitoring and other automations.

Recommended Videos

Blink gave the new video doorbell a facelift, as it now features an oblong button on its front instead of the circular one found on the older model. It’s also streamlined some of its curves and color schemes, resulting in a sleek device. It’s not quite as striking as some of its more expensive competitors, but it looks great considering its low price.

The new Blink Video Doorbell is now available, as is the Sync Module Core–which works as a hub that lets you connect and control up to 10 Blink gadgets. For more options, check out our list of the best video doorbells. This includes alternatives for all budgets, plus premium picks from Nest, Ring, and Arlo.

Jon Bitner
Jon Bitner is a writer covering consumer electronics, technology, and gaming. His work has been published on various websites…
Ring Battery Doorbell vs. Ring Video Doorbell (2nd Gen): What’s new with the latest model?
The Ring Battery Doorbell installed near a front door.

The Ring Battery Doorbell is the successor to the popular Ring Video Doorbell (2nd Gen). Both offer many of the same features -- and if you’re a current owner of the Ring Video Doorbell (2nd Gen), you’re probably wondering if upgrading to the Ring Battery Doorbell is worthwhile. Here’s a look at the two video doorbells to help you decide which is best for your home.
Design

The new Ring Battery Doorbell and old Ring Video Doorbell (2nd Gen) look very similar. They feature a rectangular chassis with a black upper portion (housing the camera) and a silver lower portion (housing the doorbell button). Around this doorbell button is Ring's iconic glowing blue circle. They both look great, and upgrading to the Ring Battery Doorbell won’t change the appearance of your front door.

Read more
SimpliSafe launches AI-powered detection system alongside the new Outdoor Security Camera Series 2
The SimpliSafe Outdoor Security Camera Series 2 mounted outside.

After spending some time in early access, SimpliSafe’s Active Guard Outdoor Protection feature is now available to the public. Using AI technology in conjunction with its team of security experts, Active Guard Outdoor Protection is designed to detect and stop crime before it happens. It’s available on the new Outdoor Security Camera Series 2, though you’ll need to enroll in a monthly membership to get full use of the service.

SimpliSafe isn’t new to the world of AI-powered crime prevention, as you’ll already find a similar feature on the Smart Alarm Wireless Indoor Camera. That functionality is great -- but if an indoor camera is picking up intruders, it means they’ve already made it inside your home. The Outdoor Security Camera Series 2 and Active Guard Outdoor Protection are looking to fix that, as the system can react to threats and alert SimpliSafe agents within 30 seconds of catching a motion event.

Read more
Ring’s new Smart Video Search uses AI to quickly scour your motion history
Ring Smart Video Search on the mobile app.

Ring has revealed a new AI-powered feature called Smart Video Search that’s currently being tested in public beta. The goal is to make it easier than ever to find specific moments in your video history by allowing you to enter a text description of an event, which will then be used to scour your motion events for a clip that matches your input.

Smart Video Search uses a combination of Ring AI and Visual Language Modeling (VLM) to quickly search your video history based on a text description. For example, if you search for “red bicycle in the driveway,” your Ring app will automatically pull up any clips that feature -- you guessed it -- a red bike in your driveway.

Read more