Amazon-owned Ring is a popular choice for those looking to equip their home withsmart cameras. For starters, Ring’s devices integrate seamlessly with Alexa, Amazon’s voice assistant. They also tend to be affordable, particularly during sales likePrime Day, and they’re easy to install as well. After testing a few different Ring cameras, I fell in love with how the company does things. What’s more, Ring’s line of doorbell cameras are great too, with theRing Video Doorbell 4sitting as our top pick among thebest doorbell cameras. But once you’ve narrowed it down to a camera system, what model do you buy? What is the best Ring camera?
While the sheer number of different Ring cameras can feel daunting, you may make things easier by asking yourself a single question: Does the area you want to monitor have access to power? You can eliminate half the options if you need a battery-powered model; Ring offers both battery and wired versions for a majority of its cameras.
With Pocket-lint staff completing hands-on testing on a majority of Ring’s latest models, we’ve assembled this guide to help you choose the best Ring camera for your home. Here are the top options.
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Best Ring camera: Our top picks
Ring Stick Up Cam Battery
TheRing Stick Up Camcan monitor any part of your home, including your yard. It’s easy to install. It captures a 130-degree wide view of a room or outdoor space in 1080p, with support for night vision. The only downside is you may’t invert the video it captures if you do need to hang the camera upside-down.
Ring Stick Up Cam Plug-In
The Ring Stick-Up Cam Plug-in is nearly identical to the Battery version, except that it requires a power cord. It offers the same features and capabilities, including 1080p capture. This one just has the added convenience of never needing to recharge a battery, with the annoyance of dealing with a cord.
Ring Stick Up Cam Pro
The Ring Stick Up Cam Pro adds a few extra features over the regular model. To start, video quality is upgraded to include HDR support, which helps prevent areas from rendering pure white or black in harsh light. The camera also offers 3D motion detection for fewer false alarms, a bird’s eye view mode, and enhanced audio. The trade-off is a higher price point.
Ring Pan-Tilt Indoor Cam
Ring’s newest indoor camera, theRing Pan-Tilt Indoor Cam, can cover a 360-degree horizontal view by moving the camera around on its base remotely inside the smartphone app. That makes this camera the ideal choice for large rooms where a single camera can’t see a majority of the space. It is a plug-in camera only, however, with no battery option or outdoor option.
Ring Spotlight Cam Plus, Plug-In
The Ring Spotlight Cam Plus is an outdoor security camera with built-in lights. Those two LEDs allow the camera to offer color night vision. The lights are motion-activated, offering you and your guests more light to see by as well. The Spotlight Cam Plus comes in plug-in, battery or solar options. It lacks the HDR and bird’s eye features of the Spotlight Cam Pro, however.
Ring Floodlight Cam Wired Pro
The Ring Floodlight Cam Wired Pro is a hardwired outdoor security camera that’s designed to replace your home’s existing floodlights. The hard-wired model takes some electrical know-how to install. But in exchange for that trouble, you get a floodlight that’s much brighter than the Spotlight Cam series at 2,000 lumens. The Pro model also includes the HDR video and bird’s eye view.
What’s the best Ring camera overall?
Ultimately, the best Ring camera overall is one that fits in the space that you want to monitor. For most spaces, the Ring Stick Up Cam Battery offers solid video quality and an incredibly easy setup that works indoors or out. But, if you have a larger room, you may want to consider the Ring Pan and Tilt to remotely adjust the camera angle. If you need both an outdoor camera and a light, consider the Ring Spotlight Cam Pro, or, if you have the wiring already in place, the Ring Floodlight Cam Pro.
How we choose the best Ring cameras
The Pocket-lint staff has tested the majority of cameras on this list, from theStick Up Camto theFloodlight Pro. The ones that we haven’t tested simply take the model that we’ve worked with before and add a few extras, like HDR video and bird’s eye view. To select the cameras on this list, I started with our top-reviewed Ring cameras, then added highly-ranked models that cater to a different need, like a floodlight or the ability to pan and tilt.
How we test and review products at Pocket-lint
We don’t do arm-chair research. We buy and test our own products, and we only publish buyer’s guides with products we’ve actually reviewed.
Q: What Ring camera should I get?
When buying a security camera, the biggest factor to consider is where you want to place the camera. Answering that question first will help you narrow down whether you want a wired or battery-powered model, for example. If you are placing the camera indoors, you can eliminate Ring’s outdoor-focused models like the Floodlight Pro, while if you’re placing the camera outside you can eliminate the models that are not weather-sealed, like the Ring Pan-Tilt. Another key factor to consider is how you will install the camera. Do you want it mounted on the wall, or simply sitting on a shelf?
Once you’ve narrowed those options down, you’ll need to consider if you want the standard model or the Pro model. The standard is the most affordable. The Pro adds extras like HDR video, which will help keep more details intact in the lightest and darkest areas of the footage. The Pro model also features better audio, 3D motion detection, and a bird’s eye view feature.
When factoring the cost of a Ring camera, don’t forget to factor inRing Protect. While you can use live view without a subscription, the ability to save and replay videos requires a subscription.
