Ring offers good performance and great Alexa integration for just $60

Amazon has been a driving force behind the proliferation of smart home technology in recent years. While we’ve found that Google Assistant is largely the better virtual assistant, Alexa provides similar functionality when it comes to smart home integrations. It’s not all about Alexa, though. Other companies under the Amazon umbrella like Ring have built out the ecosystem into a serious powerhouse for smart home technology.

The company’s $60 Ring Indoor Camera makes for a great addition to your smart home without breaking the bank. It’s easy to set up, integrates seamlessly with Alexa devices, and the video quality is good enough to keep an eye on comings and goings around the house. Plus, the price is low enough that buying multiple devices to outfit your home won’t completely annihilate your budget. There are a few downsides, but they aren’t enough of an issue to sway me from recommending the Ring Indoor Camera.

If Alexa is your preferred virtual assistant, the Ring Indoor Camera is an affordable, solid security camera that works great, is easy to set up, and provides more than enough features to warrant consideration.

The design of the Ring Indoor Camera is certainly understated. The subtle, cylindrical design combines the practicality of more boxy designs like the Wyze Cam Pan V2 with the style of more circular designs like the Google Nest Cam. It’s pretty small too, at less than three inches tall, which makes it relatively unassuming in any room, as long as you can ignore the at-times too bright power and recording light on the front of the device. Currently, there is no way to disable or even dim the light, which is a notable difference from the Google Nest Cam.

The camera can’t pan and there’s no vertical tilt, but for only $60, you shouldn’t be expecting that kind of advanced functionality. The horizontal field of view is only 110 degrees, which is plenty for your average room, but is notably less than other great security cameras for your smart home, like the Wyze Cam V3 at 130 degrees or the Arlo Ultra 2 at a whopping 180 degrees.

The power cable is micro USB and the plug resides deep into the body of the Ring Indoor Camera, so not just any plug will do. Thankfully, the included cord comfortably reached the wall outlet from the top shelf of my bookcase at 6.5 feet, which worked out for me but will likely limit your potential placement locations throughout your home. Amazon does give you the option to pay a bit more for a 10-foot cable though, which could definitely be worth the $13 if you’re trying to put it in a specific spot that’s far from an outlet.

The Ring Indoor Camera also has two-way audio with noise-canceling, although there was a bit of a delay and the noise-canceling wasn’t perfect, as I could still hear fireworks in the background outside (‘tis the season), but it did seem to slightly improve the overall experience. It’s worth noting, also, that the Ring Indoor Camera only works on 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi, so take that into account before making your purchasing decision.

As for what’s in the box, you’re not getting much more than you’d expect. The Ring Indoor Camera is snug in its little cardboard bed, along with the power cord. You’ll also get a small user’s manual and a sticker that says “Protected by Ring,” a great way to inform the criminals in your neighborhood exactly how to hack into your smart home.

I was really impressed with the setup process for the Ring Indoor Camera. After downloading the Ring app, plugging in the camera, and scanning the QR code on the back, it only took a few taps to not only be ready on the app, but also get connected to my Echo Show 10. The simple command of “Alexa, show me the office” had my virtual assistant swiveling around and displaying, in 1080p video quality, my office with no permissions, no button-presses, and no complications. It’s a little bit more arduous to get the Ring set up with Google Assistant, and you miss out on some core functionality, like notifications. You also won’t be able to view your camera in the Google Home app, which is a pretty big drawback. Basically, we'd recommend sticking with Alexa and Amazon if you opt for a Ring security camera.

As a self-described expert on smart home technology, I loved how much the Alexa integrations added to the already very good app experience. It allows a lot of customization from editing motion detection zones to setting specific schedules for the device. However, I could definitely see it being a bit intimidating to novices. Particularly with all the Ring Protect Plan features (which were included during the 30-day free trial), the home dashboard was a bit crowded and could easily overwhelm a user that wasn’t familiar with smart home operations.

Still, the important features were easy to find. The Live View mode is prominent enough on most screens so that you won’t miss it, and again the home dashboard is littered with walkthrough guides that will help you use the various features available. You can clear most of those dashboard options, which will declutter the space over time.

Also, if you are going to go with the Ring Protect Plan, you’ll get quite a bit of functionality. First off, you’ll get video history lasting up to 60 days, and a dedicated UI in the app to view it. You’ll also get more advanced notifications, providing preview images and even person alerts when it notices a human in view of the camera. The Basic service costs only $4 per month, and it covers a single device. You can opt for the $10 per month Plus plan, which allows for unlimited devices or the Pro plan for $20 per month, which adds 24/7 professional monitoring and cellular and internet backups. Without a subscription, the camera won't save any video to your account, which is a bummer. Google at least saves clips for a few hours so you can go back after a notification to see the video. Ring doesn't support local storage, so you'll have to pay if you want to save any footage.

The Ring Indoor Camera comes with 1080p video quality, which is admittedly far from the cutting edge, with more expensive options providing 2K, like the Arlo Pro 4. There are even some 4K security cameras, but a 1080p stream, which is what you get with the Ring, is more than good enough to peep on your phone or smart display. You will see some artifacting in the Ring clips, but more pixels won't fix that—having a stream that loads quickly is essential in security cameras, and this device only costs $60. There were a few glitches here and there, but overall it was a good enough experience.

Unless you’re trying to catch irrefutable evidence of Bigfoot or trying to do the crossword from another room, a 4K sensor isn’t entirely necessary for an indoor security camera. Note, both the sample videos were captured with default settings.

Motion detection was a bit overly sensitive, too. Even on lower sensitivity settings, it seemed to be sending my phone notifications every time the curtain rustled in the wind. Once I configured the detection zones, however, the problem wasn’t nearly as much of an issue, but animal/human distinction would be nice, although it’s a feature typically reserved for more expensive security cameras like the ones from Nest and Arlo. Distortion at the edges of the frame is also a bit much given the narrow FoV.

With the 1080p video quality, the Ring Indoor Camera picture came through quite clearly, making it easy to see everything important in my office. No, you can’t read screens very well, but that likely isn’t your primary goal for your indoor security camera. When it comes to lower light situations, the Ring Indoor Camera performed quite admirably, with crisp details even with no overhead lighting in a black-out curtained room. In extremely low-light situations (nighttime with blackout curtains and doors closed), the monochrome night mode is still quite clear, although you miss out on some of the smaller details.

If Amazon is your go-to provider for smart home technology, you should absolutely buy the Ring Indoor Camera. The seamless integration with Alexa-powered devices combined with the decidedly easy setup, low price, and high-quality video will make this security camera your go-to option for indoor spaces.

I’ll be the first to admit that it’s not perfect (what device is?). The lack of advanced Google Assistant integration is a bummer but understandable, and the narrower field of vision is barely noticeable in your average room. The motion detection can be a bit frustrating, as it picks up literally any movement with no distinction between people, animals, shadows, or even a curtain fluttering in the wind. Also, the required subscription fee for cloud recordings is a bit of a downer, but Amazon's gotta get paid somehow with hardware this cheap.

Generally speaking, the downsides of the Ring Indoor Camera are minor compared to the upsides. It works great, it’s easy to set up, and it provides you with good enough 1080p video in a comprehensive mobile app. We can comfortably say this is one of your best options for an indoor security camera.

You should buy it if…

You shouldn’t buy it if…

The first difference you'll notice between the Ring Indoor Camera and the Google Nest Cam is the price. Even the Nest Cam comes in at $100, while the Ring Indoor Camera is only $60, which is quite the discrepancy. They both offer 1080p video quality, but the Google Nest Cam has a 130 degree field of view and Bluetooth and Wi-Fi functionality, while the Ring Indoor Camera only has a 110 degree field of view and only connects via Wi-Fi. Still, those upgrades aren't worth nearly double the price, so take that as it is.

Again, price is going to be a primary differentiator between these two security cameras. The Ring Indoor Camera costs $60 and the Wyze Cam V3 only costs $30, so you're paying double for no much difference outside of advanced Alexa functionality. Both have 1080p video quality, and the Wyze Cam V3 even has local storage, which could be helpful if you're internet is spotty.

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Conor Cawley is the Senior Writer for Tech.co and an avid defender of all things Android. His expertise in tech has been on display in Forbes and he has participated in events with SXSW, Tech in Motion, and General Assembly. He's also a stand-up comedian in Chicago who can't pronounce the word "colloquially." Twitter: @ConorCawley