Smart homes are becoming a true reality. One of the products that should not be missing in your home is a smart doorman, which alerts you on your iPhone when someone arrives at your home. In this article we are going to show you the main models that can be found in the market.
The essential characteristics in video door entry systems
Many smart doorman options can be found on the internet. In this case, the different characteristics must be taken into account since we are dealing with a rather critical product. This is because it is the way we can know in detail who is at the door trying to enter. It is important that you be smart to have control from your mobile, although you should always buy a quality option. We recommend that you follow the following points to find the best smart video door entry option:
- Choose a good brand : this is a product that on average can be quite expensive. But it should be borne in mind that if you invest in a reputed brand and with good ratings, you will have a video intercom that has an average life of 10 years. In this way you will always have an intelligent doorman and you will not make frequent changes to the home automation accessory, being in the end a small investment that is made.
- It is important to look at their resistance: in general, video intercoms are located on the outside of houses that are exposed to adverse weather conditions. In this sense, you can experience above all rain and also dust. In this case, you must find that video door entry that is resistant with official protections against all these weather conditions.
- Available sensors: it is quite important that a motion sensor is integrated. In this way, you can always have a record on your iPhone when someone comes to your door and rings the bell. This is a security measure against theft.
- Night vision: another essential feature to be able to see who has rung your doorbell at night. In this way you will not be limited by the schedule that can become a claim so that you do not know who rings your bell.
Gatekeepers that can be controlled in HomeKit
HomeKit is the software function designed by Apple that allows all home automation devices to be interconnected. Here you can also find the compatibility with video intercoms to have absolute control without third-party apps in case you don’t want to.
Netatmo
Without a doubt we are facing one of the best bells that you will find in the market due to its versatility. It is compatible with HomeKit, Google Home and also with Alexa. It is not necessary to have external applications installed. To be able to see who is knocking at your door, a 1080p quality camera with people detection is integrated. That is, on your iPhone you will always receive a notification when someone walks past your door. In this way you can have a security plus by being able to know if someone is nearby and has not touched, which is an indication that they may be forcing the lock.
It is designed to be installed outside a home. It has protection against liquids with rain in mind. The installation can be done by people who are not experts since it adapts to most electrical installations that already exist. Obviously you will also have to connect it to your WiFi network. The camera is important to note that it has night vision so you never lose vision.
Extel Connect
This video intercom is extremely complete since it does not focus solely on the mobile device. It integrates a high-quality camera and inside the house you will have a 7-inch screen that will act as a doorman. In this way, from inside the house, you can see who is ringing the bell without having the mobile phone in hand.
Likewise, from an iOS device you can have different functions as in other cases. Specifically, you can open the door if you have an automatic key system and also talk to whoever is at the door. In this way you can inform if you are going to arrive with a little delay or if it is a distributed you can inform that you can leave the package in a specific place. All this thanks to the system interface.
HSYFUNA
Smart video door phone that offers 1080p video. On your phone you will receive a notification when a human movement is detected or the smart doorbell just rings. When you pick up the iPhone you can have a clear image of everything that is happening and start a conversation with that person in front of your door. The night vision mode works by infrared and it will activate automatically and you will see clearly everything that is happening.
Keep in mind that you have a recording in the cloud of 72 hours in an infinite cycle without subscription and without costs. In this way you will have the most important images to review in a very specific period of time. It is waterproof to be installed outside of a house and also the 5200 mAh battery offers a standby time of up to 3 months.
Other iPhone Compatible Options
In the event that HomeKit does not finish convincing you, you should know that you can also find doormen that are not compatible. This does not mean that they cannot be used if you have an iPhone, since the only requirement that is imposed is that you install the corresponding application.
Arlo
The most complete video door entry option that has an application in the App Store. It connects directly to the WiFi network and has a 1080p camera. In this way, when someone calls your doorbell, you can have a live image of who is waiting for you to open it. You can also have a conversation with it by having a bidirectional microphone.
The moment someone calls someone on your doorbell, you will receive a phone call on your iPhone. This is something quite exclusive. When you answer the call that will come to you from the video intercom, you will be able to see the image of the person at the door and talk to them. The power supply is flexible since it uses rechargeable batteries, although you can also connect it directly to the electrical network of your house.
eufy Security
A doorman that is very complete and above all easy to install. You simply have to place the base on the wall outside the house and install the corresponding doorman. You should only always have the charger that accompanies the video intercom at hand to have the batteries charged. You have to know that we are facing batteries that will hardly run out over time.
It has a Sony 2K sensor to be able to have a higher resolution and to correct the distortion of the images to have clear recordings. The field of view is quite wide with a 4: 3 ratio and thanks to artificial intelligence you will receive notifications when someone is passing in front of the video intercom.
BOIFUN
Smart WiFi doorbell with a 32 GB SD card that is integrated to store all the recordings. It has a fairly modern design with a large button to be able to ring the doorbell. It also integrates a loudspeaker to amplify the sound of the doorbell so that you can interact whenever it is knocking on your door even if you are far away. This way it will be ideal if you have a large house.
In order to be as safe as possible, a 6700 mAh battery is integrated that can be easily recharged. It has a high resolution 1080p camera. In order to always have a clear image, night vision mode and IP66 resistance against water and dust are included. In order to communicate with whoever is ringing the bell, you can use the two-way speaker through your iPhone itself.
Ring Video Doorbell
An option that comes from Amazon itself but is compatible with a large number of devices. In this case, a 1080p resolution camera is integrated that will allow you to see, listen and talk to anyone through the iPhone itself, although you can also use a tablet and even a PC. The power supply is carried out through a rechargeable battery that is integrated in the body of the video door entry unit.
Installation is very easy and you simply have to install the corresponding application that you will find in the App Store. For free you will receive movement notifications to know when someone is calling. In case you want to store the recordings, you must subscribe to the specific plan that Amazon offers and that will allow you to enjoy premium functions.
YLXD
This intercom has two-way audio with noise cancellation as its main feature. In this way you will be able to talk to all your visitors wherever you are since the environmental noise that exists will be completely suppressed. All the images obtained with the 720p camera can be consulted with the manufacturer’s application on the iPhone itself and also have all this communication that we have discussed.
The camera features a 166 degree viewing angle and an IR and night vision sensor. In addition, the integrated LED allows you to see the face of the person who is ringing the bell in any environment. It has storage media of 8, 16 and 32 GB. It also stands out that it has a total resistance against the water of the external rain.
TMEZON
Four-wire intercom system with 1080p resolution. The latest IP technology allows you to receive a notification on your mobile thanks to motion detection. With the application you will be able to see, hear and speak with anyone nearby. In this way it is indicated above all for offices, public buildings and also for apartments.
Inside the house you can find a fairly modern seven-inch screen where you can talk to the outside and talk to visitors. Also, if you have a smart lock, you can also unlock it from this section as long as it is compatible. All this always if they are connected to the same WiFi network.
Bextgoo
An inexpensive doorbell with free storage service for all the images that are being collected. This makes it unnecessary to have an external SD card that has enough storage for these cases. The video intercom adopts Smart Perceive technology to detect movements. In this way you will have smart notifications with all the movements that are detected quickly.
The quality offered is 1080p and it has night vision thanks to clear infrared. Importantly, it is compatible with multiple devices. In this way the image can be viewed from different iPhones through the application. It also has a two-way audio function to be able to communicate with all the visitors that come to your house.
Which we recommend
There are many options that can be found in Amazon for smart video intercoms, as has been seen. But in our case we are left with two relevant options. The first one is Netatmo, which is the one with the best compatibility with HomeKit. In this way you will be able to carry out all the control from the iPhone itself and also through the voice assistant.
The second option that we recommend is the Arlo as it has a cutting-edge design and also premium features. It stands out for integrating a motion detection system and a very cutting edge night mode that allows you to have all the information about who is knocking on the door of your house. It is also compatible with many operating systems and notifications can be received on several computers.