Skybell HD vs Ring Pro vs August Doorbell: Pros & Cons and Verdict

Name Of The Doorbell	Skybell HD	Ring Video Doorbell Pro	August Doorbell Cam
Wi-Fi Video Doorbell Name	Skybell HD	Ring Video Doorbell Pro	August Doorbell Cam
iOS & Android and Windows Compatibility	Yes	Yes	Yes
Wi-Fi Support	Yes	Yes	Yes
Two-Way and One-Way Video	Yes	Yes	Yes
Cloud Recording	Optional	Optional	No Cloud Recording
Motion Sensors	Yes	Yes	No Motion Sensors
Image Quality	HD/1080p	HD/1080p	HD/960p
Night-Vision	Yes	Infrared LED	No
Camera Field of View	180-degree	160-degree	120-degree
On-demand Video	Yes	Yes	Yes
Silent Doorbell Mode	Yes	Yes	Yes
Is It Dual Powered?	No	No	No
Weather Resistant	Yes	Yes	Yes
Dimensions Of The Product	2.8 x 0.9 x 2.8 inches	1 x 2 x 4.5 inches	2.9 x 2.9 x 0.9 inches
Easy Set-Up	Yes	Yes	Yes
Colours Offered	2	4 (all of them are in the package)	2
Warranty	1-year	1-year	1-year
Suggested Price	$$$	$$$	$$$
Encryption	Yes	Bank-grade	128-bit AES
Special Features	None	Customizable Alert Zones	None
Check Price

This pretty much sums up our comparison chart. It’s full of valuable information and helps the buyer to choose a doorbell that’ll fit their needs the most.

We’ll discuss more features separately because some parts deserve more attention and need to analyzed more deeply.

For now, I’ll mention that all three doorbells have a really good audio system. Their sounds are pure and you’ll have zero problems hearing what your visitor is saying.

If we still have to choose between them, I’d go with Ring Video Doorbell Pro. I’ve seen it work and know for sure that it has a quality sound system.

4. Advantages and Disadvantages

Before we continue rating other features of these doorbells, let’s create some small charts and talk about the pros and cons of these products.

It’s important to know their strong and weak sides to fully understand their capabilities and to know if there’s still some room for improvement.

Ring Video Doorbell Pro: Pros and Cons

Skybell HD: Pros and Cons

August Doorbell Cam: Pros and Cons

5. Camera

One of the primary reasons people purchase smart doorbells is the camera. It’s really important for the camera to be high quality because our security is heavily dependent on it.

In order to monitor outdoor activity, having a good camera is important. Skybell HD, August Doorbell Cam and Ring Video Doorbell Pro have HD cameras and all of them capture quality pics and vids.

It’s still important to know which of them is superior and if they offer recording features or any kind of perks.

Let’s see what these doorbells can offer and find out which of them takes the highest quality pics and vids.

Ring Video Doorbell Pro: Ring Pro has a 1080p HD camera and takes really good pictures. Today, Ring Pro has one of the best cameras and also offers a cloud recording feature (there’s a monthly fee for this but it’s really cheap).

Ring Video Doorbell Pro takes clear images in daylight and the pictures captured at night are also good. If you take a look at the picture posted below, you’ll clearly see that Ring Video Doorbell Pro takes one of the clearest shots, and you can view the footage on tablets, smartphones and PC.

In addition, Ring Pro has a 160-degree field of view. It’s has shrunk a bit (the first generation Ring has a 180-degree field of view) but don’t let this put you off. A 160-degree field of view is more than enough and you’ll have full control over your surroundings. In other words, there won’t be any blind spots.

Skybell HD: Skybell HD also has a 1080p HD camera and takes the best shots. Yes, better than Ring Pro and August Doorbell Cam. Skybell HD took the camera game to another level and besides having the best capabilities, Skybell HD has also introduced a cloud storage for free.

Let’s take a look at pics taken with Skybell HD’s camera. Vids and pics captured by Skybell HD are nearly perfect. What’s more, Skybell HD has a zoom feature (using the on-demand video, you can zoom in or out while talking with someone).

We also need to mention Skybell HD’s night vision. Unlike other doorbells, Skybell HD has a smart system and you don’t have to adjust the camera for day and night.

Skybell HD has a 180-degree field of view and, judging from the image, the angle is really wide and the whole area is visible.

August Doorbell Cam: August Doorbell Cam also has a really good camera. August Doorbell has a 960p HD camera and takes some nice pics. As you can see from the pic posted below, August Doorbell Camera takes clear shots.

The only drawback of August Doorbell is that it can’t record vids because August Doorbell doesn’t support cloud recording.

So the only way we can test the video’s quality is to use the on-demand live stream. In short, the quality of the pics and vids is more than acceptable. Plus, it won’t take long for August to introduce the cloud recording feature.

August Doorbell Cam has a 120-degree field of view. As you see from the picture posted above, the angle is a bit short and there are some blind spots.

If you have a big yard, August Doorbell won’t be able to monitor the full area. It might miss some things and if, for example, a burglar takes advantage of this, you might get robbed without noticing it.

Points: Ring Video Doorbell Pro – 2.5, Skybell HD – 2, August Doorbell Cam – 1.

6. Motion Sensor

Like the camera, the motion sensor is an important aspect of your security. If we think more deeply about it, it can be considered the most important aspect of security.

Here’s why: Motion detection system alerts us when outdoor activity is detected. The motion sensor can alert us when someone is standing next to our door or alert us when someone is trying to rob our house.

For example, if we’re out of the country and someone tries to rob us, the motion sensor will alert and we can use the on-demand video stream to check who’s there and scare them away.

Frankly speaking, it’s really important for a smart doorbell to have an advanced motion detection system. Skybell HD and Ring Video Doorbell Pro have the motion detection system and it’s pretty advanced.

Unfortunately, August Doorbell Cam doesn’t have one but the company made a promise that they’d introduce one in the very near future.

Let’s talk more about the motion sensors and gauge which doorbell has the best one.

Ring Video Doorbell Pro: Ring Pro has the most advanced motion sensor on the market. Ring knew they had to make their latest doorbell special and it had to have some unique specifications. It’s true that motion detection systems have some flaws, and right now we don’t have a doorbell on the market that has a perfect motion sensor.

Motion Sensors frequently send false alerts and it’s really annoying. Ring knew about this and came up with an interesting solution. They created the “customizable alert zones”.

Considering that motion sensors aren’t smart enough to differentiate, for example, vehicle movement from human activity, Ring had to create something that would minimize the false alerts.

So they succeeded in creating the “customizable alert zones”. With this feature, you can set a  focus on certain areas and the motion sensor will only trigger if it detects activity in that motion zone.

This is a really good feature and it’s unique to Ring. Currently, no other doorbell has anything this good. This could be called the primary reason why Ring Video Doorbell Pro is considered as the industry-leading doorbell.

Skybell HD: Skybell HD also has a really good motion sensor. It’s not as good as Ring but it works pretty well.

Skybell HD has three levels of sensitivity and if the doorbell is sending a lot of false alerts, you can simply change the sensitivity level from high to low.

In short, Skybell HD has a really good motion detection system. It’s not perfect but it’s improving. Some buyers have reported having problems with it, but overall there are more satisfied customers than unhappy ones.

August Doorbell Cam: Currently, August Doorbell Cam doesn’t have a motion detection system but the company made a promise that they’d introduce this feature really soon.

It’s really important they do so simply because today a smart doorbell without a motion sensor is very limited. We’ve already said that one of the primary reasons people buy smart doorbells is security purposes and if August Doorbell can’t offer it, a lot of customers will seek out alternatives.

Points: Ring Video Doorbell Pro – 3.5, Skybell HD – 2.5, August Doorbell Cam – 1.

7. Integrations

Another important aspect of our review is to find out if these doorbells can be integrated with other smart gadgets.

Lots of people have various smart gadgets and almost everyone wants to connect them. Let’s see what products our doorbells support.

Ring Video Doorbell Pro: Ring Pro can be paired with smart locks like Lockitron, Kevo, Lockstate and Kisi. Ring Pro can also be connected with Wemo and Wink, which will let you control the light switches and outlets.

I’ve also read that Ring Pro will soon support Amazon Echo and IFTTT. That would be a really nice update and I’m sure a lot of people are looking forward to it.

Skybell HD: Skybell HD is more supportive and can be connected with more products than Ring Pro. Skybell HD can be paired with Nest’s security cameras and smoke alarms. Plus, it can also work with famous smart lock manufacturers such as Lockitron, Kevo, Lockstate and Kisi. On top of this, Skybell HD supports IFTTT, and that’s a huge advantage.

August Doorbell Cam: August’s doorbell is quite friendly and can be paired with August’s own Smart Locks, August Keypad and August Connect. In addition, August supports Nest integration and Harmony home systems.

Points: Ring Video Doorbell Pro – 4, Skybell HD – 3.5, August Doorbell Cam – 1.5.

8. Application

All three doorbells have their own mobile applications. We need them to receive notifications, answer doorbells, talk with visitors, review footage and lots of other things besides.

Let’s talk a little more about the apps and find out which doorbell has the most advanced mobile application.

Ring Video Doorbell Pro: Ring’s mobile application is flexible and has a lot of great features. If you have several Ring doorbells, you can connect them all in a single application. You can also use the app to integrate your Ring Pro to Wemo, Lockstate, Kevo, Wink, Kisi, and Lockitron.

On top of this, Ring’s app offers a full history of your visitors, recordings and motion triggers. In other words, you can check any activity recorded over the previous 6 months.

Ring offers a 30-day free cloud recording trial; when it ends, you’ll have to pay $3/month to continue using the feature.

Skybell HD: Skybell HD also has a nice mobile application. Skybell HD has a dedicated app and it’s different from Skybell 2.0’s.

Skybell HD’s application lets you do things like this: change the image quality (480p, 720p (good), 720p (better) and 1080p), integrate your doorbell with Nest, IFTTT, and Kevo, manage several Skybell HD doorbells, review activity from the last 7 days, change the LED color and change sensitivity levels of your motion sensors (you can also turn it off).

But the app has some issues and it doesn’t work as smoothly as Ring’s app. There are some glitches and it could use some improvement.

August Doorbell Cam: August Doorbell has a nice mobile application that gives you a lot of freedom. You can control your August Doorbell, August Keypad, August Connect and August Smart Locks. You can also pair these products (if you already have August’s other products) and make your home even more secure & smart.

You can use the August’s app to do the following: control several August Doorbells, give your family members access to the Smart Locks, integrate it with Nest Cameras, Thermostats, Airbnb and other popular smart products; you can review the whole activity, use the on-demand video to talk with your visitors and get notifications when, for example, your doorbell goes offline.

Points: Ring Video Doorbell Pro – 5, Skybell HD – 4, August Doorbell Cam – 2.5.

Verdict

It’s a hard decision to make because all three doorbells have something that makes them desirable. If we take a look at our points chart, Ring Video Doorbell Pro leads the race with 5 points and second is the Skybell HD with 4 points.

If you search these doorbells on Amazon, Ring Pro has more satisfied customers than any other doorbell. Skybell HD has successful products but it’s quite common to find unsatisfied customers.

As for the August Doorbell Cam, it can’t keep up with Ring Pro and Skybell HD. It’s a nice doorbell but it lacks the most important features, the motion sensor and the cloud recording. If August introduces these features, then it could be re-evaluated.

Ring Pro has a better audio quality, enhanced motion sensor, flexible mobile application, good integrations, outstanding design and interchangeable faceplates.

The only things Skybell HD has are the free cloud recording feature and the best camera capabilities. That’s pretty much everything that we can select from Skybell HD’s features. Oh, and Skybell HD supports IFTTT.

As for the August Doorbell Cam, the only thing I like about it is that August can be integrated with the company’s other products. That’s a huge plus if you already own any August products.

Popular Article: Arlo vs Arlo Pro Security Camera

If you want an advice from a professional, you should choose between Skybell HD and Ring Video Doorbell Pro.

I myself own Ring Pro, and I’m really happy with it. From word of mouth, I’ve heard positive reports from other Ring Pro owners in my neighbourhood.

I’ve heard reports of some Skybell HD purchasers having to return the model because it was damaged or nonfunctional – but as soon as they got a free exchange, Skybell worked flawlessly.

I’ll put it this way. Right now, Ring Video Doorbell Pro leads the doorbell industry and the Skybell HD is the second best product.

The prices of these doorbells are nearly identical. But don’t make a mistake by sparing $10-20 – pay a little extra and get yourself the best smart doorbell on the market.

So, to sum up: Ring Video Doorbell Pro is the highest-rated doorbell on the market and is a best-selling product on Amazon. It beats Skybell HD in most respects and works flawlessly. If Ring Pro’s camera capabilities are acceptable for you (and the quality is really good), you should opt for the Ring Video Doorbell Pro.

But if you want a doorbell with the BEST camera, free cloud storage and better integrations, go for the Skybell HD. I’ll create a separate chart where I’ll compare Ring Video Doorbell Pro with Skybell HD. You can use it to make the final decision.

Name Of The Doorbell	Skybell HD	Ring Video Doorbell Pro
Wi-Fi Video Doorbell	Skybell HD	Ring Video Doorbell Pro
iOS & Android and Windows Compatibility	Yes	Yes
Wi-Fi Support	Yes	Yes
Two-Way and One-Way Video	Yes	Yes
Cloud Recording	Optional	Optional
Motion Sensors	Yes	Yes
Image Quality	HD/1080p	HD/1080p
Night-Vision	Skybell HD uses LED technology	Ring Pro uses LED technology
Camera Field of View	180	160
On-demand Video	Yes	Yes
Silent Doorbell Mode	Yes	Yes
Is It Dual Powered?	No	No
Weather Resistant	Yes	Yes
Dimensions Of The Product	2.8 x 0.9 x 2.8 inches	1 x 2 x 4.5 inches
Easy Set-Up	Yes	Yes
Colours Offered	2	4 (all of them are in the package)
Warranty	1-year	1-year
Suggested Price	$$$	$$$
Special Features	None	Customizable Alert Zones
Check Price