Reolink Video Doorbell: No Monthly Fee, One Catch
Person and package detection, 2K, local recording, and no subscription at all. I wired it to my front door and lived with it. The catch is what it needs from your wall.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-gTRd6N4P0
THE VERDICT
The best argument against subscription doorbells I've installed. Person and package detection, continuous recording and 2K footage, all with no monthly fee, because it records to a microSD card in your hallway rather than someone's cloud. The catches are real but narrow: it's wired only, there's no HomeKit or IFTTT, and the SD card it depends on isn't in the box.
Most video doorbell companies sell you hardware and then rent you the features. Person detection, package detection, cloud clips: all of it monthly, forever. I have four kids. Every subscription I can avoid is money that goes somewhere more useful.
That's the whole reason this Reolink Video Doorbell WiFi review exists. It does person and package detection for free, records locally, and charges nothing per month. I wanted to find out what you give up for that.
Short answer: less than I expected, but the compromises are specific and you should know them before you buy.
The no subscription part is the whole product
The doorbell records to a microSD card, not a cloud plan. That single design decision is what removes the monthly bill, and it's why person and package detection are free here when competitors charge for them.
Professional-grade specs for a buy-once, own-forever experience. No monthly fee.
It also means continuous recording is genuinely continuous, rather than a teaser for an upgrade. I have mine recording all the time to local storage. There's a Reolink cloud plan if you want it; I don't use it and nothing pushed me toward it.
The card is not in the box. That's the one place the pricing is slightly optimistic. Budget for a microSD on top; I used Reolink's own 128GB card on the theory that a card from the same company is the least likely to argue with the camera.
The detection is smarter than what I had
This is the difference I noticed within a day, and it's the sort of thing spec sheets never tell you.
My Wyze camera used to decide the flag outside my house was a person. Every time it moved, I got an alert. The Reolink simply doesn't. It's smart enough to know a flag isn't a human, so I never needed to set up a masking zone at all.
You can paint out non-detection zones if you need them, and detection splits into person, vehicle, animal and general motion, so you can alert on the categories you care about. But the useful part is that I didn't have to fight it.
Live view is the other daily difference. It opens almost instantly, where the Wyze doorbell I had been using made me wait every time. I am not going to put a number on that gap because I never timed it properly, but it is obvious the moment you use both.
Pre-roll: the feature that catches your delivery driver
It records up to 6 seconds before the event that triggered it. That sounds like a footnote until a package arrives damaged. Pre-roll is the difference between footage of a box already on your step and footage of how it got there.
Installing it: turn the breaker off first
This is a wired doorbell, so there's real electrical work. It took me well under an hour and I'm not an electrician, but do this part properly.
1. Turn off the breaker that feeds your doorbell wiring. Not negotiable. I would not touch those wires with the power on, and neither should you.
2. Set the doorbell up on the bench first, using the supplied lead to power it before it ever goes near the wall. Much easier than debugging an app while stood on your porch.
3. In the Reolink app, hit add device and scan the code on the camera. Choose Wi-Fi or ethernet, insert the microSD, and create a device password. Mine failed to connect on the first attempt and then went through fine on the second, so don't panic at that.
4. Pair the chime by plugging it into a socket and long-pressing its top button until it's in pairing mode.
5. Wire up the main plate, then slide the doorbell in at the top and click the bottom home. Leave the blue protective tab on until you're actually ready to mount it.
6. Turn the breaker back on.
Some reviewers call this a complex install. I didn't find it one. If you've ever changed a light fitting, you can do this.
The chime is the underrated accessory
A wireless chime is included, and you can add more. I work in the basement. Without a chime down there, a doorbell is a notification on a phone I might not be holding. With one, I actually answer the door. If your house has a floor where you'd never hear the front door, this matters more than any spec on the box.
Reolink Video Doorbell WiFi specs
Resolution 2K, 5MP sensor
Storage Local microSD, card not included
Subscription None required
Detection Person, vehicle, animal, motion, package
Pre-roll Up to 6 seconds before the event
Wi-Fi Dual band, 2.4GHz and 5GHz
Power Wired, or the supplied adapter
Works with Alexa, Google Assistant
Doesn't work with Apple HomeKit, IFTTT
In the box Doorbell, wireless chime, wall plates, fixings
Price lists near $120, often discounted around $100
What I liked
✦ No monthly fee. Person and package detection free, local recording free, continuous recording free. This is the headline and it deserves to be.
✦ The 5MP sensor gives you 2K rather than 1080p, and it holds up at night as well as in daylight.
✦ Detection that knows a flag isn't a person. My old camera never worked that out.
✦ Live view opens almost immediately, every time.
✦ Pre-roll of up to 6 seconds. Worth it the first time a delivery goes wrong.
✦ A wireless chime in the box, and you can add another for a basement or a far bedroom.
✦ Dual-band Wi-Fi, so it isn't stuck fighting for 2.4GHz.
What I didn't
✦ No battery option on this model. It's wired, full stop. Reolink sell a battery version of the same doorbell, so if you don't want to touch wiring, buy that one instead.
✦ No SD card included, which is a strange omission given local storage is the entire point.
✦ No Apple HomeKit and no IFTTT. Alexa and Google Assistant only. If your house runs on HomeKit, this is the dealbreaker and no price fixes it.
✦ You need a breaker you can identify and switch off, which not every house makes easy.
Should you buy the Reolink Video Doorbell WiFi?
Buy it if you're done paying rent on your own front door
If you want Ring-class features without the Ring bill, this is the one. It stacks up against Ring, Nest and Wyze on features, and then doesn't charge you every month to keep them switched on. Add a microSD card to your basket and you're done.
Skip it if you're a HomeKit house, or you can't run wires
No HomeKit is no HomeKit, and there's no workaround. And if wiring isn't an option for you, don't buy this model out of stubbornness. Buy the battery version of the same doorbell and get the same detection without the electrics.