Ring Outdoor Camera Plus review: Is the 2K video worth upgrading for?

As with most others, the latest Ring security camera is quick and easy to install. This is especially true if you already have a Ring security system, as all you have to do is open the Ring app and point your smartphone at a QR code on the new camera. It’ll then be added to your system, without you even needing to input your wifi network password.

The physical installation is just as straight-forward. Since the camera comes with a set of screws and wall plugs, you’ll just need a screwdriver or a drill to mount it to a wall, fence or other flat surface.

The mount can be fitted to the bottom or back of the camera, and is secured into place with included screws. There’s also a screw to secure the cover of the battery compartment, and the adjustable hinges of the mount have screws to make everything nice and secure, so it won’t move on a windy day. None of these screws will entirely prevent the camera from being stolen, but a potential thief would have to spend some time unscrewing them all – and while being in clear shot of the camera itself – so that shouldn’t be a concern.

Before installing, make sure the camera has a strong enough wifi signal (the Ring app helpfully gives a score for this), and that it can be easily accessed for battery charges. How long the battery lasts per charge will depend on how you configure the camera, and can range from just a few weeks to several months. During my testing I found it was on schedule to last between four and six weeks per charge.

The battery has to be removed to charge, and despite this being Ring’s latest camera its battery still uses an old microUSB cable. The more common USB-C standard (as the camera uses for its optional mains cable and solar panel) would be preferable. Since the battery takes a few hours to charge, I’d recommend buying a second battery. That way the camera is only offline for a few moments while you swap one for the other.

Camera

The stand-out features of this Ring product are its video resolution and field-of-view. In both cases, the Outdoor Camera Plus reviewed here performs better than the standard Ring Outdoor Camera Battery and even the more expensive (but older) Ring Outdoor Camera Pro.

This is the first Ring security camera to record in 2K. This means a video resolution of 2560 x 1440, compared to the 1920 x 1080 of cameras that record in Full HD. Ultimately though, the extra pixels make little difference to video quality. Recordings are a little sharper, especially if you zoom in, but it’s not a night-and-day improvement. I’d like to have seen Ring go straight for 4K (3840 x 2160), but I appreciate how a higher resolution means more power consumption and a shorter battery life.

That isn’t to say the footage is bad. Recordings look great (so long as the camera has a good wifi connection to your router), but the improvement over older Ring cameras is small.

At 160 degrees diagonally, the lens is much wider than that of the base Ring Outdoor Security Camera (130 degrees) and slightly wider than the more expensive Ring Outdoor Camera Pro (155 degrees). This is good news all round, and means the new camera captures a wider view of your garden, drive or wherever you install it.

As ever with Ring cameras, colours are punchy, exposure levels are handled well and night vision delivers quality results. Just make sure the view isn’t partially obstructed (by a nearby window ledge or a fence post), as this appears bright white under infrared light, lowering the quality of footage recorded with night vision. Ring’s colour night vision avoids this, but that works best when there’s at least some ambient light, such as a street lamp, and not total darkness.

Features and connectivity

This camera works much like any other from Ring. It alerts you via the Ring app when motion is detected, and you can view footage live or stream saved recordings later. The camera can be configured to only alert you and record when motion is detected in a certain area. That way, it’ll ignore passing cars and pedestrians but record when someone walks onto your land. Similarly, there’s the option to have the camera ignore vehicle motion, and only record when a person is detected.

You can also set a siren to sound when motion is detected, and you can create privacy zones, where portions of the camera’s view are blocked. This can help protect your neighbours’ privacy, by obscuring their property with black boxes on your recordings.

Like most other security cameras, a speaker and microphone enable you to talk to visitors – or ward off intruders and trespassers – from your phone. Ring takes this a step further by having a range of pre-recorded messages, ready for the camera to play aloud. These include greetings, requests for couriers to leave their parcel by the door, and messages saying you’ll be at the door in a moment.

These might seem like gimmicks – and, admittedly, they make more sense when used with a video doorbell – but if you struggle to get outside quickly they can be a handy way of informing your visitor, or warn that they’re being recorded.

As for connectivity, the camera connects wirelessly to your wifi router and can use either 2.4GHz or 5GHz networks.

Storage and subscription

This being a Ring camera, a subscription is a practical necessity. Since there’s no internal storage, all recordings are uploaded to Ring’s cloud storage service, and that’s only accessible by paying for a Ring Home subscription. Without that, you’ll be notified when the camera detects movement, and you can view a live video stream there and then, but recordings of past events are inaccessible.

Prices start at £4.99 a month or £49.99 a year for the basic tier. This lets you access footage for 180 days after it’s recorded, and unlocks extra intelligence like people and package detection. The latter can be used to receive an alert when the camera spots a package left on your doorstep.

Above this is the standard tier. This costs £7.99 a month or £79.99 a year and can be used with multiple Ring cameras and doorbells – so you’ll need this if you intend to install more than just one device.

Lastly there’s premium, which costs £15.99 a month or £159.99 a year and unlocks 24/7 recording. With this, you can view everything your cameras and doorbell have ever seen, not just events that triggered their motion detection.

In short, basic is fine if you just want one Ring camera (or doorbell). Add another device and you’ll need standard, and only those who really need continuous recording should stump up for premium.