5 video doorbells with local storage that won’t spy on you

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Video doorbells are one of the simplest smart home upgrades you can make. With just a little elbow grease, you can keep an eye on package deliveries, visitors, and anything else happening on your porch. However, one of the biggest privacy and security concerns with video doorbells is that your recordings are saved to the manufacturer’s cloud storage, outside of your direct control.
Additionally, there is usually a cost to use this cloud storage solution, which increases the cost of ownership. The only way to avoid additional costs and ensure the privacy and security of your video doorbell recordings is to get one that has built-in storage or supports microSD cards. It’s also a good idea to ensure that the video doorbell has strong security to protect your data.

Fortunately, a number of video doorbell brands, including Aqara, Eufy, TP-Link Tapo, and Wyze, offer options with local storage support as well as good security in their portfolios. We’ve selected some of these video doorbells for you to get started. We selected these doorbell cameras after considering expert feedback, buyer reviews, and raw specifications.

The Tapo D225 from TP-Link is a reasonably priced battery-powered video doorbell that supports a wired connection. As the doorbell has a built-in 10,000mAh battery, the company claims that it can last up to eight months on a single charge. However, as with any battery-powered gadget, actual battery life can depend on many factors, including how often you watch the recordings or live stream. Among other highlights, the Tapo doorbell camera features a 180-degree field of view, support for color night vision, and two-way audio. If you can hardwire the doorbell camera, you can also enjoy continuous video recording.

The Tapo D225 has a built-in microSD card slot for local storage and accepts cards up to 512 GB. You can store all recordings locally and keep them away from prying eyes. Most importantly, all locally stored videos use 128-bit encryption and the TLS 1.2 protocol during transmission. You can also use Alexa or Google Assistant to view camera input. Plus, you get smart notifications and personalized activity zones, both of which can be very useful in everyday life.

The D225 has received positive feedback from experts at PC World, PC Mag, and Trusted Reviews, who say it offers good video quality and is relatively easy to set up. However, there are concerns about its large industrial design and lack of support for Apple HomeKit. Experts also note that you have to remove the entire doorbell to charge it, as the battery is not removable. You’ll have to pay $100 for this, which includes a provided chime. It has an average rating of 4.4 out of 5 on Amazon, based on over 2,000 reviews.

Eufy, a tech brand owned by Anker, offers several doorbell cameras with local storage, and the E340 is particularly popular with experts and verified buyers. It’s one of the best-selling video doorbells on Amazon and has dual cameras to provide better coverage than typical single-camera video doorbells. The doorbell uses the front camera with 2048 x 1536p resolution to focus more on visitors and provides a head-to-toe view, while it leverages the bottom camera with 1600 x 1200p resolution to capture all packages.

Another highlight of the camera is its 8GB built-in storage, which you can use to save camera recordings, and like the Tapo D225, it uses E2E encryption for better security. You can also pair it with the company’s HomeBase S380 smart hub to further expand the available storage. The HomeBase accessory provides better security for your video recordings, because someone can’t just take off with your video doorbells and recorded camera images. Other features include a 160-degree field of view, color night vision, two-way talk, quick responses, support for Alexa and Google Assistant, and a removable and rechargeable 6,500 mAh battery. You also have the choice to use it as a wired doorbell camera.

Experts from Tech Gear Lab, PC Mag and SafeWise are happy with it and highlight its excellent video quality, package protection support and local storage. However, they note the lack of Apple HomeKit support, a cluttered app, and slow notifications. The camera costs $150 and received an average rating of 4.1 out of 5 on Amazon, based on over 4,000 reviews.

Aqara’s G400 is another reasonably priced video doorbell that not only supports local storage via a built-in microSD card slot, but also incorporates several features you won’t find among some of the other recommendations. For example, the G400 supports Apple HomeKit, including Secure Video functionality. Since this is a wired video doorbell, you have the choice of powering it using standard low-voltage doorbell wiring or Power over Ethernet (PoE). PoE support can be especially useful if you live in a home with spotty wireless reception near the doorbell. Besides HomeKit, the doorbell is compatible with smart home ecosystems from Amazon, Google, and Samsung.

Other features include a 165-degree field of view, dual-band Wi-Fi 6 support, fast responses, continuous recording, and the ability to save local footage to an SMB NAS server. People and motion detection are also available locally and the camera captures in 2048 x 1536p resolution.

In our review of the Aqara G400, we found it to be a pretty decent option at its price, especially with its excellent smart home support and solid video quality. However, we weren’t happy with the battery’s lack of flexibility. Experts from How-To Geek and Trusted Reviews share equally positive comments; however, the night vision quality would not be great and would be limited to infrared night vision. This also requires a cloud subscription for accurate object detection, but people concerned about their privacy will want to avoid sending their recordings to the cloud anyway. Amazon shoppers also rated it 4.2 out of 5, based on nearly 350 reviews. Finally, the Aqara Video Doorbell costs $100 and comes with a bundled chime.

Like Eufy’s E340, the Wyze Duo Cam Video Doorbell uses two separate cameras for better coverage, with the primary 2048 x 1536p camera focusing on visitors and the secondary 1920 x 1080p camera focusing on packages. The doorbell also comes with a removable 6,200 mAh battery, with optional support for wired installation. Additionally, you can use your existing chime or use the included wireless one and install a microSD card for local storage.

Other features are pretty much what you’d expect, including dual-band Wi-Fi, support for Amazon and Google’s smart home ecosystems, IFTTT for automation, two-way audio, person and object detection, weather resistance, and color night vision. You can also enable continuous recording if you are using AC power with the doorbell camera. Additionally, Wyze uses strong security, such as encryption and a secure connection, to ensure your camera recordings are secure. It also supports two-factor authentication and claims not to sell your data.

Experts at PC World and Tech Gear Lab generally have good things to say about the Wyze offering, particularly its excellent battery life and affordable price. However, they faced connection issues between the doorbell and the wireless chime and noted that the video quality could be better. The Wyze Doorbell Camera costs $109 and has a decent average rating of 4.2 out of 5 on Amazon, based on over 1,800 reviews.

In addition to its dual-camera E340 video doorbell, Eufy also offers the C31, a more affordable model. However, unlike the E340, it comes with a microSD card slot for local storage and does not have built-in storage. It also has a removable 6,500 mAh battery; However, you can choose to use it as a wired doorbell and enjoy continuous recording as well as five-second pre-roll support. The C31 also supports encryption for better privacy and security.

You can also use the C31 in tandem with the HomeBase 3 hub to increase local storage and add local AI for better object detection and compilation of specific event sequences. Among other highlights, the video doorbell supports live video calls, quick replies, and smart home assistants like Alexa and Google Assistant. Unfortunately, it lacks color night vision and is limited to black and white video without proper lighting.

Consumer Reports experts like the doorbell’s video quality and response time. Amazon buyers also gave it a 4 out of 5 rating. However, some buyers complain about faulty units and software bugs. It costs $85.

There are tons of choices when it comes to video doorbells with local storage support. However, performance varies depending on the quality of the built-in camera, available features, and even ease of installation. That’s why, while coming up with our video doorbell recommendations, we not only took into account our own doorbell camera reviews, but also the opinions of other experts. We narrowed down our choices to only include models with at least a 4 out of 5 rating from Amazon buyers and avoided models known for glaring privacy or security issues. All of our recommendations are actively available in the United States