Philips 7000 Series Video Doorbell review: mostly great, slightly frustrating

Philips
7000
Series
Video
Doorbell:
two-minute
review

The
Philips
7000
Series
Video
Doorbell
is
a
stellar
video
doorbell
that’s
mostly
a
pleasure
to
use.
Its
quick
detection
might
be
as
quick
as
the

best
home
security
cameras.
And
its
clear
image
at
all
times
of
day,
not
to
mention
ability
to
be
used
both
wired
and
wirelessly,
makes
it
worthy
of
discussion
among
the

best
video
doorbells.
It’s
pretty
easy
to
install
as
well,
especially
if
you
go
the
wireless
route.

It
is
among
the
more
expensive
models
out
there,
at
least
compared
to
offerings
from
the
likes
of
Ring
and
Eufy,
and
has
a
bit
of
a
delay
that
can
make
communicating
with
anyone
at
the
door
a
bit
frustrating.
Plus,
if
your
Wi-Fi
connection
has
issues,
audio
will
cut
in
and
out
so
that
anyone
waiting
at
the
door
will
have
a
tough
time
understanding
you.

That
said,
the
Philips
7000
Series
Video
Doorbell
has
enough
going
for
it
to
offset
those
issues.
The
video
quality
is
sharp
at
2K
and
has

HDR
support
along
with
night
vision,
not
to
mention
that
the
dual-camera
setup
allows
the
user
to
get
a
full
view
of
what’s
happening
at
their
doorstep.
There
are
a
whole
host
of
settings
available
through
the
app
as
well
as
features
such
as
voice
assistant
support.

Overall,
as
long
as
you
don’t
plan
on
having
long
conversations
with
people
at
your
doorstep
and
are
willing
to
drop
around
$230,
the
Philips
7000
Series
Video
Doorbell
is
quite
the
catch.

Philips
7000
Series
Video
Doorbell:
specs

Philips
7000
Series
Video
Doorbell:
price
&
availability

• 
  List
  price:
  $229.99
  (about
  £180
  /
  AU$350)
• 
  Available
  in
  the
  US

 Despite
having
quite
the
presence
in
the
UK
and
Australia,
Philips
currently
only
sells
the
7000
Series
Video
Doorbell
(specific
model
number
is
DDA270X02103/37)
in
the
US.
For
those
that
do
have
access
to
purchasing
it
(aka
Americans
or
anyone
with
access
to
American
marketplaces)
can
pay
$229.99
(about
£180
/
AU$350)
to
get
one.
That’s
admittedly
on
the
high
end.

Sure,
you’ll
pay
the
same
price
for
the

Ring
Video
Doorbell
Pro
2,
which
is
only
available
wired,
making
the
Philips
model
a
better
deal,
not
to
mention
the
Ring
model
requires
a
subscription
to
save
video.
However,
something
like
the

Eufy
Video
Doorbell
2K
(Wireless)
has
a
similar
resolution,
and
likewise
doesn’t
need
a
subscription
(though
Eufy
does
offer
one),
for
a
cheaper
rate
of
$199.99/£159.99
(around
AU$285).
Of
course,
it
comes
with
a
bulky
base
station
that
you
have
to
make
space
for. 

• 
  Value
  score:
  4/5

Philips
7000
Series
Video
Doorbell:
design

• 
  Straightforward
  wireless
  installation.
  Wired
  is
  almost
  as
  easy
• 
  Includes
  an
  indoor
  chime
  unit
• 
  Comes
  with
  a
  good
  amount
  of
  storage

Since
the
Philips
7000
Series
Video
Doorbell
is
made
to
accommodate
both
wired
and
wireless
connectivity,
the
amount
of
parts
in
the
box
can
seem
like
a
lot.
It
comes
with
the
video
doorbell
itself,
a
chime
unit,
a
flat
mount,
an
angled
mount,
a
USB-C
charging
cable
along
with
an
assortment
of
cables
to
be
used
if
you
go
the
wired
route,
and
wood
anchors
with
two
sets
of
screws
of
different
lengths
depending
on
which
mount
you
choose
to
use.

The
actual
installation
is
pretty
straightforward,
especially
if
you
go
the
wireless
route
like
I
did.
Philips
offers
some
basic
instructions
on
placement
along
with
a
rectangular
piece
of
paper
with
pre-drawn
mounting
positions. 

Once
you
know
where
you
want
to
place
the
doorbell
(and
this
might
be
different
if
you
go
the
wired
route
as
you’ll
reuse
the
wires
from
an
existing
doorbell),
you
just
need
to
drill
a
hole
at
those
pre-drawn
mounting
positions.
Of
course,
the
Philips
7000
Series
Video
Doorbell
doesn’t
come
with
a
drill
or
a
screwdriver
and
you’ll
need
those.
Also,
depending
on
the
type
of
surface
you’re
using,
you
might
need
to
make
bigger
holes
to
insert
the
wood
anchors.

The
next
step
is
to
place
the
mounting
plate
you
want
to
use
and
screw
that
in.
If
you
need
the
angled
one
–
maybe
the
doorbell’s
positioning
is
off
to
the
side
–
then
you
use
the
longer
screws
provided.
You’ll
still
use
the
flat
mounting
plate
on
top
of
the
angled
plate.
Once
the
mounting
plate(s)
is
installed,
you
clip
in
the
video
doorbell
and
plug
the
chime
unit
in
a
power
outlet
inside
and
the
physical
part
is
done.

You
also
need
to
download
the
Philips
app
and
pair
both
the
chime
and
video
doorbell.
But
other
than
scanning
a
QR
code,
the
steps
are
basically
just
to
follow
the
on-screen
directions.
It’s
all
pretty
straightforward.

If
you
do
want
to
go
the
wired
route,
it’s
a
little
more
complicated
as
you
not
only
connect
the
positive
and
negative
wires
going
from
your
existing
doorbell
to
the
Philips
7000
Series
Video
doorbell,
but
you
need
to
shut
off
your
breaker
and
insert
a
wire
along
the
circuit
as
well.
It’s
not
all
that
much
more
complicated,
but
does
require
a
little
more
work
(and
a
properly
labeled
breaker
box).

The
actual
video
doorbell
is
sizable
without
being
obtrusive,
as
it
measures
6.29
in.
x
2.16
in.
x
1.22
in.
(160mm
x
55mm
x
31mm)
and
weighs
9.87
ounces.
It
comes
just
in
black
with
a
dual
camera
and
a
single
doorbell
on
the
front.

It
has
a
USB-C
port
underneath
a
silicon
covering
for
charging
if
you
go
the
wireless
route,
so
it
retains
an
IP67
rating.
That
means
it
should
survive
all
but
the
toughest
of
storms.
It
also
comes
with
8GB
of
storage
so
that
it
can
save
about
clips
for
quite
awhile
locally.
That’s
greatly
appreciated
since
the
company
doesn’t
offer
a
subscription
for
cloud-based
storage.

Also
worth
noting
is
that
the
chime
unit,
which
comes
in
white,
has
an
ethernet
port
if
you
want
to
physically
connect
it
to
your
router.

• 
  Design
  score:
  4.5/5

Philips
7000
Series
Video
Doorbell:
performance

• 
  Sharp
  video
  quality
  that
  shows
  both
  face
  and
  foot-level
  views
• 
  Has
  about
  a
  10-second
  delay
• 
  Audio
  sometimes
  cuts
  in
  and
  out

 The
performance
of
the
Philips
7000
Series
Video
Doorbell
is
mostly
very
good.
Since
it’s
always
active
and
not
just
when
it’s
rung,
it’s
very
responsive
telling
the
user
as
soon
as
someone
has
passed
by
it.
Its
motion
detection
is
immediate.
Plus,
it
will
light
up
at
night
the
way
a
motion
sensing
light
would.

It
also
will
tell
you
right
away
when
the
doorbell
has
been
pressed
on
the
off
chance
you
can’t
hear
the
chime
from
the
phone
or
the
chime
unit.
It’s
also
very
accurate
at
only
detecting
humans
when
that
preference
has
been
set
in
the
app
(you
can
also
set
it
to
detect
any
motion).

The
video
quality
is
also
quite
excellent.
Its
2K
resolution
with
HDR
and
night
vision
support
means
that
you’ll
be
able
to
easily
identify
who
or
what
is
in
front
of
the
Philips
7000
Series
Video
Doorbell
at
all
times.
For
example,
I
was
able
to
see
from
one
of
the
recorded
events
(more
on
that
later)
that
my
sister
came
home
with
burgers
from
Freddy’s
without
telling
me.
Now,
I’m
not
saying
to
use
the
Philips
7000
Series
Video
Doorbell
as
a
way
to
spy
on
your
family’s
eating
habits.
However,
I
was
able
to
read
the
writing
on
the
packaging
that
she
brought
with
her.

The
video
setup
is
actually
a
dual
camera
one
so,
along
with
its
wide
157
degree
field
of
view,
you
can
see
everything
going
on
at
your
doorstep.
One
camera
is
pointing,
as
long
as
the
doorbell
is
positioned
correctly,
at
face-level,
while
the
other
is
at
the
feet.
This
is
particularly
useful
if
someone
is
dropping
off
(or,
more
concerningly,
taking)
a
package.

There
are
really
only
two
big
issues
with
the
Philips
7000
Series
Video
Doorbell.
The
first
is
the
fact
that
there’s
about
a
ten-second
delay
between
what
I
saw
and
heard
and
what
was
actually
happening.
While
this
is
somewhat
necessary
for
recording
purposes,
it’s
frustrating
when
trying
to
communicate
with
whoever’s
at
the
door. 

The
second
is
the
fact
that
sometimes
the
audio
from
the
app
to
the
doorbell
cuts
in
and
out.
This
makes
communicating
with
whoever
is
at
the
door
even
more
frustrating
considering
there’s
already
that
ten
second
delay.
When
the
voice
comes
through
uninterrupted,
it
is
clear
at
least.

On
the
upside,
there
are
some
interesting
features
on
hand
including
some
preset
audio
responses.
With
a
press
of
a
button,
you
can
tell
a
delivery
driver
to
just
leave
a
package,
for
instance.
The
Philips
7000
Series
Video
Doorbell
can
also
be
paired
with
Alexa
and

Google
Assistant,
though
you
won’t
get
the
full
video
feed.
And
if
you
need
to
set
specific
zones
for
detection,
you
can
do
that
too.

The
app
will
also
record
events
by
default
in
15
second
increments.
You
can
adjust
the
length
of
each
video
clip,
but
it’s
a
good
length.
Now,
you’re
not
getting
super
smooth
video
since
this
is
going
on
8GB
or
storage
instead
of
the
cloud
as
there’s
no
subscription.
But,
it’s
useful
to
look
at
past
events
to
see
what’s
happened
–
for
instance,
when
someone
gets
a
burger
without
offering
to
get
you
one.

• 
  Performance
  score:
  4/5

Should
you
buy
the
Philips
7000
Series
Video
Doorbell?

Buy
it
if…

Don’t
buy
it
if…

Philips
7000
Series
Video
Doorbell:
also
consider

How
I
tested
the
Philips
7000
Series
Video
Doorbell

 To
test
the
Philips
7000
Series
Video
Doorbell,
I
used
it
for
a
couple
weeks
to
not
only
answer
the
door,
but
to
monitor
all
activity
coming
in
and
out
(mostly
my
brother-in-law
letting
the
dogs
out
to
pee).
I
also
played
around
with
and
tested
the
various
settings
in
the
app
to
see
how
they
work.
Read
more
about

how
we
test
products.

First
tested
September
2024