5 Video Doorbells With Local Storage That Won’t Spy On You

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Video doorbells are one of the easiest smart home upgrades you can make. With just a little bit of elbow grease, you can keep an eye on package deliveries, visitors, and anything else happening on your front porch. However, one of the biggest privacy and security concerns with video doorbells is your recordings being saved onto the manufacturer’s cloud storage, away from your direct control.  
Moreover, the usage of this cloud storage solution is typically paid, which increases the cost of ownership. The only way to avoid the extra cost and ensure the privacy and security of your video doorbell recordings is to get one that either has built-in storage or supports microSD cards. It’s also a good idea to ensure the video doorbell has strong security to keep your data safe.

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

TP-Link’s Tapo D225 is a reasonably priced battery-powered video doorbell that supports a wired connection. As the doorbell has a built-in 10,000 mAh battery, the company claims it can last up to eight months on a single charge. However, as with any battery-powered gadget, the actual battery life can depend on a lot of factors, including how often you’re viewing the recordings or the live feed. In other highlights, the Tapo doorbell camera has a 180-degree field of view, color night vision support, 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 it accepts up to 512 GB cards.  You can store all the recordings locally and keep them safe from prying eyes. More importantly, all locally stored videos use 128-bit encryption and the TLS 1.2 protocol when being transmitted. You can also use Alexa or Google Assistant to view the camera input. Moreover, you get smart notifications and custom activity zones, both of which can come in pretty handy during everyday use.

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 install. However, there are concerns about its large, industrial design and a lack of Apple HomeKit support. Experts also note that you have to remove the entire doorbell to charge, as the battery isn’t removable. You’ll have to shell out $100 for it, which includes a bundled chime. It has garnered an average buyer rating of 4.4 out of 5 on Amazon, based on over 2,000 reviews.

Eufy, a tech brand owned by Anker, offers multiple doorbell cameras with local storage, and the E340 is particularly well-liked by both experts and verified buyers. It’s one of the bestselling video doorbells on Amazon and features two cameras to deliver better coverage than the regular single-camera video doorbells. The doorbell uses the front camera with a 2,048 x 1,536p resolution to focus more on the visitors and provides a head-to-toe view, whereas it leverages the bottom camera with a 1,600 x 1,200p resolution to capture any packages.

Another highlight of the camera is its built-in 8GB storage, which you can use to save the 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, as someone can’t simply take off with your video doorbells and the recorded camera footage. Other features include a 160-degree field of view, color night vision, two-way talk, quick replies, 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 has received an average buyer rating of 4.1 out of 5 on Amazon, based on over 4,000 reviews.

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

Other features include a 165-degree field of view, dual-band Wi-Fi 6 support, quick replies, continuous recording, and the ability to back up local footage to an SMB NAS server. Person and motion detection are also available locally, and the camera captures in 2,048 x 1,536p resolution.

In our Aqara G400 review, we found it to be a pretty decent option at its price point, especially with its excellent smart home support and solid video quality. However, we weren’t happy with the lack of battery flexibility. Experts from How-To Geek and Trusted Reviews share similarly positive feedback; however, the night vision quality is said not to be great and is limited to infrared night vision. It also requires a cloud subscription for precise object detection, but privacy-conscious folks will anyway want to avoid sending their recordings to the cloud. Amazon shoppers have also rated it at 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, Wyze’s Duo Cam Video Doorbell uses two distinct cameras for better coverage, with the primary 2,048 x 1,536p camera focusing on visitors and the secondary 1,920 x 1,080p camera on packages. The doorbell also comes with a removable 6,200 mAh battery pack, with optional support for hardwired installation. Moreover, you can use your existing chime or use the wireless one that comes bundled and install a microSD card for local storage.

Other features are pretty much in line with what you would 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 use AC power with the doorbell camera. Moreover, Wyze uses strong security, like encryption and a secure connection, to ensure your camera recordings remain safe. It also supports two-factor authentication and claims to not sell your data. 

Experts from PC World and Tech Gear Lab have generally good things to say about the Wyze offering, especially its excellent battery life and affordability. 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 garnered a decent average buyer rating of 4.2 out of 5 on Amazon, based on over 1,800 reviews.

Besides 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 doesn’t have onboard storage. It also gets 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 the local storage and add local AI for better object detection and compiling specific event footage. In other highlights, the video doorbell has support for live video calls, quick responses, 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.

Experts at Consumer Reports appreciate the doorbell’s video quality and response time. Amazon shoppers have also rated it at 4 out of 5. However, some buyers complain about getting defective units and software bugs. It carries a price tag of $85.

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