Eufy's doorbell cameras are so similar that it's hard to find any meaningful differences beyond the video resolution and power source. This makes it harder to pin down which doorbell is the best of the bunch.
Most video doorbells rely on cloud storage, but Eufy breaks the pattern by including local video recording on every model. This is super convenient because you don't need to pay a monthly storage fee, and your camera still works without a Wi-Fi connection. Only recently has Eufy seen any competition for local storage from Lorex and the new Nest Doorbell (Battery).
Still, the amount of storage varies by camera. Both wired models have just 4 GB of space, while the HomeBase hub supports 16 GB. Only one model has expandable storage: the Eufy Video Doorbell 1080p (Battery-Powered). It supports microSD cards up to 128 GB, which is more than enough space to record your front yard for over a year (according to Eufy).
Your Eufy doorbell isn't much different than an old-school doorbell without the Eufy Security app on iOS and Android. You can use it to set up your doorbell, change settings, share access with other family members, and, most importantly, view recordings and live video.
When someone presses the Eufy doorbell's button, a notification pops up on your smartphone so you can see who's visiting and talk to them with two-way audio. We like the app's simple user interface, which groups the most valuable features into three tabs: devices, events, and security.
The Devices tab gives you a quick way to watch live feeds from your doorbell. It's also where you'll go to change settings for your devices. One of our favorite features is the activity zone setting to tell the camera where to watch for motion. If you want, you can ignore everything but the person walking up your path.
The Events tab shows a complete history of everything your camera records. Come here if you want to download videos for sharing or to save permanently. (Eufy doorbells will automatically delete older videos once their storage fills up—it's better to download clips you want to save rather than leave them on the camera.)
The Security tab helps you program how your smart doorbell acts when you arm and disarm different modes. (This is especially useful if you have a Eufy security system.) You can even schedule modes to run at certain times. We like this for telling your camera to mute notifications during the middle of the night while still recording video when someone triggers the motion detection.
Eufy's doorbell cameras work with Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant smart displays—with Alexa having better compatibility overall. While you can watch live feeds on both Alexa and Google smart displays, only Alexa says when someone rings the doorbell. Unfortunately, you can't reply using your smart display or speakers, but it's a handy feature for checking if someone knocks without using the doorbell.
Unlike some other Eufy security cameras, its doorbells aren't compatible with Apple HomeKit. We hope it happens eventually since Apple's smart home platform is a seamless experience.
Eufy's four doorbells split evenly between 1920p (2K) and 1080p video quality—you can find both resolutions in wired and battery-powered versions. Ultimately, we prefer the 2K doorbell cameras, which capture more detail (especially if you use digital zoom to blow up your videos).
Interestingly enough, the 1080p cameras record video in a 1200p resolution. This leads to some odd wording in Eufy's marketing materials as they refer to the cameras as "1080p-grade." Either way, the resolution is close enough that most folks can't tell the difference.
Even with the differences in resolution, we think Eufy's video quality looks as great or better than rivals like Ring's suite of video doorbells and Arlo's doorbell camera—especially since neither brand has 2K doorbells.
There are three kinds of power sources for Eufy doorbells:
- Battery and wired: The Eufy Video Doorbell 2K (Battery-Powered) supports existing doorbell wiring (8–24VAC) and battery power so you can install it where you need it. While the battery lasts up to 180 days on a charge, we prefer using wiring to avoid recharging your doorbell regularly.
- Wired only: By skipping batteries, Eufy's two wired models are smaller overall but require a 16–24VAC doorbell transformer to run. They're not compatible with as many wiring setups as the 2K Battery. They piggyback on existing doorbell chimes for power but don't control them—you need the included wireless chimes for notifications without a smartphone.
- Battery only: Eufy's cheapest model—1080p with battery power—doesn't even come with wiring terminals on the back. You need to remove it from the mounting bracket for charging. Its battery is smaller than the 2K version, lasting around 120 days on a charge.
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