SkyBell Slim Line Video Doorbell Review

SkyBell Slim Line Video Doorbell Design

The original SkyBell doorbell, the SkyBell HD, was round and, for the lack of a better term, ugly. The company made significant strides in the design when it launched the SkyBell Slim Line. Most noticeably, the Slim Line is slim and rectangular, so it fits most door frames better than the round SkyBell HD.

That said, it’s still not the most aesthetically pleasing doorbell. The camera lens has a purple hue for some reason, and the doorbell button lights up in lime green with SkyBell written across it. It kind of gives an “alien technology” vibe, and not those high-tech aliens but those slimy green aliens. Of course, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and sometimes, beauty is not even a factor at all.

Now let’s talk numbers. The Slim Line Video Doorbell works in temperatures from -40 to 140 degrees Fahrenheit. That’s an impressive temperature range given that most video doorbells don’t work in temperatures below minus 20 degrees. Battery-powered doorbells, in particular, don’t do well in frigid temperatures. The only other option we’ve found that works in -40-degree weather is the ADT Outdoor Security camera we recently tested.

The doorbell is wireless and has a battery life of three to five years, which is pretty long. It either records when it detects motion, when the doorbell button is pressed, or whenever you demand it to through your mobile app.

Keep in mind that the connection between your phone and your video doorbell is based on Wi-Fi, so it’s only as dependable as your home internet connection.

SkyBell Slim Line Video Doorbell Features

Design aside, let’s talk about what the Slim Line can do, and what it can’t.

Video

The doorbell’s camera has a fantastic field of view of 180 degrees- the widest angle possible. Check out our review of the Vivint Doorbell Camera for a different option with a 180-degree field of view. However, that is where the video quality ends. The camera only shoots reliably in 720p HD, which is inferior to the industry standard of 1080p HD. You could set the resolution to 1080p via the app, though, but when we did, the feed lagged heavily. Plus, it can’t zoom in at all even at 720p, so your footage may not be as detailed as you’d like. Looking for better video quality? You should consider the Ring Video Doorbell Pro. We were really impressed with its video quality while testing it in our home.

Audio

Fortunately, the video doorbell does have two-way audio allowing you to speak to your visitors. Two-way audio is a standard for video doorbells, so I’m not surprised the Slim Line includes it. Want to learn a bit more about the technical aspects of these features? Read our guide on how wireless security cameras work.

Night Vision

SkyBell Slim Line also includes infrared night vision, which enables the camera to see in the dark with the help of infrared LEDs. We prefer infrared night vision over color night vision that uses bright lights to illuminate the surroundings. Being blasted by bright lights coming from a doorbell isn’t exactly welcoming for guests, plus, we don’t want intruders to know they’re being recorded.

Storage

You’ll access your footage through the Alarm.com app, discussed in more detail below. Automatically, 1000 motion-activated clips will upload to the cloud and will remain there for a month. In that time, you can download the clips to a local hard drive or have them emailed to you. For an additional $5 a month, you’ll receive an additional 5,000 clips. I love the flexibility of having both cloud and local storage, so kudos to Alarm.com for providing both.

Smart Platform Integrations

The SkyBell Slim Line will not work with Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant on its own, but if you have an Alarm.com system or a compatible security system that works with Alexa, you can set up integrations through the system. It’s not the most convenient setup, but it’s the only option available. If you want an entire security system that integrates with your smart home, don’t miss our roundup of the best smart home security systems currently on the market.

Artificial Intelligence

Unfortunately, the Slim Line’s camera does not have any artificial intelligence capabilities. When it comes to cameras, artificial intelligence usually refers to either person detection or facial recognition. Without A.I, you’ll receive a lot of irrelevant notifications – whenever a car drives by, whenever a squirrel runs across your lawn, and even notifications from shadows. The camera can only tell you when it detects movement, but it can’t go any further as to what moved or who it was.

We’d also like to point out that the Slim Line uses a PIR motion sensor, which stands for Passive Infrared. Basically, heat signatures set off the sensor, so in theory, it should only trigger when a person (or anything with body heat) moves in its view. However, since it’s a doorbell camera, a PIR motion sensor isn’t the best option. If your door is facing east or west, for example, sunlight can cause the sensor to trigger false alarms or worse, miss real movements. Passing vehicles, which also emit heat, could also cause false alarms. Based on our experience, person detection and facial recognition are the best technologies to use in video doorbells to cut down on false alarms.

Installing the SkyBell Slim Line Video Doorbell

To install the SkyBell Slim Line Video Doorbell, you’ll first need a paid subscription with Alarm.com.  Like I said before, security systems like Brinks and Link Interactive offer this doorbell and its Alarm.com subscription, so you may already have it and not be aware of it. Aside from the subscription, you’ll also need a SkyBell Digital Doorbell Adapter for your existing doorbell.

You can either have your Slim Line Video Doorbell professionally installed or do it yourself.

The Alarm.com App

This is where things might have gotten a little confusing for you. While SkyBell does have its own mobile app, this only works for their older cameras, the SkyBell and SkyBell HD. With the Slim Line, you’ll use the Alarm.com app. Let’s talk about what you can do on the app and what customers think of it.

Features

Through the Alarm.com app, you’ll be able to livestream footage from your doorbell camera, speak to your visitors, make the camera record, view your old footage, and turn off the camera if you want.

Reviews

Alarm.com is actually a pretty solid home security platform. Its app holds a four-star rating on Google Play and an impressive 4.7 stars on the App Store. Those reviews, though, refer to the app in general. When we looked at reviews that mention SkyBell, that’s when we started to see patterns. One of the most common complaints is that notifications arrive late, up to 10 minutes according to some users. Some are also complaining about laggy live feeds and missing recordings among others.

It’s important to remember that SkyBell didn’t build the Alarm.com app, so the problems could be from either side. One thing is clear, though: The experience of SkyBell users with the Alarm.com app isn’t always smooth, so if app access is important to you (it is to us!), that’s something to think about.