Wyze’s budget-friendly video doorbell gets a six-month battery

Wyze has announced a new budget-friendly doorbell camera. The Wyze Battery Video Doorbell looks similar to the Video Doorbell v2 the brand released in 2023, but as the name implies, it adds a rechargeable battery so it’s easier to install without the need for wiring or access to power. But wired power is also an option if you want to unlock its full capabilities.

The Wyze Battery Video Doorbell is available starting today through the company’s online store for $65.98, while the company’s wired-only Video Doorbell v2 launched two years ago at $39.99 and is now available bundled with a wireless chime for $59.98. The new battery version doesn’t offer quite as much resolution as the v2 — 1536 x 1536 compared to 2048 x 1536 for the older model — but it has a much broader 150-degree viewing angle in both the horizontal and vertical directions. The company describes it as a “head-to-toe 1:1 view,” and it should provide a more comprehensive look at who or what is on your front porch, including packages left leaning right up against your front door.

Battery life is rated at up to six months between charges, but that will vary depending on how much activity there is on and around your porch. Wyze said the battery life for its Video Doorbell Pro that launched in 2022 was between three to six months, but in our testing we estimated it being closer to four to six weeks between top-ups.

Footage from events captured when motion is detected, or when the doorbell is pressed, can be stored locally on a microSD card up to 256GB in size. Cloud storage is an option, but it requires a monthly subscription that ranges in price from $2.99 per month to $19.99 per month. The subscription also provides access to more advanced features like AI-powered person and package detection. The Wyze Battery Video Doorbell does support 24/7 recording to the memory card, but only when it’s hardwired to a power source.

The doorbell cam has an IP65 weather resistance rating, so it can be installed on doors not protected from the elements by an overhang, and in addition to two-way talk and access to prerecorded responses through the Wyze mobile app, an optional deterrence feature automatically plays a voice prompt to let visitors know they’re being recorded.