Ring Always Home Cam – Flying Drone Security Camera

  AUTHOR: Carlos Paras
 UPDATED: January 28, 2024

UPDATE: Always Home Cam is coming. Always Home Cam is now available by invitation only on Amazon. Request an Invitation here! (link to Amazon).

The growing popularity of smart technology has brought about an increase in the adoption of smart home security devices. Several companies and manufacturers now offer an array of security devices which allow homeowners to closely monitor their home even while they’re away.

Ring is one of the more popular companies at the forefront of the smart home security industry. So popular, in fact, that they were purchased by Amazon in 2018 and they’ve only continued to grow and improve their products since then. From video doorbells to security cameras, smart lights to interconnected alarm systems. Ring has them all.

What makes the Ring line of security products so popular is the fact that Ring is completely dedicated to innovation and it shows with every new product they release. So, when Ring unveiled the Ring Always Home Cam, it was both a surprise and no surprise at all.

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What is the Ring Always Home Cam?

The Ring Always Home Cam (link to Amazon) is a small, drone security camera for the home. That’s right, a drone camera. Not quite what you expected? Well, when you consider Ring’s penchant for delivering the next level of innovation, it makes perfect sense.

Ring decided to tackle a problem it had been hearing from its customers: Monitoring multiple sections of a home requires several security cameras and the cost to do so quickly adds up. A homeowner might want to be able to see who’s at the front door, monitor the baby’s room at night, and also check to see if the oven was accidentally left on.

What if one camera was able to view multiple locations in a home, tackling every danger spot, check in, or child’s room? Ring set out to answer that question and created the Ring Always Home Cam.

Ring Always Home Cam – Features and Benefits

The Always Home Cam has a sleek, modern design. Its base is white and the drone itself is black. It is compact, lightweight, and measures 5” x 7” x 7”. When not in use, the drone sits atop its base which resembles a small cube. It fits comfortably on the corner of a counter or on top of an end table.

The base also serves as a charging station, with a full charge taking about an hour to complete. When the drone is in the base, the camera is fully covered and cannot record video or audio. This was done intentionally to ensure the owner’s privacy.

As soon as the drone is activated – whether autonomously or through the Ring app on a smartphone – the camera will launch and fly throughout the home, leaving its base behind. The camera extends about three inches below the top and can capture full HD, 1080p video which is sent directly to the Ring app on a smartphone, tablet, or computer.

The drone’s square top is about an inch thick and houses the blades that keep it hovering through the air. As the drone hovers, the blades make a constant, low hum. And since the blades are concealed, they can’t chop up your plants or tear up your furniture.

Although bumping into things isn’t really going to be a problem for the Always Home Cam. It features something Ring calls “obstacle avoidance technology”. If something happens to be in its path that normally isn’t there, it will stop, turn around, and dock again, while also alerting the owner of the problem.

The Always Home Cam flies only on predetermined paths and can’t be controlled manually. To program the drone, you physically walk the device around the home and show it where to fly.

It can be activated routinely, manually, or when the Ring Alarm system is triggered. The drone's battery only holds enough charge for 5 minutes of flight. This is just long enough for the drone to fly its path, record, and then return back to its base for a recharge.

Video can be streamed directly from the Ring app which makes it extremely convenient and easy to monitor your home even while you’re away.

Ring Always Home Cam – Privacy and Security

Ring has experienced difficulties in the past as hackers gained access to usernames and passwords of a handful of Ring users. The results weren’t good, but rather than take this as a total disaster, Ring set out to ensure that the same thing never happened again.

Ring has made changes since then, like requiring two-factor authentication to log into accounts and limiting third-party access to their data. The changes also extend to the way they design their new products and the Always Home Cam is no exception.

For example, the way the drone docks on its base with its camera fully covered ensures that video is never recorded without your knowledge. In addition, the Always Home Cam flies only on set, programmed paths and cannot be manually controlled. Plus, it is only able to fly for 5 minutes until it needs to recharge its battery.

While it may seem like this defeats the purpose of having a hovering drone camera, the Always Home Cam was designed this way for maximum privacy. No one is able to hack into your camera and buzz it around your home, recording for an extended period of time.

And if you think the constant hum from the drone's blades might be an ear-sore, it's actually another privacy feature which ensures the camera isn’t flying around recording video without you knowing it.

Ring Always Home Cam – The Next Step in DIY Smart Home Security

The Ring Always Home Cam is the next step in smart home security and peace of mind. Your privacy and safety are its the top priority. The Always Home Cam is scheduled to launch (pun intended) sometime in 2021.