Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I purchased the Logitech Circle 2 wired camera. Due to several reported issues by community users with the wireless version such as battery life, video quality, and motion detection I went with the wired version. Please note, most if not all issues, may be resolved by future firmware updates. However, to be on the safe side I purchased a wired version since a battery can be added in the future. The setup process for the camera was easy. Unfortunately, once setup is complete, if you need to make modifications to wifi ssid or timezone settings you need to reset the entire camera and start all over. A bit strange in this day and age. In any case, you're not changing the settings all the time. The quality of the camera is very good with 1080p resolution enabled. Please note, you do need a strong wireless connection and enough bandwidth to reduce lag in live view. Some users complain there's a lag or recordings take a while to show up in the app. Before you mount the camera into your desired location, grab your cellphone, install a Speedtest app and run a test. If you have a poor upload connection then you're most likely going to have issues. You may need to invest into an Access Point or change the location of your router. Minimum 2 Mbps upload and download speeds strongly recommended Ring recently introduced a competing product called the Ring Spotlight Cam. I will test that one soon but based on specs and pricing there are a few important differences listed below. I think Logitech can definitely strengthen its offering with the Circle 2. Price (Wired Version) - Winner: Circle 2 - At the moment Circle 2 wired is priced at $179.99. Ring Spotlight Cam is $199 Resolution - Winner: Tie - Both support 1080p resolution Speaker & Microphone - Winner: Tie - Both have two-way audio Field of View - Winner: Circle 2 - Circle 2 has 180-degree field of view while Ring Spotlight Cam supports 140-degree field of view. Siren - Winner: Ring - Ring has a built in siren that can be triggered to scare off an intruder. It also includes LED lights that can be motion triggered. Cable Length - Winner: Ring - Ring comes with a 20ft power cable that's rated for outdoors out of the box. Circle 2 needs a weatherproof extension to be safe for outdoor use. Mobile App - Winner: Ring - Ring's mobile app is more polished and feature rich. It also supports the ability to add additional users to access the camera. If you want to share the camera access with your husband and wife it's easy to do so with Ring. Logitech currently support only one account. Ring also allows you to share a video recording by generating a unique URL to video hosted on their servers. With Circle 2, you have to download the recording and then figure out how you're going to send it to someone. Overall, security features and ecosystem in Ring's app is more sophisticated. Web App - Winner: Tie - Both cameras have a web interface with their own pros/cons. Smart Home Integration - Winner: Tie - Circle 2 will support HomeKit in the future. It will also support the Amazon Echo Show. - Ring has not announced HomeKit support for its camera but they will most likely have SmartThing integration soon. Which means you can probably automate activities based on motion detection (i.e. turn on lights at night when motion detected). Subscription Plans (Free) - Winner: Circle 2 - Circle 2 offers access to your recording for free for 24-hours. Person detection, motion zones, advanced alerts, and filters require a paid plan. Ring does not offer recordings for free. You only get access to live streams. Subscription Plans (Paid) - Winner: Ring - This is where Ring shines. There are two options for Ring Video Recording: Basic and Protect. Basic costs $3 per month or $30 for the year per device; Protect costs $10 per month or $100 for year, and it covers an unlimited amount of Ring cameras, offers a lifetime product warranty and gives you an additional 10% off future purchases. Logitech is currently charging $10 per month per device or $100 for the year per device. If you own several cameras then this is a pricey solution. Final Thoughts: I think Circle 2 is a great innovative device supporting various accessories. However, Logitech needs to invest into better software to be on par with Nest and Ring. For example, it does not make any sense to me why Circle 2 (wired) would not have a motion sensitivity settings. Logitech also need to make their pricing more competitive. I cannot imagine anyone owning several Circle 2 cameras and paying $100/year for each device.