INTRODUCTION

   Safety for ourselves, the people we care about and even our possesions is a much discussed issue nowadays and the way i see it things are probably only going to get worse as time goes by. This is why i always recommend that people secure their homes and offices with alarm systems complete with IP cameras and lately compared to even just even 5 years ago people seem to be far more open to something like that. Still, what not many are aware is that you can easily "strengthen" security at home or at the office by using other, simpler standalone solutions like video doorbells. Now, video doorbells may have been around for quite some time now but only recently have we seen models with video resolutions surpassing FullHD (1080p) and the VBELL 1 by Arenti is among them.

   Arenti Technology is a leading AIoT group focusing on bringing safer, easier, smarter home security products to global users. Born in the Netherlands, Arenti is founded by a group of experts from different fields including the world's biggest security company, the fortune global 500 companies, and the world’s leading smart home platform. Arenti core team has over 30 years of experience in AIoT, security & the smart home industry.

   The VBELL 1 Smart Wi-Fi Video Doorbell by Arenti (only available in black color) sports an IP65 certified aluminum and plastic housing inside which we find a 145 degrees wide-angle lens with a 3MP CMOS sensor capable of capturing 2Κ video (2304x1296p with - up to 2Mbps bitrate), mono speaker, unidirectional microphone, 2.4GHz Wi-Fi chipset, microSD card slot (supports cards up to 256GB in capacity) and an 6700mAh rechargeable lithium-ion battery pack which can provide power to the device for up to 10 months (standby). Other features of the VBELL 1 video doorbell include a single IR LED for night vision (5 meter range - color or black & white picture/video), PIR motion and human detection sensors (7 meter range with 100 degrees detection angle), DWDR support (digital wide dynamic range), tamper detection functionality, encrypted cloud storage (optional, trial available) and a wireless chime (Wi-Fi connectivity) which can be used either with three AA batteries or with a micro USB cable. The Arenti VBELL 1 seems to be among the best video doorbells you can get your hands on today so let's see if that's indeed the case.

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

The company logo along with a product picture and the Red Dot award all all placed at the front of the box.

Mounting instructions, the entire Arenti lineup, two 2D barcodes pointing the Arenti Android and iOS apps and a product description in 22 languages are at the rear.

Contained inside the box are the VBELL 1 smart Wi-Fi video doorbell, USB wall adapter, microUSB cable, wireless chime, 3 AA batteries, Torqx key, two pieces of double sided tape, camera recording warning sticker, mounting screws and the quick start guide.

THE VBELL 1

The 262g heavy plastic and aluminum enclosure of the Arenti VBELL 1 measures roughly 141mm in height, 57mm in width and 29mm in thickness.

By using an 3MP CMOS sensor the VBELL 1 can record up to 2Κ video (2304x1296p) with a bitrate of up to 2Mbps (the PIR sensor is located right beneath the lens and the microphone right above it).

As expected, the doorbell button is located on the lower end of the front (there's also a motion detection LED at the center).

At the base of the VBELL 1 covered by a rubber cap we find the reset button, micro SD card (256GB capacity), on/off switch and the microUSB charging port.

The wall mount is actually quite small and thin and also made out of plastic. Now even though the VBELL 1 doesn't come with cables that allow it to connect directly to your power grid (the GREETS 1 by HeimVision did came with those bundled) it does have that functionality.

Honestly i haven't tried it but this rubber button here is probably the tamper alarm device (once someone tries to steal the doorbell and gets detached from the base the small siren inside takes care of it).

The wireless chime is identical to that of the GREETS 1, just in black.

ARENTI SMARTLIFE ANDROID / IOS APP

Typically to use this smart video doorbell you will need to download the Arenti Smartlife app and follow the installation/pairing steps.

Once you install the app it will search for firmware updates and inform you about it.

From the main screen you can change between UHD and SD resolution, use the two-way audio feature, start recording and enable/disable the motion sensor.

From inside the settings menu, you can change the default name of the doorbell, share the device with other people (via 2D barcode), check the status of the doorbell, access the installation guide, set the volume, leave a pre-recorded message, switch between 12/24hr clock, enable/disable night vision, check the current battery capacity, enable/disable the wireless chime, set the video recording time, adjust the motion detection settings and finally you can enable a 3-month trial for the cloud recording service.

AUDIO / VIDEO QUALITY

Compared to the GREETS 1 the video/image quality of the VBELL 1 is significantly better, not just in terms of sharpness and detail but also colors (recording angle however is clearly less). In terms of bitrate most of the time you will not see more than 300-400Kbps and even though Arenti reports up to 2Mbps in the 1+ month I’ve been using it i never got even close to that. Wireless only models do obviously have limited bandwidth access (not to mention signal strength issues) so this is not something new but i was hoping i could at least see 1Mbps during my tests. In regards to audio quality i can't say i was equally satisfied since the end result is nearly identical to that of the GREETS 1 (so if someone is not very close to the doorbell you will not be able to listen to what is being said). On the other hand, the built-in speaker does a good job so people on the other end can hear you even when far away.

CONCLUSION

   One thing i didn’t like about the VBELL 1 and that was the fact that you simply can’t access its battery pack (at least not easily) to replace it (unlike the GREETS 1 model) when it fails. Battery life is also not quite as good as the GREETS 1 (during my tests the gap was almost 2 full days between these two models with identical settings in their apps) but on one hand the 1+ week that it does work is sufficient and aside that it’s not really hard to recharge it and then put it back out. Everything else (microphone aside of course) works out great from video quality (even though i never saw over 1Mbps in terms of bitrate) and alerts to the speaker and of course features like device sharing. Signal strength also seems to be slightly better than that of the GREETS 1 which is also a good thing (also black is a much better color than white, at least for me).

   Retailing for around USD80 inside the USA (Arenti’s shop seems to have a limited offer of USD64.99 right now) and 90Euros inside the EU the Arenti VBELL1 Smart Wi-Fi Doorbell is priced very well, at least for what it offers. Yes, i would had liked a larger battery pack (10k would be ideal) but that aside i feel that this is a complete/solid product which will undoubtedly come extremely handy wherever you decide to place it and that’s why it gets the Golden Award.

PROS

- 3MP Image Sensor (1296p)
- Two Way Audio
- Easy Setup & Use
- Battery Life (10 Months Standby)
- PIR & Human Detection Sensors
- IP65 Certified Enclosure
- Micro SD Card Slot (Local Recording / 256GB Max)
- Wireless Chime (AA Battery & Wired Operation)
- Cloud Recording (Monthly Fee / 3 Month Trial)
- Smartlife Android / iOS App
- Price (For Some)

CONS

- Average Bitrate
- Microphone Clarity (Could Be A Lot Better)
- Rechargeable Battery Pack (No Direct Access / 6700mAh Is Just Enough)
- Overall Availability