Smart home security brand Ring is updating its flagship Indoor Cam with a brand new, never-before-seen feature on its devices: a shutter.
Admittedly, that is a little hyperbolic on our part, but it’s true. The Indoor Cam 2nd Gen is the first of the company’s lineup to come with a physical shutter pre-attached. Before this, you either had to use the official app to turn a Ring camera off or purchase the Privacy Kit to install a shutter; however, that can only stop the video.
Closing the new Privacy Cover, as it’s officially called, on the improved model actually disables both audio and video recording. All you have to do is flick the cover shut. It is possible, according to the product listing, to remove the shutter for constant surveillance. The only other major difference with the new Indoor Cam is its “flexible, swivel mount” allowing it to be placed on a “wall or ceiling beam" for a bird’s eye view.
Back in late March, the company placed the previously free Home Mode behind a paywall. The feature allowed people to disable in-house devices so they could walk around without setting off the whole house. With the Privacy Shutter, you could argue, Ring is attempting to walk back its decision a bit by adding an easier way to turn off Indoor Cams.
Availability
Apart from the shutter and mount, the second-generation camera is pretty much identical hardware-wise to Ring’s first generation Indoor Cam. It can record 1080p (1920 x 1080 pixel) HD video and comes with color night vision, motion capture, two-way talk, plus a built-in siren to scare off would-be thieves. Other reports claim the new model supports the newly released SOS for Cameras feature, which requires a Ring Protect Pro subscription to use. Basically, it adds a panic button to the Ring app for requesting emergency services at the smartphone’s location.
The Indoor Cam, 2nd Gen is currently available for pre-order at $59.99 in black and white on Ring’s website. Buying one will also net you a free month-long trial of the company’s Protect plan. Pre-orders ship out on May 24 to people living in the United States (excluding Alaska and Hawaii) as well as Canada except for far-off rural areas. If you live on Baffin Island in Nunavut, you’re sadly out of luck.
However, we did ask Ring if it has plans to expand the availability of the second-generation Indoor Cam to those missing regions plus whether or not the device actually supports SOS for Cameras. This story will be updated at a later time.
If you’re looking to beef up your home security, but don’t want to spend an arm and a leg, check out TechRadar’s list of the best Ring video doorbell deals for April.
Update 4-1-2023: A Ring representative got back to us and was able confirm that SOS for Cameras is supported by the Indoor Cam 2nd Gen. As for expanding into other regions, they didn't give us any concrete information. The representative told us Ring is looking into a way to ship the devices out to Alaska and Hawaii and to expect an international rollout within the coming months.
