Ring brings radar to a new floodlight camera
The Amazon-owned security company is continuing to update its older devices.
Editors' note: Ring's partnership with local police departments have lead privacy advocates to express concern about the data Ring shares with law enforcement and how they use that information. You can read more about how we factor Ring's privacy policies into our recommendations here. CNET has not and will not issue Editors' Choice awards to Ring while the company's policies around law enforcement and surveillance remain on their current course.
Ring's new Floodlight Cam Wired Pro, an outdoor security camera with radar-powered 3D motion tracking and a pair of LED lights, is launching for preorder today. At $250, this new security device will ship on May 6, according to the Amazon-owned company.
Ring is in the process of refreshing its old devices with newer versions. Recent months have brought the release of two new basic video doorbells and a second generation of 2017's Video Doorbell Pro. This new Floodlight Cam follows the pattern, as a "reimagining" of Ring's 2017 Floodlight Cam -- a device with a similar design and the same price.
New to the Floodlight Cam Wired Pro (besides the admittedly unwieldy name) is the 3D motion tracking and bird's-eye-view mode that we first saw in the Video Doorbell Pro 2 last month. Essentially, the feature follows people moving in view of the camera more precisely within a 3-dimensional space, giving Ring users a bird's-eye-view their movement, as opposed to simply tracking their movement within the flat image of camera view.
I tested this feature with the Video Doorbell Pro 2, and while it has potential, it also needs to work through some kinks. For instance, when I stood out of range of the radar, but in view of the camera, the radar sent continuous, false blips at the location of the camera itself. Ring said the problem was due to the specifics of my entryway and that a fix is on the way. For now, the radar remains an interesting but ultimately inessential feature.
The new Floodlight Cam will also use the Ring app, which we've written about extensively before. While Ring has improved some of its security measures in the past year, potential customers should carefully weigh the company's privacy practices and collaboration with police forces across the country before making any buying decisions.
Check back for our full review of Floodlight Cam Wired Pro when it releases.