Reviewed by Marcus Knapman, BSc (Hons) Computing ·
Researched from 100+ Amazon customer reviews
· How we review
Let me start with the bit that catches people out: the £21.99 you see on the listing for the Blink Video Doorbell does not get you a working doorbell system. It gets you the doorbell. The Sync Module that makes the whole thing function is sold separately, and if you've never owned a Blink device before, you'll need to buy one. That's not a scandal, it's printed right there in the product name, but I suspect plenty of people skim past it.
So who is this version for? Anyone who already has a Blink Sync Module sitting in a cupboard, running a few cameras. For those people, £21.99 for a head-to-toe HD doorbell with infrared night vision and a claimed two-year battery life is, in my view, a very easy decision. You plug it into the ecosystem you already have and carry on.
For newcomers, the maths changes. You'll want the bundle with the Sync Module Core included, which Blink itself recommends for new customers. I've gone through the spec sheet and the pattern of buyer feedback to work out where this doorbell sits, and the short version is this: it's a sensible, inexpensive, battery-powered doorbell that does the basics well, with a couple of caveats you should know about before you click buy.
Blink's whole system runs through a Sync Module, a small plug-in hub that connects your cameras and doorbell to your home Wi-Fi. This listing is the 'Add-On' version, meaning doorbell only. If you already own Blink cameras, you almost certainly have the hub and you're sorted. If you don't, factor in the extra cost before deciding £21.99 is a bargain.
It's a slightly odd way to sell a product, but it does mean existing Blink owners aren't forced to pay twice for hardware they already have. Fair enough.
The headline claim is up to two years of battery life from the three included AA Energizer lithium batteries. That's a bold promise, and I'd treat it with the usual scepticism. Battery life on any wireless doorbell depends on how often it's triggered, how good your Wi-Fi signal is, and how much live viewing you do. A quiet cul-de-sac will get far closer to two years than a front door facing a busy pavement with passing foot traffic setting off motion alerts all day.
Even so, the principle is sound. Lithium AAs are far better suited to this job than standard alkalines, and having them in the box saves a trip to the shops. The bigger win is no wiring. You're not messing about with transformers or existing bell cables, which makes this a realistic option for renters, flat dwellers, and anyone whose front door predates sensible electrics.
Most video doorbells give you a face and not much else. The pitch here is a head-to-toe HD view, and for parcel deliveries that matters. You want to see the box on the step, not just the courier's chin. Infrared night vision covers the dark months, which in the UK is roughly October to April and half of May.
Two-way talk is included through the Blink app, so you can tell the delivery driver to leave it round the back from your sofa, or politely tell a cold caller to move along from the other side of the world. Sets of features like this are standard in the category now, but they're present and correct.
The setup is wireless and the box includes a mounting kit with screws and anchors, so you're not hunting through a drawer for the right drill bit. Buyer feedback on this kind of battery doorbell tends to praise the speed of installation, and the app-led pairing process is designed to take minutes rather than an afternoon.
There's an interesting wrinkle on the chime front. A battery doorbell can't ring your house the way an old wired bell does. To get an indoor chime, you can pair it with a Blink Mini 2 camera, sold separately, which then doubles as a plug-in chime. Otherwise you rely on your phone or an Alexa-enabled device announcing the visitor. It works, but it's another potential cost if you want a proper ding-dong.
This is the part I'd flag loudly. Basic live view and two-way talk work without paying anything extra, but a lot of what makes a video doorbell genuinely useful sits behind a Blink Subscription Plan. Person-detection alerts, Blink Moments, extended live view, and cloud storage for saving and sharing clips all fall into that bracket. There's a free 30-day trial of Blink Plus to try the cloud features, after which you decide whether it's worth paying.
That's the real cost of ownership. The doorbell itself is cheap, but if you want recorded clips you can review later, expect to pay monthly or annually. Treat the £21.99 as the entry fee rather than the final bill.
Blink is an Amazon company, so the Alexa tie-in is exactly what you'd expect. Connect it to an Alexa-enabled device and you can answer the door by voice, arm and disarm your smart home setup, and get announcements when someone rings. If you've already got Echo devices dotted around the house, it slots in naturally. If you're a Google Home household, this is probably not the doorbell for you.
The product title mentions an IP65 rating, which indicates protection against dust and water jets. In practical terms, that's well suited to a doorbell that lives outside and will spend much of its life being rained on sideways. I'd still want to see how the batteries cope with a properly cold January, since lithium cells handle low temperatures better than alkalines but aren't immune to winter.
The honest weak spot is the dependency chain. You need the Sync Module, you may want a Mini 2 for the chime, and you'll probably want a subscription to unlock the best features. Each piece is reasonably priced on its own, but they add up, and the headline price doesn't tell the full story. If you want a fully self-contained doorbell with local storage and no ongoing costs, this isn't it.
I'd also have liked the chime situation to be simpler. Having to buy a second Blink product just to get a doorbell that rings indoors feels like a slightly cheeky upsell, even if the Alexa announcements soften the blow.
If you already own a Blink Sync Module, this is a cheap and sensible way to add a video doorbell, and I'd happily recommend it. If you're starting from scratch, buy the bundle that includes the Sync Module Core instead, and budget for a subscription if you want clip storage.
As an Amazon Associate, Smart Trends earns from qualifying purchases.
Was this review helpful?
