'ZDNET Recommends': What exactly does it mean?
ZDNET's recommendations are based on many hours of testing, research, and comparison shopping. We gather data from the best available sources, including vendor and retailer listings as well as other relevant and independent reviews sites. And we pore over customer reviews to find out what matters to real people who already own and use the products and services we’re assessing.
When you click through from our site to a retailer and buy a product or service, we may earn affiliate commissions. This helps support our work, but does not affect what we cover or how, and it does not affect the price you pay. Neither ZDNET nor the author are compensated for these independent reviews. Indeed, we follow strict guidelines that ensure our editorial content is never influenced by advertisers.
ZDNET's editorial team writes on behalf of you, our reader. Our goal is to deliver the most accurate information and the most knowledgeable advice possible in order to help you make smarter buying decisions on tech gear and a wide array of products and services. Our editors thoroughly review and fact-check every article to ensure that our content meets the highest standards. If we have made an error or published misleading information, we will correct or clarify the article. If you see inaccuracies in our content, please report the mistake via this form.
Ring Cams finally get this very important privacy feature
Ring just announced the launch of a new Ring Indoor Cam for 2023, the first security camera in its lineup to come with a privacy cover included. The manual cover can be swiveled over the camera lens, which automatically turns off both video and audio recording for increased privacy.
The all new Indoor Cam comes with all the features you'd expect from Ring: It's a 1080p-resolution security camera for indoor use, supports color night vision and two-way talk, records footage leading up to an event with Advanced Pre-Roll, supports Amazon Alexa, and pairs with a Ring Protect Plan subscription.
Also: The best cheap home security cameras under $100
Living in a home loaded with security cameras inside and out, I find a privacy cover to be a standout feature for an indoor camera. This makes it possible to have the camera watch over a common area, like a living room at night, while giving you the option of turning it off during the day with a swivel while the family watches TV or the kids play.
The manual swivel easily covers the camera lens disables video and audio recording.
Other indoor security cameras outside of the Ring lineup also feature privacy settings with physical covers over the lens. While the privacy cover on the new Ring Indoor Cam has to be enabled manually, there are other brands that feature the option of enabling a privacy mode remotely from an app on your phone, like those found in many 360-degree cameras.
SOS for Cameras feature included
The new Ring Indoor Cam with a privacy cover also supports the SOS for Cameras feature that Ring launched last week.
The SOS button is the shield with an exclamation mark seen on the top right of the app.
This feature is included in a Ring Protect Pro subscription and gives customers the option of immediately requesting emergency services, like the police, fire department, or medical dispatch, to the device's location with just a touch of an SOS button within the Ring app.
Also: The best outdoor security cameras (and which are the easiest to install)
The SOS button is available on both the app dashboard and the camera's Live View.
The all-new Ring Indoor cam is available for pre-order for $60 and will start shipping on May 24, 2023.