Smart lock and doorbell maker August, which was acquired by Assa Abloy last October, today announced that all August Doorbell Cam Pro and Doorbell Cam owners will now have access to 24 hours of free video storage under a new subscription plan. Called the "Basic August Video Recording" subscription, users will be able to replay any moment they might have missed from the past 24 hours in the connected iOS August app.
Under the new Basic plan, users will also get access to saved clips of all activity captured by the Doorbell Cam, and be able to download and share saved videos. This plan will be included for free with the purchase of August's Doorbell Cam devices.
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If users need more video storage, the Premium Video Recording plan has up to 30 days of storage for $4.99/month or $49.99/year. More information on the distinction between the plans can be found on August.com.
“We believe video recording is such an important feature for video doorbells that we are adding 24 hours of video recording, for free, with both of our Doorbell Cams,” said Jason Johnson, CEO of August Home. “Now if you miss a motion notification or experience a porch pirate walking off with a package from your doorstep, you can access and review the stored video from the August app.”
The August Doorbell Cam Pro, which launched in October, integrates with the company's HomeKit-compatible Smart Lock Pro so that users can verify who is at their front door and allow them entry into their house, all from an iPhone. At CES in January, August also announced an expansion of its in-home delivery service August Access, competing in the same market with Amazon Key.
Today's reveal of a new free video storage tier for August Doorbell Cam users appears to be a move to remain competitive in the connected doorbell market. Ring, a similar video doorbell and camera company that was acquired by Amazon recently, offers a few features for free to its users, like smartphone notifications, live-streaming video, and two-way audio. However, without a Ring Video Recording plan (starting at $3/month, $30/year per device) users who miss alerts or live events can not review video footage.
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edit: I used to recommend the August product line while pointing out some of the weak aspects I'd run into. Now I just recommend you look at other options.