I Vetted the Affordable Tapo D210 Video Doorbell and Approve Its Accurate AI Detection and Straightforward Setup

I've been a user of video doorbells since we bought our first home almost 10 years ago, with some a more permanent fixture than others.

As one of the most affordable options today, I was curious to try the Tapo D210 Video Doorbell, available at Amazon, and since testing it, have enjoyed detecting motion, customizing nighttime modes, and changing the included Chime's ringtones.

My quibbles with it lay with the lag times that can affect the image and audio quality. I can still make out the person, animal or vehicle, and I like all the flexible installation options. Is it the best video doorbell for you? This is what I make of it, to help you decide.

My One-Minute Summary

Overall, the Tapo D210 Video Doorbell is a fantastic entry-level surveillance option, especially for renters. With some DIY know-how (and guidance from my husband), I eventually made it through the installation process and it accurately alerted me when there was movement within the 20 foot range.

I like that it has an adhesive backing supplied so, if you're securing it to a smooth surface, this video doorbell could be something that you have up and running not long after its charged. This fixing will also mean that it doesn't cause any long-term damage to the property, which is great for rentals.

The Tapo app is also fairly responsive and does enough for customization, making it personal to your lifestyle. You can view live and stored footage, and see Night Mode in one of three different settings: Infrared, Doorbell or Full Color.

However, the video and audio quality lacked for me. Footage wasn't always clear, with detail getting lost the closer a subject came to the lens. Two-way talk lagged so it was a struggle to communicate to whoever and whatever was at the receiving end too. This could be because of a poor signal strength yet I haven't had a problem like this with the other video doorbells I've used and tested.

I am more familiar with the quality of Ring video doorbells and security cameras. The cost of these devices are closer to $100+ which is double that of the D210. If you want more advanced customization and the ability to view "missed rings", the Ring Battery Doorbell Pro is great alternative.

Equally, the eufy E340 and the Lorex 2K are great options if you want to dodge paying a monthly fee.

Tapo D210 Video Doorbell: Specifications

Tapo D210 Video Doorbell: Installation and Setup

The Tapo D210 Video Doorbell is delivered with everything that you need to set and up and install, aside from a drill or screwdriver. It comes with a 5V USB charger, chime, mounting template, mounting bracket, two mounting screws, two anchors, mounting wedge, foam pad, doorbell detaching pin, mounting wedge screws and 3M adhesive. This means that you'll have plenty of configurations with this smart home setup.

Step one on the Quick Start guide advises to charge this video doorbell for seven hours before use. While it was charging I made the most of my time by securing the wedge to the mounting plate, and downloaded the Tapo app.

Initially I wasn't going to use the wedge because the D210 has a 160-degree field of view. However, when I offered it up to where I wanted it on the fence post I wanted to see if I could see around the corner from the garage a little more – and I could with the wedge. The four screws are tiny and annoyingly fiddly. Fortunately, my husband has a tool box of sorts and he found a mini screwdriver that did the job.

And it was a good job that I had my husband around to install the mounting bracket with wedge to the sodden fence posts because he has the essential DIY skills that I simply do not have. The screws are not the best quality; the screwdriver head kept loosing grip, knackering the screw head, so if I need to remove it for whatever reason it could be problematic.

But, of course, you can affix this video doorbell whenever you would like on the outside of your property where it'll benefit you. For example, use the 3M adhesive if installing onto smooth tiling (this looks a lot easier) or use the anchors and mounting screws to install onto a brick wall.

I then headed back indoors to pair the video doorbell with the Chime. To do this I scanned the QR code printed in the Quick Start Guide, but the app can also be easily found in the App Store and Google Play. I then followed the instructions on the Tapo app.

The app was very detailed yet easy to follow. It was also responsive through each step.

You'll need to ensure that your Wi-Fi router is positioned in the best place for a stable connection when installing the video doorbell and chime. The D210 requires 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi and, if you want/need, a microSD card for local recording. As in my case, the Chime required a Firmware Update too although this was done and dusted with a matter of seconds. From downloading the app to pairing with the Chime, it took 10 minutes.

You can customize the ringtones and noise level when the video doorbell is activated by pressing a couple of buttons on the side of the Chime. There are six ringtones to choose from (including a Jingle Bells) and three levels of loudness which ranged from 87dB - 91dB. There is no ability to tweak this in the app.

Tapo D210 Video Doorbell: Video Quality

I've been using the Tapo D210 Video Doorbell for over one week, and I found that the video quality was hit and miss.

Daytime: The field of view is 135 degrees horizontal and 109 degrees vertical, and the resolution is up to 2K. This meant that I could work out faces at the gate, but not when someone was approaching. I could also see the floor in front of me when viewing through the lens of the video doorbell, making it a good measure for preventing porch pirates.

I found that the picture quality was a little grainy and jumpy at times, although this could be our internet connection. I had the option of a 10.8 zoom which I tried but the picture went pixelated. I couldn't read any details like the number plate of our car when it entered the (approx.) 20ft range, or any branding on the side of delivery boxes.

This video doorbell also survived lashings of rain throughout the testing phase, not affecting daytime footage, so kudos to the water-resistant design for that.

Nighttime: In the app, there are three nighttime mode settings to choose from. These modes are Infrared (black and white image), Doorbell (turns on spotlight when doorbell is rung) and Full Color (spotlight is on all night). For me, I found that Infrared Mode provided the most clarity with glare from the street lights reduced and a visibly clearer balance between light and dark. I could recognize faces in all modes, and motion was detected just as quickly as during the day.

This means that it is a good security measure for the house and, even though the nighttime vison wasn't the best, I could still make out enough to recognize any suspect activities occurring in front of the fence.

Dynamic light: The front of our house gets a lot of sun throughout the day which is balanced well; there is no beam of light behind a moving person, animal or vehicle and facial details are still clear. There is some glare from the sun in daytime footage though, almost like a halo was in the sky.

Tapo D210 Video Doorbell: Audio Quality

There is constant interference to the audio quality when viewing live and playback, and it's tinny too. There is also some lagging when engaging in two-way conversation.

I can hear bird song, wind and traffic noise in the background of live and playback footage which sounds amplified. However, this doesn't affect two-way conversation because I can still decipher what is being said.

Tapo D210 Video Doorbell: App and Smart Features

The Tapo app is simple and intuitive to use. It can be downloaded by scanning the QR code found on the box and Quick Start Guide, or direct from Google Play (Android) or App Store (iOS).

You can link it to Google Home and/or Amazon Alexa devices, such as the Echo Show, [on Amazon], as another smart home gadget that receives alerts when the video doorbell is activated.

It offers some customization. For example, you can choose to watch footage in 2K, 360p or Auto – although be mindful that while a higher quality video looks better it'll drain the battery more quickly. You can also adjust the spotlight brightness, night mode settings and on-screen display information.

From the app I could also talk to a person (or animal) and tap to play a default voice response, even when the doorbell wasn't rung.

A neat feature is Detection Tag. This uses AI to tag a person, animal, vehicle or package. It'll only work in live view and while I'm not 100% sure on the true benefit of this feature, it is a detail that I like.

It's also easy to view and/or download past events which are being stored in the Tapo Care Cloud as part of the 30-day free trial from set-up. If you opted to insert a MicroSD card then footage would be automatically stored.

What I feel is lacking from this app is the ability to set up privacy zones which Ring, for example, does brilliantly. This will prevent neighboring residents from activating the video doorbell, and will provide some privacy – especially if your video doorbell is unintentionally facing their front door. While the Tapo app does have "Privacy Mode", this is only to disable streaming and recording functions to protect your privacy.

Tapo D210 Video Doorbell: Motion Detection and Notifications

The Tapo D210 Video Doorbell can detect people, vehicles, animals and packages. Each time any of these were detected with AI, I received a notification to my phone.

I didn't find the motion detection of this video doorbell overly sensitive, so I'm not getting an alert when a bird flies over or a leaf blows off the tree, for example. However, the notifications were somewhat relentless while my husband scurried between the parked cars and garage out-front. Notifications were then stored in Playback & Download of the app.

When the doorbell is activated it's like receiving a phone call (weird) – my phone actually "rings" when someone rings the bell, and the chime is making a noise. It feels a little over-the-top for a doorbell and, from what I can tell, I can not tweak this in the app.

There is a lag of a few seconds from when the bell is rung through to when my phone starts to ring. This is really frustrating because I'm used to an instant answer with my wired doorbell. And there's a lag of a few seconds when engaging in two-way audio, with some "rings" being missed altogether.

The D210 can work with Amazon Alexa and Google Home to receive doorbell activations too but, as someone who has yet to set up a smart home, and isn't too confident with how voice assistants can be used, I won't be compromising on how I use the device.

Tapo D210 Video Doorbell: Power and Battery Life

The Tapo D210 Video Doorbell is only powered by battery which makes it a good renter-safe home security option. The 6400mAh built-in battery is said to last for up to 180 days. Within 24 hours of using the D210 it had already used 14% of its battery so I'd be surprised if it lasts half this time.

In an attempt to preserve battery the video quality is set to "Auto", but other factors that can effect the runtime such as usage, environmental factors and router specifications are outside of my control.

You'll need to take the whole thing down and allow for 7 hours to fully charge it. The light will initially flash orange as its plugged in, and then it'll turn green when charging is complete. The D210 does come with a USB charging cable. but you will need to buy a USB charging plug [from Amazon] if you don't already have one.

Tapo D210 Video Doorbell: Connectivity and Reliability

So far, I haven't had any issues with the Tapo D210 Video Doorbell or chime dropping out from the 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi. While the router is inside the house behind thick stone walls, as far as I am aware the connectivity has remained stable and consistent.

Over the one week of testing I have had over 50 detections to playback that I would have missed had it not been for this video doorbell. It has been especially helpful to playback past events, for example if I needed to remind myself what time I put the trash out. This may be what is draining the battery but there is no way to lower the level of sensitivity.

Tapo D210 Video Doorbell: Privacy and Security

The only home privacy setting in the app is "Privacy Mode". This disables streaming and recording functions to protect your privacy. There is no ability to set privacy zones to block out a neighbor's property, which I feel would be of great benefit in terms of preserving the battery and not interfering with those across the street.

Data is stored in the Tapo Care Cloud Storage for free for the first 30-days and then you'll need to pay upwards of $3.49 / month after this time. If you'd prefer to not have the ongoing cost, local storage on a 512gB microSD card – like this SanDisk 512GB Ultra SDXC UHS-I Memory Card (Amazon) – is another option.

Post-installation it is unclear how my data is handled with nothing obvious to read on the app. The app also doesn't support two‑factor authentication which would provide extra login protection.

Tapo D210 Video Doorbell: Price and Value

Everything you need is included in the box when you buy the Tapo D210 Video Doorbell on Amazon. The cost of this is just $57.99 although, at the time of writing, it was $47.48. A similar spec to the D210 is the Tapo D225. The only difference being that you can hardwire this one in to make it a more permanent fixture to the home. If you prefer this as an option, it's $99.99 on Amazon.

With either of these Tapo video doorbell options you can add voice control by combining with a screen Alexa device, such as the Amazon Echo Show 5 which costs $89.99 on Amazon.

The brand also has a suite of other smart home devices including robot vacuum cleaners, lighting and plugs.

An ongoing cost is the Tapo Care Cloud Storage which costs upwards of $3.49 / month when the free 30-day trial ends. For this you'll get 30-day video clip history, rich notifications with snapshots, AI detection and privacy zones. This is cheaper than the Ring subscription plans, starting at $4.99 for The Basic plan, which includes up to 180-days event history; person, package and vehicle alerts and video preview alerts.

However, Ring video doorbells are generally more expensive that Tapo. I have the Ring Wired Doorbell Pro installed next to my front door. This costs $229.99, when not on sale, at Amazon. The image quality is comparably crisper day and night, and the 1536p head-to-toe HD+ video means that I can see a complete person standing right outside our front door.

If you'd prefer to avoid paying any subscription fees altogether then either install a 512GB memory card for local storage or opt for the eufy E340 video doorbell instead. On test we found that the eufy footage is crisp, audio is clear and it's easy to install.

Installing a video doorbell is a good way to start improving your home security. Learn how else smart tech gadgets can help transform your home, and check out these home security tips to make your home safer and more secure.