It is vital to keep your household safe.
But more than that, there’s the equal threat of missing the unanticipated arrival of a good friend or, worse than that, a parcel delivery you’ve been waiting overly patiently all day for only for the courier to play knock-a-door-run. The solution to avoiding both these unfortunate scenarios and countless more is simple: always know who or what’s on your doorstep, wherever you are, with a video doorbell.
Yes, a video doorbell. But not just any video doorbell, a smart video doorbell. A smart video doorbell that’s so achingly clever it comes imbued with the power of AI, meaning it can actually answer the door for you. I speak, in hushed tones, of the new SwannBuddy 4K Video Doorbell from Swann.
A company renowned for its smart security solutions, the SwannBuddy is the firm’s first departure from dedicated CCTV cameras and into the domain of the doorbell and, as such, it’s gone all out on intelligent features, from the physical design to the tech that keeps you in touch.
Tech Specs
Included:
Set-up
First things first, this is a subscription-free service, so unlike other, better-known names in this arena you’ll not have to keep paying through the nose just to use what you already own, which is a massive selling point in itself, especially seeing as the main subscription-offender decided to ring in the changes by upping its annual cost by a, whopping 43 per cent earlier this year to £49.99.
So, apart from a lack of operational costs (other than replacing the 2x AA batteries required to power the wireless chime), what makes the SwannBuddy such an appealing visitor-viewing option? Well, for a solid start, it’s exceptionally easy to install. Inside the box sits the doorbell itself with a 32GB SD card and a USB A to C cable for charging purposes, the chime, complete with batteries, a mounting plate with screws and wall plugs alongside 3M sticker pads if you prefer to avoid drilling, plus instructions.
So, give the doorbell a full charge, mount how you please, position the eminently portable chime where required, download the Swann Security app and pair up. Name it, link it to your Wi-Fi, and now you can adjust the detection zone, camera, mic and speaker volume, motion detection, mode (Night/Away), and even ‘Demeanour’ (we’ll come back to that in a minute) settings all to your preference, in an instant, from the comfort of your phone, and that’s it, you’re all ready to remotely identify and welcome or ward-off all future doorstep dawdlers.
Features
So that’s set-up seen to, which is great for those lacking in any discernible DIY or tech skills, but what makes the SwannBuddy worth all the effort of “installing” in the first place? Well, loads of stuff, actually. Specifically, a 4K video camera with 4x digital zoom, a 165° vertical viewing angle to let you see the full length of whoever’s haranguing your door, and night vision that’s good for up to five metres away, which also happens to be the operational distance of the PIR (Passive Infrared Sensor) and the audio range, too.
There’s also motion sensitivity that’s backed up by True Detect Heat-Sensing so that you’re not being constantly bothered by push notifications of passing leaves and the like, plus 2-way audio so that you can ascertain who and what they want without having to even approach the door.
But what if you’re not in a position to talk to them? Or what if you simply don’t want to? Well, this is where the SwannBuddy drags doorbelling kicking and screaming into 2024 – it comes with SwannShield, an AI-powered voice assistant that will do the talking for you.
AI voice assistant
Whoa, back the truck up! An AI voice assistant? In a doorbell? How does that work? Well, glad you asked, because the Swann comes with its own guardian of your gateway stashed inside like a tiny digital doorman. If you’re going to be out, you can use the app to switch to ‘Night’ or ‘Away’ mode, a which point a combination of adaptive generative AI and your own preset instructions takes over proceedings, allowing the SwannBuddy to engage with bell end-users in real time to identify visitors and respond accordingly.
It does this in what is stated to be a “British accent”, although in all honesty, like Swann itself, the voice struck me as being distinctly Australian. But that’s a minor detail, because you can also – as alluded to earlier – set the AI’s demeanour, choosing from ‘Polite’, ‘Assertive’ or ‘Disinterested’, the first to inform nice visitors that you’re away, the next to inform the likes of parcel couriers what they should do with your delivery (using a pre-saved script you can add yourself) and the latter to send potential burglars and/or other assorted ne’er-do-wells away with the threat of calling the police.
Despite the Aussie twang, the voice is surprisingly natural and more than capable of interacting in a manner that does make it appear as if your house is occupied, albeit by someone who really doesn’t want to come to the door. It manages this through the medium of dynamic, AI-generated responses that react to the specific scenario. As someone who has to deal with a large number of couriers delivering and collecting review kit, I have a special secret space for the deposit of parcels when I’m not home, so all I had to do was type the instructions into the app and, sure enough, when a courier came a calling, the SwannBuddy relayed my instructions word for word and, even more amazingly, the courier followed them.
Of course, if you are home but have no plans of getting up to answer the door regardless, you can simply respond by having your AI vocalise one or more pre-recorded replies, from basic instructions, as above, to telling whoever is refusing to accept no for an answer to, in essence, rack-off because the cops are coming. Pleasing and effective.
Verdict
SwannBuddy 4K video doorbell
A 4K-quality camera with full-length view, two-way comms for real conversation or pre-recorded responses, bundled 32GB microSD card (expandable to 128GB) to keep recordings local, the night vision of a veritable digital bat, nicely precise motion and heat sensitivity, and an AI that’s more than capable of handling the door flap chat for you.
What more could you want from a video doorbell? How about a small but mighty chime that’s portable and offers a small array of options to alert you, from the usual ding-dong to slightly too much of Für Elise to, my favourite, the unrelenting bark of a particularly aggressive sounding dog? Yes, the SwannBuddy 4K really does deliver on all fronts; as now will all couriers, while friends will be welcomed or gently turned away, and Raffles-alike intruders or those seeking to do you harm in some dystopian Purge-esque scenario will be sent packing instantly by your no-nonsense Swann sentry.
A first in the annals of AI, this is smart security on a whole new level and, with SwannShield still currently in Beta, it stands to get even better.
Buy now £140.99, Amazon
