Amazon’s Ring cameras are on the move. The home security company is expanding beyond its powerful range of video doorbells and indoor/outdoor cameras with an in-car dashcam.
Revealed at CES 2023, the Ring Car Cam includes dual-facing HD cameras that will capture the goings on inside the car and outside of the front window. There’s night vision recording too.
The camera will record footage when the car is moving and parked and the idea is it will capture video of a possible break-in, as well as anything that happens while driving.
So, if there’s an active break-in you’ll be notified and – just like the home cameras – be able to speak to the undesirable through the built-in mic. The camera will also turn on a built-in light to ward off an intruder. Naturally, there’s a live view too, so you can check in on your car when you’ve parked it up.
As this is an Amazon product, there’s Alexa compatibility and with the Traffic Stop feature drivers will be able to say “Alexa Record” and capture video for up to 20 minutes with footage stored locally on the device. For cloud storage, you’ll need a subscription.
Drivers will be able to set their GPS location to “home” and will be notified if the car moves away from their regular parking spot. It’s also helpful for locating your car in a parking garage if you weren’t paying attention when you parked up. Overall it’s a pretty well thought-out proposition, which combines elements of existing dashcams and the smarter elements of Ring’s wider smart ecosystems.
The camera connects to the car’s OBD-II port and includes LTE connectivity to ensure constant connectivity with the Ring app. Naturally, for full functionality there’s a subscription element. Ring’s new Protect Go service costs $6 a month.
It’s a much different device than the Car Cam and alarm first announced in 2020, but never went up on sale. Naturally, it’s loads more expensive than some of the dash cams on the market, but it’s up for pre-order for $199.99 ($50 off) for a limited time. There’s no news on a UK release just yet.
