Ring Video Freezes After A Few Seconds (Can This Annoying Issue Be Fixed?)

Apps to Update in App Store

Seeing what’s going on in and around our homes is a major key to keeping them safe. To that end, many people opt for smart home cameras like Ring smart cameras to keep an eye on their homes. This goes swell most of the time! But not always… Having a clear picture and video of … Read more

Best Wired Video Doorbell Without A Subscription (No Monthly Fees, Please!)

Me looking confused in front of a load of smart doorbells

Smart doorbells are great – if you’re out, you can easily speak to visitors or delivery people through your phone. They also record any motion that occurs around your property. But many smart doorbells also have flaws: battery-powered doorbells have worse performance than their hardwired rivals, plus many doorbell models require a monthly fee to … Read more

How To Only Run Alexa Routines At Night (Or After Sunset)

Sample Smart Camera Alexa Routine Trigger

Routines with Alexa play such an important role in many of our lives. They help us in day-to-day life, making everyday tasks that much easier. From helping us to relax, to keeping our homes and loved ones safe – routines are no doubt useful. But some routines are best carried out at certain times of … Read more

Kasa Smart Switch With No Neutral – Is This Okay?

An old light switch box with no neutral wire inside

Most smart devices are plug and play and don’t need you to do anything other than set them up on your tablet or smartphone. However, some of the more interesting smart devices do require you to know a little bit about wiring. The Kasa smart switch is one of them. The Kasa smart switch requires … Read more

Does Ring Support Multi-User Geofencing Yet? (Are There Any Workarounds?)

Geofencing in the Ring app

Many Ring users make use of the Ring app’s geofencing capabilities. This convenient feature allows the actions you specify to be carried out when you leave your home and/or when you return. While this is no doubt a great feature for an individual, what about a family? Ring’s geofencing is typically used with only one … Read more

Ring Birds Eye View Blurry (Is There An Easy Fix?)

Really blurry Ring birds eye view map

Ring announced the Doorbell Pro 2 at the start of 2021, and it had an interesting feature: 3D radar, allowing for enhanced motion detection and a Bird’s Eye View map (I’ll discuss what those fancy marketing terms mean in a second!). This new feature sounds awesome, but it has a big problem: when setting it … Read more

Ring App Keeps Crashing Or Logging You Out? How To Fix This

The option to uninstall the Ring app on Android

The Ring app can easily manage a wide variety of smart technology, but it doesn’t always work the way it should. What should you do if your ring app keeps crashing and preventing you from using your Ring smart devices? The first thing you should do is make sure your Ring app and smartphone are updated. … Read more

LPT: Philips Hue Lightstrips Are WIDER Than Normal – New Video

YouTube thumbnail showing me holding a Philips Hue Lightstrip box with the text Philips Hue Lightstrips Are Wider Than Average

This short video explains that Philips Hue’s indoor Lightstrips are wider than normal, meaning that they do NOT fit inside standard diffuser channels: This is frustrating if you have just purchased loads of diffuser channels. Hue’s Lightstrips are around 14mm (⅗”) in width, because they are 6-pin. Many other LED light strips are 8-9mm in … Read more

Upside Down Ring Doorbell/Camera Image: How To Fix This

Upside Down Image on Ring Stick Up Cam

Using the ever-popular Ring cameras is usually a breeze. They conveniently keep an eye on our homes and businesses when we’re there, and even when we’re not there. Most of the time everything is great – but sometimes, issues do come up.  Some Ring camera users have reported that the videos their cameras capture are … Read more

Newsletter (7th Oct 22): Q4 Is Here & Smart Home Updates Are Ramping Up

The Ring Spotlight Cam powered by a solar panel

(This newsletter was originally sent on 7th October 2022) Hi everyone, Tristan here. I mentioned in the last newsletter that there hadn’t been many recent smart home updates. That was because of the September lull: everyone was finishing up vacations and heading back to work and school-run routines. But now the smart home industry is … Read more