Understanding August's Recording: No 24/7 Recording Explained
If you've recently installed an August Doorbell, you might be wondering how to enable 24/7 continuous video recording. The simple answer is that you can't. August devices, including their popular video doorbells, are designed specifically for event-based recording and do not offer a continuous, 24/7 recording feature. This guide will explain why this is the case and how August's recording system works.
Why August Doorbells Don't Record Continuously
The decision to focus on event-based recording is a deliberate design choice driven by the hardware's primary function and power source.
- Battery Conservation: The number one reason is battery life. Most August Doorbells are battery-operated. The process of constantly recording video, analysing it for motion, and transmitting it would consume an enormous amount of power. A 24/7 recording feature would drain the batteries in a matter of hours, not weeks or months, making the device impractical for most users.
- Data and Bandwidth: Continuously uploading video to the cloud would use a significant amount of your home's internet bandwidth and generate massive data files, requiring a much more expensive cloud storage infrastructure.
- Focus on Key Events: The core purpose of a video doorbell is to alert you to specific events: someone pressing the button or motion occurring at your doorstep. By focusing only on these key moments, August provides actionable alerts without overwhelming you with hours of uneventful footage.
How August Event-Based Recording Works
Instead of recording everything, your August Doorbell is in a low-power standby mode until something happens. Here's the process:
- Trigger: The camera is triggered by one of two events:
- Motion Detection: The built-in sensor detects movement in its field of view.
- Button Press: A visitor presses the doorbell button.
- Recording Starts: Once triggered, the camera wakes up and begins recording a video clip. The length of this clip can vary depending on your settings and the specific event.
- Alert Sent: Simultaneously, a notification is sent to your smartphone via the August app, alerting you to the activity.
- Cloud Storage: The recorded video clip is then uploaded to August's secure cloud servers.
- Viewing: You can then access and view this recorded clip through the activity feed in your August app.
Getting the Most Out of August's Recording Feature
While you can't record 24/7, you can optimise the event-based recording to ensure you don't miss anything important.
- Adjust Motion Sensitivity: In the August app, you can adjust the motion sensitivity settings. If you find the camera is missing events, you can increase the sensitivity. If it's being triggered too often by irrelevant things like passing cars, you can decrease it.
- Set Motion Zones: Some models allow you to define specific zones within the camera's view to monitor for motion. This is a great way to focus on your walkway and ignore a busy pavement.
- Subscribe for Video History: To store and review your recorded video clips, you will typically need an August subscription plan. These plans allow you to look back at all your motion and doorbell-press events for a set period, such as 30 days.
In summary, the lack of 24/7 recording on August devices is not a missing feature but a conscious design choice to ensure long battery life and provide users with the most relevant security alerts. By understanding and optimising the event-based system, you can effectively monitor your home's entrance.