Is Your Ring Device's Battery Draining Too Fast?
Ring's battery-powered Doorbells and Cameras offer fantastic flexibility, but this convenience can be undermined if you find yourself having to recharge the battery every few weeks—or even days. While Ring provides an estimated battery life of several months, real-world performance can vary significantly based on your settings and environment.
If you're frustrated with the short battery life of your Ring device, don't worry. This guide will help you understand what causes rapid battery drain and provide you with actionable steps to extend the time between charges.
What Causes a Ring Battery to Drain Quickly?
Your Ring device's battery is primarily consumed by three activities: recording video, sending notifications, and communicating with your Wi-Fi network. The more it has to do these things, the faster the battery will deplete.
The Most Common Causes of Battery Drain:
- Excessive Motion Events: If your camera is pointed at a busy street or your garden is full of waving trees, it will be triggered constantly. Each detection wakes the device up and uses power.
- Weak Wi-Fi Signal: If your Ring device is far from your router, it has to work harder and use more power to maintain a stable connection. This is a major, often overlooked, cause of battery drain.
- Frequent Live View Usage: Every time you open the Live View to check on your property, the device uses a significant amount of power to stream the video.
- Cold Weather: Lithium-ion batteries, like those used in Ring devices, are less effective in cold temperatures. When the temperature drops, the battery's capacity is temporarily reduced.
- Incorrect Motion Settings: Motion sensitivity set too high or poorly configured motion zones can lead to a high number of false alerts.
How to Extend Your Ring's Battery Life
By making a few adjustments in the Ring app, you can dramatically improve your device's battery performance.
1. Optimise Your Motion Settings
This is the most effective way to reduce battery drain. Your goal is to have the camera record only important events.
- Open the Ring app and select your device.
- Go to Motion Settings.
- Adjust Motion Zones: Draw your zones to focus on key areas, like your walkway or porch, and exclude high-traffic areas like public pavements or busy roads.
- Lower Motion Sensitivity: Reduce the sensitivity slider to prevent the camera from being triggered by minor movements like swaying branches.
- Use Motion Scheduling: If you don't need alerts at certain times of the day (e.g., when you are home), you can schedule motion alerts to be temporarily disabled.
2. Check and Improve Your Wi-Fi Signal
A strong signal means less work for your device's radio.
- In the Ring app, go to the Device Health page for your device.
- Look at the Signal Strength in the 'Network' section. A good RSSI value is typically between -40 and -60. If your value is higher (e.g., -65 or more), your signal is weak.
- To improve the signal, try moving your Wi-Fi router closer to the device, or install a Wi-Fi extender like the Ring Chime Pro.
3. Reduce Live View Usage
While it's a great feature, try to use Live View only when necessary. Each activation consumes a noticeable amount of battery power.
4. Be Mindful of the Weather
If you live in a cold climate, be aware that battery performance will naturally decrease during the winter months.
- If possible, install the device in a more sheltered location.
- You may need to charge the battery more frequently when the temperature is near or below freezing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Why does my Ring battery drain so quickly? A: This is typically caused by excessive motion alerts, a weak Wi--Fi signal, frequent Live View usage, or cold weather, all of which force the device to use more power.
Q: How can I reduce the number of motion alerts? A: In the Ring app, go to your device's Motion Settings. You can reduce the sensitivity, adjust motion zones to exclude high-traffic areas, and set a motion schedule to reduce unwanted alerts.
Q: Does a poor Wi-Fi signal affect battery life? A: Yes, if your device has a weak connection (high RSSI value), it has to use more power to stay connected to your Wi-Fi. Improving your signal can significantly improve battery life.
Q: How does cold weather impact the battery? A: Extreme cold weather can negatively impact the performance of lithium-ion batteries, causing them to drain faster and report an incorrect charge level. This is a temporary chemical effect.