Update: WIth the Device Health noting I am running the latest firmware, I see “Connected” now for the Solar Status. This is inline with what was noted in a June posting my a Ring staffer earlier in this thread.
So…right now, it is working as expected.
@Chelsea_ring I think you missed the point. It is NOT apparent the solar charger is extending the battery life and/or functional as expected. How can one tell as the battery % continues to drop? As mentioned in another post, a charging indicator would be useful here.
Firstly, for some strange reason the instructions accompanying the Solar Panel do not mention this but, for solar panels generally if you live north of the equator (northern hemisphere) you MUST ensure that (1) the Solar Panel is fixed to a SOUTH facing wall and only if that’s not possible should you opt for an East or West facing wall (under no circumstances should it be placed on North facing wall) and (2) secondly the Solar Panel should be tilted upwards towards the sky at an approximately 30 to 40 degree angle.
The sun always rises in the east and sets in the west. In the UK, we are in the northern hemisphere. This means that the sun is above the equator and therefore your solar panels will be most effective if they are south facing. Panels facing south will face the sun all day long
These fitting guidelines are VITAL for less sunny climates like the northern states of the USA and the British Isles.
So those of you who are not experiencing much charge from your Solar Panel, it may well be that your Panel is not situated in an optimal location.
In addition to that advice, hopefully this video (in the link below) will help users choose the best Ring Solar Panel depending on your needs and give you some idea as to how much charge you should expect from the Solar Panel if optimally installed:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=xmx7_Stwojs
sources:
https://www.geogreenpower.com/blog/a-guide-for-where-to-place-your-solar-panels/
and
https://greenbusinesswatch.co.uk/do-solar-panels-have-to-face-south
Regards
Paul
I JUST bought a brand new battery because the last one seemed to fry within a few weeks.
I charged it to 100%, plugged it into the solar panel, switched the setting to hardwired.
Less than 24 hrs later, go to look at the Ring and there’s an error that the battery is dangerously low.
WTH is happening! This solar panel is useless!! And we spent $120 on all this just to have issues.
Honestly this whole saga is draining the life out of me never mind the doorbell!
Why is it so difficult is what I don’t understand?! Plug in a solar, doorbell charges. Sounds simple right??
Would absolutely love some type of charge % notification for these solar panels. With their smaller size I really need to know if my placement is assisting with a charge or not. New owner at a location with lots of trees. Please get these accessories supported with readouts soon thanks!
And me, tried everything under the sun to get my Stick Up Cam Gen 2 to recognise Solar but to no avail. Software problem???
I see in this thread that it would say “Connected” in device health. I jave a soloar panel connected to my Spotlight Cam and it saus “Established” not “Connected.” Is that the same thing?
The funny thing is I purposely disconnected the solar panel from the Spotlight Cam and the Device Health status still shows “Established” and has been that way for the past half hour or so.
Re: How do you know if your solar panel is working?
Not quite as simple as that! My app no longer shows the battery percentage now the solar device is connected!!
Solar panel not charging ring spotlight cam! Never get pass 15%. When I first got it kept it charge not won’t get pass 15% say i need buy a panel. Plenty of sun
Good question, @Lotofpork27! In your Ring app, open the menu from the Ring app dashboard, select devices, and choose the Ring device which is using a Solar Panel. From the Ring device page, select it’s Device Health. Here you will see resource status information about your Ring device, including a solar status. Feel free to check out our Community post about battery drain to ensure the Solar Panel supplied charge is sufficient for usage. I hope this helps! 
Hi. Did you get an answer. I have same issue
One of the responses from Ring earlier in this thread did note that the status should display a value noting the presence of the Solar Panel. This has been inconsistent. At times, the Solar Status displayed a value which noted that it was present. At other times, such as is currently the case for me again, the Solar Status displays Not Connected.
Obviously this continues to be a trouble spot. The only reason I would consider buying the solar panel for the Video Doorbell 2 is that it MIGHT be working regardless. I already had one replaced after a month or two of ownership, but without a reliable way to tell if it’s actually connected and/or working, it’s hard to recommend.
I just installed a new stick up cam with a solar panel. Battery level has dropped from 31% to 29% over the last 36 hours. There is good sunlight. There is no indication that the solar panel is connected and working. No charge icon in the battery display as you find on nearly every smartphone. No indication at all in the device health section. Is the answer to put a voltmeter on the output of the solar panel? Seems like an icon would be easier…
Or maybe my new solar panel is not working. How can I tell? Surely there is a view of this somewhere in the ring app
I just installed my ring spotlight cam with solar panel. I partially charged the battery so that when I connected it all up it was charged to 66%. Under device health, solar status indicated connected. However when the charge reached 100% (by means of solar panel charging), it indicated that the solar panel was no longer connected. As soon as the charge drops below 100%, the solar status again indicates connected. So apparently when the solar panel isn’t necessary it is indicated as not connected. And then when it’s being used it shows the connection again. At least that’s my early experience with it.
Last November our Ring doorbell appeared to have died. I was sent a new one by Ring since we were still under warranty. We also have a solar panel that had been working perfectly. When I attached the new Ring, the panel wasn’t working. Ring did their checks and sent me a new solar. After multiple attempts to get the panel to connect to the doorbell and help from Ring, we finally gave up. The device health continued to indicate no connection and the battery power kept dropping because the solar panel wasn’t charging. Today I decided to try one more thing, loosening the way the screws that attach the connector to the doorbell were tightened. Vola! The panel now shows connected to the doorbell. Maybe the issue is tightening too much? We are delighted to get it to work.
Just installed a new stick-up cam (not the ‘spotlight’ model) and a solar panel. The plug is securely pushed in and the sun is shining. The app still just says “battery”. Skimming this thread, and others, I see one contradictory statement after another, regarding battery status. Same on Amazon. Some say the app should have a “solar status” section, others say that’s not true for the standard camera, just the spotlight model.
IS the app supposed to indicate the solar panel is connected or does it NOT show panel status for a standard camera?
tried everything, our solar panel says ‘not connected’. Sits on a south facing wall, and for the last week we’ve had sunny days (off and on!). I just don’t thin the thing actually works!
Just installed a new spotlight cam and a solar panel. The plug is securely pushed in and the app still just says “battery”.
Is the app supposed to indicate the solar panel is connected?