Responses (4)

• R

  redisant

  I came here looking for this answer as well. The release notes of that version indicate that you can "Choose from three power options: Battery, Plug-in or Solar" I see no option to set it and my camera is connected to solar.

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  20-12-2019 03:04:43

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  L

  ln001

  Thank you for your post. This is good information to know. If I have to still pull out the battery to do a charge, then this solar power charger is a complete waste of money. I hope Ring posts some answers here. [Poorty](https://community.ring.com/t5/user/viewprofilepage/user-id/26970) > @Poorty wrote: > I can confirm this. > > I have the solar panel installed and it charges about 1-2% some days. But it only charges in the afternoon when there is full sunlight on the doorbell. I wasn’t sure when I installed the solar panel if it Was actually working. The only way I could tell (without using multi meter) was turning all motion detection off for a couple of days and taking screen shots each afternoon around 7pm post the sun going down. In doing this I could see the batter would go up 1-2 % on really sunny days. > > This new solar charger status on the iOS app is very confusing. My first though looking at it is that my solar panel isn’t working, but I know that this is incorrect. So ring please fix your interface, perhaps actually put some analytics for us so we can clearly see how much impact if any the solar panel is having. The ambiguity associated with the solar charging isn’t really helpful.... thanks.

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  18-01-2020 07:40:34

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  ln001

  > In the less than one month that I have had a solar charge for Ring Doorbell 2 I have found that the doorbell is discharging at rate even faster than before, which I can tell via the number of days between when I have been notified by the Ring system that the battery level is low. > @Chelsea\_Ring wrote: > > Hi neighbors! While there are limited troubleshooting steps to take when involving the solar panel, it's important to be mindful of device and environmental variables. > > If you are seeing a message in your device health in iOS that says "add a solar panel," this is not an indicator of your Solar Panel failing to charge. This added feature is advertising the Solar Panel as an addition to your battery-powered devices. It's best to observe the battery percentage throughout a sunny day to see if the battery level is changing. > > For those that are noticing a battery draining with a Solar Panel connected, as seasons change and cold weather is more consistent, the charge life of a battery can differ. Check out our Community [post](https://community.ring.com/t5/General-Questions/Device-Tips-Battery-Draining-Quickly/m-p/1136#M52) about battery draining for tips and tricks on optimizing battery performance. > > The best steps for troubleshooting your Solar Panel are as follows: > - Clean panel to remove any dirt, dust, or debris. > - Check the adapter is securely plugged into the device. > - Ensure there is no debris or damage to the adapter or port area. > - In most locations, winter means overcast. Please ensure your Solar Panel is receiving several hours of direct sunlight per day. > > If these steps do not resolve your concerns, it would be best to reach out to our support team [here](https://support.ring.com/hc/en-us/articles/360036196372-Get-in-Touch) for more in-depth troubleshooting.

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  27-01-2020 12:35:29

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  Sb111

  I dont need an empty deceptive advertisement in the device health. If you want to promote solar chargers then just display the note, "Add a Ring solar device..." on the same line but under the Battery Level. By creating a new line Solar Charger Status, you imply that we can check or monitor the status of the charger. If that is not the case, then stop this deceptive practice.

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  27-01-2020 01:47:12

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  ln001

  So I got through to Ring about this problem. The rep had access to data that showed that my doorbell was getting a trickle charge during some events that the camera recorded. That data, however, is not available to the consumer. The amount of energy provided via the solar charger is not that great in the gross scheme of things. This is probably more true in the winter months, or dependent on the orientation of the doorbell to DIRECT sunlight, and the usage settings on the doorbell, i.e., how much energy the doorbell uses in its operation. I expected that the solar charger would end the need to take the battery out to recharge the doorbell 2. Turns out that is an over-expectation. Turns out that that is even an over-expectation if I had hardwired the doorbell a la the old style doorbell. That is to say, that both only provide a trickle charge that does not keep up with the energy needs of the device. (This makes sense since the solar collecting area is so small on this particular charger.) So we finally got to the point when I had to say that the solar charger is not very effective and is probably overpriced, and that money is better spent buying multiple batteries. Ring suggested that I might have a defective unit, so they want to send me a new one. While that could probably be the case, I doubt if any good data can be had until the summer months. The rep did offer a completely asinine suggesting of moving the doorbell to a different location not near my front door. (Protip: Not a good thing Ring.) The rep did not have any information on the separate problem of the app. But again, clearly the data is available, Ring just needs to find a way to push that to the end-user. The bottom line, the doorbell 2 solar charger has to have realistic expectations. The product is only negligibly effective and is probably overpriced. Depending on your settings, probably even with the minimalist of energy-requiring settings, you will still need a high voltage, high current charge cycle. Your money might be best spent buying multiple batteries since the charge time is several hours. > @ln001 wrote: > > > In the less than one month that I have had a solar charge for Ring Doorbell 2 I have found that the doorbell is discharging at rate even faster than before, which I can tell via the number of days between when I have been notified by the Ring system that the battery level is low. > > > @Chelsea\_Ring wrote: > > > > Hi neighbors! While there are limited troubleshooting steps to take when involving the solar panel, it's important to be mindful of device and environmental variables. > > > > If you are seeing a message in your device health in iOS that says "add a solar panel," this is not an indicator of your Solar Panel failing to charge. This added feature is advertising the Solar Panel as an addition to your battery-powered devices. It's best to observe the battery percentage throughout a sunny day to see if the battery level is changing. > > > > For those that are noticing a battery draining with a Solar Panel connected, as seasons change and cold weather is more consistent, the charge life of a battery can differ. Check out our Community [post](https://community.ring.com/t5/General-Questions/Device-Tips-Battery-Draining-Quickly/m-p/1136#M52) about battery draining for tips and tricks on optimizing battery performance. > > > > The best steps for troubleshooting your Solar Panel are as follows: > > - Clean panel to remove any dirt, dust, or debris. > > - Check the adapter is securely plugged into the device. > > - Ensure there is no debris or damage to the adapter or port area. > > - In most locations, winter means overcast. Please ensure your Solar Panel is receiving several hours of direct sunlight per day. > > > > If these steps do not resolve your concerns, it would be best to reach out to our support team [here](https://support.ring.com/hc/en-us/articles/360036196372-Get-in-Touch) for more in-depth troubleshooting. > >

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  30-01-2020 11:13:21

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  iowegian

  Add me to the list of people frustrated by whatever the heck this new ‘feature’ is supposed to do. The winter months are most likely the culprit for my poorly charging spotlight cam, but there is no excuse for the Solar Panel Status being completely useless in the app. We need answers.

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  01-02-2020 06:22:14

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  Oxstang

  I think the developers coded this backwards. I’m experiencing the exact opposite problem. I don’t have a solar charger, but my status says it’s connected. I had a chat agent essentially act like I’m stupid and not know what I have. I definitely don’t have a solar charger and my doorbell is hardwired.  

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  13-01-2020 02:31:44

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  tcp100

  That really seems to be Ring’s response lately - to assume the customer is an idiot. Shame, their support was great even a year ago. Last time I called I got a similar reaction, and seems to be what we’re getting in this thread. The function is clearly supposed to show the presence of a solar charger, but is broken and coded totally wrong. As a software engineer myself, I gotta ask, how did this make it out of testing, and why are the official Ring people in support forums so clueless?

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  13-01-2020 05:22:45

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  Joe1968

  I too get no status on my solar panels connected to spotlight cams. They are charging as one of my batteries just went from 39 to 40% so it is charging. I think they may be looking for a significant charge rate to indicate the presence of a panel - in the North East winter, it won’t get that.

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  16-01-2020 05:22:04

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  C42098

  Have the same issue .... So how do I fix this?

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  26-01-2020 03:04:52

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  Mansicusa

  I have exact same thing, it tells me that all of the sudden I have a solar panel that’s connected while in fact I don’t have one

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  19-02-2020 12:00:21

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  jmeurer

  I agree with this assessment. Both of my solar connected devices show "add a Ring Solar panel...". My hard-wired Doorbell, Solar Charger Status "Connected". My panels are in fact working. I can track the battery at the start of the day vs the end, they do increase. Furthermore, I have one panel that gets more sun and it charges more. Also, it was brought up that they do not charge under 32 degrees. Yep, I can confirm that too. The actually documented that one. [Cold Weather Battery](https://support.ring.com/hc/en-us/articles/115005939463-Cold-Weather-and-Battery-Powered-Ring-Devices)

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  03-03-2020 01:14:58

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  EdwinaR

  I now have solar units on both doorbells. Complete waste of money! So disappointing!

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  19-02-2020 01:38:06

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  D

  Damiant

  The solar charger does not work , I am in south Fl and it's facing SE and get direct sun 3-5 hours a day and provides no charge , worthless .

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  23-02-2020 09:45:05

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  Skegee

  Ring need to immediately address this product performance gap. I, too, was hoodwinked and bamboozled into getting a solar panel for my driveway camera and installed it over the weekend. I've yet to see any charging cababilities from the panel to the camera - trickle or non-trickle. Luckily I have two batteries in the camera and a spare that I can insert at a moments notice for either the driveway cam or doorbell (wireless). In the winter, it's a bit dicey getting up on a ladder to replace the battery when it runs low. I hope that Ring is listening to its customers and financial supporters. This is a huge miss and a major disappointment. The app was updated and it's highly misleading to show "Solar Panel Status" under Device Health if there is nothing to show. Deception isn't cool and it does very little to build our on-going trust and support in your new product releases. If it's not ready for product release, leave it on the development board until it passes QA with 100% certainty.

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  24-02-2020 03:52:10

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  iowegian

  Since Ring support has decided to just completely abondon any attempts at helping this community, here is some info I have found. If the temperature is below **32°F ** all Ring devices will STOP TAKING A CHARGE. Meaning your solar panels will not 'work'. Same goes for hardwired Doorbells. While the temperature is below 32, the device will run purely off of battery. From experience I know this to be true. When the temperature warmed to 38, my cameras and doorbell suddenly had their batteries recharged. This functionality was seemingly introduced in a software update last fall. **[https://support.ring.com/hc/en-us/articles/115005939463-Cold-Weather-and-Battery-Powered-Ring-Devices](https://support.ring.com/hc/en-us/articles/115005939463-Cold-Weather-and-Battery-Powered-Ring-Devices)** The Solar Panel section in device heath is completely broken with zero communication from the Ring team. My hardwired doorbell reports a happy Solar Panel, where as my camera which is hooked up to a solar panel (that works when above 32 degrees) suggests that I should try out a solar panel. Ring is too busy trying to stop employees from complaining about the services' security to actually improve their products. It's a shame.

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  25-02-2020 03:23:32

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  tcp100

  Unfortunately, this makes perfect sense. Lithium-Ion batteries should not be charged at freezing temperatures, as this can damage the battery. No way around that, it’s just chemistry. As for the solar panel message, yep. It’s completely misleading. Ring Support here thinks it’s just an “advertisement”, however it’s clearly bad code that is intended to detect the solar panel but never actually does. My guess is Ring’s development team is overseas / outsourced and the communication between support and front-facing teams with them is either limited or nil. Overall, a bad approach - but certainly cheap to keep those VCs happy.

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  25-02-2020 04:04:45

  K

  Kelevrastu

  I installed my camera and solar panel, based in the North East of England in early spring so not exactly sun central. It is stating like everybody’s that I should add a solar panel, however when I installed it the battery was at 49% just checked it there after just a morning in the sun and the battery is up to 73% so it is obviously working as described.

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  21-04-2020 12:33:51

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  IamDadzilla

  Same issue here, bought three of the solar chargers so hoping to get a resolution.

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  17-04-2020 01:47:58

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