Plug-in Adapter with Video Doorbell 3+

I have seen a few other threads asking something similar, with conflicting answers throughout. I just installed a new Video Doorbell 3+, using battery power only. My house does not have any existing doorbell wires, mechanical or digital chimes, or transformers. I would like to potentailly use the PLUG-IN ADAPTER to provide a trickle charge. Would I need to use the wire-wound resistor with the official Ring PLUG-IN ADAPTOR (the one for the Doorbell Pro: https://shop.ring.com/collections/accessories/products/plug-in-adapter)? I realize some third-party plug-in adapters on Amazon (the ones with an output of 500mA) may work without a resistor, given the much lower power output.

This post seems to suggest that a resistor IS required. Quote: ā€œThe Ring Plug In Adapter can certainly be used with our Battery powered Doorbells. Keep in mind, any power supply that does not include an existing chime kit wired in circuit, will require a resistor.ā€ https://community.ring.com/t5/Video-Doorbells/Can-you-use-the-Ring-Plug-In-Adapter-for-Ring-Video-Doorbell-Pro/m-p/26549

However, this post says to remove resistors when upgrading to the VD3 as "resistors are not needed when hardwiring a Ring Video Doorbell 3": https://support.ring.com/hc/en-us/articles/360041394411-Important-Information-on-Upgrading-From-Ring-Video-Doorbell-2-to-Ring-Video-Doorbell-3-

So which is it? Thanks for your help!

Hi @hornet96. I checked with my team regarding your concern here, and you do not need to use a resistor when installing the Video Doorbell 3 Plus with the Plug-In Adapter. Our other battery-operated Doorbell models do require a resistor for this configuration, but the Video Doorbell 3 and 3 Plus are both an exception to this and do not require a resistor for this configuration. I hope that helps clear things up! :slight_smile:

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Thanks @Caitlyn_Ring! Out of curiosity, would that also mean that no resistor is needed on the doorbell 3 / 3+ if you wanted to hardwire it directly to the hardwired transformer? I assume so since both the hardwired and plug in versions output a similar amount of VA.

@hornet96 Yes, you are correct that a resistor is not needed for the Doorbell 3 and 3 Plus when wiring it directly to a low-voltage transformer. :slight_smile:

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I donā€™t believe this is the case after having read this post from one of the other Ring official Community Manager/Admin in this same forum. Here is what was told to one of the customers by a Ring admin earlier this year , " ā€¦If you are looking to have the Plug-In Adapter with the Ring Video Doorbell 3, you will need to add a resistor into the mix to ensure the connection is stable to help charge the deviceā€¦". So I believe the same is applicable for Doorbell 3 plus as well and hence these two solutions are ironical by two different Ring admins in this community forum. Kindly suggest since I need to buy a power adaptor as soon as possible for my Ring Doorbell 3 plus !? Thanks.

Also, adding to my same comments as above, if for some reason, my Ring doorbell 3 plus blows up just because Iā€™m using a plugin power adaptor without any resistor, then do I claim for a new Doorbell 3 plus from Ring or from the third party from which I received that adaptor?! Currently, Iā€™m using only the battery feature for my Ring Doorbell 3 plus but I need to hardwire it asap and hence all these queries/concerns from my side if you could kindly clarify!?Thanks.

Regards,
T

Hi @Tarun. I apologize for any miscommunication, but I did already clarify with my team on this matter and a resistor is not needed when you are wiring the Video Doorbell 3 or 3 Plus directly to a low-voltage transformer or when you are using the Plug-In Adapter.

If you ever run into any concerns with your Doorbell regarding physical damage, youā€™ll want to contact our support team directly so they can look into it further. You can give our support team a call at one of the numbers available here. Weā€™re taking additional steps to protect our team and help reduce the spread of COVID-19, so this has resulted in longer than normal wait times. If you are outside of the US, please read our response to COVID-19 here to see how to contact support. :slight_smile:

Hi Caitlyn,

Thanks for your reply but sorry, Iā€™m not sure if Iā€™m still fully convinced with your ā€˜not so affirmativeā€™ answer. Regarding your statement, ā€œā€¦If you ever run into any concerns with your Doorbell regarding physical damage, youā€™ll want to contact our support team directly so they can look into it furtherā€¦ā€. I thought I actually asked a very straight forward question asking you who will pay the price at the event of Ring doorbell fuse blowup - will that be Ring or the third party from where Iā€™m planning to buy the plugin adaptor without a separate resistor? So if you could please let me know this that will be much appreciated, will Ring pay for the full doorbell price or not? Kindly confirm. Thanks.

Kind Regards,
Tarun

@Tarun As this is a neighbor-to-neighbor support forum and is not a direct line to support, any inquiries regarding the warranty on your device and what is and is not covered are best directed to our support team themselves. They can answer any questions you have on the warranty and on your device so that you have all the information you need to make a decision on which device you want and how you want to install it. I hope that clarifies things more.

Hi,

Sorry but I was just trying to close the loop end-to-end of our previous but ongoing conversation by asking a direct question. According to me, this canā€™t be deemed as a direct warranty question since, as you would also appreciate, thus is kind of a continuation/part of a conversation which started with you and some other forum member. At that time, I had to only pitch in my voice to get a clarification for benefitting to all our ā€˜neighboursā€™/members in this forum since there is a obvious discrepancy in the recent comments as posted by the Ring admins which I pointed out to you before. So I would appreciate if you can confirm and reply to my original question and I could then simply close this conversation here, thus avoiding to waste any unnecessary time and efforts of mine and the Ring support team. Hope I havenā€™t sounded rude in the above statements and sorry if I did. But Iā€™m just trying my level best to help all the members here since Iā€™m sure many Ring members like me must be wanting to have the same clarification. Thanks.

Kind Regards,
Tarun

Hey @Tarun. Stepping in here for Caitlyn. Thank you for bringing up the old post that was previously addressing the question neighbors are having here. I have updated the thread to avoid confusion on this concern for the future for other neighbors so that they have the right answer.

In regards to warranty on your device, if there is anything that ever happens to your Ring Video Doorbell 3 or any other of your Ring device, we urge you to contact our support team directly. As we are a neighbor to neighbor support forum and not a direct line to support, we cannot promise you a yes or a no on if your device will be covered via your warranty, but you can learn more about your warranty on your device here.

Warranty claims come on a case-by-case basis, so you will need to reach out to our support team in the event that your Doorbell or any other Ring products are damaged. If you ever run into this, feel free to update this thread here on your personal experience to share. Hope this helps shed some light on your concern.