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Amazon ring: Dangerous heat development with smart doorbell *Update*

Online mail order giant Amazon is in trouble with its subsidiary Ring. The smart doorbells seem to have a problem with overheating in the second generation. A total of 350,000 devices are affected.

350,000 devices affected by fire hazard

Amazon was certainly not pleased when it became known that a potential fire hazard was lurking in the smart doorbells of the Ring company. The parent company reacted promptly and contacted the owners of the problematic models. The 350,000 bells in question are part of the second generation of the product. The US market was not the only one affected. Also 8,700 bells sold in Canada are part of the problem. The batch in question was sold between June and October this year.

Incorrect use of the screws is triggering the problem

The now revised passage in the User’s Guide points out the risk of incorrect screws.

But what causes the doorbell to overheat? Allegedly, incorrectly installed screws are the cause of the fire risks. The reason for this is probably a misunderstanding in the assembly instructions of the device. If you take a look at the doorbell’s scope of delivery, you will find two different types of screws. Besides ordinary wood screws, there are also special safety screws in the packaging. While the wood screws are for wall mounting on wooden surfaces, the safety screws are for the case of the device itself. Users who have used the wood screws incorrectly run the risk that they may have damaged the battery during installation. This damage can lead to overheating. In the worst case, this can have serious consequences. For example, a hot doorbell can not only cause burns. In the worst case, a flat or house fire is also conceivable. As the manufacturer, Ring, has stated, there are 23 reports to date that speak of fire damage caused by the doorbell. In addition, eight people have been reported to have burned themselves at the doorbell.

Ring gives its best

Such negative headlines are poison for every company. However, customer friendliness becomes clear in this emergency at the latest. So far, Amazon’s subsidiary has also behaved impeccably. Ring has set up a support website where you can see whether your own device is affected by the problem or not. The company has also already reacted in this country. It has contacted customers known to it by e-mail to ensure that the installation is correct.

Ring gave us the following statement:

The safety of our customers is our top priority. We have contacted those customers who have purchased a Video Doorbell (2nd generation) to ensure that they have received the updated user manual and have followed the instructions for installing the equipment. Customers do not need to send in their equipment.

Simon Lüthje

I am co-founder of this blog and am very interested in everything that has to do with technology, but I also like to play games. I was born in Hamburg, but now I live in Bad Segeberg.

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