Logitech Circle View Doorbell
Verdict
Logitech's Circle View Doorbell is a compact, HomeKit focused wired doorbell with a very complete hardware kit and guided online setup, making it a strong option for Apple centric homes. Installation involves more parts and steps than a basic doorbell, but the chime kit, wiring labels, brackets, and compatibility wizard help most DIYers reuse their existing transformer and chime successfully. If you already live in Apple's ecosystem and want a slim doorbell that ties tightly into HomeKit Secure Video, this model is easy to recommend.
Pros
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Audio ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 1 review 5.0Reviewers highlight that the Circle View Doorbell’s two-way audio connects quickly and sounds clear on both ends, making back-and-forth conversations at the door more reliable than with many rival cameras that struggle with lag or dropped audio.
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Privacy ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 3 reviews 4.8Reviews highlight that Circle View Doorbell recordings are processed locally on Apple HomeKit hub hardware and stored via HomeKit Secure Video with end-to-end encryption, giving privacy-conscious owners more confidence than many third-party services because clips are uploaded only to the owner’s iCloud account and even Apple cannot decrypt the footage.
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Zones & activity areas ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 3 reviews 4.7
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Design aesthetics ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 5 reviews 4.6Owners describe the Circle View Doorbell as a sleek, modern looking unit whose minimalist black face and light ring blend well with a variety of exteriors, giving the entryway an understated high tech look instead of a bulky security gadget.
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Video resolution & detail ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 6 reviews 4.5
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Chime ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 3 reviews 4.5The included Logitech chime has a distinctly electronic but pleasant tone that many users find clear and easy to distinguish from older mechanical doorbells, and when combined with smart chimes on HomePods it helps ensure visitors are heard throughout the home.
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Low-light & Night vision ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 6 reviews 4.4
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Complete kit in box ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 4 reviews 4.4Buyers describe the Circle View Doorbell kit as very complete, with the doorbell body, chime kit, flat and angled mounting plates, screws, cables, adapters, and adhesive strips providing everything most homes need for a standard retrofit, and many appreciate that the 20 degree angled bracket is included in the box rather than sold separately, though reviews note that a separate micro USB cable and AC adapter are required for the initial Wi-Fi pairing step.
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Size & form factor ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 6 reviews 4.3
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Recording ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 4 reviews 4.3
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Face recognition ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 2 reviews 4.3Through iCloud Photos integration, the Circle View Doorbell can match visitors to tagged faces and announce their names, and reviewers say it usually recognizes familiar people accurately both during the day and at night.
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Smart-home integration (Alexa, Google, Siri, HomeKit, Matter, Thread) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 8 reviews 4.1The Circle View Doorbell integrates deeply with Apple HomeKit and HomeKit Secure Video, using Apple TVs, HomePods, Apple Watch, and other Apple devices for live previews, chimes, and rich alerts, but because it works only with HomeKit and requires a compatible hub for remote viewing, it is best suited to Apple-centric households rather than mixed-platform smart homes.
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Object & person detection ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 6 reviews 4.0
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Power Options & Compatibility ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 4 reviews 4.0
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Storage ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 4 reviews 4.0Owners note that Circle View Doorbell footage is stored to iCloud via HomeKit Secure Video with up to 10 days of history that does not count against the usual storage cap, and while you must keep a 200GB or 2TB iCloud plan, many see the predictable, encrypted cloud storage and ability to share the space with other Apple data as a fair trade-off.
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Delivery package monitoring ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 1 review 4.0Reviews emphasize that the Circle View Doorbell is heavily used to watch for grocery, package, and meal deliveries, reliably alerting owners when couriers approach even if a box set close to the house sometimes falls just outside the camera’s view.
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App, software & firmware ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 7 reviews 3.7
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Field of view & framing ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 5 reviews 3.6
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Installation & Mounting ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 8 reviews 3.6
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Notifications ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 6 reviews 3.5Owners highlight that doorbell presses and motion events can trigger notifications across iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, Mac, and Apple TV, making it difficult to miss visitors or deliveries even when they might not hear a traditional chime, yet some reviewers complain that in practice alerts can become sporadic, with stretches where every minor movement is reported followed by days when people on the porch generate no notification at all unless they ring the bell.
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Subscription ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 4 reviews 3.5To save recordings, Circle View Doorbell owners must subscribe to a 200GB or 2TB iCloud storage plan, adding a modest monthly fee that covers one or several cameras but also supports other Apple services, so ongoing costs feel reasonable to Apple users but higher than some camera-specific cloud plans.
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Recommendation for new buyers ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 3 reviews 3.5Reviews strongly recommend the Circle View Doorbell to homeowners already invested in Apple’s HomeKit ecosystem, calling it the doorbell to beat for Apple users who want tight HomeKit Secure Video integration and strong privacy, while cautioning that people on Android or mixed platforms should choose a more cross-platform doorbell instead.
Cons
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Price & value ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 5 reviews 3.3As a HomeKit-only doorbell, the Circle View sits at a premium price compared with many mainstream rivals, though at around 199 dollars it is actually one of the more affordable HomeKit options; when buyers factor in the potential cost of a HomeKit hub and iCloud storage, Apple-centric households who prioritize video quality and deep Apple integration generally still feel the overall package offers solid value.
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Weather & temperature tolerance ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 2 reviews 3.3
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Wi-Fi range & stability ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 2 reviews 3.3Users with marginal signal at their front door often find the Circle View Doorbell stays connected to Wi-Fi more consistently and brings up a live feed faster than other cameras they have tried, though brief offline blips can still occur in very weak coverage areas, and at least one review points out that units that overheat in warmer weather can drop off HomeKit entirely and remain offline until manually reset, making overall connectivity feel unreliable in those conditions.
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Motion detection performance ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 3 reviews 3.0The Circle View Doorbell’s motion sensing is often described as fast and reliable, quickly triggering recordings for activity on the porch and even people walking up the driveway from many feet away, and owners appreciate that the HomeKit timeline makes it easy to skim motion events and see what type of movement was captured, but some users experience very uneven behavior, with the camera sometimes alerting on small movements like blowing leaves while completely missing obvious human motion at the door.
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Reliability (general) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 3 reviews 2.7Across many reviews, the Circle View Doorbell is described as a reliable camera that stays online day to day, weathers harsh conditions, and responds quickly when opened in the app, giving owners confidence that it will work when needed, yet a contrasting group of users report severe reliability problems, including overheating, long offline periods, and repeated connection drops that turn ownership into a frustrating experience and sometimes lead to returns.
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Peace of mind ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 2 reviews 2.5When it functions as intended, the Circle View Doorbell can enhance peace of mind by watching the front door and logging HomeKit events across Apple devices, but owners who encounter overheating, sporadic notifications, and long offline periods say it has the opposite effect, turning daily use into a stressful, three-month-long troubleshooting exercise that feels far less dependable than other smart home gear.
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Motion-detection customization ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 2 reviews 2.0Owners can configure activity zones on the Circle View Doorbell, but reviews note that there are no explicit sliders for motion or sound sensitivity, so those living on busy streets may find it harder to fine-tune notifications compared with cameras that offer more granular motion controls, and at least one user reports that spending time tweaking the motion settings in the Apple Home app did little to reduce false alerts or prevent missed detections, reinforcing the feeling that customization is limited.
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Pre-roll buffer ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 1 review 2.0Unlike some top competitors, the Circle View Doorbell does not offer a pre-roll buffer, so recordings start when motion is detected rather than including the few seconds leading up to an event, though reviewers generally find it starts quickly enough to capture most activity.
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Warranty & Customer support ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 1 review 1.0Some Circle View Doorbell owners report that Logitech’s warranty and customer support can be slow or unresponsive, with detailed descriptions of overheating and connection issues going unanswered for weeks and problems ultimately resolved only by returning the product through the retailer rather than via manufacturer support.
