Ring’s updated Indoor Cam adds a privacy shutter

Ring has added plenty of innovative features to its security cameras over the years, from the radar-powered Bird’s Eye View to pre-roll for its battery-powered video doorbells. But for its latest trick, Ring is going back to basics by adding a privacy shutter to the Ring Indoor Cam.

Strictly speaking, the three-year-old Indoor Cam has had a privacy shutter for some time now, but only if you count the Privacy Kit that’s available for the wired camera as a $10 optional extra. That kit lets you snap a privacy shield over the lens, which you control with a switch that’s integrated into a 6.5-foot power cable.

The new version of the Indoor Cam comes with a privacy shutter already built into the camera’s shell. Just swivel the shutter over the lens, and the Indoor Cam will automatically shut off its video and audio recordings. Open the shutter, and the camera will resume recording.

Physical privacy shutters for security cameras are nothing new, of course. Plenty of manufacturers have offered them in the past, including Arlo, Cync, Logitech, and SimpliSafe. 

There’s also Eufy’s pan-and-tilt Security Solo IndoorCam P24, which can point straight down for a de-facto privacy mode, while the Kangaroo Privacy Camera had a lens that could actually turn opaque.

But a built-in privacy shutter is a new thing for Ring, and the 2023 version of the manufacturer’s Indoor cam mark’s the brand’s first security cam to come out-of-the-box with a physical shutter. 

Aside from the addition of the privacy shutter, the new version of the Indoor Cam boasts the same features as the previous model (read our review of the 2020 Indoor Cam).

Among those feature are 1080p video recording, color night vision, motion alerts with pre-roll, customizable motion zones, a siren, and two-way talk.

In our 2020 Ring Indoor Cam review, we praised its “small” and “easy to deploy” design, as well as its “highly customizable” motion zones and tight integration with the broad Ring ecosystem. But as with most Ring cameras, a paid Ring Protect plan ($3.99 a month and up) is just shy of mandatory.

The privacy shutter-equipped Indoor Cam is now available for pre-order, and it’s expected to ship on May 24.

We’ll have a full review once we test out a sample unit.