Patrolling your porch or pets doesn’t require a monthly fee.

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Beyond serving as a fully functional doorbells, the Ring Camera lineup still offers plenty of solid use cases. Unfortunately, like most smart gadgets , whether fitness trackers or bird feeders, you'll need a monthly subscription to unlock all of its features.

With three tiers to choose from, starting at $4.99/month, keeping your home fully secure comes at an added cost that might put you off. On the bright side, you can get by without a subscription, unless you need to access saved footage for future reference. Ring cameras can still operate as a live intercom that'll come in handy whether you're home or on the go.

The company has garnered some bad press over the last year, but its security cameras still provide protection and some peace of mind for owners, with or without the monthly fee.

It's best for parents, pets and packages

Ring

The Two-Way Talk and Live Feed features help in many scenarios.…