I guess it’s inaccurate.
Since @HDRock and @tc10 mentioned using trigger cameras and rules, I decided to do my own testing with a Video Doorbell v2 , Cam Pan v3
, and Cam OG
. I disabled the Wyze Rules and Google Home Automations I’ve been using as an extension chime work-around, because I didn’t want any of that affecting the tests. My devices and app are up to date, including today’s production version Android app update.
With the Cam Pan v3 and Cam OG selected using the doorbell’s “Cameras as Chime” setting and with both cameras on, pressing the doorbell button causes each camera to make a “ding-dong” sound. Following the doorbell button press, there’s a brief lag before the house’s mechanical chime sounds, then the camera’s chimes follow that. The Cam OG tends to ring first, and sometimes the Cam Pan v3 rings twice (for no reason that’s apparent to me).
If I enable Privacy Mode for the Cam Pan v3, it does not ring when I press the doorbell button. This inherently makes sense, because, while the Cam Pan v3’s solo live stream screen displays a message saying “Your camera is in Privacy Mode.”, the live stream pane that shows in that camera’s group has an overlay with a power button icon and a message that says “This device has been turned off.”
If the app is telling me that it’s turned off on that screen, then I don’t expect the camera to be responsive or do anything at all. Since the Cam OG’s solo live stream screen has a “Turn Off” option, I would expect the same behavior if I use that button to turn that camera off (though I did not actually test this).
I still think it’s a cool idea. It just doesn’t appear to work that way.
Because I haven’t actually used Privacy Mode much, I can see the current working state as being a useful addition to the cameras, especially since I haven’t seen any official announcement about Google Home “Voice notifications” availability for the Video Doorbell v2.