If the Nest Doorbell Battery version is recording a lot of events, the battery will drain despite being hardwired. Hardwiring the doorbell charges the battery at a trickle charge, about 1% an hour in my experience.
Complaint
Smart Home
Google Nest Doorbell (Battery)
Best Doorbell for Nest/Google Homes
The Google Nest Doorbell (Battery) is the best smart doorbell for households already using Google Home or Google Assistant — it delivers HDR video, familiar face alerts that learn who your household members are, and seamless integration with Nest cameras, Google Hub displays, and Chromecast devices. For Canadian Google ecosystem users, it's the most cohesive choice.
12 mentions · 4 threadslast mention Aug 20255.6/ 10
ClearPick Score
Buyer Beware
Score informed by 12 owner mentions across 4 Reddit threads · see every quote ↓
4 positive1 mixed7 negative
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Best Doorbell for Nest/Google Homes
Google Nest Doorbell (Battery)
~$179 CAD est. on Amazon.ca
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Every mention, sourced
Real comments from Reddit, linked to the original thread. Nothing paraphrased.
Well to answer your question, we have the wired version. It actually still has a small battery in it, due to how ringing the physical chime works. That battery died after a year or two, and would cause the doorbell to restart any time the button was pressed. Simply disabling the physical chime fixed the problem. It has been working fine now for 4 years. Longer than our ring lasted.
Comparison
I bought the new Google Nest Doorbell (Battery) and run it wired. I can't even tell what the battery level is at. On the battery menu it just shows an infinity symbol and says "Plugged in". It's been running that way since I bought it months ago and I have all the settings maxed out for video quality, sensitivity, event length and event type recording.
Praise
I have a wired battery one with a 'weak'ish transformer per the installer and haven't had a single issue, even on 10 degree nights.
Praise
Seeing as you're only three days into your purchase, my honest advice would be to return it. You're still well within the return window, and it might save you a lot of future frustration. I've been a longtime user, but my own experience with these products has been incredibly disappointing.
Complaint
I recently learned this myself. The wired, battery doorbell uses the battery as the primary source of power. While connected to wired power, the camera is still running off the battery. Wired power only trickle charges the battery up to 80% in standby mode, i.e. while not recording or being viewed.
Mention
Just chiming in to say I agree with all of this! We have the nest battery doorbell, 2 wired cams, 2 wireless cams, and the cam on one of the hubs (plus like 11 GH speakers) and the starling hub has made things stunningly easier.
Praise
Can confirm, this thing is crap. Can't operate on wire alone, battery will always come into play. I returned mine within a week because it couldn't operate in Canadian winters, wired or battery hardly below -10C and it was useless.
Complaint
Mine was always low get when the temp dropped below 55-ish. Which in New England is half the year.
Complaint
I have both one with and one without a battery. When the one with the battery wears down (you access the camera and forget to shut it off and it runs in background on your device) it shuts off and you cannot access the battery until it's TOTALLY recharged. The other Nest Doorbell runs off just transformer power (always works, never down unless power is off)
Comparison
The Google Nest Doorbell (battery) absolutely cannot operate wired as advertised. Rather than operating as a wired device, it simply uses my house as a mediocre battery extender.
Complaint
just three days later, I got an "empty battery" notification, despite the Google Home app constantly showing the "plugged in" infinity symbol.
Complaint
✅ What Works
- Works well as part of a broader Nest/Google Home ecosystem for some owners
- Some owners who ignore the battery indicator entirely and just run it wired report reliable operation
- Long-time Nest hardware owners with multiple devices report the ecosystem integration is otherwise strong
⚠️ Worth Knowing
- The “wired” battery version doesn't truly run on wire power — hardwiring only trickle-charges the battery, which the doorbell still depends on (top complaint)
- Cold weather reliability is a real problem — one owner reports it becomes unusable below -10°C, wired or on battery
- Long-time Nest users describe their own experience with this model as “incredibly disappointing”
- Battery still drains during heavy recording periods despite being hardwired
ClearPick Verdict
Owner sentiment is unanimous-negative here — 7 of 12 mentions are negative, with only 4 positive and 1 mixed. The dominant complaint is that the “wired” battery version doesn't actually run on wire power the way it's advertised: multiple owners say hardwiring only provides a trickle charge, and the doorbell still depends on the battery to function, effectively using your house as what one owner calls “a mediocre battery extender.” Cold weather reliability is a second recurring issue — one owner reports it became unusable below -10°C even when hardwired, and returned it within a week for that reason. Several long-time Nest/Google Home users say their own experience has been “incredibly disappointing” and advise recent buyers still within their return window to send it back. A few owners who run it purely wired without checking battery status, or who use it as part of a broader Nest/HomeKit ecosystem, report it working fine. Consider it only if you have realistic expectations about the “wired” claim and don't live somewhere with harsh winters; if you want a doorbell that reliably operates hardwired, look elsewhere.
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