It takes 5 cloud services to hear my doorbell

In the winter of 2024, a burglary in the narrator's apartment building prompted them to enhance their home's security. The chosen solution was a Blink video doorbell, which initially provided video clips and notifications. However, this new feature unintentionally had a downside. Instead of people knocking on the door, they would hear the doorbell ringing from outside, resulting in notifications on their phones and an accompanying sound from the doorbell itself.

This made it difficult for the narrator's wife, who often ignores her phone, to know when guests were at the door. The wife expressed her frustration, stating that the doorbell had made it harder for her to open the door for guests.

The narrator attempted to resolve the issue by playing sounds on their Google Home minis when the Blink doorbell rang. However, they faced two constraints: a reluctance to incur subscription costs and a desire to keep their home mini PC disconnected from the internet. Despite extensive research, including consultations with an AI model, no satisfactory solution emerged.

The narrator's solution involved creating a complex "Rube Goldberg machine" to manage the doorbell functionality. This contraption proved effective for approximately 18 months. However, a recent change in the Samsung SmartThings API now demands a monthly fee of $4.99 for personal access. Given the simple purpose of the SmartThings API in this setup, the narrator must explore alternative methods to maintain the doorbell's operation, potentially increasing the number of cloud services required for their front door experience.