Three weeks ago, we were one of the first to spot a Federal Communications Commission filing for a new version of the Ring Chime Pro. Late this week, more details leaked on the device by a reliable source, suggesting that it might gain Alexa smarts and a more prominent front speaker.
Technologist Dave Zatz tweeted a picture of the front of the device on Thursday, confirming our earlier speculation that it has internal antennas. It also shows a much larger (and possibly higher quality) speaker than the previous version, and a blue light reminiscent of those used on Echo devices in the upper right corner, perhaps indicating Alexa support.
Such a move would make sense. Ring is an Amazon company now, and Amazon recently introduced the Echo Flex, which has a similar shape. The Flex doesn’t have much of a use case, however — at $25, it’s the same price that the much better Echo Dots are, and with lousy sound quality. The Echo Flex’s only differentiation is the capability to plug various sensors into its underside.
With the Chime Pro, there is a legitimate use case. The Chime Pro is a necessary part of your Ring setup to get the best performance out of your Ring Doorbell. Adding Alexa to the Ring Chime Pro is just an added benefit, and makes sense since Amazon now owns Ring. The Chime Pro 2 speaker isn’t probably all that much better than the Echo Flex however, given its small size, so don’t expect a huge improvement there.
Zatz shared no other information on the new Chime Pro, including any potential release date. It could come as soon as next week at CES (that’s our expectation, at least). The number of FCC filings over the last few months has been considerable. The timing matches up well with the annual technology show based on Ring’s filings in the past and when they’ve been introduced publicly.
CES starts Tuesday, January 7, and we plan to stop by the Ring booth during the show to see what the company has in store for 2020. Hopefully, we spot the Chime Pro 2 there.
