this post was submitted on 31 Aug 2026
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Don't they have relays for chimes?
Use the chime relay as a trigger for a real doorbell or ESP32 with a speaker.
Lot less dominos...
They don't have a traditional doorbell which is why people previously knocked. Since they added the Blink doorbell, people ring the bell. Except there is no bell apart from the speaker built into the Blink... outside the front door... where it can't be heard by people inside. So you can't know if someone has rung the bell without having a phone on you to receive the notification. Blink sells a chime that can just be plugged into an outlet. Doesn't have the best reviews but I would've given that a shot first. Maybe it isn't sold in their market or something.
Ahh. From what I saw online, some have 2 screws above the battery compartment that sound like a NO relay to trigger existing systems if the user had them. I suppose it could be a different model.
I'm not too familiar with Blink products, just that a wall wart bell showed up in a quick search, so it is possible. Most camera doorbells I've seen that do have a pair of terminals, they're to do as you described: connect to the bell circuit to get power and ring the existing bell. I'm doing a bit of inferring, since knocking sounded like the only previous option, that there's no wire at their door to utilize. Couple that with their being in an apartment and it is likely the only way they're getting one there is to surface run it. Or run behind any crown molding/baseboard trim they have, but that's a labor-intensive pain in the ass.