Standing out from your neighbors can sometimes be a struggle during the holidays, but now there’s an unusual idea that can put you in the spotlight this Halloween. Look no further than your smart doorbell. It can make yours one of the spookiest, and most memorable, houses on the block during trick-or-treating.
Recently, Ring Video Doorbell added an Addams Family signature chime tone to its system, and now Nest Hello users will get some fun Halloween sounds for their doorbell, too. Starting Monday, October 21, you can change the tone of your doorbell to the sounds of a cackling witch, vampire, monster or a ghost to surprise guests, or to crank up the spooky mood on Halloween night. The sounds will also play on Google Nest speakers or displays with Nest Hello’s visitor announcement enabled, too.
Setting up the new tones to work with your Nest system is easy. As soon as the tones are ready in your area, you should receive a notification on your phone. When you get the notification, open the Nest app, choose your doorbell from the list of devices, and then tap on the settings icon. From there, choose the Halloween theme from the doorbell theme list. Now, when your doorbell is pressed, one of the four spooky sounds will play.
The new Halloween ringtones are only available to Nest Hello users in the United States, and the availability will end on November 4. Once they’re gone, there will be more holiday tones to take their place.
“In late November we’re bringing seasonal cheer with winter ringtones, which last through early January for users in the U.S., Canada, and European countries where Nest Hello is sold,” a Nest representative told Digital Trends. “Two of the tones will evoke Christmas and Hanukkah, and the other two will have a New Year’s and nondenominational winter theme.”
Like with the Halloween theme, users will get an alert on their phones when the new winter, Christmas, Hanukkah and New Year’s holiday tones are available.
For more smart home Halloween ideas that feature Google smart speakers, displays, and more, Google has come up with a list of 13 ways to conjure up a spooky smart home this Halloween.