How to set up a Christmas chime for a Ring doorbell, plus other festive hacks to try

Your doorbell is probably the last place you'd think of when it comes to decorating your home for the festive season, but a warm welcome from the doorstep can make all the difference on Christmas day. Luckily, if you have a Ring video doorbell, there are some festive hacks you can try to make your guests feel extra welcome from your front door, such as switching up your faceplate and setting some Quick Reply holiday greetings. 

Whoever said video doorbells can't be Christmassy clearly wasn't familiar with Ring. The home security brand has just unveiled its seasonal faceplate designs for the Video Doorbell 3, the 3 Plus and the Video Doorbell 4. These decorative faceplates easily snap over your existing doorbell to take your Christmas decorations to the next level. As always, there are also some seasonal Quick Reply messages you can enable on your doorbell in time for the 25th, too. Here we explain how it's done. 

How to set up a holiday chime on a Ring Doorbell

(Image credit: Ring )

To make your guests feel welcome this Christmas season, why not set up a Holiday Quick Reply and Chimes Tone to add some good cheer from your front porch? Choose from an array of Ring Holiday Chime Tones so that when someone rings you'll be alerted with any one of these festive of options inside your home, including:

• Holiday Ding Dong
• Festive Ding Dong
• Holiday Jingle
• Hanukkah Dreidel 

So how do you set up the Christmas-themed Chime Tones? First, you’ll need to open the Ring app and then follow these steps:

• First, tap the three lines on the left and click on 'Select Devices'.
• Next pick the chime that you want to set up and tap the 'Audio Settings' icon and from there, tap Chime Tones.
• Choose the Chime Tone you desire from the list available and hit 'Save Changes'. 

Christmas quick replies

While you’re busy baking cookies for Santa in the kitchen or gathered in the living room decorating the Christmas tree, Ring's Quick Replies can help lend a hand when guests are at the door. You can let guests know you'll be there shortly or ask them to leave a message, all with a fun festive twist using one of the following Quick Replies: 

• Hey! Happy Holidays, We’ll be right there.
• Merry Christmas!...We’re a little, wrapped up at the moment. Leave a message.
• Hi! Happy Hanukkah. Leave us a message.
• Ho Ho Ho Ho, Question for you... are you on my naughty or nice list? Either way, leave a message.
• Ho Ho Ho, Happy Holidays! If you’d- like to leave a message, you can do it now!

If you’re cozied up in the living room watching a Christmas movie with the family, you can answer your visitors with Fire TV and Alexa voice commands without having to go to the door. You'll see a live, on-screen camera feed of your Ring Video Doorbell and talk to whoever happens to be at your doorstep, perhaps to ask delivery drivers to leave your parcel on the doorstep.

Tis’ the season with Alexa 

(Image credit: Amazon )

Besides your Ring doorbell, there's also a host of Christmas Alexa skills you can try out using voice commands. Bring holiday cheer to the whole family this Christmas by asking Santa to tell you a story, sing a song, crack a joke, and more. To get started simply say “Alexa, enable ‘Hey Santa’”. After “Hey Santa” has been enabled choose from a range of holiday-themed responses.

To hear Santa sing say:

• “Hey Santa, sing Jingle Bells.”
• “Hey Santa, sing Up on the Rooftop.”
• “Hey Santa, sing We Wish You a Merry Christmas.”
• “Hey Santa, sing the 12 Days of Christmas.”
• “Hey Santa, sing Deck the Halls.”

For a Christmas bedtime story try:

• “Hey Santa, tell me a story.”

Additional questions you can ask Santa include:

• “Hey Santa, tell me the North Pole news.”
• “Hey Santa, what’s your favourite recipe?”
• “Hey Santa, can you tell me about your sleigh?”
• “Hey Santa, am I on the naughty or nice list?”

You can also use your Alexa to control your Ring doorbell this December. Have Alexa turn on your Ring device by saying, “Alexa, I’m leaving to go Christmas shopping," or ask Alexa to announce "Motion at the front door" when you are expecting guests for Christmas dinner. 

To upgrade your home for the holidays, use Alexa-enabled smart plugs to give you more control of the devices in your home. Forgot to turn off the lights when you’re already in bed? Just say “Alexa, turn off the Christmas tree” from under the covers. To save yourself the hassle, you can also set up bespoke routines using your Alexa enables smart plug. For example, you can set up a routine to turn on your Christmas tree lights at dusk and off at midnight to save on your energy bills - after all, who doesn't want to save a little extra money at Christmas time?