The Ettie video doorbell takes your visitor’s temperature before they cross your hearth

COVID is definitely a theme during this year’s online-only CES, particularly when it comes to video doorbells. We’ve already seen video doorbells with touchless designs from Arlo and Alarm.com, and now here’s one that takes your visitor’s temperature before they’re allowed inside.

Related product Ring Video Doorbell (2nd Generation) Read TechHive's reviewSee it The Ettie comes equipped with your usual arsenal of video doorbell features, including HD resolution, two-way audio, and a mobile app that lets you see who’s standing on your doorstep. (Plott, the company behind the Ettie, has yet to reveal additional features.)

What sets the Ettie apart is its infrared temperature sensor, which lets it quickly take a visitor’s temperature. Once it’s measured a person’s temperature, the Ettie can send an alert to your phone to let you know whether it’s safe (well, relatively speaking) to let the visitor inside. There’s also a pair of LEDs—one green, and one red—on the doorbell itself, which can flash to let the person know whether they’ll be allowed entry.

[ Further reading: The best video doorbells ]Besides its ability to take someone’s temperature, the Ettie can snap the visitor’s picture and take note of when they arrived. It can also track a venue’s headcount and send an alert if you’ve reached capacity, while its visitor log could be used for contact tracing.

While the Ettie could certainly be used for a residence, it seems more targeted at businesses—say, a small storefront that’s limiting its capacity to maintain social distancing, or perhaps the waiting room of a doctor’s office. The built-in infrared temperature sensor could also be useful for a small business that can’t spare an employee to perform temperature checks at the door.

Ettie manufacturer Plott says beta units of the doorbell are slated to ship in the second quarter of 2021, with a target price of $300.

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