It has to be wired to existing doorbell wires and it can not operate on battery power which brings me full circle on why I believe the 2 generation RING video doorbell is the best option for most homes. The biggest reason the 2nd generation RING video doorbell has my vote as the best choice for homes is the fact that it is a liberated device. You can easily choose the perfect spot for the video doorbell because it can run on your doorbell buzzer wiring or operate on battery power. All other video doorbell devices need to be wired to the previous doorbell buzzer location. Previously I wrote a scathing review about how RING video doorbell doesn’t have On Demand Live View. It only allowed a live view when the device sensed motion in a specified area or when the doorbell button was pushed. Unknown to me at the time, in April 2016, live viewing became available to wired RING doorbells and late this summer or early fall the 2nd generation doorbell will be able to activate on demand viewing on battery power. This is a big jump for doorbell devices. Now, you can place your ring doorbell in the most optimal area to view deliveries, people walking up to the door or you can check on what’s happening in the neighborhood even if it’s across the street. This beats out all of the other enhancements from other video doorbell devices in the market. I’ve seen some bad doorbell placements and you can tell that the builders never envision that someday people would be replacing their doorbells with security video cameras.