Google Nest Doorbell

Nest Doorbell bug causes audio to drop in and out constantly, fix coming [U]

Ben Schoon | Apr 9 2024 - 6:40 am PT

Google’s latest Nest Doorbell is currently suffering through a bug that causes audio to constantly drop in and out while viewing the live feed.

The Google Nest Doorbell (wired) launched in late 2022 as an upgrade to Nest Hello. The new hardware features the same small footprint, but a new design and, more importantly, a more vertical recording space so it can properly capture what’s going on at the door.

And while Google has fixed most of the issues we had with the product by upgrading the Home app, there’s an ongoing bug that’s pretty frustrating for many users.

As noted by Nest Doorbell (wired) owners on Reddit, one of the recent updates to the doorbell has left audio constantly cutting in and out. The video feed is uninterrupted, but the audio constantly skips. It makes watching a live feed frustrating, and would make having a conversation through the doorbell nearly impossible.

We were also able to replicate the issue on a Nest Doorbell (wired) running software version 1.71.

The issue appears to have first surfaced back in February and has been affecting more users in the past few weeks.

Interestingly, this only seems to be an issue with live viewing. Recorded footage from the doorbell is completely free of audio issues.

Update 4/9: In a statement to 9to5Google, Google has confirmed a fix is coming for Nest Doorbell (wired) live viewing issues, but there’s no ETA just yet.

We’ve received reports of users experiencing live audio issues with Nest Doorbell (Wired). We’re working on a fix and apologize for any interruption.

Google will likely fix things up in coming updates – and it already seems to be improving for some folks – but in the meantime, there appears to be no workaround. Resets and even replacement devices have had the same issues for affected users, as it seems to be solely a software issue.

Thanks Jeff!