The Ring Solar Pathlight is a solar-charged, motion-sensing stake light that connects to the Ring app through a Ring Bridge. TechHive and Tom's Guide each rate it 4 out of 5: both credit its 80-lumen output, tunable 15-foot motion sensor and ability to trigger Ring cameras and other Ring lights, and both mark it down for costing far more than ordinary solar path lights.
Full review
A solar path light with a motion sensor and app control
The Ring Solar Pathlight is a 16.8-inch bollard-style stake light. TechHive's Michael Brown describes a solar panel covering nearly all of its 3.5-inch top, trickle-charging a 3.7-volt lithium-ion battery; the top detaches so the battery can be charged indoors over Micro-USB if the light does not get enough sun. Tom's Guide lists output at up to 80 lumens and an IP66 rating with an operating range of -4°F to 122°F.
TechHive says the 80 lumens is enough 'to cast a circular pool of light about eight feet in diameter', at a 3500K color temperature, and that the light can be dimmed.
Motion detection and schedules
Both reviews give the motion sensor a 15-foot range and a 120-degree field of view. TechHive notes the sensitivity can be set to low, medium, high or a custom level, and that a motion-triggered light can be set to switch off after 30 seconds, one, three or five minutes. Schedules by hour, day of week or dusk-to-dawn are supported.
Tom's Guide highlights a mode in which the lights stay on at low brightness and step up to full brightness on motion, and reports that grouped lights can all brighten when one of them senses movement. Its reviewer had to turn the sensitivity down after getting a recording 'every time a car drove past' with a linked Ring doorbell.
It needs a Ring Bridge, and the cost adds up
The light does not work on its own: TechHive explains that it connects to 2.4GHz Wi-Fi through a Ring Bridge or a device with one built in, such as a Ring Alarm Pro Base Station or an Echo (4th Gen). Tom's Guide prices the Bridge at $50 and a single light at $35, against $28 for a 12-pack of the top-selling ordinary solar path lights on Amazon at the time of its review, and lists 'Pricey' as its one reason to avoid.
TechHive's cons are that it is 'much more expensive than dumb solar path lights' and 'fabricated entirely from plastic', though its reviewer reports the plastic housing of the earlier battery-powered Pathlight looked 'no worse for wear after nearly a year's exposure to the weather'.
Who the reviewers recommend it for
Both outlets rate it 4 out of 5 and tie its value to the Ring ecosystem. TechHive says buyers will 'derive the most benefit from this product if you own or intend to buy other Ring products—especially its security cameras', because motion at the Pathlight can start Ring cameras recording and turn on other Ring lights. Tom's Guide calls the lights 'very task-specific' but 'a great complement to the Ring ecosystem'. TechHive adds that Ring's lighting is 'focused on security, not ambience'.
Strengths
- +Solar panel trickle-charges the battery, with Micro-USB charging as a backup, per TechHive
- +Motion sensor with 15-foot range, 120-degree field of view and adjustable sensitivity
- +Can stay on dim and brighten on motion, and grouped lights brighten together, per Tom's Guide
- +Motion can trigger Ring cameras, doorbells and other Ring lights
- +IP66 weather resistance, per Tom's Guide
Watch-outs
- −Requires a Ring Bridge (or a device with one built in) to work, sold separately
- −'Much more expensive than dumb solar path lights', per TechHive; 'Pricey' is Tom's Guide's reason to avoid
- −'Fabricated entirely from plastic', per TechHive
How it compares
At 80 lumens the Ring Solar Pathlight is the dimmest light on this page, below the MCGOR's 180 lumens, the AloftSun's 800 and the Koda's 3,000. Like the AloftSun it is solar powered and needs no wiring, unlike the hardwired Koda. Its 15-foot motion range is shorter than the AloftSun's 33 ft and the Koda's 70 ft. It is the only one here that requires a separate hub (the Ring Bridge).
Rating sources
Counts as 4.14/5 in our score — this publisher's 60 scores on the site average 4.02, so its scores are adjusted up to compare fairly with other publishers.
Counts as 4.02/5 in our score — this publisher's 156 scores on the site average 4.15, so its scores are adjusted up to compare fairly with other publishers.
Our 4.1 score is the average of these published ratings, each adjusted for how strictly its publisher scores. More about methodology.
