1727
A literal bell attached to a cord. Somebody pulls it. Everybody in the house hears it. Quite possibly the neighbours too.
Late 1700s
The servant bell arrives. A clever system of pulleys and hidden wires rings a specific bell in the kitchen, so somebody knows they're expected at the front door. Usually not the homeowner.
Victorian Era
Extravagant door knockers en vogue. Polished brass. Lions' heads. Gargoyles.
The louder the knock, the more important the visitor felt.
Early 1900s
Electric doorbells appear, replacing elaborate mechanical systems with a reassuringly aggressive BUZZZZZ.
1970s
The classic "ding dong" arrives. During the Mail Order Catalogue Era, parcel deliveries were an annual occurrence at best - so rather more of a social occasion than anything else, the milkman would ring the bell, wait patiently, and you’d have plenty of time to finish your cup of tea before wandering to the front door to have a meaningful conversation.
2010s
Video doorbells appear. Suddenly you can see who's there without opening the door. It feels futuristic.
2020s
Your intercom rings your smartphone instead of the hallway. You answer the gate from work, the beach or the other side of the world, watch the delivery arrive on your CCTV, open the gate remotely, and get back on with life knowing the door will lock itself automatically.
The front door has changed.
Has your intercom?
Remember when missing the doorbell meant missing the delivery?
That was just how life worked.
You'd find one of those little "Sorry we missed you" cards in the letterbox, sigh dramatically, then spend your Saturday morning queueing at the depot.
Thankfully, we've moved on.
Modern intercoms send the call straight to your smartphone, wherever you happen to be.
At work.
In the garden.
Walking the dog.
On the beach.
Or the other side of the world.
You can see who's there, have a conversation, and if it's the courier you've been waiting for or the contractor arriving for today's job, simply unlock the gate or front door from wherever you are.
No rushing home.
No missed deliveries.
No trying to explain to the courier where to hide the parcel over the speaker.
Just a front door that's finally caught up with the rest of your life.
It's tempting to think of a modern intercom as simply a doorbell with a camera.
That's a bit like calling a smartphone "a phone with emails."
Modern intercoms, including UniFi's range, can integrate directly with your CCTV system, turning the front door into another high-definition camera on your property.
Instead of seeing somebody standing at the gate for a few seconds, you can follow the whole story.
Watch the courier arrive.
See them walk through the gate.
Confirm exactly where they left your parcel.
And perhaps most importantly... watch them actually close the gate behind them.
The same goes for contractors, visitors and anyone else coming onto your property.
Your intercom isn't replacing your CCTV.
It's joining the team.
Keys have had a remarkably successful career.
A few thousand years without a software update is a pretty decent innings.
But they're no longer the smartest way to unlock a door.
Modern intercoms can integrate with access control, allowing authorised users to enter using a PIN, key fob, access card or simply their mobile phone.
Cleaner arriving every Tuesday?
Give them access during the hours they'll actually be there.
Need to let a contractor in while you're at work?
A couple of taps on your phone.
Kids forgotten their keys?
They probably haven't forgotten their phones.
And once you've wandered down to the beach without jingling a pocket full of keys, you'll wonder why you carried them around for so long.
Like most technology, older intercom systems did a great job...
For their time.
The problem is, "their time" was often twenty or thirty years ago.
Many relied on complicated wiring, multiple control units and exposed electronics hidden inside the door station. After years of sun, rain and salty coastal air, things had a habit of becoming... unpredictable.
Sometimes they could be repaired.
Sometimes the replacement part hadn't been manufactured since the Sydney Olympics.
In apartment buildings, a single failed entry station could leave dozens of residents locked out, with repair bills running into the tens of thousands.
Thankfully, modern systems have learnt that simpler is usually smarter.
Many now use Power over Ethernet (PoE), carrying both power and data through a single network cable.
Less cabling.
Fewer components.
Cleaner installations.
Greater reliability.
Sometimes the smartest technology isn't the one with the longest feature list.
It's the one that quietly gets on with the job, year after year.
Like ordering coffee these days, intercoms have become surprisingly customisable.
Some people love having a dedicated handset inside the house.
Others are perfectly happy answering every call on their mobile.
Some properties suit a traditional wired system, while others are ideal for SIM-enabled intercoms that call your phone directly over the mobile network. Handy if you're out in the garden, down at the shed, or simply don't want another handset taking up space on the wall.
Larger homes, apartment buildings and businesses can also integrate access control, allowing different users to unlock doors and gates using PIN codes, smartphones, access cards or key fobs, with time-based or one-off access where required.
This is where professional advice makes all the difference.
We'll help you choose a system that suits your property, your lifestyle and your budget, without paying for features you'll never use.
For nearly 300 years, answering the front door meant stopping what you were doing and walking to the door to open it.
Today, answering the front door is a quick glance at your phone - from the backyard, from the beach, or from another country entirely.
Modern intercoms have become part of a smarter, more connected home, making deliveries easier, improving security and giving you complete control over who comes and goes.
Not bad for something that started life as a bell on a piece of string.
If you're building, renovating or replacing an ageing intercom, we'd be happy to help you choose a system that's built for the way you live today... not the way people answered the door in 1974.
