The Ring Spotlight Cam is a useful accessory to the Ring security system for lighting up a dark yard at night, but it loses its effectiveness if the light goes out. If your Ring Spotlight Cam won’t turn on or work when you access the Ring app, getting it running again is not usually a difficult process.

The Ring Spotlight Cam can have battery issues that may lead to malfunction, or it may need to be reset due to connectivity problems. The Ring Spotlight Cam can be reset by using the reset button on the top of the camera. This factory reset will allow the camera to reconnect to the Ring network.

If your Ring Spotlight Cam stops working, there’s no need to run straight to technical support. Keep reading to find out some of the easiest ways to get your Ring Spotlight Cam up and running again.

Reasons for Ring Spotlight Camera Failure

There are a few different causes that could lead a Ring Spotlight Cam to stop working, even if it was operating fine previously. These are a few of the potential reasons your Ring Spotlight Cam isn’t turning on:

  • The battery is dead: The Ring Spotlight Camera operates on a rechargeable battery pack. If this battery loses charge, the camera will quit working. If you recharge the battery and the camera still doesn’t work, the battery itself may be defective and require replacement. Battery power should last 6-12 months. (Source: The Indoor Haven)The battery isn’t seated correctly. If you don’t click the battery pack back into place correctly after recharging it, the Ring Spotlight Cam may have a hard time reestablishing a connection. Check to ensure your camera battery pack is seated firmly in the mounting bracket until it snaps into place.A power disruption broke the camera’s connection to the Ring system. This is a software issue rather than a hardware issue. The problem can usually be resolved by resetting the camera to sync back up with the Ring wireless system.

Since these three causes are the most common reasons why your Ring Spotlight Cam may not be working, these are the areas you should look first if you run into trouble. Once you’ve recharged your spotlight camera, you need to reboot the camera to add it back to the system.

Rebooting the Ring Spotlight Cam

Rebooting or resetting the Ring Spotlight Cam is easy. Once you’ve recharged the battery pack and replaced it, perform the following steps (Source: Ring Support):

  • Press the reset button on the top of the spotlight camera.Hold down the reset button for twenty seconds. After you finish, the camera’s status light should begin to flash to indicate that the camera is searching for a connection to the Ring network. (Source: Support.com)Check your Ring app to see if the spotlight cam reappears as an available device once the wireless connection is reestablished.

Resetting your Ring Spotlight Cam should allow it to reconnect to your home wireless network that you run the rest of your Ring devices on. If the camera doesn’t automatically reconnect to your wireless network, you can manually reset the network connection through the Ring app on your smartphone or tablet.

What If the Ring Spotlight Cam Light Isn’t On?

The light indicator on the Ring Spotlight Cam is how you can determine whether or not the camera is operational and hooked into the system. If the indicator light on the camera isn’t lit, this is an indication of one of two outcomes:

  • The camera doesn’t have a secure power connection. Make sure that the wiring in the camera isn’t loose and that the battery pack is secured snugly in the camera mounting bracket.The camera’s battery pack is malfunctioning. If you’ve already recharged your battery pack and the spotlight camera indicator light still isn’t lit, try replacing the battery pack with a new one to see if this fixes the issue.

Keep in mind that if you press the button on the spotlight camera too long (longer than twenty seconds) then the camera will not reestablish a connection with the main wireless network. If you’re having trouble and you’re convinced that the battery pack in the camera is good, try holding down the button for less time during the hard reset.

Does Ring Spotlight Cam Come with Multiple Batteries?

The Ring Spotlight Cam only comes with one battery pack, so if you want to extend your battery lifetime or you just want to keep a backup battery on hand to prevent any downtime on your camera system, you should order a second battery pack through Ring’s website. 

Resetting the Ring Spotlight Cam Is Simple

One of the biggest advantages of going with the Ring system for your smart home security network is that the company has gone above and beyond to make the Ring app and network as easy to operate as they can. This capability is what makes it possible for the Ring smart home system to be as customizable as it is without requiring a bunch of third-party technician setup.