Ot: simplisafe vs ???

[vqdriver]

We're moving into a one year home and I want to try a DIY security system without the installation cost or complexity of a hardwired system.
To that end simplisafe seems to advertise on all the podcasts I listen to so its top of mind.
Anyone have it, use it? Should I consider another as well?
FWIW I'm looking at a couple motion sensors, 3 door sensors, and hopefully a doorbell cam. A backyard cam to watch my kids would be great.

[CNY rider]

I’d go with Home Insecurity.
One of my favorite South Park episodes:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insecurity_(South_Park)

[rbtmcardle]

We have the older version. It came with the house. Seems to work as advertised. Pretty convenient and when there has been reason to call customer service they’ve been great.

That being said, I’m not a huge believer in home security systems.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

[yngpunk]

We're moving into a one year home and I want to try a DIY security system without the installation cost or complexity of a hardwired system.
To that end simplisafe seems to advertise on all the podcasts I listen to so its top of mind.
Anyone have it, use it? Should I consider another as well?
FWIW I'm looking at a couple motion sensors, 3 door sensors, and hopefully a doorbell cam. A backyard cam to watch my kids would be great.

Might want to check out Ring as well.

Amazon was running some pretty good deals on Ring for Prime Day (since Ring is now owned by Amazon), but pretty similar to SimpliSafe with good integration with Alexa and the lowest monthly monitoring fee ($10/month or $100/year pre-paid).

[Gsinill]

I recently set up the whole house with Simplisafe:

- entry sensors
- motion detectors
- glass break sensors
- water sensor

I did not install the camera that came with the package.

So far I am very happy with the system, setup was very easy and everything works as advertised, maybe with the exception of the glass break sensors.
To test it, I put a glass char in a bag and dropped it on the basement floor.
The glass shattered but the sensor did not get triggered. Tried it multiple times.
I assume the sound of a breaking window might be different.
Last week, my wife vacuumed and when she hit a little stand that a GB sensor sits on top, it triggered the alarm.
Still need to check with SS support on that.

Re. the motion sensors.
We have 2 cats and I was afraid that they might trigger them.
A lot of discussions on the web on this and recommendations to install them upside down so they don't scan towards the floor but upwards.
While this might work, we decided, to not use them for now, thus the glass break sensors instead.

Response time of SS in case of a triggered alarm has been excellent so far (all false alarms).

Tech support picked up right away and was helpful the one time I had to call them.

I am not a big fan of alarm systems in general but since I am traveling quite a bit and we live in the boonies, my wife feels safer with a system.
This said I wanted to keep the service as minimal as possible, i.e. no technicians for installation, no longterm contract, etc.
SS checked all those boxes.

I am happy and would buy it again...

[SPOKE]

I’ve been using simplisafe for nearly 5 yrs. I pay the $24.95 so I have complete control from my phone. The stuff just works....period. I the dood, glass break & motion sensors, interior camera & doorbell camera.
It’s good stuff.

[buddybikes]

This works wonderfully:
https://s3.amazonaws.com/cdn-origin-etr.akc.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/12213218/German-Shepherd-on-White-00.jpg

[vqdriver]

Thanks for the feedback.
I'll look into the nest and ring options too. Didnt know they expanded into alarms.

[yngpunk]

Thanks for the feedback.
I'll look into the nest and ring options too. Didnt know they expanded into alarms.

Adobe also offers an DIY option as well called Iota, and I hear that Arlo will be rolling out their alarm system shortly. I think most of the DIY options are similar, so primary driver should be integration with existing smart home options: Nest with Google, Ring with Alexa/Amazon, Arlo with existing Arlo cameras.

Wirecutter offers a comparison here:

https://thewirecutter.com/reviews/the-best-home-security-system/