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dchaddah

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Im thinking of upgrading our house security.

Currently we have a standard wired alarm fitted cira 2006 nothing fancy just 5 sensors.

Thinking of options here without going crazy, ideally the alarm would be able to:

1. Ring me when activated
2. Tell me which zones had been activated
3. Give me the facility to set and unset remotely if needed.
4. Have a camera that would record in the event of the alarm being set off and I can login to via my phone and view etc.

Currently not sure on wired or wireless systems the later obvisouly having the advantage that if i left the current system in place I could remove when I move and take with me.

This is one of many I came across:

SmartHome Alarm - Yale Digital

Any thoughts advice tips appreciated.
 

The Halo stuff is provided by Intamac

Previously systems from BT and Yale were supported (and are still run today) by them.

I have had the BT branded system for over 5 years now. A wireless fit yourself system where I pay £5 for the monitoring service.

It does exactly what it claims and I could not be happier.

I have looked at the Halo stuff and it looks impressive for what it is and if I were to replace my current system, it would be top of my list.

Remember none of these systems (including pro fitted wired systems) will actually stop people breaking in. You need to take other measures for that such as locks etc.

The idea is that you will know if somebody breaks in and hopefully an alarm going off is enough to make the opportunist thief bugger off and try an easier target.

But a large percentage of break ins happen when the home owners are asleep in bed. This happened to me and whilst they were frightened off I was asleep upstairs oblivious to a scumbag in my home. They could have been stood at the end of my bed and I would never have known.

So for me, the fact that the alarm goes off when somebody breaks in means that by the time they get to the foot of my bed, I am at least awake.
 
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You need

tup-doberman.jpeg
 
Hi, the first 3x points on the wish list are easy to satisfy, but the 4th will be slightly harder - you will need a static IP addres for a start.

I can recommend the wireless Friedland Response, has all the (first 3x) fetures you could want, is easy to install, easy to add PIRs etc as you wish, has a solar powered siren, and proves very reliable and effective in use - all for less than £200.
 
Also a sophisticated alarm set up (cameras aren't hard to spot) implies that there's something significant worth stealing.
 
The ones you have looked at are more aimed at DIY security... They will do the job but you might want something a bit more of a trade/profeshional grade.

If you want wireless than Visonic are the better ones.

If you want a wired system you can get an entry level one like Scantronic by Cooper.

If you want the best then you could go for Texecom or Galaxy made by Honeywell.
The Galaxy systems are mainly used by ADT and are very good indeed.
To give you an example ADT are owned by Tyco who also make some of the wiring harnesses for MB.


Personally I have a Telecom Premier 24 with a speech and text dialler along with a CCTV system I can remote view.


Having said that I have looked at the specification of the Yale one you saw and it is an excellent price for a Grade 2 system.
 
@MARK said:
The Halo stuff is provided by Intamac

Previously systems from BT and Yale were supported (and are still run today) by them.

I have had the BT branded system for over 5 years now. A wireless fit yourself system where I pay £5 for the monitoring service.

It does exactly what it claims and I could not be happier.

I have looked at the Halo stuff and it looks impressive for what it is and if I were to replace my current system, it would be top of my list.

Remember none of these systems (including pro fitted wired systems) will actually stop people breaking in. You need to take other measures for that such as locks etc.

The idea is that you will know if somebody breaks in and hopefully an alarm going off is enough to make the opportunist thief bugger off and try an easier target.

But a large percentage of break ins happen when the home owners are asleep in bed. This happened to me and whilst they were frightened off I was asleep upstairs oblivious to a scumbag in my home. They could have been stood at the end of my bed and I would never have known.

So for me, the fact that the alarm goes off when somebody breaks in means that by the time they get to the foot of my bed, I am at least awake.

I pay British gas 25 per month to monitor my alarm. Who does yours for 5?
 
We went through this on replacing the alarm system that came with the house. It was a horror, not that old, wireless, utterly useless. Worst of all the mug who previously owned the property had paid a fortune for it.

To cut a long story short got fed up and signed up with ADT. Could not stand the aggro if it went wrong if I was away and Mrs S. had to get it sorted. Some of the smaller and local companies were offering near identical kit to ADT but essentially left me with no confidence at all.

OK there are cheaper options but fully maintained, central monitoring, smoke alarms with fire service call out (that works, as witnessed by our Polish decorators being a bit surprised by a fire crew turning up when they caused it to go off) and as part ofthe package ADT come out every 4/5 months to check it over.


Compare Connect Packages
 
If you decide you don't need all those extra features, you should be able to add a dialer (cabled or GSM) to your existing system.
 
I have the company who fitted the current system comming round tomorrow to give me some options. I have a EuroSec wired at the moment, I have been led to beleive it not a bad system. Maybe a cheaper option would be add a dialer some more sensors and then get a Y-Cam internally on the stairwell. I quite like the idea of being able to listen in!
 
I pay British gas 25 per month to monitor my alarm. Who does yours for 5?

As per my post, Intamac

They provide the central service for the likes of Yale, BT and Halo

I have the company who fitted the current system comming round tomorrow to give me some options. I have a EuroSec wired at the moment, I have been led to beleive it not a bad system. Maybe a cheaper option would be add a dialer some more sensors and then get a Y-Cam internally on the stairwell. I quite like the idea of being able to listen in!

You have to question what you would actually expect from a monitored system.

None of them will call the police. They call you!

In which case an automated system or just a simple dialler will do the same job for a fraction of the cost.

IP based systems are great except for one major flaw.

A system that can dial out over a basic PSTN phone line with a battery backup will continue to operate when the power has failed or has been cut. You home phone line has it's own power source so assuming you have not been stupid enough to replace every phone in your home with cordless, you will ALWAYS be able to get help

IP based systems need your router to be running. This needs mains power to function. No power equals no shout for help.

It's for this reason most professional fitted systems do not use your broadband connection.
 
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I agree with all principles.

My thoughts are if the power or any component is not in a stare expected I should get alerted via phone. It is obvisously up to me to react in the appropriate way as said by others an alarm is mearly an alerting system to give you some warning after that it up to you.

If someone wants to get in they will, you just have to take some sensible precautions to delay them!
 
..... Maybe a cheaper option would be add a dialer some more sensors and then get a Y-Cam internally on the stairwell. I quite like the idea of being able to listen in!

It's a good feature, with some draw backs depending on your nerves! When your mobile rings and you know from the caller ID that it is your home alarm calling (from a real time event), it is quite a tense feeling.
 
It's a good feature, with some draw backs depending on your nerves! When your mobile rings and you know from the caller ID that it is your home alarm calling (from a real time event), it is quite a tense feeling.

Indeed any system that rings you can cause this problem.

Nothing worse than getting a call suggesting that your house may be getting gutted when you are half way around the planet.

Sometimes, ignorance is bliss.
 

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