SimpliSafe Review: Best Home Security & Automation

SimpliSafe has made it affordable to set up a home alarm system on our own. We were able to get environmental and security protection without much time. Our total cost for the cheapest system was under three hundred dollars. Professional monitoring was not compulsory and started at nearly fifteen dollars per month. You can choose to go for DIY monitoring, which is always available with the free mobile app. Overall, the costs of this home security system are lower than that of firms such as ADT. It is one of the best options for no-contract home security.

One of the great things about this home security system is a very flexible system. There are several pre-configured packages present. On the high end, there is the Haven package which comes with more than a dozen hardware components that include the base station, a couple of motion sensors, a keychain remote, a loud siren, a panic button, some window & door entry sensors, freeze and water sensors, carbon monoxide and smoke detectors, window decals, and SimpliSafe yard sign. The least expensive Foundation pack has been created for small houses and focuses only on basic home security. This includes the base station, a motion sensor, a wireless keypad, an entry sensor, decals, and a yard sign. You will also get discounts on the packages or select the components to create your own custom system from scratch.

Suppose you would like to add a few more indoor security cameras from the company. In that case, they are only about a hundred dollars each. The full HD wireless outdoor security camera will cost about $170, and so will the Video Doorbell Pro. It is an integrated full HD smart doorbell with a camera. The Smart Lock costs about a hundred dollars and permits keyless entry. The home security system does not give packages that include the doorbell, lock, or cameras. They are all add-ons. But we have seen the firm throw in a SimpliCam as another part of the limited-time special-price promo. Additional parts can also be bought separately to develop your own pack or expand on one part. If you have a lot of easily accessible windows, it would be good to have a glass break sensor or more entry sensors.

The system supports more than ninety sensors at once. If there is more than one entryway in your house, you can get more keypads. Suppose you require a one-stop home security system with more than just security. In that case, you can add environmental sensors. Smoke detectors are only thirty dollars each, and you can set them up into the monitoring plan. This will alert the user via text message or email when an alarm is triggered and send the first responders to your house in the event of any fire. The temperature sensors alert the user when it declines below forty degrees to help avoid burst pipes. The water sensors detect and alert the user about floods and leaks.

The base station is pear-shaped and powers the system. It is nearly nine inches tall and less than five inches in diameter at its widest spot. There is a blue light at the base. The light glows steadily to inform you that the alarm is turned on. It also pulses to inform whenever there is an error with one of the sensors. It is a lot smaller and sleeker than the original base station, which had a design sense several decades ago. The base station comes in white or black colors to fit in seamlessly with the home décor. The installation needs placing the base station in the center point within 450 feet of the sensors and 90 feet of the keypads and plugging in the power cord. The updated base station integrates a Wi-Fi radio. It adds another layer of connectivity to the monitoring service of the company.

The Wi-Fi is great for people living in rural areas who would not be able to utilize the monitoring service because of low cellular coverage. Suppose you are particularly concerned about threats related to the Internet of Things. In that case, you may choose not to connect the home security system to the Wi-Fi network. The monitoring works well without it, but you will not get any firmware updates. Inside the base, there is a SIM card to ensure cellular communication, a backup battery that will last for an entire day, and a siren. The entry sensors are redesigned as well. They are a lot smaller, nearly half the length of what they used to be, modern looking, and squarer. They are powered by cost-effective and user-replaceable coin cell batteries that are purported to last more than four years.

The home security system will warn the user when they need to replace the batteries. The installation of the system does not need any drilling or wiring. You can easily pull off the battery-activation strips, peel the back of the Command-like strips, and adhere each component after labeling and pairing it with the system. The components are easy to take around the house without causing any damage to the walls. You can also take the home security system with you to your next residence, which is a great feature. The keypad is also available in white or black and powered by standard AA batteries. It has the biggest improvement in design, with an LCD taking the place of a small monochrome screen. There are round backlit rubber buttons that are nicely sized and replace the small oval ones on the previous keypads. There is also a proximity sensor that illuminates the keypad for night-time usage.

The bigger screen also makes the setup of the system an easy process. This is because you only have to pair all the components by utilizing easy step-through menus present on display. All the components have a small button that you can press to pair with the home security system. The keypad will walk a user through the naming process once a user does that. The user no longer needs to go through the manual for the proper setup instructions.

With only some available modes, disarming and arming the home security system is quite simple. The home mode activates the window and door sensors. In contrast, the Away mode activates both the motion and entry sensors. The test modes assist the user in setting up the system and permit you to ensure that each of the sensors is in working order. The base station clearly and loudly announces the actions as you enter the various modes. The volume can also be adjusted in the app or on the keypad. When the sensor is triggered while the alarm is armed, the keypad will emit a beeping sound, and you will have about half a minute to enter a PIN. If you do not enter the PIN, the base station siren will be activated and send an alert to the firm.

The organization will then contact you through a phone call and ask you for the safe word you provide during the installation. Suppose you do not get any call, or you do not give the safe word. In that case, the Emergency Dispatch Center will send over the Police or the firefighters if a smoke detector has triggered the alarm.

As far as home security systems are concerned, we really enjoyed the SimpliSafe system for the price, flexibility, and ease of use, and our SimpliSafe review shows that. The system lets anyone install a home security system in about sixty minutes. Learning how to use the system is quite simple. Users do not have to sign any contracts to get their access to round-the-clock monitoring plans that can be turned off whenever they want. The home security system offered all of these functions before also. But our SimpliSafe review shows that the low monitoring and hardware prices, the simpler setup process, and the redesigned hardware make the system a must-buy for the consumer.