Samsung Smartthings Adt Wireless Home Security Starter Kit Review

SmartThings ADT Abode Security Starter Kit

MSRP $389.00

"ADT is still testing the waters instead of fully embracing the DIY home security movement."

Pros

• Works with Samsung SmartThings devices
• Sensors piece of work well and don't requite false alarms too often
• Touchscreen gives another way to call for help
• Starting/canceling monitoring is easily done through the app

Cons

• Expensive
• To avoid false alarms, some automation functions are missing
• Yous need ADT-specific devices for monitoring and there aren't many of them all the same

A few years ago, a onetime ADT employee left the company to offset his own security visitor – Abode — that offered month-to-month monitoring instead of the usual two-to-iii-year contracts. At the time, DIY security systems were starting to inundation the market, letting homeowners and renters buy the equipment and receive notifications if something tripped their sensors.

Eventually, ADT got into the game, and last year it partnered with Samsung'south SmartThings to launch a Home Security Starter Kit. It comes with a tablet-similar hub, motility detector, and two door/window sensors. You can opt for professional monitoring at different pricing tiers or take it be fully DIY. The tablet acts as a SmartThings hub, letting you connect all sorts of devices from a variety of brands. But — and this is a big but — to get full employ out of the device, y'all'll demand to purchase ADT accessories.

Quick starter

This four-piece kit isn't the nearly robust security starter kit nosotros've seen. Originally priced at a whopping $550, you tin now discover it for $400. The sensors are the standard white plastic (we withal retrieve they look awful). The hub is by and large screen with a few buttons. You tin control it via the 7-inch touchscreen or from the SmartThings app. The hub's acme button takes you lot to an emergency screen, with 3 big icons: Emergency, fire, and panic. If you have ADT monitoring, yous tin printing the corresponding icon for two seconds to alert the visitor that something'south wrong. The bottom button returns you to the home screen. The domicile screen displays arm and disarm buttons and shows the local conditions. You tin can too meet a history of events, add users, and mess with a few other settings, like screen brightness and sounds.

Setting up the kit is relatively straightforward. Showtime, you connect the hub to your Wi-Fi via the touchscreen. In one case it'southward connected, it volition check and install updates, a process that took near eight minutes for us. The hub volition display a code that you need to input into SmartThings app. The app volition want to know your location, so information technology can practice things like turn off lights automatically when you leave home. To add the sensors, don't take the plastic tab out before you're told. Y'all can nonetheless fix them up if you lot already have, only it's more annoying. You lot'll use your phone to scan the sensors' QR codes, and they should easily pair. The motion sensor comes with a mounting bracket, or you can employ the included adhesive tape for a less-permanent set up. An included booklet gives tips for proper placement of the sensors.

The security kit tin can transition from professionally monitored to DIY and dorsum again.

The app will prompt you to set a location for these devices. There's a list of locations and rooms to cull from that are kind of… odd. You're supposed to choice two that fit together from the list of options. So you lot could have the location as kitchen and the room as too kitchen, or go for something a little more exotic, like sun porch, computer, cave, or crawl. One of our door sensors is currently prepare to the location of baby's theater. (Information technology's where we watch Dingy Dancing.) That'due south only because in that location is no living room option. They seem to do their job, though: Our cats didn't set off the motion sensor, though ADT says larger dogs will definitely trip them.

It'south a fleck concerning that we weren't prompted to change the hub'due south default passcode upon setup. Information technology's a step people tend to forget or ignore, and for something as important as a security organisation, you would think it would be mandatory. Instructions for doing then are included in the setup manual, merely without prompting, we worry it won't occur to some users.

Accessorize

Because the ADT hub is a replacement SmartThings hub, information technology can work with all kinds of smart lights, locks, and so forth — basically anything that works with SmartThings. All the same, while information technology tin control these as a normal hub would, it doesn't  truly contain them into the security ecosystem. There's a scrap of a silo betwixt ADT products and all other smart devices.

Jenny McGrath/Digital Trends

Jenny McGrath/Digital Trends

Essentially, to trigger an ADT monitored event — like them contacting the law or burn down department — the device that triggers the alert has to come from ADT. If you take a smart FirstAlert smoke alarm, yous can still get notified when it goes off, but ADT won't know most it. Our Nest smoke warning isn't compatible with the hub at all, then that was a complete nonstarter. Correct now, ADT has compatible water leak detector ($35), smoke alarm ($80), and carbon monoxide alert ($90) that work with the professional monitoring service, forth with the $25 door/window sensor and $40 motion detector. There are 3 types of monitoring: burn down, carbon monoxide, and water leaks for $fifteen a month; intruder and panic alerts for $25 a month; and both for $35 a month. Yous can add or abolish the service adequately easily via the app, and you tin continue to utilize the gear as a DIY system. At the moment, there are no ADT cameras that piece of work with the professional person monitoring system (though you can even so use SmartThings-compatible devices for DIY monitoring).

If y'all practise opt in for the monitoring service and an alarm trips, ADT volition call the number you provided (after giving you a bit of a grace period to cancel a fake warning). If you answer and all is well, you can provide a pin code to telephone call off the troops. If you don't answer, ADT will try your back-upwardly number, and your designated backup will have to provide the magic word. Failing these, the company will send the proper authorities.

Disarm you lot with a smile primal play a joke on

We did manage to automate a few devices to work in conjunction with the security aspects of the hub. We set up up a scene for all our Hue light bulbs to turn red when the motion detector triggers and the system is set to armed (away). The deviation between armed (away) and armed (stay) is that the motion detectors don't activate when you're dwelling, nor practice door/window sensors you've configured with certain settings. This is something that tin can be accomplished with other security systems either out of the box or via something like If This So That.

Our cats never set off the motility alarm, saving united states from unnecessary notifications.

In the interest of preventing false alarms, SmartThings informed us that you can't automobile-arm the organisation via geofencing. It seems like yous can in the app, but in reality, if you set the organisation to turn on armed (away) when you leave the premises, the hub will ignore the command. At that place also doesn't seem to be a way to schedule arming or disarming the system, so you'll have to either utilise the touchscreen, app, or key fob to do so when leaving or arriving domicile. This all seems to exist in the interest of avoiding setting off the system by mistake. False alarms are abrasive and can be plush with professional monitoring, so it makes sense. Nevertheless, it seems like there could be a different prepare of standards for the DIY version. Surprisingly — though both SmartThings and ADT's Pulse work with Alexa and Google Home, this security hub does non.

1 final quibble is the express uses of the hub. Putting a screen on a hub and then giving information technology such limited functionality — especially when it makes upwards the majority of the toll of the starter kit, feels like a missed opportunity. Information technology's bang-up that there'southward another phone call-for-assist choice in the form of an emergency button (if you lot're paying the monthly monitoring fee), but you can't fix scenes, add devices, or exercise really annihilation SmartThings-related from the touchscreen. It's possible this on purpose – ADT might not desire you (or your kids) messing with the hub too much, lest you accidentally set off a call for help.

Warranty

SmartThings offers a ane-year limited warranty on this starter kit.

Our Take

ADT is trying to offer a more flexible option than its one-time-schoolhouse, iii-twelvemonth contract plans that start at $37 a month. Partnering with SmartThings is a good move, but at the end of the day you're withal appreciative to ADT's gear to have advantage of its professional person monitoring.

Is there a better culling?

The $200 motion sensor-based Aura system is merely sensors and beacons and works with Alexa, Google Home, Philips Hue, and IFTTT. It doesn't have a professional monitoring pick.

Abode'due south $300 starter kit comes with a hub, key fob, door sensor, motion sensor, and is compatible with Nest. Professional monitoring is $30 a calendar month, but you tin as well do DIY and schedule a long weekend or a week of service for $8 or $15.

One of the to the lowest degree expensive monthly monitoring comes from Scout. It'south $20 a month, and you can buy components separately: ($129 for the hub, $49 for a move sensor, and $29 for a door/window sensor). It integrates with Nest, Hue, Lifx, Alexa, and Google Domicile, likewise equally IFTTT.

Nosotros'll also be interested in checking out Honeywell'south home security system when information technology comes out this year.

How long will information technology final?

ADT has been around for over 100 years, so you probably don't take to worry near them suddenly going under. However, we can't promise the professional monitoring price will stay the same. On the other manus, they could deliver some updates to make the hub more robust or come out with some more equipment to expand the system.

Should you buy it?

Even at $400, ADT's SmartThings is more expensive upfront than other systems, as is the monthly monitoring. We get the feeling ADT is still testing the waters instead of fully embracing the DIY habitation security movement.

If you demand a security system today, we'd look elsewhere, merely check in once again one time the company rolls out more hardware.

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Source: https://www.digitaltrends.com/home/samsung-smartthings-adt-home-security-kit-review/

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