SECURITY
A relative newcomer to the security world,
Vivint Smart Home has shot to the top as one
of the best and most recommended smart home
securities on the market. Do-it-yourself smart
home security systems are great for frugal
homeowners, but these systems don’t take
action when an alarm is triggered. It’s up to you
to check in when your smoke alarm goes off or
the front door alarm is tripped. If you are looking
for an automated home security system, then
you would want to choose a subscription-based
service like the one that comes with the Vivint.
If you don’t need comprehensive home monitoring
and are simply interested in protecting
your home from porch pirates, the Ring Video
Doorbell and the Nest Hello Doorbell are still
your best options.
Ring now offers four video doorbells: Video
Doorbell, Video Doorbell 2, Video Doorbell
Pro and Video Doorbell Elite. They all allow
you to see, speak, and hear people at your front
door and Ring’s doorbells are compatible with
most smartphones, PCs, and tablets. All of the
above options, except the Video Doorbell Elite,
can be self-installed. Since they are available in
both hard-wired and battery-operated versions,
Ring Doorbells work for any home. They are
also durable and certified for outdoor use in
temperatures from -5 to 120 degrees. The one
major drawback with the battery-powered
doorbells is their short battery life. Ring claims
they average 12 months of battery life. However,
tests done by safehome.org show they only offer
about two months of battery performance.
The Nest Hello Video Doorbell lets you see
who is at your door day or night. Compatible
with Google Home Mini, the device can
announce when someone is at your front door.
The image quality is crisp and bright thanks to
HD video and night vision. Since it continually
streams video to the cloud 24/7, you can check
in anytime. Nest also features a three hour
snapshot. While it is easy-to-install and use,
the Nest requires a hard-wired connection so
it’s not ideal for customers who need a batteryoperated
doorbell.
16 | YOUR HOME MAGAZINE®
The Vivint home
security system is
easy to arm using
the interface tablet or
your smartphone and
connected apps.
Nest and Ring now
offer a variety of video
doorbells which all
allow you to see,
speak, and hear people
at your front door.
These top of the line
video doorbells are
compatible with most
smartphones, PCs,
and tablets, so you can
check in on your front
porch visitors even
when you aren’t home.
/safehome.org