About two million break-ins occur every year in the United States, a figure that may be rather disconcerting to homeowners. You can’t necessarily locate your home away from all danger zones, like a bird tries to do when it builds its nest on a high tree branch. You can’t retreat to an impregnable castle to make a burglary all but impossible neither.
But there are definite steps you can take to make your home as safe as possible. One of the most important step is to invest in a modern home security system. But how can you know which one to choose and what are the most important features to look for?
Photo by Daniel Arev Architecture Studio
1. Compare Security Systems Online
The first step in deciding among the many home security systems now available is to see them side by side (use the advantage the internet provides and do some online research).
Compare top brands for tech level, alert and follow-up systems, 24/7 monitoring, prices, contract length and terms, upfront and monthly charges, and more. Having all the relevant information before you at one central location makes all the difference in helping you make a wise decision.
2. Focus on Reliability First
Unless your home security system is functional 24/7/365, that works even during power outages and broadband disruptions, that is connected to a monitored control center and that leads to appropriate and timely responses, it will do little good.
After all, even the best equipment in the world is useless if the system is not up and running and duly responded to if/when an intruder makes his/her move.
3. Look for Advanced Equipment
Does your prospective home security plan include miniature “blend-in” security cameras, advanced motion sensors for all windows and doors that go off on intruders but not on pets, and other high-tech equipment? Or is it “back in the dark ages?”
Photo by Intelligent Biometric Controls, Inc.
You really can’t afford to use a system that doesn’t catch much of anything on film, doesn’t let you pan and zoom the camera, doesn’t go off when window glass shatters, and keeps mistaking the cat or the dog for a burglar.
4. Insist on “Remote Control”
Not all, but many, up to date home security systems now offer you the ability to control/manage the system via your smartphone. If you need to turn it on/off, or adjust any of the settings, or just check the camera views, you shouldn’t have to be physically present.
Remote control and integration with other “smart home” systems is a huge convenience that could easily tip the balance in favor of LiveWatch or similar systems.
5. Is It Easy to Install and Use?
Finally, you don’t need a long, complex installation process that involves ripping up multiple walls and fishing in large amounts of new wiring. There are systems available now that largely function by just plugging them into the wall and turning them on.
Photo by Cultivart Landscape Design
The facts about how an advanced system works may be extraordinarily complex and only understood by the experts, and that’s fine. But as to using the system, it needs to be simple and intuitive enough that everyone can easily utilize its features to the full.