Since 2011, Vivint, Inc. has been a leader in the smart home and home security industries. Almost without exception, Vivint and its products rank among the top selections in home safety and automation. Old hands at keeping a home wired in and safe reach for it for its wide array of dependable products and great customer service; new Vivint customers tend to get hooked once they realize just how elevated their quality of life has become. Other systems, let alone an entirely unsecured home, just can't match it. This isn't to say Vivint and its products are perfect -- nothing in the world of gadgetry is perfect, and that goes double for security. Still, it speaks louder than loud that the worst negative feedback most folks are able to conjure up about a smart home or a security package from Vivint is its price. Considering how much people are willing to pay for their morning shot of Starbucks, you can see how that isn't much of a sticking point.
How much is your safety really worth? That's the question you need to ask yourself without holding back on the answer. Honestly, if you're just looking for a couple extra sensors here and there or a motion-activated light at night, get a dog. You'll make each other happy and, with even a modicum of investment, security will take care of itself. But what if you're looking for more? What if you've got a big family? Old folks and new babies? Disabled loved ones? Maybe you live in a sketchy part of town or way out in the country. For you, the special case, a more thorough solution is required, and that's where Vivint shines -- their packages can turn a home from "everybody's got one" to "Epcot, Jr.", and the price? Well, that's relative, and every person will need to judge the hit to his or her wallet for themselves. Just know that, in this case, you really do get what you pay for.
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Everyone knows, intuitively and at once, what it is to feel secure. To feel entirely free of any kind of need to be anything other than at ease, and that we can be happy about it besides. It's that "just ate way too much at Thanksgiving; must nap through a football game" feeling. But it's precisely because of this natural talent, if you want to call it that, that security needs to be codified and made accessible. This is real life in the real world, and feelings won't cut it.
But that leaves a lingering question.
In practical terms, what is security? What does it take, in tangible terms, to build a bubble of safety around ourselves and our loved ones? Most people will have their own answer to that question -- a regular guy or girl off the streets will think very differently from a first responder or ex-military personnel -- but to get to the heart of the issue, you should go to the folks making their living keeping other people safe. In other words, if you wanna know what makes a good security system, ask the security system makers.
So we did.
Q: Hey Vivint, what makes for a good all-round home security system?
A: That's a great question! Everyone's specific needs will be tailor-made to them, but you can actually cover the generalities pretty easily. When everyone can have a basic home security system that provides an acceptable level of safety, there's no reason not to have one. Here's what we focus on when establishing a basic level of security. It's our definition, if you will. We hope it helps:
With a reasonable definition of "security system" out of the way, at least on a theoretical basis, it's time to dig into what the delivery guy will hand you after you sign up as a Vivint client. What exactly comes in a Vivint home security box? Well, in large part, that's pre-determined, and it has a lot to do with what you read above. Like the old saying goes, if it isn't broke, don't fix it. There's room for some customization, too, though; a person's needs are never just ignored. You can talk about that with your Vivint representative if you like. For now, however, let's just stick with what you can expect in a run-of-the-mill order. The basics, in other words.
Below, you can find a rundown of exactly what that entails:
Just like any other system, this control panel is the heart of the system, while you and Vivint are its brain and immune system. It works just like you'd expect any other device of its kind to work, and serves the same functions: arming / disarming of your system and operation or exclusion of the various extras you've ordered with your security suite. What sets SkyControl apart is that you can, at need, operate every single feature, from the most basic to the most advanced, from these panels. You're never alone or out of reach of help.
OK, hands up: Ever triggered your security system into throwing a false alarm? It happens more often than you'd think. Neighbors, surprise family visitors, delivery guys, neighbor kids looking for little Johnnie or Susan, pets, the list of suspects is endless (we ourselves would never ever do this, of course). It's understandable now and again that such a thing might happen, but too many "accidents" might see you slapped with a fine or on your town's list of problem citizens. Not fun. So, what do you do? Well, if you're a Vivint security member, you use Two-Way Talk and you make the problem disappear.
Integrated directly into your system's control panel, this feature allows you to speak to a Vivint representative directly through one of your home security panels. Why is this a good idea? Well, picture this: You've just tripped an alarm by accident. You've got about 30 seconds before the shrieking in your home starts and a new wail rises to challenge it -- the wail of sirens. Yep. Miss the ordinary security panel's "oops window" closure point, and emergency services are summoned to your home. This is for your safety, of course, and it's not a knock on anyone. But you don't need them, and they aren't fond of wasting time better used helping elsewhere.
The solution? Vivint's Two-Way Talk. Maybe you can't find your phone. Maybe you dropped it in the toilet. Maybe you had too much to drink and smashed it. Maybe a lightning strike fried it. Whatever the case might be, if you're capable of speaking and you secure with Vivint, all you have to do now is tell your representative it was a false alarm. They'll get everything back to normal, and you'll be able to rest easy.
Additionally, the astute reader will note a secondary purpose of the Two-Way Talk feature, namely one's ability to use it in an emergency situation. Captor somehow inside your home and in possession of your phone? Get to your panel, get a few words off to your Vivint representative, and presto -- situation resolved.
It's a mobile world, speaking of phones, and that means you need mobile security. As you might've guessed by now, Vivint's got you covered, this time with a neat cross-platform / device-agnostic app called SkyMobile. You have utter rulership over your home -- it is your castle, after all! -- thanks to this app. Got a bunch of pets or a rowdy troop of kids running about? Tap-tap-tap, and presto! You've just disabled a specific room's motion alarms for a couple hours so they can play in peace (for all of you). Maybe you know you'll be out for a bit and unable to manually set your system up. You can use your mobile to set it for you, or even set auto-alerts to allow remote operation. No more forgotten alarms -- you're always protected, even when you're away from home.
A particularly cool feature for the elderly, for those with small children at home, or for those having just relocated to a new neighborhood is SkyMobile's live camera feed capability. Don't want to open up the door until you know who's ringing the bell? Now you'll never have to. Want to hear the really cool part? You'll have full speech and audio functionality -- you can talk to your visitors the entire time regardless of where you are -- and, if you choose, allow them entry remotely, locking and unlocking your doors at will while remaining in full view and earshot of them at all times.
In just a minute, we'll talk about the sensor package you get with a standard Vivint security system. First, however, we're gonna talk a little bit about their cameras. They are, it must be said, an extra feature, but you might as well buy a house without a front door as buy a security system like this one without a camera network, especially when Vivint's cameras do what these cameras can do. Thus, their inclusion here. No one is obligated to buy anything they aren't ready to, but information is power -- here's your dose, re: cameras.
Vivint's doorbell camera is standard stuff: Somebody rings the doorbell, you glance at your mobile or the SkyControl Control Panel you've just installed, and you see it's someone you don't know. Not only can you see this, but you can also make an audio call to said mystery visitor, who holds up the FedEx box you've been waiting for. Excellent!
Where Vivint really gets cool is their proprietary Ping Camera. Part security camera, part VOIP apparatus, not only does it serve to protect your home from intruders, but it will allow those in your home with the capability to make a video call to you (or anyone else with your home system's Vivint-connected mobile). This utility has an almost unlimited number of applications, from the mundane to the magnificent. Out of milk? Not anymore. Kid's got friends over and they wanna go out someplace? Now you know. The list goes on. All a video call like this takes is a simple button press, the button itself being located atop the camera itself.
There are so many iterations and types of sensors offered through Vivint that to enumerate them all would take ages. As a standard member, you're offered from two to four sensors, to be placed as you wish. These include, at customer discretion, between two and four window or door sensors, which means if you want all your windows and doors covered -- and you obviously should, because what's the point otherwise? -- you're going to need a few extras. Along with that, you can expect a single motion sensor to pair with your cameras (this is how they're tripped). This is also insufficient; you want to cast as wide a camera net as possible, which means lots of sensors.
After all the talk of sensors and cameras we've heard so far, it's important to include this side note about the sensors used by Vivint: Customers can expect to utilize a series of individual codes. Designed to allow free movement throughout your home for the holder, the idea is to assign individual pass-codes to yourself, your loved ones, and finally, one for all the other folks you expect to have routine access / entry to the premises -- friends, close workmates, delivery people who are around on a routine basis, out of state family and friends, your children's friends and teachers and the like, and so forth. What does that mean, practically speaking? It means that as long as you have a code from a system owner, you're as free to move about a Vivint-protected home as anyone. If you haven't got one, well, that's what the alarm is for. It also means that, in conjunction with your Vivint system's other features, there won't be a door or window in the house that gets opened without a record of who did it and when.
If something comes up missing, just follow the code trail (and the camera trail, and so on). It won't take long to sleuth out the pilferer. Maybe your toddler is missing. Follow his or her sensor code and make that surprise "game" of hide and seek a heck of a lot shorter. Teen trying to sneak out? See when they left, when they got back, and which of their friends have their codes. Want to troll your adversaries? Give them a code that'll work on every door but the door to the master bedroom and / or your home office, then tell them those rooms are a no-go. Trustworthy folks won't think twice about respecting such a household boundary; the rest will find themselves a guest of the local constabulary soon enough.
Is it a little Orwellian? Perhaps. But when it counts, truly and for real, you won't be thinking about how oppressive it is to have a code on the front door or the entrance to the garage.
One final note: Don't forget to deactivate any codes you no longer need or want to validate! Whatever the reason is, if the person isn't going to be coming back, trash their code. Invalidate it within the system. You can always give them a new one if and when that situation changes. Help with this feature is just a click, call, or Two-Way chat away.
This aspect of your security system is simple and straightforward: There's always somebody at the Vivint home offices keeping an eye on you and your system. Whether it be diagnostics and updates, a question you might have, or a genuine security situation, you can always get a human on the line, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. With Vivint, safety doesn't sleep.
Again, this one's simple. Vivint sends out a team of professional installers to set up your system and make sure everything is up and running the way it's supposed to be. They won't leave until you're happy and the job's done. One big caveat to this: If you don't have cell service where you are, Vivint probably isn't right for you, since they, at the time of writing, require a cellular connection for system establishment, functionality, and updating. Don't worry, your installer(s) will test the cellular strength in your immediate area before starting work, and advise you of their next steps if a problem pops up. Usually, however, all that happens is that a test is run, the system gets installed, and your security situation gets off to a new and running start.
The question of whether Vivint home security is any good ought to be a non-issue by now. Instead, the question you, as the reader of this guide, should be asking yourself, is whether or not it fits your individual circumstances. After all, who cares what features Vivint offers if you can't use them for some reason? To that end, why not take a look below and see for yourself whether or not the list of pros and cons can ultimately point you in the right direction. Ready? Here we go.
Let's get the good stuff out of the way first, shall we?
You've seen the good news, but there's always another side to the coin, and it's only fair to look at it. Let's do it now.
Well, there you have it. By now, you should have a pretty firm grasp on the good, the bad, and the ugly of everything Vivint has to offer you as a home security system and as a home security company. We hope you found it helpful. Stay safe and thanks for reading!
