What should you look for in a home automation system that integrates with existing security features?
Smart devices are easy to buy. Getting them to work with the alarm you already rely on is the hard part. Before you add anything, check these points:
- One app for everything. Your alarm, cameras and video doorbell should all show up in the same app, not three different ones.
- Control from your phone. You should be able to arm, disarm, check alarm status and watch cameras from anywhere.
- Alerts that mean something. Look for short clips when a person or vehicle is detected, not a ping for every passing car.
- Backup that keeps working. The alarm panel should run on a backup battery and send signals over cellular, so it keeps working through outages.
- Professional monitoring. A smart system is far more useful when a monitoring station watches it around the clock.
- Room to grow. You should be able to add cameras or sensors later without starting over.
If a new device cannot tick most of these boxes, it is likely to sit apart from your security system rather than work with it.
How smart home security works in Windsor homes
A modern home alarm is built around a touchscreen or keypad panel by your main door. Door and window sensors cover the entry points that matter most, and motion detectors cover the main rooms. Pet-friendly motion detectors ignore cats and most dogs.
The panel connects to an app on your phone. From the app you can arm and disarm, see who came home and when, and get alerts from anywhere. Cameras and a video doorbell can sit in the same app, so one screen shows your doors, your cameras and your alarm status.
Modern systems are wireless, so installation is tidy and there is little or no drilling.
Smart features that make day-to-day life easier
The point of a connected system is less fuss, not more. These are the features homeowners tend to use every day:
- Key fobs and the app. Arm and disarm without typing a code at the door.
- Arrival history. See who came home and when, which is handy with kids or a dog walker.
- Linked cameras. A camera can record the moment a door opens while the alarm is armed. You see what triggered the alarm before you decide what to do, and so does the monitoring station.
- Video doorbell. See and talk to visitors and delivery drivers from your phone, even when you are not home.
- Life safety sensors. Smoke, heat, carbon monoxide and flood sensors can be monitored as well.
Questions to ask before you connect new devices
What happens if the internet drops? Cameras need your internet connection to send video to your phone. A monitored alarm panel keeps working over cellular, so the alarm side stays protected.
Who watches the alarm? When a sensor triggers while the system is armed, the signal goes to a ULC-listed monitoring station. An operator checks the signal, calls you or your contacts, and dispatches police or fire if needed. Our home security systems in Windsor are connected to that kind of monitoring.
Can I keep my current alarm? Often, yes. Many existing panels can be switched to new monitoring without replacing the equipment. We can tell you at the survey.
Do I have pets? Tell your installer. Sensors can be chosen and placed so pets do not set off the alarm.
Getting smart home security set up in Windsor-Essex
Unique Communications is a family-owned Windsor company, in business since 1961. We install home alarm systems, plus home security cameras and video doorbells that run in the same app as your alarm. We serve homes across Windsor-Essex and the area to London, including LaSalle, Tecumseh, Amherstburg, Belle River, Kingsville, Leamington and Lakeshore.
Install day follows a simple plan. We start with a free in-home survey and a written quote. Then we install and test every sensor with the monitoring station. Before we leave, we set up codes for each family member, install the app on your phones and show you how to cancel a false alarm.
Cameras can be installed on their own and added to an alarm later. If you mainly want to check on the house from your phone, our guide to remote camera monitoring in Windsor explains which camera setups send useful alerts.
Common questions
Can I control my home alarm from my phone?
Yes. With the app you can arm and disarm, see who came home and when, watch cameras and get alerts from anywhere.
Can I add cameras and a doorbell to my existing alarm?
Usually, yes. Cameras and a video doorbell can be added to an alarm and viewed in the same app. Most video doorbells use your existing doorbell wiring.
Does smart home security still work if the power or internet goes down?
The alarm panel runs on a backup battery and sends signals over cellular, so it keeps working through outages. Cameras need your internet connection to send video to your phone.
Want your alarm, cameras and doorbell working together in one app? We offer a free in-home survey across Windsor-Essex and the area to London. We will look at your doors, windows, basement and garage, ask how your household comes and goes, and give you a written quote. Call (519) 948-5595, our toll free number 1-800-265-9605, or book a free in-home survey.
