Smart Home Security: Best Products to keep your home secure in 2021!
Up until a few years ago, when people think about home security, they’d think about calling a professional into their home, selling them a security package deal, which can be overpriced, unnecessary, and in some cases invasive.
However, since smart home products have been appearing on the market, security products have been rolling out alongside them for consumers like you and me. With tons of wireless cameras, doorbells, sensors, and a whole lot more on the market at the moment, it’s easy for you to set up an entire security system in your home, without the need to call anyone for installation or maintenance. This guide will help you find the right home security products for your home to keep it as safe as possible for years ahead!
Smart Cameras
The best home security camera systems are the ones that are very easy to use and gives you a whole bunch of smart home features/integrations with home smart assistance (like Google Home, Alexa, Siri, etc)
Here’s a quick breakdown of what you should look out for:
- A good balance of cost to features
- Professional monitoring option
- The right installation for your needs (DIY or professional)
- Smart home integrations that work with your other devices
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Security cameras usually come at a premium, along with planning and installation, this cost may rise even further. A DIY wireless security system is one of the easiest, most efficient and cost-effective solutions you have on the market.
Some alarm and home security companies require long locked-in contracts and outdated equipment that don’t work with smart home devices, so why settle with something old and expensive when you can easily install something modern yourself for a fraction of the cost?
Arlo security cameras have been on the market for quite a few years now, all the way back from the original Arlo camera back in 2014 to today in 2021 with the Arlo Ultra 2 systems. They are one of the most popular smart home security systems on the market with a range of features and customizations. Not only are they compatible with smart home assistants, but they’re super easy to install and secure on your own, meaning you don’t have to call anymore to have these installed for you. Arlo cameras feature motion sensing, spotlights, sirens, two-way audio, night-vision, and much more!
Of course, there are a ton of different makes and models out there, one of our most popular wireless security cameras is the Eufy camera range that has an excellent price point with a whole load of features. Of course, most wireless security systems require a constant connection to the internet which for some, may not be the best option. If that’s the case, Swann or Ubiquiti security cameras (non-wireless) may be a better solution for you. Wired solutions also give you much better options in terms of local storage. Wired solutions may be a bit more difficult to install so you may need to seek professional help in some cases to get these up and running. In saying that, they are fairly simple to install and use.
Smart Lights
We may have covered the most obvious home security product which is cameras. However, have you ever thought that a smart light may help home security as well? We’ve all done the “leave the lights on while we’re out” trick to make it appear that someone is home when you’re not. This is a manual process and in times of haste, maybe forgotten about. In some cases, you may be on holiday and don’t want to keep the lights on 24/7, which is understandable.
These days, we have smart lights to rely on for that extra bit of security in our lives. Smart lights are probably one of the handiest smart home products on the market. Not only is it one of the simplest products on the market, but they are also some of the most useful. With smart light bulbs, you can set a schedule for them to turn on and off, whenever you like every day, just set them once and forget about it. I’ve set up my lights to turn on around 6:10 pm every day once I get back from work as that’s around the time my living room gets dark as the sun goes down, so as soon as I step in the door my lights are already or about to turn and around 12am, my lights turn off. Of course, 12am is a bit late, especially for workdays, so instead, they’re connected to my Google home device and I just simply say “Hey Google, turn off my lights” and my Google home does the rest, all my smart lights turn off, of course, I can limit this by saying for example “Hey Google, turn off the lights in Ash’s room” and only that light will turn off as I’ve asked. The cool thing about this is that they also come with an app, so if you don’t have a smart assistant at home, or simply you’re not at home at that time, you can easily log onto your app to turn the lights on or off.
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Smart lights also come with a whole range of features. Some models have motion sensors that can detect movement and instantly turn the light on. Some have speakers in-built into the actual base of the globe. A friend of mine likes loading up the sound of a siren and blasting it to the light speakers to seem like there’s an alarm going off there, not entirely practical, but super funny when coupled with a security camera and seeing people's reaction. These products can also be automated to be in sync with your other home security products so you can just set and forget.
Shine a light on crime in your neighborhood with smart lights.
Sensors, sensors, and more sensors
Sensors are most likely one of the prime security items you can get. Why? Well, they do exactly what they need to do, sense something and notify you right away to your smartphone. Why is this important? In a risky or dangerous situation, the sooner you’re notified, the sooner you can take action. Take the Xiaomi Mi Motion Sensor as an example. Let’s say you’re not at home one day, you’ve locked all your doors, closed all the windows, and have gone off to dinner with friends. At some point in the night, you receive a notification on your phone saying motion has been detected in a certain area of your house. Is this unusual? Do you think someone may be at your residence trying to break in or worse, already made their way inside? Well, devices like this are exactly what they’re made for, in order to get you as much information to you as soon as possible, so you can action right away. These sensors can work in conjunction with your smart security system so you can set them up to be an entirely automated process.
Of course, motion isn’t the only sensor available, there’s a number of different types of sensors, such as; Temperature and humidity sensors, window and door sensors to gauge when they’re opened and closed, so you can keep track of anything that’s not meant to be opened or closed, light detectors for when you need to sense light in a certain area, this is good for storage lockers that aren’t meant to be opened constantly, a light detector will detect when the door has been opened and a light shines through, notifying you directly. There are a lot more types of sensors that you should check out in our store!
Doorbells and Video doorbells
One of the best smart home products you can have is a smart doorbell. Notifications of your doorbell straight to your phone, so you know when someone is at your door. Even better than that are ones with cameras. This way you can start viewing and even recording straight away as soon as someone rings your doorbell, so you can keep an eye on visitors, courier drivers, and unwanted guests. These products are one of the most popular smart home products on the market, so if you’re looking to build a DIY security system, make sure you don’t leave this one out, it’s essential. Some models also come with Chimes you can put inside your home, where ever suits you. So you know when someone is at the door, wherever you are in the house.
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For more information on smart home security products, don’t hesitate to contact our staff at Wireless 1 for any further help with this on (02) 9687 8828
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