Protect America vs ADT Home Security: An Expert Comparison
In this post we will take an in-depth look at both Protect America and ADT Home Security by informing our readers what they have to offer and how they compare.
There are a multitude of home security companies that can provide your home or office with some security protection. But the process of finding the right security company to fit your specific needs can be a bit overwhelming. So we’re here to make the process easier for you. Keep reading to find out whether you should go with ADT, Protect America - or our recommended alternative, Link Interactive.
ADT Control Panel
ADT has a few options on how you can connect and control your security, home automation, and video surveillance devices. First, they have a basic panel that works by connecting directly to a landline. And it is powered by being directly wired into your home’s power source. All of the features for this basic panel can be controlled through the ADT app or on the push-button keypad.
The next option for a control panel is ADT’s digital keypad (the one pictured above). ADT’s digital keypad panel has a full colored touchscreen, and it displays current time, temperature, and system status. The panel can be wall mounted or you can place it on a desktop.
The panel is pretty expandable, allowing you to connect 250 total devices including 16 cameras, 32 key fobs, 8 touchscreens or alpha keypads, and up to 224 Z-Wave devices. You can also have up to 99 user codes for this system.
The base panel has an upgrade option for cellular backup just in case your landline goes down. ADT’s digital keypad panel however works by connecting to your home’s WIFI network and includes a cellular backup so there is no need for an upgrade.
The digital keypad is powered through an AC power source, and it includes a backup battery. Both of ADT’s panels offer 2-way communication with ADT’s central monitoring station which allows you to quickly take care of any emergency. You don’t have to install any equipment yourself because ADT offers professional installation on all of their equipment.
To see an alternative DIY option, check out our home security system at Link Interactive >>
Protect America Control Panel
Protect America has a really nice control panel that connects all of your equipment to one place. The brains of the system that protect America offers is the Simon XTi Touchscreen Control Panel.
This control panel has 3.5-inch LCD colored touchscreen. It has 2-way communication capability allowing users to directly communicate with emergency services. The touchscreen has an at-a-glance design that displays the status of your home security system which includes system status, time, and temperature. It has 40 wireless zones which two of those zones can be used for wired security devices. You can have up to 8 customize users codes and 1 master code for this panel.
This control panel can be wall mounted or placed on a surface and is AC powered with a 24-hour backup battery. All equipment provided by Protect America is DIY (do it yourself) which means you will need to set up all the equipment, including the control panel, yourself. Protect America does walk you step by step through the installation process, making installation a breeze.
To see an alternative option, check out our home security system at Link Interactive >>
Who wins?
ADT and Protect America have some really great control panels. ADT does offer you options between control panels, and their digital keypad control panel is gets the job done with lots of features. Protect America offers the Simon XTi Touchscreen Control Panel which is highly rated and easy to use.
ADT’s control panel however does have a bit more expandability than the Simon XTi Touchscreen control panel. Also, ADT offers professional installation of their equipment which there is a cost associated with this type of installation unlike Protect America where their equipment is DIY which means no installation costs. It is close race between the two, but ADT pulls ahead for the win due to their control panel being more expandable.
ADT Equipment
ADT offers both wired and wireless version of the devices/sensors. Their wireless sensors are battery operated, and they will connect to your security panel wirelessly. ADT offers door/window sensors used to protect the entryways to your home. They offer motion sensors that are great at providing protection for large areas of your home. If your home has glass windows, ADT offers glass break sensors to provide protection for the glass windows in your home.
ADT also offers wired and wireless life safety devices. They offer both smoke and CO2 detectors. Their smoke and CO2 detectors make an audible alert anytime smoke or rises in CO2 gases have been detected. When any sensor you have connected to your ADT system is triggered it will also trigger your security system.
Click here to read our full ADT product review >>
ADT additional equipment
ADT has a lot of add-on equipment that really lets you expand the ADT system. Today we will be giving some examples of that equipment, but this is just a general list.
ADT offers automated door locks by Kwikset. These locks allow you to create custom user codes which can be enabled or disabled at any time. You can also remotely unlock and lock these locks through the ADT app.
ADT offers their own branded smart thermostats. ADT’s smart thermostats works for most HVAC heating and cooling systems. Their smart thermostats allow you to remotely control the temperature in your home. ADT’s smart thermostats allow you to set custom timers for when your heating and cooling system comes on and goes off.
If you have a garage door you can purchase a garage door controller through ADT. ADT’s garage door controller will allow you to remotely open and close your garage door, and you will receive push notifications any time your garage door has been opened and shut.
ADT also offers a variety of smart plugs and light switches as well. Smart plugs and smart light switches allow you to control lights and small appliances while on the go, and work by connecting wirelessly to your ADT system. You can set timers as well for when these lights and small appliances turn on and turn off.
ADT has a few different options to for video surveillance equipment as well. They offer indoor, outdoor, and doorbell cameras that are wireless. Their cameras work by connecting wirelessly to your home’s WIFI network. All their cameras have excellent video resolution, and their doorbell camera even includes a 2-way audio feature that allows you to directly communicate with whomever is around your doorbell camera.
Protect America Equipment
Protect America offers a lot of great devices and sensors to keep the inside of your home safe. Protect America offers Interlogix branded micro door/window sensors. These sensors are super small allowing users to place them in a wide variety of door/window frame styles. They also offer battery-operated and wireless Interlogix motion sensors. These motion sensors are pet immune, and are great for covering the larger areas of your home. Protect America offers wireless and battery-operated glass break sensors. These sensors listen for the sound of breaking glass, and are great at providing protection for glass windows.
When it comes to life safety devices Protect America offers wireless and battery-operated smoke and CO2 detectors. These life safety devices will monitor for rises in either smoke or CO2, and they will make an audible alert when these have been detected. Protect America’s smoke and CO2 detectors along with other devices will trigger your system whenever a life safety event occurs.
Protect America additional equipment
Protect America has a very nice selection of add-on equipment that lets you really customize your security solution. Protect America offers a wide variety of smart locks to their customers. They offer several models of Kwikset smart locks and the August Lock Pro. The most popular models of their smart locks have illuminated touchscreen keypads. These locks allow you to create custom user codes that can be enabled or disabled at any time, and they allow you to remotely unlock and lock these locks on the go through their app.
For consumers who have garage doors and are looking to remotely control them, you can purchase the Linear Garage Door Controller through Protect America. The Linear Garage Door Controller is wireless and connects to your system via Z-Wave. This controller will alert users of the status of their garage door, and it allows them to remotely open and close it.
Protect America offers the GoControl Z-wave thermostat. The GoControl Z-wave works with HVAC heating and cooling system. It allows users to set custom events for when their heating and cooling systems come on and go off, and it also allow users to remotely control their heating systems while on the go.
Protect America also offers a wide variety of smart switches and smart outlets. Their smart outlets and switches work by connecting wirelessly to your home’s WIFI, and they will allow you to control small appliances and lights. You can set timers for when your small appliances and lights come on and go off by using Protect America’s smart switches and smart outlets. You can also remotely control your small appliance and lights while on the go by using protect America’s smart switches and outlets.
When it comes to video surveillance equipment Protect America offers both an indoor and an outdoor camera. Their cameras are powered through an AC power source, and they work by connecting to your home’s WIFI network. Their cameras can capture high quality video clips that can be streamed and viewed through the Protect America app.
ADT vs Protect America: Equipment
ADT and Protect America offer a great selection of add-on equipment to expand your system. ADT offers an indoor, outdoor, and doorbell camera while Protect America only offers an outdoor and an indoor camera. Protect America does offer a lot more add-on equipment than ADT which allows for more customization. Therefore we believe Protect America comes out on top when it comes to equipment.
Alternative: Link Interactive (our suggested alternative), uses the all-powerful Alarm.com app to power their self-monitoring services which allows for you to use more in-depth features of your equipment.
ADT vs SimpliSafe: Monitoring
ADT and Protect America both offer 24/7, self, and video monitoring services. Protect America generally does have a cheaper price for these services than ADT, but they still function the same except for the self-monitoring service. ADT’s and Protect America’s self-monitoring services are done through their apps which are free to download and work for Apple and Android devices.
Their apps allow you to arm and disarm your system, remote control of system including video and home automation services, and streaming and viewing video clips. Protect America’s app however is powered through SecureNet, which we aren’t a big fan of.
For example at Link Interactive, our app is powered through Alarm.com and you are given access to more features and more in-depth customization. Generally, we don’t pick a winner in this category because most security companies apps and monitoring services are about the same, so we’ll call it tie here.
However, if you want a better way to control your safety, look at our security system.
ADT vs Protect America vs Link Interactive
ADT and Protect America are top names in the security world. ADT has been protecting homes across the United States for many years now which makes them a trusted name. Protect America may not have been around as long as ADT but they offer affordable security solutions that you can really customize.
However, if you’re interested in something far more advanced and feature-laden than both of these security solutions, give Alarm.com powered Link Interactive a look. If you want a system that is comparable to ADT Home Security, but has better reviews and pricing, you must give our Link Interactive Alarm.com system a chance. We do great when it comes to customer service as well, with 5-star reviews across several review sites.
Why you should get Link Interactive instead
Link Interactive and ADT are pretty similar in terms of equipment and monitoring services. At Link we offer the Qolsys control panel, Alarm.com self-monitoring and third-party professional monitoring. We both also offer home automation control and cutting-edge video monitoring services. The difference is in the experience. With our Alarm.com security system, you open yourself up to more features and compatibility with various on-market smart devices.
We encourage you take a look at our offer here, get a quote and compare. You can also call us direct at 1-877-826-5443 for further details and speak with a rep!
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