Xfinity vs ADT Home Security: An Expert Comparison

In this post we will take a look at both ADT and Xfinity Home Security by informing our readers what they have to offer and how they compare.

You may be one of the thousands of customers who are currently in the process of shopping around of a home security system. There are a lot of security companies out on the market which can make the process of shopping around for a home security system a bit overwhelming. We are dedicated to making this process easier for our readers by providing detailed information about the major companies out there.

ADT Control Panel

ADT offers two ways for you to control their security, home automation, and video surveillance equipment: through their base panel or digital keypad. The base panel that they use and the digital keypad allow consumers to arm and disarm their system with the touch of a button. Their base panel and digital have the capability of hands free two-way with ADT emergency dispatchers. The digital keypad is able to be wall mounted or can be placed on a desktop.

Their panels are powered by being directly wired into your homes power source or they can be plugged into an AC power source directly. Their panels work by connecting wirelessly to your home’s WIFI network, but ADT does offer a landline version as well for their base panel. Their control panels include a 24-hour backup battery just in case the power goes out. Their digital keypad has a built in Z-wave protocol that allows consumers to expand their systems to include smart home automation devices. You can connect over 250 devices to their panels, and they give you the ability to create 99 custom user codes.

Their digital keypad has a built-in high decibel internal siren that can be easily heard no matter where you are in your home, and will alert you to not only security alerts but also for smoke and CO2 events. You do have the option to upgrade the ADT base panel to include a cellular backup up in case the power goes out.

Xfinity Control Panel

Xfinity offers a singular panel that allows you to control and connect all of your Xfinity security, homo automation and video surveillance equipment. Xfinity Home Security system uses a full colored touchscreen control panel. It has a very thin design also which makes it easy to place.

The panel works by connecting wirelessly to your home’s WIFI network. If your WIFI goes down, the Xfinity Home Security touchscreen control panel has a backup cellular chip so it will still continue to work uninterrupted. It is powered through an AC power source so you want to make sure you have one nearby. If your power does go off, the touchscreen has a backup battery. The touchscreen displays the current time and weather in your specific area. You can also arm and disarm your system, add sensors, and view video right from the touchscreen.

Who wins?

ADT and Xfinity Home Security both offer really great control panels. We do really like the fact that ADT does give two different options for how you control your system and its equipment. ADT’s plain base panel is pretty basic while Xfinity’s control panel has more bells and whistles. Xfinity’s panel also includes a cellular chip include without the need for an upgrade unlike ADT. ADT’s control panel however does work with a much wider variety of equipment than that of Xfinity’s. Our winner when it comes to control panels is ADT due to how expandable it is, and the face they give you an upgrade option with their digital keypad and cellular chip enabled control panel.

ADT Equipment

ADT has a variety of sensors to protect the inside of your home. They offer door/window sensors that come in wired or wireless versions. Most users opt for their battery-operated sensors over their wired. Their door/window sensors are battery operated and are UL which means that they are built to last.

ADT also offers wired or wireless motion sensors which are perfect for covering large areas of your home. Their motion sensors have a detection range of 35’ x 40’ and are pet immune. They are battery operated with a battery life of up to 7 years.

If your home has glass windows that you would like to have some protection for, ADT offers those as well. Their glass break sensors are battery operated as well.

ADT also offers wired and wireless smoke and CO2 detectors. These detectors will make audible alerts any time smoke or high levels CO2 gases are detected. They will also trigger your system when these environmental factors are detected.

ADT additional equipment

ADT offers a lot of equipment that will work with their system. ADT offers automated door locks made by Kwikset. These locks allow you to create custom user codes, and you can also remotely unlock and lock these locks through the ADT app.

ADT offers their own branded smart thermostats. ADT’s smart thermostats work for most HVAC heating and cooling systems. Their smart thermostats allow you to remotely control the temperature in your home, and you can set custom timers for when your heating and cooling system comes on and goes off.

Users with a garage door can purchase a garage door controller through ADT. Having a garage door controller will allow you to remotely open and close your garage door. You will also receive push notifications any time your garage door has been opened and shut. Their garage door controllers work by connecting wirelessly to your home’s WIFI network.

ADT also offers a variety of smart plugs and light switches. Smart plugs and smart light switches allow you to control lights and small appliances while on the go. You can set timers as well for when these lights and small appliances turn on and turn off. They plug directly into an outlet, and they work by connecting to your home’s WIFI network.

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.

Xfinity Equipment

Xfinity Home Security offers a variety of basic sensors that work great with their touchscreen. The first type of sensor they offer are door/window sensors. Their door/window sensors are wireless and battery operated. Xfinity Home Security also offers motion sensors. Their motion sensors are wireless and battery operated, and can easily detect motion in a large area. Xfinity Home Security offers a wireless keypad as another way for you to arm and disarm your system. The Xfinity Home Security keypad has a pushbutton design that allows you to easily arm and disarm your system with a push of a button. It is wirelessly and battery operated. All of the basic security equipment that is mentioned above is installed via a Xfinity professional installer so you do not have to worry about setting up the equipment yourself.

Xfinity additional equipment

Xfinity Home Security has a great variety of add-on equipment that you can use with their system. They offer Kwikset Smart Code automated door locks. These locks have a push-button keypad that illuminates. The Kwikset Smart Code automated locks allow you to create custom user codes along with being able to unlock and lock these locks with a push of a button.

Xfinity also offers Zen Thermostats. Zen Thermostats work by connecting wirelessly to your home’s WIFI network, and they work for most HVAC heating and cooling systems. Having a Zen Thermostat connected to your Xfinity Home Security system will allow you to create custom timers for when your heating and cooling system comes on and goes off. You can also remotely control your heating and cooling system on the go by using a Zen Thermostat with the Xfinity app.

Another great home automation device that Xfinity offers is their smart outlets. Their smart outlets plug directly into a power source, and they work by connecting wirelessly to your home’s WIFI network. Xfinity’s smart outlet allows you to control small appliances remotely. You can set timers for when your small appliances turn on and go off, and you will be able to control them remotely.

The last piece of add-on equipment that Xfinity has to offer is their indoor/outdoor camera. Xfinity’s indoor/outdoor camera is made from weather-proof material which means it can be used indoors or outdoors. It is powered by an AC power source, and it works by connecting wirelessly to your home’s WIFI network. Xfinity’s indoor/outdoor camera can capture crystal clear video which can be viewed through the Xfinity app. You can also use a lot of other branded equipment like LG with your Xfinity home security system.

ADT vs Xfinity: Equipment

The basic equipment offered by both ADT and Xfinity are very similar. They both offer the same types of intrusion sensors, however ADT does offer wired versions of their sensors. Both ADT and Xfinity offer professional installation for their sensors and equipment. ADT does offer slightly more basic equipment than Xfinity. For this reason ADT beats Xfinity when it comes to the basic equipment they offer.

ADT and Xfinity offer a nice variety of addon equipment so that you can really expanded your system. We really like that that ADT offers several different video surveillance cameras unlike Xfinity who offers only their indoor/outdoor camera. We do like the Zen Thermostats better than the ones offer by ADT due to the Zen Thermostat’s modern design and number of features. Both ADT and Xfinity allow you to use other branded equipment with your systems. ADT however does offer a bit more additional equipment than Xfinity which makes them the winner of this category.

ADT vs Xfinity: Monitoring

The biggest similarity between ADT and Xfinity Home Security is their monitoring services and apps. They both offer 24/7 professional, self, and video monitoring services. The biggest difference between their services is potential month to month cost. If you are an existing Xfinity customer, Xfinity generally offers a discount when you bundle their security services in with your other Xfinity services. ADT and Xfinity self-monitoring services is done through their apps which are free to download and work for Apple and Android devices. Their apps allow you to remotely control your security system and the equipment connected to it. You can arm and disarm your system, stream live video, customize device and system features, and you will receive push notifications for events all through their apps.

We feel ADT has a bit more to offer than Xfinity in terms of equipment and monitoring features. But if you’re interested in something better than both of these security solution, give Alarm.com powered Link Interactive a look. Thanks to the Alarm.com platform which is integral to our home security systems at Link Interactive, with our system you can get the gold standard and most widely used home security solution in the US. If you want a system that is comparable to Brinks Home Security, but has better reviews and pricing, you must give our Link Interactive Alarm.com system a look.

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. 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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