Nest Secure vs ADT Home Security: An Expert Comparison
Today we will be comparing ADT with DIY (do-it-yourself) home security system Nest Secure and see how they match up. Let’s dive right in.
Home security systems can be professionally installed or they can be DIY (do it yourself), which means you will need to set up the equipment yourself. This factor along with monitoring services, types of equipment, contacts versus no-contract service fees, etc. are also important to take into consideration before investing in a home alarm system. In this post we will be comparing ADT with the Nest Secure home alarm system.
ADT Control Panel
When shopping around for home security it is important to take a look at one of the most important components of your home security setup which is the control panel. ADT actually offer two control panels for you to choose from.
They have a basic panel with is powered directly through your home’s power, and it works through your home’s landline. This basic panel is the most simplistic panel they offer and it doesn’t have a lot of fancy bells and whistles like more modern-day control panels.
This basic panels function is controlled through a separate keypad. You do have the option however to upgrade this panel to include a cellular chip so you do not have to worry about having a landline connection. The more premium panel offered by ADT is their digital keypad.
This keypad is powered through an AC power source, includes a cellular chip, a backup battery, and connects wirelessly to your home’s WIFI network. It has a full colored touchscreen that allows for quick arming and disarming of your system, displays system status, and your locations time and temperature.
This panel includes Z-wave technology along with many zones so that you can addon some other security or home automation devices to it. You can also create custom user codes for this panel and ADT’s basic panel.
Both of ADT’s panels allow for 2-way communication with their central monitoring station for fast and quick responses to emergencies. Any equipment purchased through ADT is installed through one of their professional technicians so you don’t have to worry about setting anything up yourself.
To see an alternative DIY (do-it-yourself) option, check out our home security system at Link Interactive >>
Nest Secure Control Panel
Nest first made a name for themselves when they released their super popular Nest Cams. Since then Nest has went on to develop and release a variety of security, home automation, and other video surveillance devices.
Nest in recent years has developed a security system known as the Nest Secure. The Nest Secure’s control panel is known as the Nest Guard. The Nest Guard has a built-in motion sensor with a 90-degree field of view for up to 10 ft of motion detection. It also has a built-in keypad and audible siren that alerts users to when a security event has been triggered.
The Nest Guard sports a three-button design for 3 security levels which are alarm off, home and guarding, and away and guarding. There are several ways to disarm the system including through the free Nest pp, via the keypad, or through the Nest Tag.
The Nest Tag is one really neat feature for allowing users to disarm and arm their system. It works by simply touching the Nest Tag to the hub, bypassing the need to enter the arm and disarm code. This allows users to quickly arm and disarm their system on the go.
If you have a Google Assistant you can also arm and disarm the Nest Secure via voice commands. The Nest Secure works by connecting directly to your homes WIFI connection, and has a 12 hour back up battery in case of a power outage. You also have the option to include LTE cellular backup for those times when the power goes out for a small month to month fee.
The Nest Secure home alarm system is DIY (do it yourself) which means you will need to set up the equipment yourself.
To see an alternative DIY option, check out our home security system at Link Interactive >>
Who wins?
ADT and Nest Secure offer really great control panels for you to connect all of your equipment to. Nest Secure’s control panel, the Nest Guard, is modern, sophisticated, and really easy to use. We really like the fact that the Nest Guard has a built-in motion sensor seeing most other control panels do not have this feature.
ADT on the other hand offers two control panels for you to choose from, and their digital keypad control panel is super nice, and has a ton of features. Due to the fact that ADT offers two control panels, and the fact that their digital keypad has more features than that of the Nest Guard we are choosing them for our winner for this category.
ADT Equipment
ADT has a lot of great basic security equipment that will work with their basic panel and digital keypad panel. The sensors we are about to go over come it both wired and wireless versions. What this means is that wired sensors are directly connected to your security system via wires while wireless sensors connect wirelessly to your security system and are battery operated.
ADT offers door/window sensors that will work with a variety of types of door/window frames. These sensors will alert you and trigger your system when a window or door has been open in which they are placed.
ADT offers motion sensors which are great at protecting large areas of your home. ADT’s motion sensors will detect motion in a room and alert you and trigger your system when this event takes place.
ADT also offers glass break sensors that are great at protecting areas that have a lot glass. ADT’s glass break sensors will listen for the sound of breaking class and will alert you and trigger your system when this event takes place.
ADT offers wired and wireless Smoke, CO2, and Flood Sensors. These sensors have an audible alert that will trigger when any of the environmental factors such as rise in CO2 gas take place. They will also send you an instant alert, and you can even have them trigger an event with your system.
Click here to read our full ADT product review >>
ADT additional equipment
ADT has a huge variety of addon equipment. A lot of the equipment that ADT offers is other branded equipment from other companies. We will only be going over a brief list, for a more complete list you can visit their website directly.
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 anytime 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 wireless to you 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 wireless 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.
Nest Secure Equipment
Nest doesn’t offer many wired versions for their sensors; they instead offer primarily wireless sensors. Nest doesn’t offer your standard door/window sensors and motion sensors like most other security companies. Nest instead has decided to combine the standard door/window sensors and motion sensors into one intrusion device called the Nest Detect.
Nest Detect sensors are designed to be placed on the door or window frames in your home. Due to their slim design, you should be able to place them on a variety of styles of door/window frames. The Nest Detect sensors not only will alert you to whenever a door or window has been opened but it will also detect motion up to 15ft around the sensor. These sensors are battery operated with a battery life up to 5 years.
Nest also offers Nest Tags. Nest Tags are little security devices that can be kept on a keychain that will quickly arm and disarm your Nest Secure system by tapping the tag on the Nest Guard.
When it comes to smoke detectors Nest offer the Nest Protect. The Nest Protect is wireless and battery operated. It can detect the different between steam and heat, and will light up when someone is near it. If smoke is detected it will set off an audible alert while also triggering your system. The Nest Protect will also detect rises in CO2 gases making it a combination smoke and CO2 detector.
Nest Secure additional equipment
Just like with ADT Nest also offers a ton of addon equipment for their Nest Security system. We will only be giving our readers a brief list of their addon equipment, but you will be able to find a more complete list on Nest’s website.
Nest offers the Nest X Yale automated smart lock. This lock has a beautiful modern-day design that goes great with a variety of different styles of homes. It has a touchscreen pin pad that is illuminated which makes for easy unlocking and locking for this lock. You can also create custom user codes, and remotely unlock and lock the Nest X Yale Lock on the go.
Nest also offers the Nest Thermostat. Their thermostat is wireless and works for most HVAC heating and cooling systems. The Nest Thermostat learns the temperature of your home, and will automatically adjust it to your favorite settings while also making sure to cut down on energy consumption. Custom timers can be set along with remote control of the Nest Thermostat.
Just like with ADT you can use other branded equipment with the Nest Secure including a variety of different smart lights and plugs.
When it comes to video surveillance equipment Nest offers a ton of this type of equipment. Nests offer indoor, outdoor, video doorbell, and other types of cameras. Their cameras are wireless which means they work by connecting to your home’s WIFI network. All of their cameras can capture video in HD quality. All video captured from Nest video surveillance cameras can be streamed on the Nest app.
Who wins?
ADT and Nest offer high quality security equipment that works great with their systems. We really like that fact that Nest has combined their motion and door/windows sensors into one single sensor. We also really like that the Nest Protect can monitor for both smoke and CO2 gases. ADT however does offer a bit more variety of basic equipment that Nest specifically a water sensor and glass break sensor. Due to the reason we are giving ADT the win for this category.
Nest and ADT have a ton of addon equipment that really lets you expand your system. We really like the Kwikset locks used by ADT due to their reputation from consumers who have used them. Nest really beats ADT when it comes to video surveillance equipment due to the variety and quality of this type of equipment. For this category we are giving the Nest Secure the win due to the amount and quality of addon equipment they have to offer.
ADT vs Nest Secure App
ADT and Nest offer self-monitoring services which are accessed through their app. ADT’s and Nest’s apps are free to download and work for Apple and Android Devices. Both of their apps allow you to remotely control your system along with the equipment connected to it. You will also receive push notifications for any events that your system or devices have triggered. ADT’s and Nest’s apps allow you to stream live and recorded video while on the go. The biggest difference between the apps is that Nest is free to use while ADT’s app is associated with a month to month cost.
ADT and Nest do offer professional monitoring services, but they work a bit differently. ADT’s professional monitoring services are offered directly through them while Nest has partnered with Brinks Home Security to offer professional monitoring services. The services work the same between the two where you have a professional monitoring station watching over your home 24/7. Brinks Home Security’s professional monitoring services tend to be cheaper making the Nest Secure a better value with it comes to month to month cost. Also, ADT makes you sign a contract for their services while Nest Secure offers contract free monitoring services.
However, if you want a better way to control your safety, look at our security system here at Link Interactive.
ADT vs Nest Secure vs Link Interactive
Today we have only started to take a dive into what ADT and Nest Secure has to offer you. They are both really great companies that strive to provider consumers with top of the line security solutions. They both also make high quality products that consumers rate highly. In our next blog we will finish our look at ADT and Nest Security by going over their basic equipment, addon equipment, and some other need to know facts. If you are looking for more information in the meantime you can always visit their websites directly.
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 Scout, 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 on the internet!
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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