This unit is very easy to install. Since I’m not tech savvy, I had to call several times for setup assistance - CS rep was very helpful and almost immediately available - less than two minutes wait time each time. My home has too many potential points of entry to use contact sensors so I’m using motion sensors which work very well and are adjustable for sensitivity. The unit comes supplied with a contact sensor which I use to protect my outside storage shed. One downside is that the unit uses a 2.4 gigabit wifi not 5.4 gigabit. ( I think that most or all home routers are dual speed ) .Build quality seems to be good and rated battery life is supposed to be 3 years. I also have the low cost Ring doorbell which is also very good investment. So far I am not 100% satisfied with this unit. The first thing is that although it “works with Alexa” functionality is limited. You can arm, disarm and check armed status, BUT Alexa doesn’t detect that the Ring alarm has been tripped so you cannot use the Ring/Alexa to perform functions such as turning on lights. Secondly, they Ring does not support the Dome Siren that they sell and the Ring System does Not provide full functionality of the Dome Siren such as volume control or the 12 alternate siren tones. Thirdly, the Ring System does not provide IFTTT compatibility so that any third party devices that you may already own will most probably not work with ring even if they can be controlled with Alexa. I will probably continue to use the Ring system for now, but I definitely would not have purchased it if I knew in advance of its’ shortcomings. As a basic monitored alarm system it works. My biggest single complaint is the lack of support of the Dome Siren which is so weak that you cannot hear it in the next room - burglars would get a big laugh out of it
We value your feedback and appreciate you taking the time to share your experience with us. Our sights are certainly set on integrations and automation, there is much more to come fo these type of features. If you have any specific use cases or idea, feel free to share those feature requests with us here.
Currently the Dome Siren is only able to sound when there is an alarm, but there is a popular request for other notification tones such as yours. I’ll be happy to share this with the team!
It has not been my experience. I have tried over and over to set up and it always times out. I really don’t have time for this.
Just a comment on your wifi concerns . . . the Ring system does use 2.4 (which is frequency not gigabit), as do most mission critical cameras and alarm systems. 2.4 has better range and travels through walls much better than 5. The only advantage of 5 is that it supports higher speed, particualrly in close proximity. Bandwidth (speed) is not an issue with Ring devices, these are not 4K game machines. 2.4 is the best choice for an alarm system, and cameras.
As for the alarm system, we are only talking the base station here. All the sensors are connected using z-wave . . . nothing to do with wifi. And you also have the option to connect your base station via ethernet.
As for Alexa or any other “outside” integration, I do not and would not use any alarm system with any assistant. Just me, but I think my alarm system should be closed.
As for the Dome siren, yes, Ring needs a better remote siren/speaker. That has been posted many times, so I bet one will be forthcoming.
@Brad wrote: As for Alexa or any other “outside” integration, I do not and would not use any alarm system with any assistant. Just me, but I think my alarm system should be closed. As for the Dome siren, yes, Ring needs a better remote siren/speaker. That has been posted many times, so I bet one will be forthcoming.
Agree 100%. Most of us have read the issues regarding privacy and “Alexa”. I unplugged mine long ago…life’s too short to play those games.
And on the siren, there’s no way CR123A batteries will power any significant siren volume. A loud siren will need either 110v or SLA battery power, or both, using the SLA battery as backup for 110v power outage, as my previous traditional wired system was.
@Racklefratz wrote:
@Brad wrote: As for Alexa or any other “outside” integration, I do not and would not use any alarm system with any assistant. Just me, but I think my alarm system should be closed. As for the Dome siren, yes, Ring needs a better remote siren/speaker. That has been posted many times, so I bet one will be forthcoming.
Agree 100%. Most of us have read the issues regarding privacy and “Alexa”. I unplugged mine long ago…life’s too short to play those games.
And on the siren, there’s no way CR123A batteries will power any significant siren volume. A loud siren will need either 110v or SLA battery power, or both, using the SLA battery as backup for 110v power outage, as my previous traditional wired system was.
I like my amazon echo devices, I just don’t want them to be able to see or take any action with my alarm system.
I agree on the speaker/siren. I have had the Xfinity alarm system for years at another location. They have a remote siren that is also a repeater that plugs into an outlet.