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Ok. So it's established that I can get cellular monitoring from $20-40 per month.

Where does Alarm.com and Total Connect 2.0 come in? Do those services come from the company I order the panel from or the monitoring service I choose?

Or

I stick with my previous plan of getting the 20P and EnvisaLink 4. I could forgo the whole Alarm.Com and TotalConnect 2.0 issue and just get monitoring. But in this case, what's the use of the EnvisaLink if I'm paying for the monitoring?
 
hionhifi said:
Ok. So it's established that I can get cellular monitoring from $20-40 per month.

Where does Alarm.com and Total Connect 2.0 come in? Do those services come from the company I order the panel from or the monitoring service I choose?

Or

I stick with my previous plan of getting the 20P and EnvisaLink 4. I could forgo the whole Alarm.Com and TotalConnect 2.0 issue and just get monitoring. But in this case, what's the use of the EnvisaLink if I'm paying for the monitoring?
Click to expand...
You can monitor via wifi for 15 dollars and use envisalink to control the system..
 
hionhifi said:
Ok. So it's established that I can get cellular monitoring from $20-40 per month.

Where does Alarm.com and Total Connect 2.0 come in? Do those services come from the company I order the panel from or the monitoring service I choose?

Or

I stick with my previous plan of getting the 20P and EnvisaLink 4. I could forgo the whole Alarm.Com and TotalConnect 2.0 issue and just get monitoring. But in this case, what's the use of the EnvisaLink if I'm paying for the monitoring?
Click to expand...
each cellular communicator generally only talks to that company's server. different communicators have different functionality with different alarms.

each alarm mfg has their own communicator/service (eg total connect) which usually has the most compatibility with the panel. others will work with most any panel but the alarm co may not be able to remotely change settings on your panel (helpful if you don't know what you're doing).

Total Connect Cellular Interactive Monitoring Levels | GEOARM Security
 
@smiticans, is the 21ip the better option since it has integrated AlarmNet internet alarm monitoring communicator and a 4G cellular board available.

The 21iP is running approx $100 or so more than the 20P.
 
fenderman said:
then no, and you dont have a proper system..
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not having an old school panel on the wall does not mean you do not have a proper system, maybe it means the monitoring companies won't support it, but it does not make the stupid panel systems any better, especially since they are often limited and require add on modules to do stuff. :P
 
hmjgriffon said:
not having an old school panel on the wall does not mean you do not have a proper system, maybe it means the monitoring companies won't support it, but it does not make the stupid panel systems any better, especially since they are often limited and require add on modules to do stuff. :p
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Monitoring companies want to monitor equipment that will behave in a predictable way, supports common communication protocols, and follows UL and SIA standards for reducing false alarms.
 
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tangent said:
Monitoring companies want to monitor equipment that will behave in a predictable way, supports common communication protocols, and follows UL and SIA standards for reducing false alarms.
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okay, that still doesn't make them "better" just "accepted" :P perhaps if I decide monitoring is THAT important I will look into getting some sort of panel for at least some of the stuff that never has a false alarm.
 
hmjgriffon said:
okay, that still doesn't make them "better" just "accepted" :p perhaps if I decide monitoring is THAT important I will look into getting some sort of panel for at least some of the stuff that never has a false alarm.
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Check your local laws, often alarm permits are required for a police response to an alarm due to the number of false alarms. These often require alarms to comply with SIA standards for reducing false alarms. Some even impose requirements like your siren can't sound for more than 4 minutes even on an alarm that isn't monitored and is an hour from the nearest police station :(.

It may only sound for 4 minutes but you can hear it 15 miles away... mwahaha (thanks to the acoustics of canyons)
 
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hmjgriffon said:
okay, that still doesn't make them "better" just "accepted" :p perhaps if I decide monitoring is THAT important I will look into getting some sort of panel for at least some of the stuff that never has a false alarm.
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its important because you can never always be available and always have your cell phone with you and working...
 
hionhifi said:
@smiticans, is the 21ip the better option since it has integrated AlarmNet internet alarm monitoring communicator and a 4G cellular board available.

The 21iP is running approx $100 or so more than the 20P.
Click to expand...

You're better off sticking with the 20p. You can always purchase an AlarmNet IP communicator if needed. If you decide to use cell monitoring, make sure you get the Honeywell iGSMv4g. It's a dual path communicator that uses IP as primary and cell as backup.
 
tangent said:
Monitoring companies want to monitor equipment that will behave in a predictable way, supports common communication protocols, and follows UL and SIA standards for reducing false alarms.
Click to expand...

Out of curiosity, could I buy a panel that they support, and simply run an alarm out from my raspi pi and have it trigger the panel when something triggers? or do you literally have to buy the damn panel, and ALL sensors that are sold with it and connect them to it for them to want to monitor it?
 
hmjgriffon said:
Out of curiosity, could I buy a panel that they support, and simply run an alarm out from my raspi pi and have it trigger the panel when something triggers? or do you literally have to buy the damn panel, and ALL sensors that are sold with it and connect them to it for them to want to monitor it?
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There are some alarm communicators that have a really basic mode that doesn't report any zone information. You could use something like that, but if you have many false alarms they could drop you as a customer. Again local laws may be a limiting factor, some areas require things like cross zoning. It is helpful if the monitoring center dispatchers have enough info to be able to tell police what tripped eg. the back door.
 
I got the Vista 20P, and EnvisaLink EVL-4 ordered today. I plan use a Samsung SmartThings integration to integrate it into my Home Automation System.
icon_e_biggrin.gif
Bye, bye LynxR 2.
 
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What else did you order with the Vista 20p? You're going to need a Alpha keypad (6160, 6160v, 6160RF) in order to program it. You will also need a wireless receiver ( 6160RF or 5881ENH) in order to use your wireless contacts
 
smiticans said:
What else did you order with the Vista 20p? You're going to need a Alpha keypad (6160, 6160v, 6160RF) in order to program it. You will also need a wireless receiver ( 6160RF or 5881ENH) in order to use your wireless contacts
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I took your advice smiticans and picked up a 6160RF with the system. I plan to integrated it into my Samsung SmartThings Home Integration System ([RELEASE] Honeywell / Ademco Vista 20P Integration).
 
tangent said:
read the manual and watch youtube vids on programming
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Did that, I've got a handle on the programming. I'm ready to roll. LOL. Question: Do you see any issue with mounting the 6160RF in the same box with the 20P, 7ah battery, which itself will be hidden away in a room closet.
 
hionhifi said:
Did that, I've got a handle on the programming. I'm ready to roll. LOL. Question: Do you see any issue with mounting the 6160RF in the same box with the 20P, 7ah battery, which itself will be hidden away in a room closet.
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If you put the wireless receiver ie 6160rf inside a metal box it will block all the wireless signals. With the 5881, the antennas stick outside of the metal box.

No reason to put the keypad in a location like that, it's designed to be seen and used.
 
tangent said:
If you put the wireless receiver ie 6160rf inside a metal box it will block all the wireless signals. With the 5881, the antennas stick outside of the metal box.

No reason to put the keypad in a location like that, it's designed to be seen and used.
Click to expand...

Oh, right in the box, bad idea. I'll put it on the wall next to the Vista 20P. After initial programming, I won't actually be interacting with the keypad much. Instead I'll be using a tablet and mobile phone as a virtual keypads.

Thomas
 
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