ADT has long been an industry leader in home security. It boasts the ability to monitor your home as well as offer remote access to alarms, lights, and doors. The company has a history of partnering with other smart home companies such as Nest thermostats, a learning thermostat that connects via Wi-Fi to your phone, and August smart locks, a keyless lock which allows you to give access to anyone remotely.
ADT’s latest partnership with Ring, a video doorbell company, further ups the ante on smart home security, giving homeowners a sense of security at home and away. On it’s own, Ring allows users to access a video doorbell and speak through it either from home or remotely. It also offers a zone monitoring system that will alert users if there is activity in designated zones.
The way the system works is by integrating the ADT Pulse security features into the Ring app. Once users access the video doorbell through which they can see and talk to visitors, they will also be able to check the locks on doors and turn on lights with Pulse. All this is done through one app, giving users easier access to their features in one convenient place.
Ring claims that most burglars will ring the doorbell on a potential target home, presumably to assess whether homeowners are in or not. With the ability to quickly see if someone suspicious is lurking on the steps and then quickly turning on a light in a darkened home, homeowners are much more likely to dissuade potential intruders from proceeding. The convenience of being able to do this from your smartphone further adds to the security users feel.
Currently, there are no industry standards in the field of home automation. Perhaps further partnerships between these smart home companies will pave the way for such standards. That, n turn, will make things even more convenient for users.
