Samsung - SmartThings ADT Home Security Starter Kit - White

The reviewer has been compensated in the form of a Best Buy Gift Card and/or received the product/service at a reduced price or for free. In 2013, while at work, burglers kicked in our backdoor and took all of our electronic devices as well as gifts under the Christmas tree. We've tried many alarm monitoring systems, but they were too complicated--and one even locked us in the house! The Samsung +ADT system is perfect. It's an easy-to-install security system for the house. My husband install our Samsung + ADT starter pack and thought it was so easy. It was up and running in very little time and the monitors around the house give us peace of mind. Pairing this system with the SmartThings app allows us to monitor our home while away, giving us peace of mind. Easy to follow instructions and the option to add ADT monitoring without a contract makes this a smart choice.

The reviewer has been compensated in the form of a Best Buy Gift Card and/or received the product/service at a reduced price or for free. I've been wanting to install a security system in the house. I wanted to do it all myself and so being asked to review the Samsung - SmartThings ADT Home Security Starter Kit was perfect fr me because I could install everything in my own time. And it was so easy. I am very impressed with how quickly and easily I was able to set up the system and then install the monitors around the house. Pairing this system with an app and then using QR codes to scan each sensor made identifying and keeping track of everything simple. I just scanned the codes, installed the sensors and tested them. I even set up connection to ADT and was able to do all my testing in my own time. Using the ADT Security Hub is simple and intuitive. I was able to make any and all changes that I needed to without much use of the instructions. The app is excellent and I am looking for other SmartThings that I can add to it. I may actually have some other items in my home that I can add. There is a lot more for me to discover about the system but so far I like what it does.

System Install: I am a current SmartThings v2Hub user that just migrated to this ADT Hub a couple days ago. Migrating all my devices took a while as I had to remove and exclude all of them from my existing SmartThings Hub before re-adding them to the new hub. Yes that meant setting up all my "Things" and automations all over again. If there was a simpler hub migration process, it was not easily shown by the app so this is something Samsung needs to work on. Once I completed that I began installing the SmartThings ADT sensors. Installations was very straight forward and everything installed without issue. The ADT sensors are a little different as it asks you to scan a QR code with your phones camera or enter the long serial number on the sensor you are installing. Now over to the ADT Panel.. The panel is very simple in functionality and has an Arm Stay, Arm Away, Settings and a few other buttons on the front screen itself. There are also 2 large buttons on the side that will let you choose a panic function or return to the home screen. Setting up the connection to your home Wifi is as simple as selecting your wireless network and then entering the password. Once connected the device will update its firmware and then you should be ready to continue setting up the panel. In the settings you will be able to add users and passcodes so people can disarm the system. You can also change the default master code (highly recommend this). The master code is the only code that will be able to adjust settings on the panel so don’t forget it! Setting up ADT monitoring through the SmartThings App: You will notice the “Home Security ADT” right on the dashboard as you open the SmartThings app. You can review all the sensors that the app can see by tapping on the words “Home Security”. This section also allows you sign up for live monitoring of your system by ADT. This is completely optional so should you want to manage all alerts on your own, you can choose to do so. I signed up for the “ADT Home & Life Safety” monitoring package just so they can monitor for fire, smoke, and water leaks at $14.99 a month. The first month is free but you need to cancel service a couple days before the end of the month if you don’t want to continue using it. You can cancel service without calling ADT using the SmartThings app at any time. Stepping through the ADT account setup is again very simple and straight forward. At the end of the setup, you will be asked to test and trigger the alarm for the sensors you will have them monitoring so you may want to do this while people are not sleeping haha. SmartThings App & ADT functionality: If you have used SmartThings before the app does not look any different aside from the ADT section on the main dashboard. Using your “Things” works exactly the same. You can use the ADT sensors to trigger home automation functions just like any other sensor you may have purchased such as Ecolink, Aeotec, Iris, etc. Now this is important.. If you had other sensors you CAN NOT use them to alert ADT if you sign up for live monitoring. The ONLY sensors you can use with live monitoring are the Smartthings ADT branded sensors. The other downside is none of you smart devices can be used to disarm the Security system. For example, I wanted my Schlagle smart lock to disarm the system when I unlocked my front door using my locks passcode… this is NOT currently possible with this system. Also, you cannot setup the system to trigger home automation functions when the alarm is triggered. So if the Alarm goes off and you wanted it to turn on all your smart lights, it can’t do that. PROS: • Simple to setup, install and configure on your own. • Not locked into several year contract should you decide to sign up for live monitoring. • Having optional live monitoring integrated with your SmartThings setup is nice. • ADT Panel is very bright, responsive, and easy to read. • You get an exit delay when arming the system so you have time to leave. CONS: • Price.. yes it’s not cheap considering many home security providers give you free equipment when you sign up (stuck in contract though). • Very limited alarm notification functionality. When someone disarms the system the alert just says “system disarmed” it does not tell you what user name/code disarmed it.. This is a huge concern for me. Also you can only set it up so 1 phone number is sent a text message.. all others get the push alert through the SmartThings app. • There is no option to select a specific ringtone or sound file to be used for alarm alerts through the SmartThings app. It will use the same sound all the other SmartThings alerts use. • You cannot setup an alarm alert to trigger any home automation functions. So if the alarm goes off, you cannot have it turn on lights or activate any of your SmartThings. • You can’t use any of your SmartThings to arm or disarm the security system. So you can’t have your smartlocks disarm the system when you unlock the door using a lock passcode. Final thoughts are that the hardware portion of the system is solid, but it’s still lacking in alert notification and a lot of “smart home” functionality that will allow it to integrate with all your SmartThing devices. Samsung.. you need to get your SmartThings team moving fast on the list of CONS above as other competitors have a lot of this working already!! People can get over the price but the last 4 bullets under my CONS section will be a show stopper for many of us.

Installing the starter kit was easy, we did it ourselves and it didn't require any additional purchases to get it set up. I love the peace of mind I have with the added security in my home, the sensors, the hub, everything is all in one place and it's super convenient for my family and I to use. We feel more secure in our home since we installed the system and I can't recommend it enough.

I was a little worried about being able to set up and install the Samsung - SmartThings ADT Home Security Starter Kit, but we actually had it up and running in minutes. It's subtle - you don't even notice the motion sensor or door attachments. I like that the screen for settings is a nice size making it easy to use. The only catch we had was trying to line up perfectly the sensors for the doors - that did take a couple of tries but that could be on us - not the equipment. I had the SmartThings app on my phone and set up in minutes. The best part of that was I could check it and see when my door had been opened. This made it easier to tell when someone was home that was supposed to be. Overall it was pretty easy to set up, install, and use and I'm feeling better every time I hear the little voice let me know that "Zone 2" or whatever is open. I'm excited to see how many other smart things I can do for my home with the SmartThings App.

I really like this one easy to use for basic home needs, i dont have to pay extra to ADT just connect in my phone with the rest of my samsung and it will alert me when something is up I only wish it would reconnect automatically when wifi is down and goes back up. Value excellent got it free with my tv

Great alarm and Smartthings support, but missing some key features. For example, Smartthings can't tell the status of the alarm, so building an automation to turn off all the lights, lock the door AND arm the system isn't possible. Other brands offer this capability so I'm hoping Samsung and ADT will some day.

I have been on the hunt for an actual home security system that had some great alerting capabilities, that also looked nice. This system looks nice and has Samsung SmartThings built right in. The only thing I don't like is the lack of an ethernet port.