ADT Equipment
The two things ADT has down pat are the equipment and the monitoring. All of ADT’s equipment is made by either GE or Google Nest, two of the biggest brands in the industry. Google Nest makes all the cameras, and GE makes everything else. Since the cameras are made by Google, it makes sense that ADT is one of the best security systems for Google Home.
FYI: You can buy Google Nest cameras as stand-alone products, but you can’t get them as stand-alone products from ADT. You’ll need to buy them directly from Google Nest. We cover how much each one costs in our guide to the pricing of Nest Home Security Cameras.
When we put ADT to the test, we really liked the high-quality feel of its equipment. Some of the more budget brands feel a little flimsy, and their durability isn’t really what it should be. Not so with ADT.
Your system may differ depending on your security needs, but here’s what our test consisted of:
- 1 ADT touch-screen control panel
- 4 ADT entry sensors
- 3 ADT motion sensors
- 3 ADT glass-break sensors
- 2 Google Nest outdoor cameras
That’s the equipment we tested together. We also tested the Google Nest video doorbell separately. As for the price of our ADT system, we paid $1,200. Keep in mind, though, that your ADT system will come with a long-term contract.
ADT Monitoring
It’s really hard to beat ADT’s 12 redundant monitoring centers. Reliability is the most important factor in a company’s monitoring, which is why ADT sits at the top of our list of the best professionally monitored home security systems.
It looks like ADT’s monitoring keeps getting better too. The company used to have custom pricing for monitoring that depended on the system you bought. Those prices started at $45.99. We’re glad to say goodbye to those days with ADT’s two new monitoring plans — one for systems with only sensors and one for systems with cameras. Below is an overview of ADT’s latest monitoring plans.
|
Essential |
Essential + Video |
24/7 professional monitoring |
Yes |
Yes |
Cellular backup |
Yes |
Yes |
Video verification |
No |
Yes |
30-day cloud storage for video clips |
No |
Yes |
Price |
$24.99 per month |
$34.99 per month |
ADT Installation
Back in the day, ADT offered only professionally installed equipment. It made sense back then, since a lot of its equipment needed hardwired connections for power and connectivity. That isn’t true today, though, which we’re glad to see ADT taking advantage of.
>> Learn More: How to Install a Home Security System
That’s exactly why ADT released ADT Self-Setup. Now you have the option of either professional installation or DIY installation. We recommend going with DIY installation if you have time. When we tested ADT Self-Setup, we found out that the equipment costs way less even though it’s exactly the same. That’s not to say ADT’s professional installation is bad though. It’s really good, actually, but it may not be worth the price for everyone with how easy the system is to install.