ADT Security home system

While ADT does provide five different package options, they also offer the ability to add on different products to round out your home security system. This is a nice feature if you know exactly what you do and don't want to pay for in terms of additional equipment. On top of that, ADT also offers custom home services with advanced technology and monitoring devices if you're looking to spend a little more and get a little more for your home security system.

Plenty Of Home Surveillance Options And Upgrades

With ADT, you can always keep a close eye on any part of your home from any location. ADT's video surveillance options allow you to securely view video, monitor who is in your home, and check in remotely while you're away. There are also plenty of video upgrades available, so you will never feel limited in what you can do. You can upgrade your service to add a tamperproof dome camera, a digital video recorder, a quad splitter (to view four cameras at once on the same screen), and a video duplicator (to view video from four TVs or monitors).

$500 Theft Protection

If the security in your home is breached while your ADT home security system is armed, ADT will pay up to $500 of your insurance deductible. This unique coverage is not offered by other top home security companies and further contributes to ADT's reputation as an industry leader.

Nationwide Customer Monitoring Services

ADT has one of the industry's most comprehensive security monitoring networks. With four monitoring stations in the United States and two in Canada, you can count on your home being monitored 24/7. ADT operates its own monitoring services, employing more than 2, 000 emergency dispatch operators, and doesn't outsource to third-party providers. ADT will notify the appropriate authorities if there is a confirmed break-in, hazard or medical emergency in your home.

Experience And Stability

ADT is the largest home security systems provider in the United States and Canada, with 6.4 million customers and more than 100 years of security experience. A stable home security company means a stable home security system.

Lack Of Home Automation Features

Probably the place where ADT home security is lacking the most is in the home automation department. Many of these home automation features that the standard ADT packages could possess have been transferred to a separate ADT product called ADT Pulse®.

Lack Of Video Surveillance Options:

Another area where ADT Pulse® falls short is in video surveillance equipment, as Pulse® is missing both pan-and-tilt and outdoor cameras. Pan-and-tilt cameras are a nice feature, as they can be controlled remotely and allow you to look around a room. For those interested in monitoring your doorstep or backyard, outdoor cameras can also be a great asset. Although ADT does provide access to outdoor cameras, they do not come standard with the Pulse® system. You could have ADT outdoor cameras installed, but they would be stand-alone cameras, and would not be connected to the Pulse® system. Having both of these camera options is not standard in the industry, but several security companies do offer both, or at a minimum, one or the other.

Installation Fees

The standard installation charge for all but one of the Security Choice ADT monitored packages is $99. For the Premium Protection Plus package featuring ADT Pulse®.

Poor Live Chat

Not that it affects your home security system in any way, but ADT's live chat support was nearly useless in our test. While they do offer a real person to communicate with, you'll more than likely think that it is not a real person. When asking for basic pricing and installation information, the support representative continually dodged the question until pressed for several minutes with the same question over and over again. Finally, after many attempts by the support representative to funnel us to a sales rep, she was able to provide the very simple answer to the most basic question, although that answer was still unclear.