If you’re supposed to have an alarm permit but don’t, the police may fine you when you receive a false alarm (on top of any false alarm fees).¹ The Protect Pro offers video recording for all of your devices, 24/7 professional monitoring, and cellular backup. On the flip side, Ring makes all of its own items. Brinks Home sells several smart home products, like thermostats, garage door openers, and door locks that Ring doesn’t offer. Likewise, instead of selling smoke or carbon monoxide detectors, Ring sells listeners that pick up on existing alarms. And Ring sells separate keypads and base stations, while Brinks Home sells control panels that serve both those functions. We didn’t add camera prices to the equipment table since Ring’s cameras get quite complicated. More on that next. Brinks Home charges quite a bit for these cameras, too, which makes them even less desirable. The cloud storage is convenient since you can access it anytime from any connected device. But if you prefer the safety of a physical copy of all your videos, it’s not as useful. You’ll have to download the videos and transfer them since none of the cameras have local storage built in. As for the paid plans, they’re extremely affordable. Still, we don’t like paying extra to use something we already own. You can learn more about Ring cameras in our Ring camera review. Brinks Home smart home integrations: As we mentioned earlier, Brinks Home also sells some smart home devices as add-ons to its packages. Smart locks, smart thermostats, and more are all available through Brinks Home sales. Ring Alarm smart home integrations: Ring Alarm has all of Brinks Home’s connectivity with the addition of IFTTT. IFTTT can be a huge boon to a smart home because it creates smart home chains between multiple devices. For instance, you could set up a chain linked to the front door lock. When you open the lock, the front hall light could turn on and a speaker could start playing your favorite radio station. These complicated chains can sometimes be set up through other interfaces, like through Alexa commands, but IFTTT has long been known as one of the best cause-and-effect platforms out there. The one downside to Ring’s home automation is that the company doesn’t sell very many branded smart home devices of its own. You can get a smart Ring light bridge and a few lights, but you won’t get locks, thermostats, or some of the other most popular smart home products. But on the other hand, Ring is the center of an extreme amount of controversy. Internal and external privacy issues, including Ring’s partnership with police, have left many customers and potential customers wary of using Ring devices and apps. We think those who want a less conflicted customer experience would be better served by Brinks Home. If you need help at any time, you can call either of these companies. Brinks Home is available any day from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. CST, while Ring’s hours are weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. EST.
Brinks Home customer service number: 800-447-9239 Ring Alarm customer service number: 800-984-1596
Prices and monitoring plans: Ring Alarm. Ring’s low, low prices are hard to beat, even with a solid monitoring service like Brinks Home’s. Security equipment: Ring Alarm. Ring makes its own security equipment, which comes at a less expensive price than Brinks Home’s generic devices. Cameras: Ring Alarm. Ring is king when it comes to cameras, while they’re a weaker point for Brinks Home. Smart home integrations: Draw. Brinks Home sells more smart home devices, though Ring has more integration options. Customer service: Brinks Home. Brinks Home is a lot less controversial than Ring, which has a big ethical quagmire to sort through.
If neither of these services are doing it for you, you may want to read our DIY Home Security Systems Review and Best Home Security Systems.
Price Equipment Cameras Home automation Customer service
Our ratings also include hours of research and hands-on testing. For instance, we’ve tested the Ring security system in the past, which informed some of the opinions in this review. Usually, we’ll choose the winner of a versus comparison based on how many categories each company wins. But if a company does something really well or egregiously poorly, we might more heavily weigh those aspects over others. You can have a perfectly safe security system without a security camera setup. For instance, you could get a Brinks Home system and opt out of the lackluster cameras, and your home would still be well protected. But if you want to know everything that happens on your property or live in a larger home and can’t quickly get from one room to another, we strongly encourage looking into a security camera. The company offers a single monitoring plan and charges a flat fee of $40 a month for monitoring services, which also includes smart home support and video storage. If you are looking for a more affordable option, we’d recommend Ring. If you’re looking for extra safety features and a reliable system, go with Brinks Home.
