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Traditional Wired Security Systems

VS.
Wireless Security Systems
Prepared for:
Deneshia Smith, English Instructor
Prepared by:
Connor Whisenhunt
November 19, 2015

VS

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November 19, 2015

Deneshia Smith, English Instructor
Orangeburg-Calhoun Technical College
3250 St. Mathews Road
Orangeburg, SC 29115
Attention: Mrs. Deneshia Smith
Traditional Wired Security Systems VS. Wireless Security Systems
I have completed my report on selecting the best home security system available in todays
market. In my study I compared the traditional home security systems to the new 2.0 models
which are wireless. Along with being wireless the 2.0 models also have a lot of other features
that can be used easily from your smart phone or tablet. Through my research and the gathering
of information for this report I have noticed that both systems are excellent choices for good
home security systems. The final decision when selecting which system is best for you will be
based on personal preferences.
I am thankful for the opportunity to research this matter. I look forward presenting this report in
a way that will be most helpful and beneficial when it comes to selecting a home security system.

Sincerely,

Connor Whisenhunt

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
PAGE

Cover Page.......1
Letter of Completion........2
Table of Contents.....3
List of Illustrations...4
Executive Summary.............5
Introduction..............................................................................6
Discussion Section...7
Traditional Alarms vs the 2.0 Systems7
New Types of Providers Now Offering Security Systems..9
Your Cell Phone Can Now Help Keep Your House Safe...9
Someone Must Call the Cops..9
Conclusions and Recommendations......10
Works Cited...11
Appendix B12

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LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
FIGURES
1. Wired Vs. Wireless..

PAGE
7

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Mrs. Smith asked me to perform a study on witch home security system would be the best for a
person to install in their home. The research was done in the area of what type of system would
be the all-around best one to install in a house. The choice would be to install a traditional one
that would be wired to your phone. The other choice would be a wireless system that could be
controlled with your smart phone.
My general finding was that both systems are good but would depend on what you are looking to
protect. The best way is to look into what you are trying to protect and then determine what
system is best at providing such protection. As the all-around better system the wireless one
would be the best choice because of the endless things you can do with it.

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Introduction
The study I conducted was to determine which system should be picked as the better security
system and what new features of the system makes it better. The old traditional systems verses
the new wireless ones.

PROJECT DESCRITPION
I chose to focus on selecting the best type of system to install based on the features available
along with trying to cover a wide spectrum of protection in your home.

SCOPE OF STUDY
The purpose was to determine the best type of system for protecting your home through online
research.

REPORT FORMAT
Traditional Alarms verses the 2.0 System
Reasons Why You Should Get the 2.0 System
New Types of Providers Now Offering Security Systems
Cell Phones Can Now Help Keep Homes Safe
Making Contact with Law Enforcement

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Traditional Alarms vs the 2.0 Systems

Traditional alarms offered by traditional companies are normally wired to your telephone based
consoles that are placed by the house door (Tedeschi 2). If someone were to break into a house
with a traditional alarm and walk pass the sensor an alert would go through the phone line to the
monitoring company that would then call the emergency services (Tedeschi 2). With the 2.0
system which works about the same way except it goes through different medians and it
communicates with the sensors via WIFI through the central monitoring services via your
broadcast connection in your cellular network (Tedeschi 2). With the 2.0 system when someone
walks past a sensor you and the police will be notified, you will have the option to get the alert
via text message (Tedeschi 2). If you purchase the video part of the deal you may have access to
view the footage of the break in seconds after it happens, another interesting thing is you can tilt
and pan the camera (Tedeschi 2). Another neat feature of the 2.0 alarm is it is more than just a
burglar alarm because you can turn the system on and off remotely via the internet and along
with that you can adjust the heat, douse the lights, activate the pool pump and or check for
flooding and stuff like that (Tedeschi 2). The only weakness that has been found in the 2.0
systems is that they sometimes subject to cellular or broadband outages or interference. Those
types of interferences are more common than phone-line outages (Tedeschi 3). As most hard
wired systems have a backup plan if the phone line goes out the 2.0 systems also has a backup
plan to a secondary connection and this backup connection is free of charge (Tedeschi 3). With
this extra backup line there will always be a line there for you if something was to fail and you
needed a line to connect to. It would be there free of charge (Tedeschi 3).

WIRED VS. WIRELESS

4.5
4
3.5
3
2.5
2
1.5
1
0.5
0

WIRED

1 = WORSE
4 = BETTER

WIRELESS

2 = BAD

3 = GOOD

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Other Reasons Why You Should Get the 2.0 System

If you have old or young people in your family you can get an alert when a child walks in the
front door or if nanny goes downstairs (Tedeschi 3). If you have lots of people coming in and
out your house you will have alerts when they leave or come in. It will be a nannycam
(Tedeschi 3). If you have a swimming pool you can have a trigger by the pool if the sensor goes
off you may look and view who jumped into your pool (Tedeschi 3). If you have a vacation
home you can have a system in the house if anything goes on in the house or if you happen to
rent it out you may have a way to look out for the house when no one is there at the house
(Tedeshi 3). If you have a boat you can set a sensor in the boat if it starts to collect water it will
notify you then you can go empty the boat and reset the sensor (Tedeshi 3). As most people do
you walk out your house and forget to turn on your alarm; however, with the 2.0 system you can
cut it on when you go online away from your house (Tedeshi 3).

New Types of Providers Now Offering Security Systems

Now in the security system industry things are starting to change due to the fact that cable and
internet providers now offer security systems (Derousseau 1). Most of those companies sell the
simple install-it-yourself service that will eliminate an upfront installation fee that can be up to
$1,000 or so (Derousseau 1). Prices of the equipment may vary on whether the provider levies
equipment charges, the monitoring levels, and other side charges. You need to make sure you
look into the total charges (Derousseau 1). Sometime you have to look into the total bill because
some companies will add in extra stuff but you wont be able to see it until you get the final bill
(Derousseau 1).

Your Cell Phone Can Now Help Keep Your House Safe
When a person has a basic system that contains an alarm, control panel, and some motion sensors
the cost is anywhere from $20 to $30 a month (Derousseau 2). The app that you use on your
smart phone does not cost but a few more dollars than the standard package and it is way more
effective in protecting you form burglary (Derousseau 2). With the app you will be able to
monitor, see alarms, and turn off false alarms even when you are not close to your home

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(Derousseau 2). Along with most apps there is a video part that will allow you to log in and view
the cameras if you have them on you house and if they are a part of the package you purchased
the view from your phone allows you to view your cameras from anywhere as long as you have
your phone and you can log in (Tedeschi 2). With the new apps running smoothly and as well as
they have been running these systems usually require less of an initial investment than traditional
ones and it runs up to 70% less (Tedeschi 2). It is very common if you have an old wired system
that you can just get these features as add-ons and there is no need to scrap the old systems
(Tedeshi 2).

Someone Must Call the Cops

While the mobile tracking tools are starting to take off, some providers to not offer a monitoring
service (Derousseau 2). This monitoring part of the system is the part of the system that calls the
cops when the alarm is triggered this is the part that most people want and it is not covered in
some packages and is not even offered in some (Derousseau 2). It is understood that going with
the choice of not having the monitoring upgrade you will save a little bit of money but why have
an alarm if it will not notify cops when it is triggered (Derousseau 2).

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CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

CONCLUSIONS
In most of my research I gathered that both systems are generally good all-around systems. The
main thing that you as a buyer of the system have to look at is what type of wiring you want and
what type of features you want. As a buyer who has gained all the information you need to make
a knowledgeable choice can then make a purchase and be confident they are getting the type of
system they know will work best for their needs.
The biggest question that a buyer must know is if they want a system that is hard wired or a
system that is wireless. If the hard wired way is the only option for you then you will want to get
a traditional security system. If you want a wire free system then the best one is a wireless
system. The wireless system is the all-around more advanced system because it has a lot more
features that can be utilized and the end result will be more than just a security system. The
wireless system once setup can be used to do many other things in your home in addition to
security.

RECOMMENDATIONS
On the basis of my conclusions, I would recommend the wireless system as the best security
system. You will want to purchase a wireless system that can be paired with your smart phone.
Making sure these two items are compatible will allow you to always be able to use your phone
to help run the system when you are away from the house.
You can contact most any alarm system company to get assistance with selecting a wireless
system that will best fit your needs based on location and other factors. The alarm system
company can then help you get your new wireless system installed and set up. Also along with
their assistance you will be able to connect your smart phone which will enable you to monitor
your security system while you are away from your home. This wireless system is the best allaround security system to purchase when you are trying to make your home safer with a security
system.

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Works Cited
"Alarm Systems For Home Security." Consumers' Research Magazine 77.10 (1994):
23. Academic Search Premier. Web. 31 Oct. 2015.
Clown Fish. Getty Images. Points of View. EBSCO. Web. 30 Jan. 2007.
Derousseau, Ryan. "5 Things To Know About Home Security Systems." Money 42.9
(2013): 51. Academic Search Premier. Web. 31 Oct. 2015.
Tedeschi, Bob, and Hibah Yousuf. "Home Security 2.0." Money 37.7 (2008): 115117. Academic Search Premier. Web. 31 Oct. 2015. Tedeschi, Bob, and Hibah
Yousuf. "Home Security 2.0." Money 37.7 (2008): 115-117. Academic Search
Premier. Web. 31 Oct. 2015.

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Appendix B
It is said that houses with sirens have a less chance than houses without
sirens of being broken into because the houses with the sirens ward the
criminals away (Alarms 1). Most insurance companies require a home
security system to be in and working in the house to have home insurance
coverage (Alarms 1). Insurance companies say that your total cost will be
lower if you have a security system and they are aware (Alarms 1). Portable
self-contained alarm devices should not be confused with burglar alarm
systems because they are not the same thing. The portable self-contained
system can only be placed by doors and is not viewed the same as burglar
systems to insurance companies (Alarms 2).