Evaluating a security panel

What are the things that experienced security people look for when they look at a new panel?  How do you make a determination whether or not it was well designed and is a "good" unit?  Presumably, all are not created equal.
 
From a hardware perspective, things like operating voltage range, EMC filtering, available I/O, and manufacturing quality all would likely be important, but what else?
 
I imagine that things like a safety mark (UL, CE) is important, and also compliance with SIA CP-01.  What other things are important?
 
 
 

Listed is the key. Other than that, you've hit on the big ones. Generally you should consider what peripherals you may add and some of the manufacturers don't carry a whole-line compatibility, so if you outgrow what you buy, you're buying an entire system, not just a board.

Other items is the design of the board, how wires and cables land on the panel, whether or not there's full terminal strips or their inherent design, removable terminal blocks or not....if the enclosures offer cable management or loops, how the knockouts are laid out, the mechanics of programming, end user interface.
 
Voltage rating, EMF filtering and all that is generally not too important. Other part is to consider the parent company and history and time in market place. Some companies essentially just re-engineer acquisition company products and others just keep pushing the same basic product out with minimal improvements to the series, if any.

CP-01 is not required for code compliance. It is a false alarm reduction feature that hard codes default values for some items, which are typically modified in some sort on the majority of jobs out there.

Thank you for the thoughtful reply.
 
I suppose that if something is listed, then the NRTL has looked at the circuit structure and deemed that it is safe (components operating at less than their maximum ratings, etc.)  I worked for a fire alarm manufacturer almost 20 years ago as a design engineer, but we had an entire (and separate) team devoted to safety compliance.  My memory is a little fuzzy about some of the details.
 
When I was a kid (40-ish years ago), we had a residential burglary alarm system in our house.  Every time there was a thunderstorm, it would trip the alarm.  It didn't matter if it was armed or not!  This is why I mentioned EMC (specifically immunity).  Designs have probably gotten more robust over the years, though, and it's likely that the alarm wasn't properly installed.
 
In any case, thanks for your thoughts.  I can see that the physical aspects are important, as are expansion capabilities.
 
One other question regarding physical aspects of a panel - is there any "standard" for physical dimensions and screw holes, so that a manufacturer's panel might fit into a variety of enclosures?  In other words, if I'm looking at a panel from some manufacturer, can I tell if they've designed it to a given standard for mounting?

The only "standard" would be if there's a plate or adapter to mount the boards inside a structured wiring enclosure, otherwise the only other option would be to use a listed enclosure, which there are multiple out there (usually used for BAS systems) but they're typically a lot larger than 90% of the complete installs out there.
 
As you can assume, the enclosures and adapters need to be listed as an assembly.
 
Thunderstorms can impact the most robust system or detectors. Some are better than others, but 40 years of improvements since the first gen residential units......they've gotten much better.