alarm monitoring - phone line or internet?

[apostolakisl]

+ another one on resurrections.
 
My answer would be to skip the IP monitoring.  It is too problematic.  Cellular monitoring is not expensive, simple, and damn near impossible to defeat.  If a criminal is going to outsmart your security system, it isn't going to be by defeating a cellular communicator.  

 

[mcgedoue]

In addition if you spend the $150 for AlarmRelays internet module with heartbeat, I'm told it's every 5 minutes.  If there were a line cut from outside alot can happen in that time.  I guess it's better than never without it, but it's something to consider before spending the money.  What I'd like to know is who makes this "Internet Module" for AlarmRelay, as my guess is it's already out there under some other name and they just silkscreen their name on the box.  If I could find same box for $50 it might be more tempting.

 

[snakevargas]

I'd like to hear more about cellular monitoring. I understand the notion of buying a box that contains the cellular hardware. I understand setting up service with CS to receive the cellular calls. The bit I'm unsure about is where you actually obtain the cellular service. Do you have to buy it (and a SIM card) from a cellular provider? Are there providers that do this cheap? My existing cellphone is a pay-as-you-go plan; I can't really add a line to it.

It seems to me like this necessarily has to be a lot more expensive than landline monitoring, for the reason that landline monitoring uses an existing line but cellular monitoring will have to use a dedicated line.

 

[apostolakisl]

I'd like to hear more about cellular monitoring. I understand the notion of buying a box that contains the cellular hardware. I understand setting up service with CS to receive the cellular calls. The bit I'm unsure about is where you actually obtain the cellular service. Do you have to buy it (and a SIM card) from a cellular provider? Are there providers that do this cheap? My existing cellphone is a pay-as-you-go plan; I can't really add a line to it.

It seems to me like this necessarily has to be a lot more expensive than landline monitoring, for the reason that landline monitoring uses an existing line but cellular monitoring will have to use a dedicated line.

 
It works both ways.  
 
An HAI C3 unit requires your own cellular GSM account (ATT/Tmobile) and simply converts a cellular signal into a regular POTS like dial tone that works the same as a POTS line by both your panel and CS (and regular voice as well).  It is more versatile since it does all the same things a POTS line does, but it doesn't maintain a heartbeat with CS.  With ATT, a one year pre-paid card costs $100, to that you would add the CS charges ($142 for alarm relay first year including setup fee).  There are people who believe that not having the heartbeat is a big problem, judge for yourself.  If the C3 unit itself fails, then the panel will give you trouble, if the panel fails a test call you get a trouble, but if the cellular signal is lost and there is no test call, you don't get a trouble.  Of course I argue, what are you going to do about it anyway, if the towers go down, you can't fix them, whether you know about it or not.
 
Other units like Uplink use a special type of cellular service that can only be purchased in bulk.  Thus, you don't buy it from the cellular co, but rather you buy a product that is resold through a CS provider.   The price you pay is a package deal for the monitoring and cellular service.  This type of service has a heartbeat with CS but has no ability to do anything but keep your panel in contact with CS.  Prices for this services are about 10-20% higher depending on the details.