Hello World from Mass

[Thorby]

Hello all!  I just bough a house, and am finally ready to jump into home automation and security!  I have listed some goals for myself, and plan on shamelessly taking advantage of all of you to help me, and in return I'll share everything I've learned in the process back to you!
 
My ultimate goal is to be able to control from devices (a phone, and a tablet, and a remote/keypad) my lights, front and back doorlocks, security system, 3 outdoor cameras, and thermostats., and outside lighting.
 
Right now the house has a Vista 20P Security system with two alpha keypads, and wired sensors on the front, back, and basement door, downstairs window sensors, and some motion detectors.
 
I have already taken control of this (unmonitored) system.  Got the installer code, and changed the master code.
 
My FIRST goal is to change the front door alpha keypad with a nice color touchscreen controller, such as the Honeywell Tuxedo or something like that.
 
My SECOND goal is to add three cameras outside my house which have night vision up to around 50ft that integrate with the system.  Wired is fine.
 
My THIRD goal is to change out my front and back door locks with digital keypad (or touchpad) locks that integrate with the system.
 
I want to do these three goals before June 1st.
 
Next, I want to start changing out light switches/sockets/etc so they can be controlled and integrated.  Those will trickle one by one as the year goes by.
 
Then, I want to change out my thermostats so they can be controlled and integrated.  Those will also be replaced slowly.
 
If this is the correct forum for this, huzzah and help!
 
If this is only the welcome forum, well, hello!  I bought a house in a suburb SE of Boston, MA.  It's a nice sized house on a double lot.  I'm married over 14 years.  We have two dogs and three cats.  I'm a Navy Veteran, aviation, I was an avionics electronics tech.  And for a living - I'm an artist!  I work with glass - I do stained glass artwork, and I make fused glass and slumped artwork as well.

 

[drvnbysound]

I was under the impression that the Tuxedo and similar Honeywell panels required an active subscription to their Total Connect service to have connectivity with your smart devices.

 

[Thorby]

I think you're right.  I'd pay $20/month, it's the Total Connect with central station monitoring.  But is that the way I want to go?

 

[drvnbysound]

I think you're right.  I'd pay $20/month, it's the Total Connect with central station monitoring.  But is that the way I want to go?

 
Totally up to you and what you want out of the system.
 
Personally, I like the Elk (or HAI) panels that are much more open and able to integrate with a larger HA system (or just other singular items). I currently don't have any monitoring setup, but I still have remote access. There are monitoring options for $10-$12/mo
 
Going this route would be a much larger initial investment, but would open up a lot of options.

 

[Del91574]

There's ways to do it with the 20P and additional hardware, but the majority is going to be 3rd party products.
 
For DIY and tinkering, I wouldn't recommend swapping out the panel and related hardware at this point. Doesn't make economic sense when there's a perfectly functional system at this point.
 
For the larger picture, I'd look at Elk before HAI. HAI is good if you want to buy all the toys in the toybox at once, but from a budgetary standpoint....HAI is not friendly there, unless you buy their hobbled systems. HAI, IMHO, is a product where someone wants to remove as much of the legwork to get XYZ components....I put it into the realm of buying all "fruit company" compatible products. They should work together well and without too many issues, but while you can interface with other products, it's not as "easy" and plug and play. The M1 is similar to the "robot" platform. Open sourced and can interface with multiple devices, but there's other considerations involved and it may not be as straightforward.

 

[Thorby]

All these acronyms make me feel like I'm back in the Navy again!!
 
Wow, I'm glad to get all this information - I'm making lists, spreadsheets, pro/con columns...  I'm glad I'm not in a rush!