Anyone know if gocontrol can send Alarm the status via zwave?
Wow, they are getting torched by the commenters :o
Looks like a lot of people have had trouble with the company but no one is saying anything about the product.
I am installing the “2 gig” system myself, I contacted APX, they wanted a 42 month monitoring agreement @ $52/month, of course the out of pocket expense was just $99.
I opted to buy the equipment from “automatedoutlet.com”, for about $750
Automated Outlet - Smart Home Automation Solutions
The monitoring is availble from “alarmrelay.com”, who also uses “alarm.com” to provide some of the automation and web integration. Alarmrelay is $26.95/month, plus another $8/month for lights and thermostats, locks adds another $5/month, so anywhere from $35 to $40/month
https://www.alarm.com/ and http://www.alarmrelay.com/
Their contract is for 12 months, prepaid (you pay for the 12 months upfront), there is also a $60 activation and programming one time fee
The nice thing about the 2 Gig system is, you don’t need to have Internet access at the location of the system, it uses cellular GSM via AT&T,T-Mobile or Rogers in Canada.
I’ll let you know how the install goes, and the zwave as well. One thing I am planning on, their is an “aux” open collector output, that can be zwave controlled, I bought small relay module to connect to it, and plan on connecting it to the garage door opener, so I can remotely open the garage door.
I am a little confused. Why would an individual pay the fees for VIVINT when Vera can do most of it?
Vera is not monitored by a central station company that calls the fire department or the police for you… the “2 gig” system is a full alarm system with Z-wave integration, its not a Z-wave system attempting to also be an alarm system. There is a big difference. You also have missed the point that this works through a GSM Cellular connection, no internet access needed at the premise, which is good for rental/vaction properties, you can still manage the thermostats, locks, lights, but don’t need an internet connection to do it. You are paying for alarm monitoring ($26.95 to alarmrelay), and then an additional $8 to $13 if you want the home control stuff, that mostly goes to alarm.com.
No I wouldn’t but this from APX, but you can do it yourself and not have a 42 month commitment…
I had the APX alarm system installed 3 weeks ago. So far no problems. $99 up front and $44 per month for 36 months. I set it up to be a secondary controller for the lights, etc, with Vera as the primary controller.
That APX module looks the same as the 2gig one. So can events on the alarm system trigger events in Vera with either system?
I am new to Z-wave, Vera, and GoControl. Currently I am using Vera most of the time, but I do have the Gocontrol set up as a secondary controler, and use it’s touch screen from time to time to control lights and scenes. I couldn’t get Vera to recognize the GoControl as anything other than a controller, so I couldn’t figure out how to control alarm functions through vera. But that could be because I don’t really know much about these things yet. I control alarm online through alarm.com (iphone and droid apps), and control everything else online through vera and its apps.
Titan: are you able to at least see the status of the Alarm system via Vera / SQRemote / etc. ?
This sounds similar to the Simon Xt from Safemart. Same GSM/Zwave module and monthly fee. Curious as to how to set it up so that scenes can be triggered via alarm events. (i.e motion detected turn on this scene or set of lights). I have vera’s (2 of them). Not so worried about alarm status or arming / disarming via zwave… Just seems that if the unit (Simon XT) can turn off and on lights with alarm events, I could get it to trigger zwave scene’s configured in Vera?
I am not able to see status of alarm. In fact, I don’t see any evidence that Vera recognizes is as anything other than a scene controller. But I am very new to this. It is VERY possible that I didn’t do something right when I included the GoControl pannel into the network. All I did was use the option on the GoControl to add it to another network as a secondary controller. I thought that vera would automatically recognize it as an alarm, etc. It didn’t. I haven’t changed any of the device settings for the alarm pannel within vera. Maybe there is something I can do to make vera know that it is an alarm, but I don’t know what it is. Also, the GoControl learned all of the light switches and lamp modules from vera, but it doesn’t seem to recognize the Kwikset lock. Again, probably something that I did wrong, as the VINIT web site shows the same kwikset lock on their site as the one that will be controlled by their service that starts March 1.
If anyone can tell me what to do to make vera recognize the GoControl as an alarm, I would really appreciate it.
[quote=“mitch672, post:6, topic:167501”]Vera is not monitored by a central station company that calls the fire department or the police for you… the “2 gig” system is a full alarm system with Z-wave integration, its not a Z-wave system attempting to also be an alarm system. There is a big difference. You also have missed the point that this works through a GSM Cellular connection, no internet access needed at the premise, which is good for rental/vaction properties, you can still manage the thermostats, locks, lights, but don’t need an internet connection to do it. You are paying for alarm monitoring ($26.95 to alarmrelay), and then an additional $8 to $13 if you want the home control stuff, that mostly goes to alarm.com.
No I wouldn’t but this from APX, but you can do it yourself and not have a 42 month commitment…[/quote]
I’ve asked this before and I think people thought I was being sarcastic but I don’t see how this is an alarm. It seems like the only thing it does that I can’t do with Vera already is monitoring. If it was more integrated into Vera and it did more alarm like things…like have an actual alarm, maybe. Of course I could TOTALLY be missing something.
It’s a compete UL listed fire & burglar alarm, that also happens to have some zwave capabilities, and the alarm and the zwave functions can be controlled via a web browser/iPhone or Android app.
BTW, it does have an alarm output, it’s designed for a piezzo device, but you can put a relay on it and blast a klaxen if you want, it also uses the Honeywell/Ademco 345MHZ wireless devices for the alarm side, I ordered a CO detector, smoke/heat, comes with a PIR, there are wireless recessed contacts and tradional contacts as well (with a built in sensor and the ability to use an external sensor as well), 48 wireless zones, plus 2 hardwired zoned, plus a programmable open collector output (Zwave controllable), etc
When the alarm goes off, a central station notifies police or fire, they call the homeowner or designated people on the call list. The alarm notifies the central station via STD phone lines, but also has the GSM cell capability, to work with no phone line, and NO Internet access needed at the premise. The Zwave component can also be controlled over this GSM cell link, as far as I know, you need Internet access to get to MCV’s Vera, to control your devices.
The 2 Gig system is a full fledged alarm system, that also has capabilities to prevent “smash and grab”, as soon as a sensor is set off, the GSM link notifies the central station, if there is no “disarm” command comming in the next 30-60 seconds (or what the entry time is set to), they notify the police and assume the system has been destroyed… This all happens faster than any thief could smash the control panel.
Vera is fine for home automation tasks. I would never count on it as an alarm system.
For me personally, I just cannot justify the high cost associated with APX. Ok, so Vera cannot call a monitoring service. She can call and text me as needed, and I can call the police after viewing the cameras.
I know that individuals have different need. I have a rental property that I feel would not require a monitoring service.
APX/Vivint is one alarm monitoring/installation company.
I am not using them, at all.
I bought the equipment directly from"automated outlet" (links in above posts)
I am installing it myself.
I am using “alarm relay”, who also uses “alarm.com” to receive the wireless GSM signals and forwards them to alarmrelay.
This can be done without any involvement of APX/Vivint at all…
yes, there will be monthly fee’s, but you are paying for a wireless GSM cell link, and 24/7/365 monitoring as well. I thinks its worth while, perhaps others think Vera is enough. I like the fact that I don’t need an internet connection to run the Zwave equipment, and I like that it’s a real alarm system (both fire/burg), that will lower my homeowners insurance premiums as well.
I like the fact that I don’t need an internet connection to run the Zwave equipment
Would you please elaborate on this point ? How would you access the Z-wave stuff remotely, and at what cost ?
Very interested in your approach!
goto alarm.com and checkout there remote access apps, they control the Zwave equipment via the celluar GSM data link to the 2 gig alarm panel… thats how its done without internet access.
Check this link, they call their access “EMPower”, it uses the 2 Gig panel and the GSM cell link.
The pricing is in my other posts above… but basiclly you have to have the basic GSM monitoring for $26.95 through alarmrelay.com to start (which is $8.95 to alarm relay, and $18 to alarm.com for the GSM signalling/forwarding), then light/thermostats adds $8/month, locks adds another $5/month, so anywhere from $35 to $40/month, on a 12 month prepaid contract (you pay for the full year at once). So $480/year for everything, including the alarm monitoring, which is the main point of this, the home control via Zwave is just an add on…
Of course you CAN buy this from APX/Vivant for $99 installed, and about $52/month, and they want anywhere from a 36 to 42 month commitment, and after that, guess what? You will still pay them $52/month… on an automatic contract renewal
Is anyone using alarm.com to control z-wave? All I could find was a link to set up someone trying to sell me the equipment/ service. I got the impression that their “empower” system is the paid system from APX/Vivint.
nope. You can get EMpower via alarmrelay.com as well, they provide the monitoring, as alarm.com will NOT sell to indivduals, so you need to go through alarmrelay, but you get the same access as if you had APX/Vivant, just for less $/month. As I’ve posted in many posts on this thread, I bought the equipment from automatedoutlet, and its arriving this week, to be installed on the weekend/over the next few weeks. The monitoring is almost as much as having APX do the entire job ($40 versus $52 from APX), I just don’t like the 42 month contract, and how slimy APX has been, I don’t need or want them involved in my life, at all, ever 