Editors’ Note: This is the most recent version of the Ring Alarm Security Kit. Read our review from March 30, 2021 below.
Ring is no stranger to home security, and the Ring Alarm Security Kit ($199.99 for the five-piece system we tested) contains everything you need to protect and keep tabs on your home. As with other DIY smart home security systems, installation is quick and easy, and you can either self-monitor or pay a modest fee for a professional monitoring service. The system worked well in our tests and interacts with Ring cameras, doorbells, and lights. It also supports dozens of smart door locks and switches, and it responds to Alexa voice commands. It’s a terrific security system for existing Ring users, though it isn’t quite as versatile as our Editors’ Choice award winner, the Abode iota.
Features and Components
Designed for apartments, condos, and small homes, the five-piece Ring Alarm Security Kit comes with a base station, a keypad, a door/window sensor, a motion sensor, and a Z-Wave range extender. Also included in the box is an installation kit containing mounting tape and hardware for the keypad and two sensors, an AC adapter for the base station, a USB power adapter and cable for the keypad, a getting started guide, and an alarm kit security basics guide.
For larger homes, Ring sells an eight-piece kit for $249.99 that comes with everything from the five-piece kit, as well as three door/window sensors. There’s also a 10-piece kit for $259.99 that contains the base station, keypad, and range extender, as well as five door/windows sensors and two motion sensors. The 14-piece kit goes for $329.99 and gets you a base station, two keypads, an extender, eight door/window sensors, and two motion sensors. You can also build your own system and add any number of sensors, keypads, and Ring cameras, or buy one of several kits that come bundled with Ring cameras and Amazon Echo Show devices. If you already have a wired security system and want to make it a smart security system, you can pick up a Ring Retrofit Kit for $149.99 and add Ring sensors and cameras and control it from the Ring app.
The white base station is the brains of the system. It measures 1.4 by 6.6 by 6.6 inches (HWD) and has a 1.5-inch LED ring and a speaker on top, and a USB port and a LAN port around back, joined by a pairing button, a reset button, and Wi-Fi and power indicators. The base contains circuitry that supports numerous wireless protocols including dual-band 802.11n Wi-Fi, Z-Wave, Zigbee, Bluetooth 4.1, and LTE cellular as a backup if you subscribe to the Ring Protect Plus plan (more on this later). It also has an internal backup battery that will provide up to 24 hours of power in the event of a power loss, and a loud 105dB internal siren.
The LED ring glows solid blue when the system is disarmed and turns red when it is in Home mode (only some sensors, such as contact sensors, are armed) or Away mode (all sensors are armed). When you arm and disarm the system, a voice tells you what mode you are in. You’ll also hear a chime whenever a sensor is triggered.
The keypad measures 4.1 by 4.4 by 0.75 inches (HWD) and has numeric buttons (0-9). It also has Disarm, Home and Away buttons, and Fire and Police buttons that will sound the siren and send an alert to the professional monitoring service so that first responders can be dispatched. Pressing the Medical button will trigger a call to the response center so that an ambulance can be sent.
At 3.2 by 0.9 by 0.9 inches (HWD), the Z-Wave contact sensors for doors and windows are bulkier than the sensors that come with the Vivint Smart Home system (2.5 by 1.0 by 0.5 inches). They’re each powered by a CR123 battery that is rated to last three years and can be installed using double-sided tape or with mounting screws. The motion sensor (3.5 by 2.4 by 1.7 inches) also runs on a CR123 battery and uses a Z-Wave radio to communicate with the base station. The range extender (3.1 by 1.8 by 1.1 inches) plugs into a wall outlet and extends the Z-Wave signal by up to 250 feet, so you can place sensors just about anywhere.
The Ring Alarm is controlled using the same mobile (for Android and iOS) and web app as other Ring devices, such as the Ring Video Doorbell Pro, the Ring Floodlight Cam, and the Ring Stick Up Cam. The app lets you link all of your Ring devices to work with the Alarm. For example, you can have a Ring Stick Up Cam begin recording and have Ring lights turn on when an Alarm sensor is triggered.
The Alarm is compatible with dozens of third-party Works With Ring devices including Kwikset, Schlage, and Yale door locks, as well as Leviton and GE switches and dimmers. It also works with Alexa Guard, which listens for the sounds of a smoke alarm or breaking glass while you’re away, and supports Alexa voice commands. However, it doesn’t support IFTTT applets, nor does it work with Apple HomeKit or Google Assistant.
Pricing and App
Pricing for add-on components is pretty much in line with what you’ll pay if you have a SimpliSafe or Abode system. Extra door/window sensors are $19.99 each, another motion sensor will cost you $29.99, and a range extender goes for $24.99. Additional devices include a First Alert smoke/CO detector, a flood/freeze detector, and a panic button.
You can monitor the system yourself using the mobile app and web app, but that means you’ll have to alert the police or fire department when there’s a break-in or fire. Alternately, you can subscribe to the Ring Protect Plus monitoring plan. For $10 per month or $100 a year, you get 24/7 professional monitoring that includes police and fire department dispatch and push and email alerts. It also includes unlimited cloud recording for all Ring cameras, which makes it one of the best monitoring deals around.
Although SimpliSafe’s basic monitoring service goes for $14.99 per month for 24/7 monitoring, you have to pay an additional $10 more per month to control the system from your phone and to receive email and push notifications. Tack on another $4.99 per camera per month to record, download, and share video, and you’re up to around $30 per month, which is three times what you’ll pay for a Ring Protect Plus plan.
The Ring mobile app offers a user-friendly Dashboard featuring live preview windows for each installed camera and doorbell. The Alarm controls are at the top of the Dashboard screen and include Disarmed, Home, and Away buttons. Below the buttons is the status of all installed sensors (cleared, open), and below that are tabs for viewing Neighborhood posts and Event History.
Ring’s Neighborhood is a cool feature that lets you share recorded events with neighbors who have joined the Neighborhood. You’ll receive alerts when a neighbor posts a video and when there’s fire and police activity in your Neighborhood. The Events tab takes you to a screen where you can view a list of all camera and alarm events including sensor activity, arming and disarming times, and motion detection. Below the Neighborhood and Events tabs are windows with live views of each installed Ring video doorbell and camera.
Tap the three-bar icon in the upper left corner of the Dashboard to access the Alarm settings where you can enable/disable email and push notifications, change your location, enable/disable specific sensors while in Home and Away mode, change the Entry and Exit delay timers (30 to 180 seconds), and allow additional users to control the Alarm and other Ring devices.
Installation and Performance
Installing the Ring Alarm system is easy thanks to the well-written getting started guide. I already had a Ring account, but if this is your first Ring device, start by downloading the Ring app and creating one. I opened the app and tapped Add a Ring Product, selected Alarm from the list, and confirmed my location.
I plugged in the base station and pressed the pairing button, which started the blue LEDs spinning, indicating that the station was in pairing mode. I tapped Find My Base Station in the app and selected Wi-Fi as my internet connection method (you can connect via Ethernet or Wi-Fi), selected my router’s SSID, and entered my Wi-Fi password. The LEDs flashed white momentarily before turning solid blue and the Wi-Fi indicator turned green, indicating a successful pairing. The app also confirmed the connection.
At this point you have to verify your address if you choose to sign up for professional home monitoring, otherwise, just agree to the Terms of Service to continue. The next screen gives you the option of adding the included devices, all of which are pre-paired. I removed the battery tape from the contact sensor and it was added immediately. Here you can choose how the device will be used (door, window), give it a name, and assign it to a room (or choose No Room Assigned). I used the included double-sided tape to install the sensor on a window, tested it, and moved on to the keypad.
Installing the keypad was simply a matter of plugging it in and waiting a few seconds for it to be recognized. I gave it a name and a location, used the included mounting screws to hang the mounting plate on a wall, snapped the keypad into place, created an Access Code for arming and disarming the system, and was done. Installing the motion sensor was just as easy: I removed the battery tape and waited a few seconds for it to be added to the app. I gave it a location and a name, used the double-sided tape to mount it to a wall, and tested the sensor. To install the Z-Wave range extender, I plugged it into a wall outlet between the base station and the motion sensor (the farthest device from the base station), named it, and assigned it to a room. The entire installation took around 20 minutes.
The Alarm system performed flawlessly. The base station chimed whenever a sensor was triggered while in Disarmed mode, and the event was added to my history log within seconds. I promptly received push and email notifications whenever there was a mode change or when the base station was unplugged, and it switched to the cellular network while running on battery power.
However, the Alarm system doesn’t send push or email notifications when a sensor is triggered while in disarmed mode like Vivint does. This may not seem like a big deal, but it’s nice to know when windows and doors are being opened if you’re away while other family members are home with the system disarmed.
While in Home and Away mode, the system instantly reacted with a piercingly loud siren and flashing red LEDs whenever a sensor was triggered, and the app immediately provided a screen that allowed me to quickly disarm the system with the push of a button. The keypad also responded quickly to my Home, Away, and Disarm commands.
Good Home Security for Ring Users
The Ring Alarm Home Security System offers an easy and relatively affordable way to make sure your home is safe and secure. The system can be installed in as little as 20 minutes and can be self-monitored using your mobile device or desktop system. Or you can have it professionally monitored by subscribing to the very affordable Ring Protect Plus Plan, which also includes unlimited cloud storage for any Ring camera you may own. If you already own or are considering investing in any of Ring’s security cameras, doorbells, and/or smart lighting devices, the Ring Alarm works with all of them to provide a seamless home security solution, making it one of our top picks.
If you want a system that is even bigger on home automation, check out the aforementioned Abode iota, our Editors’ Choice. As with the Ring Alarm, it offers multiple wireless radios, but it works with even more third-party devices, has its own IFTTT channel, and supports Apple HomeKit.
The Bottom Line
The Ring Alarm Security Kit home security system that is easy to install to install on your own, offers affordable professional monitoring, and interacts with other Ring devices and dozens of smart locks and switches.
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About John R. Delaney
Contributing Editor
