Ooma Home Security Review: Cheaper & Easier But Offers Less Professional Monitoring
You cannot install it yourself if you are looking for a DIY home security system.
For $130, your house is supervised by the Ooma Home Security Kit. In addition, its user-friendly mobile app gives quick access to emergency services. Its accessories are relatively inexpensive. Smoke detectors, movement sensors, streaming video, and a loud siren are all included.
However, there is little support or integration with third-party devices for home automation. In addition, it costs an extra $5.99 per month to utilize certain features, like remote 911 and notifications. But Ooma is an affordable option if you don’t need these features.
Configuration & Design
Ooma began with the Internet Protocol (VoIP) service as domestic voice. So it is not surprising that its Telo VoIP hub is the hub of the Ooma Home Security kit. A door/window sensor, a motion sensor, and a water sensor are also included in it.
The design of the Telo is nothing especially exemplary. It looks like a reply machine and even has quick buttons forward. This is not exactly the type of high-tech product in your bookcase. But it’s the brains of this operation, which makes it accessible somewhere.
The configuration is quite simple. Just as you open the box, the Telo hub itself contains a sticker to enable you to register for a telephone number with the Android or iOS app Ooma Telo. You can plug the hub into your router via Ethernet once configured, or combine it with your WiFi network via the app.
You could connect the OOMA HD2 Handset with the VideoCall, sold individually for $30, if you want to use Telo for phone calls. You can connect it to any other standard phone handset if you do not want to buy it separately.
You can download the Ooma Home Security app to log in to your new phone number when the telo is up and running. You can then start to add supplies, each with a set of alkaline AAA batteries. You can tap the option of adding a new device to your home network after each device is powered up. After that, the application will start to pair you.
The app will be asking you to determine how each accessory should work in various modes at the end of the configuration process.
For $35 and $25 a piece on its website, Ooma provides additional move sensors and Door Sensors. There is also a water sensor ($30) and door sensor ($40). In addition, there will soon be a siren ($40) and a smoke alarm ($60). And for a new cameras, see Butterfly Wireless Security Camera, which was recently launched. It’s available at $200 and $250 with 16 GB or 32 GB of storage.
Professional surveillance
The company has added professional surveillance as an optional feature for $14.99 a month since Ooma was first reviewed. The optional features have made it more consistent with other DIY home safety systems like ADT, Abode and SimpliSafe. But this service is not available in Alabama, Arkansas, Tennessee, Maryland and Columbia District, Texas, Rhode Island, Montana, Florida, Virginia and Arizona.
Although all Ooma’s key features do not have to be paid monthly. If you want access to additional features, you must sign up for the $5.99, a monthly subscription service. These optional features include mode-switching, remote 911 calls, and remote call notifications on your phone.
The security subscription for the Telo is a mere 3.99 $monthly, if you choose the $10 monthly Premier telephone service. The Premier Telephone Service adds functionality like voicemail.
If you choose to receive the telephone call when the sensors are triggered, you don’t have to pay the monthly subscription price for the app to call 911. It isn’t as fast as we have tested the other systems to alert you. But once you get a call telling us something is happening at home, you can press 1 to connect to local operators.
Performance
A VoIP experience is the focus of the Ooma Home Security Starter kit. So there is a little different from other DIY configurations. The Telo acts as a base and provides a friendly voice when you change status or when you make an accessory that detects motion. Though, by later this summer, no built-in sirens are accessible and there is no unique modification available too.
You will mostly interact with the system via the Ooma Home Security app. Which offers a look at all the events, including whether the appliances work and if windows and doors are closed or opened. Since there is no physical keyboard, the system needs to be manually switched on or scheduled by the app.
Integration of Smart Home
The Smart-Home functionality of Ooma is limited to a couple of products, most of which focus on who calls you home. Integration with the Nest Protect smoke detector is most useful for safety. The Ooma automatic call will give you the option to call emergency departments when the device senses smoke or some other condition. The Nest Learning Thermostat detects you’re outside of the House, a convenient feature, and it also allows you to forward calls from the telephone hub to your smartphone.
Final Verdict
If you’re searching for something cheaper with less features, Ooma’s inexpensive security system is an excellent starting point. We also like the company’s professional surveillance support.
We prefer SimpliSafe Essentials safety kits or Abode among DIY Home Security systems. Professional monitoring services are also available. They have a broader lineup of accessories and can be installed as easily as the Ooma. But the system at Ooma tells you if your house is moving and if the doors are opened or shut that can be enough for you.
Read Next: SimpliSafe Review – A Complete Wireless Home Security System
