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GSM & Other Methods of Communication
GSM is a relatively new concept, so we've decided to post this additional information in order to help you understand how this affects all modern alarm systems. Below is a step by step description of the methods utilized by alarm systems for sending their information to the Central Station for processing various signals. Various Communication Methods 1. Standard Wired Home Phone Lines Wired phone lines have been the backbone of most alarm systems for years. They were as reliable for security as the phone line itself. The main shortcoming was lack of communication, if the line were cut. If you needed a higher level of security, you could have your phone line pinged (at considerable extra cost) on an interval basis, so that Central would be advised if you lost communication. Most home owners accepted the standard line as adequate for home use and without ping. 2. Radio Communication There are still a number of radio communicators around and early versions did essentially only one thing. Via whatever kind of radio used they communicated a simple alarm. In other words, you could not tell if you had a burglary on the front door or if you had an AC outage or a high water signal. In the event that you only needed to know one thing, then they were adequate. Though some companies used this for home end users, responsible dealers regarded this as only sufficient for a back up system and never as a primary security system. Radio signals can be jammed and rendered useless but the risk is considered, low. 3. Cell Phone Dialers ( GSM VLP 5 ) Cell phone dialers are, in fact, radio communication of the next generation. They can identify individual zones in the same way that the wired phone line could and there are no wires to be cut. They can also be used in conjunction with wired lines for the best of both worlds. Jamming, as stated above, is a remote possibility. 4. Internet Dialers ( GSM ILP 5 ) This system actually uses your existing Internet as a pathway to communicate with Central but we will only allow this use in conjunction with a wired phone line because in our professional opinion, this simply doesn't make the grade as a stand alone unit when it comes to real security. It does have a very important secondary purpose with the Lynx Touch control, which is to allow operation of your cell phone to control your alarm system from virtually anywhere that you may have cell phone service. There is however, for the time being what we consider to be a large negative factor. It requires a connected ethernet cable to your router, so this portion of it is in fact not wireless but wired. How to Choose Your Communicator Things are always changing and the alarm industry attempts to also keep abreast of these changes. One of the major expected changes is that the conventional phone line is going to be phased out. Some say this will occur in a few years, while others say, ten years. A lot of people are doing this on their own already by converting to phone companies that charge less. These companies offer free long distance and monthly fees far lower than the old phone companies. They can do this because their systems work on something called VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol). Most alarm systems can not operate with these kinds of phone systems and if they could, they would fall into the same category as # 4 above. Some people have just gotten rid of the old phone line altogether and rely strictly on cell phones. We therefore believe that the best option is to get a cell dialer, if it operates in your area. The GSM cell system that our controls operate on, at this time, utilize cell towers from AT&T. This has nothing to do with what cell phone you are using, however in order to determine if this cell dialer will operate properly and have good communication with central, you can test the bar level with any AT&T cell phone. If the level is low, or you can not connect at your home, or in the location you wish to have an alarm system, then unfortunately, GSM cell dialing is not for you. Note: We can also define the chances of communication operating in your specific area by utilizing a coverage map. Please email or call us if you would like us to look into this for you. More and more towers are being added all the time, so in a few years things may change but for the time being, the only other reliable option is to have a conventional phone line installed, if you don't have one now.
The Security Choices in order of Preference a. Old style phone line with GSM cell dialer b. GSM cell dial only c. Old style phone line with GSM Internet connect d. Old style phone line e. VOIP phone line ( even if appears ok ) unacceptable security f. VOIP phone line & GSM WIFI unacceptable security g. GSM WIFI only unacceptable security
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