I agree with your Wifi jamming statement. I have an old Panasonic microwave oven that kills the 2.4ghz wireless every time I run it! The $5 a month fee for monitoring and the “free” starter kit is very tempting. For people that get a break on homeowner’s insurance, it is really tempting!
Get a dog…
Yeah, a dog’s the best alarm, but not much use when you & the dog are elsewhere - which is exactly when I want the alarm!
Get a remote robot dog. Note to Wyze… Read… ##
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Thanks for all the feedback & suggestions. Sounds like the best way to harden the Wyze system would be to connect it to the internet via a cellphone or a mobile router, with one or more UPSs for additional base station and router battery life and for the cameras. That would give you connectivity no matter what happens - at least until the batteries run down!
This is almost exactly what I do on my boat: I have a Huawei router with a sim, which provides the internet access; I connect my Wzecams and sensors to it, as well as my remote thermometers, power system, leak detectors, etc., and I can receive alerts and view my Wyzecams even though the boat’s in another country. Everything runs off shore power, but switches over to the house batteries if shore power goes out. It’s been working well for quite a while - except for once when the shore power got disconnected and I’d forgotten to put the inverter on standby! The cellular internet connection is pretty cheap - about $25.00/mo - so it’s well worth it. I think I’ll look into doing something similar at the house once I get my Wyze Security system. If it works out I’ll post the details here.
- Dave
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Hi @dasnider That mobile hotspot is a good alternative to keep things connected. Fact is no matter what precautions you take there is always a way around them. Using good locks, keeping your valuable items hidden and being on good terms with your neighbors is about all one can do. If a burgler knows you have something they want there is nothing you can do to stop them. As one wize man told me, “Locks are for honest people”. 
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@Dr.Know: fair point - you’re absolutely right that a real pro will be able to get around pretty much any standard alarm system. Though I’d say ‘unlocked doors are for honest people, locks (and alarms) are for incompetent dishonest people, but nothing can keep out competent dishonest people’!
Most of the thefts I’ve been seeing in my neighborhood on RIng and Nextdoor videos seem to be by incompetent or semi-competent types - homeless or otherwise desperate people who don’t even seem to know or care that they’re being photographed. Those are the people I want to deter, as there are a lot of them in these difficult times. I’ll just hope that my old house isn’t grand enough to attract a real pro!
-Dave
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@dasnider Yes, locks are a deterent which keeps honest people from the temptation of becoming dishonest. Most thiefs are fairly lazy and don’t want to deal with several levels of security. Most burgles are comitted by a relative, other people you know or who were in your home, such as a service person. While they may not be person comitting the crime they may blab about some item of value they saw in your home and word gets around.
There are lot of people with time on their hands who go around taking pictures with their cell phones of peoples back door, open windows, cars which are associated with a home, etc. These peps meet at a McDonalds (in my hood) down the street and collect the weak spots, schedules and other intellegence to create a plan of attack.
They go so far as to pick up a hand full of menus from a restaurant or other biz and put them on the front door knobs of homes, turning the handle to see if its unlocked. They continue their route while calling to let another person know which address is open.
So there are intellegent competent people who plan and organize to lead those semi-competent types to collect info and others who carry out the task.
I was on the way out for food shopping and saw a guy walking his dog and talking on his cell phone. He was taking a rest at the corner when I left. When I came back 40 min later he was still there talking, looking around and avoiding eye contact. All fairly innocent but I took a pix of him w/my cell phone, sent it to my neighbors and posted on Nextdoor. Its bit of a game w/me.
edit: The most valuable function of an alarm is not to summon police (who don’t do much of anything) but to let you know IF someone has breached your home secuirty and may still be in your home.
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Wow, scary scenarios! Had no idea there was that level of organization & cooperation - just assumed most burglars were loners or maybe a couple of people (one as lookout, the other to ransack the house).
Hopefully the future Wyze decals and yard signs will be a deterrent, at least for those ‘lazy’ burglars!
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Still. There is no Cell back up. Cut the cable and no signal will be sent out. Ring will send out signal if cable is not working.
True that there’s no built-in cell backup with the Wyze system, but it would be fairly easy to set up your own, per my initial post above.
Yes. Great idea, but much easier and cheaper just to go with ring. I already have four cameras and ring doorbells.
or SimpliSafe but all these are easily circumvented. You can jam the mobile data or record the code sent by radio between the fob or keypad and the base unit. Type the name of an alarm system into Youtube and watch the HowTo videos.
If someone wants something you have and knows where it is they will take it irregardless of alarm sophistication.
Yes. I agree. EVERTHING can be compromised. But all alarms are just for the low tech thieves which are what the majority are.
Yeah, I’ve got a Ring doorbell and am reasonably happy with it, but am very invested in Wyze and want to give their new security system a try. If they haven’t improved their reliability then I’ll prob. switch to Ring.
- David
The problem with that is you have to buy all wyze gear and all the contact switches and install . Then if you don’t like it then you got to pull that stuff off return it and then buy the ring stuff
Wyze Home Security equipment is it UL listed Alarm equipment?
Yes the monitoring is UL listed, but the Real Question is the device made by Wyze UL listed Alarm Equipment?
I really doubt the equipment made for Wyze, and sold by Wyze is UL listed alarm equipment as the requirements for the UL listing of Alarm Devices & Equipment are very stringent.
It is good that the monitoring provider is UL listed but if the signal never gets to the monitoring center it would not be their responsibility.
If the Alarm equipment fails to get the data to the monitoring center then your alarm is useless during that loss of data, bug in software, etc…
UL listed Alarm Devices have to prove their communications are reliable as part of the certification, Wyze Alarm devices do not have any UL listing that I can find for the equipment.
If the Wyze Alarm equipment is UL listed what listing is it under UL 681 or other? (UL 827 is Only the Monitoring Company)
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I just want to install it once. I think ring is the better option.
Not sure how you would know which is better, since the Wyze alarm hasn’t shipped yet. I’ll reserve judgment until I’ve tried it. Can always run both!
Not true? Somebody got one.