Abode vs Ring – Which Home Security System is Best?

When it comes to comfort and security, there is no substitute for our homes. Home security systems are used to maintain this sense of safety and well-being. These systems are nothing similar to the pair of doors and locks used in the older times. Equipped with sensors, electronics, and connectivity technologies, these units are a nightmare for intruders. Due to the ever-rising need for these systems, brands like Abode and Ring have emerged as reliable options.

Ring and Abode offers a wide range of home security solutions to the users, to create an impenetrable cover for their homes. Both brands offer products with advanced surveillance features, subscription plans, and compatibility with smart home integrations. As both brands are almost identical in terms of their products and services, choosing one over the other becomes difficult.

We will study the differences between Abode and Ring to solve this dilemma. This article includes a detailed comparison of the features of Abode and Ring products.

Abode Security Systems: An Overview

Adobe started its journey in the home security market in the year 2014. Thanks to an experienced team of technology and security professionals, Abode quickly rose to the consumers’ expectations. Using the experience of its team, Abode has developed a diverse range of home security products. By allowing the freedom of customization, Abode ensures better coverage of your homes.

Users can select from a variety of products like doorbells, motion sensors, security cameras, and others, as per their needs. Apart from this, Abode offers simplified subscription plans to help users access crucial features. The products also follow a strict DIY-friendly design to guarantee hassle-free installations. All these reasons were enough for Abode to grab the consumers’ attention.

Pros

• The subscription plans for Adobe products are simpler than the other brands.
• The products offer compatibility with several smart home integrations.
• It offers some of the best motion detection sensors across its product range.
• The equipment bundles at priced lower price than their competitors
• It is one of the few brands which offer international shipping of its products.
• Due to Abode’s price-matching policy, the equipment can be purchased at lower prices.

Cons

• Users have to pay additional charges to ship Abode security systems
• The cameras do not have higher resolution options like 2K and 4K
• The Abode security app feels buggy and hence freezes while being used

Ring Security Systems: An Overview

Ring created waves in the home security market with a new segment of smart doorbells. With time, it quickly adapted to the demands of the consumers and offered relevant solutions. Ring is an expert in creating reliable home security products with user-friendly functionality. The products are tuned to offer better safety coverage to create safer neighbourhoods.

Ring focuses on wireless technology to ensure portability in its product range. These products serve various applications including outdoor and automobile surveillance. Ring also promotes DIY-friendly design through its product range to reduce the complicated installations at the user end. Pairing the products with the latest technologies, Ring also offers compatibility with server devices and smart home hubs.

Pros

• It offers a variety of products to the users to serve different types of applications.
• A large portion of its product range and subscription plans are priced aggressively to make them available for budget-oriented users.
• It is one of the selective brands that offers self-monitoring as a standard feature in its subscription plans.
• All types of users can pair the Ring app to their products, regardless of their subscription plan.
• The products have a DIY-friendly design which eliminates the need for professional installation.
• It offers additional benefits like yearly payments and extended warranties to the users.

Cons

• The high-end products are equipped with better-quality sensors and cameras, compared to the basic equipment.
• The option of professional monitoring is reserved for users who have subscribed to a premium plan
• Configuring or modifying the settings of the devices is difficult for the users

Comparison of Features Between Adobe and Ring Security Systems

Some features need to be considered to differentiate between the Abode and Ring brands. These features are commonly found in the products of both brands. By discussing these features, we will understand their importance in the performance of home security systems. We will then compare features from Adobe products with those from Ring products to get a simplified comparison.

1. Installation

Positioning of the home security products is important for its functionality. If the mounting is done in the wrong way, the product might experience glare from the sunlight, uneven movement, and many other problems. To ensure the correct installation of the products, both brands have designed their products in a way that suits DIY installation. Abode products are strictly DIY units and do not come with professional installation. Ring offers both options: user-level installation or professional installation starting from $120 to $250.

2. Equipment

The cost of equipment sometimes works as the deal-braking factor for a consumer. The equipment must be priced in a way that offers the best value for money. As consumers do not wish to dent their pockets, Ring and Abode offers standalone and combo packages for their equipment. The base price for Abode security equipment starts from $230 and goes up to $420. Depending on their type, the add-on equipment costs around $3 to $100. Ring has priced its equipment between $50 to $1200, including all the add-ons.

3. Monitoring

Monitoring is the most sought-after feature of any security system. It allows the user to keep an eye on their homes without worrying about intrusion. In case of an intrusion, monitoring helps in identifying the threats and alerting the concerned authorities. Both Abode and Ring offer self-monitoring and professional monitoring options to the users. The self-monitoring plans are free and only the user can perform it. In professional monitoring, a team of technicians takes responsibility for monitoring and alerting the user. Ring offers professional monitoring for $20 per month while Abode offers the same at $20.5 per month.

4. Security Modes

With security modes, a user can customize the level of alertness for their security systems. This helps in preventing false alarms when a user is accessing the monitoring areas of security products like motion sensors. Both Ring and Adobe products have three different security modes.

Ring offers Home, Away, and Disarmed modes. In the Home mode, the user can keep the outdoor security system ON while they freely move indoors. In the Away mode, the security systems will be alert and will identify even the slightest motion. In the Disarmed mode, the system will be ON but not send any alerts or detect any motion (CO or smoke sensor can be turned on via settings).

Similarly, Abode offers Home, Away, and Standby modes. In the Home mode, only entry sensors placed at doors, windows, or other locations will be active. In the Away mode, all the features of the security system will be turned ON to ensure optimum surveillance. In the standby mode, features like alerts and system detection will be OFF.

5. Subscription Plans

Every security system offers basic functionality that might get the job done. But, in some cases, the users can take advantage of additional features to optimize their security. Hence, Abode and Ring offer multiple subscription plans to their users. Features like 24/7 monitoring, SOS alerts, cellular connectivity, video recording, unlimited cloud storage, and many others are included in these subscription packages.

Ring Offers Three Subscription Packages:

• The Basic plan is priced at $4 (monthly) or $40 (yearly)
  
• Plus plan is priced at $10 (monthly) or $100 (yearly)
  
• Pro plan priced at $20 (monthly) or $200 (yearly)
  

Abode has Only Two Subscription Packages:

• The standard plan is priced at $7 (monthly) or $70 (yearly)
  
• Pro priced at $23 (monthly) or $220 (yearly)
  

6. Sound Level (Siren Range)

When the security system detects anything abnormal, it creates various alerts to make the user aware of the situation. The siren is a major part of the alert system as it creates a loud noise. This noise keeps the intruders away and also alerts the nearby people. Hence, the sound level must be loud enough to grab the attention of everyone. Sirens used in Abode security products offer adjustable sound levels of 95 dB to 107 dB. Similarly, sirens used in Ring security products can reach sound levels of 100 dB to 104 dB. All the sirens can be heard from a minimum distance of 1 meter.

7. Smart Home Integration

In the modern age of technologies, home security systems are expected to be compatible with smart home integrations. This allows the home security products to become a part of the centralized system or hub of smart homes. By parking your product with the smart home integration, automation, and control can be done through shared devices. Ring supports smart home integrations like Google Home, SmartThings, Alexa, Google Assistant, etc. Abode is also compatible with these options, including the Boss Smart Home family, Amazon Echo, and Apple Homekit, Both brands support devices like smartphones, doorbells, thermostats, etc.

8. Mobile Access Control

Mobile apps are a great alternative for controlling security systems. Users can arm or disarm a product with just one tap. Apart from controlling a product, these apps also display crucial data to the users. The users can view live feeds, get notifications, access various settings, and do a lot more through these apps. Both Abode and Ring offer specialized apps for smartphones called Abode App and Ring app. Both apps are available on the Google Play Store and Apple App Store.

9. Battery Life

Home security products are either wired or wireless. Battery life is associated with the wireless units, as they are directly powered by rechargeable batteries. This helps in mounting products away from power sources. The battery life should be good to avoid frequent charging or replacement of batteries. Depending on the device and its battery capacity, the battery life changes. Ring products offer battery backup of 8 hours to 1 year. Similarly, Abode security products can last for 8 hours to several months.

10. Power Source

A reliable power source is important for home security systems to operate efficiently. As mentioned above, wireless units are usually powered with rechargeable batteries. For the wired units. A power cable is used. This power cable is connected to a stable power outlet. The supply can be 110V AC or 240V AC, depending on the power grid specifications of your region. The batteries must be of compatible specifications to efficiently run the unit. Similarly, wired units must use electrically compatible components to prevent short circuits.

11. Connectivity

With connectivity, the home security systems will not be able to share their data with the user. Connectivity technologies not only allow the transfer of data, but they also assist in emergencies. Connectivity should always be free of lags. Hence, WiFi is popularly used for its seamless network connectivity. Some units use dual connectivity options which include WiFi and cellular connectivity. Dual connectivity helps maintain a connection between the system and the user, even if one of the connectivity technologies malfunctions.

Comparison of Abode and Ring Products

To create a base for comparison, we have discussed features for Abode and Ring. Now, it will be easy to understand the major differences between both brands. To get a better clarity of this comparison, we will put an Abode product against a Ring product. Various specifications for these products will be included to differentiate them in a tabular format.

Abode vs Ring: Which is Best?

To decide which brand outperforms the other one, we must understand our needs. Surely, both brands are popular and reliable but they do lack in some departments. However, they also offer better service in some applications, making them a suitable option.

Speaking of Abode, it offers compatibility with a wide range of smart home integrations. Its equipment is available to users with flexible payment and contact options. This makes it an ideal alternative for the tech-savvy users.

Similarly, Ring also excels in some of its features. It offers a better pricing of its product range, making it available for the masses. The subscription plans are diverse, to suit every type of user. Besides this, its products are easy to install and operate.

Abode vs Ring – FAQs

Conclusion

By exploring home security products, we can choose the best alternatives for our home’s security. Brands like Abode and Ring ensure that every type of user gets to add the best security cover for their homes. Since Ring and Abode share multiple similarities, it becomes hard to choose a product from both brands. This article deals with this confusion, by simply comparing features and one product of Abode and Ring. Using this information, you will be able to select the best home security product for your home.