Outside of the base equipment in every starter kit, Vivint sells sensors that allow your system to detect other threats like smoke, flooding, glass breaking, and carbon monoxide.
While Vivint's accessories don't play starring roles in monitoring your home, they make it more convenient to lock the door, close the garage, arm your system, and control your AC using the Vivint app.
Vivint sells three security camera models: the Vivint Indoor Camera, the Vivint Outdoor Camera Pro, and the Vivint Doorbell Camera Pro. All three models have 1080p video quality and compete well with offerings from Frontpoint and ADT.
The company recently updated its outdoor camera and doorbell camera to stay ahead. As with most Vivint equipment, these cameras are pricier than usual. The outdoor camera pro's price tag is almost on par with that of the Google Nest Cam IQ*, the most expensive security camera.
Smart Sentry lurker detection in the Vivint Outdoor Camera Pro and Vivint Doorbell Camera Pro uses Smart Deter technology to scare off would-be intruders.
If a shifty stranger stands in view of the camera, your camera will start recording and emit a tone or whistle to tell them they’re being watched. We haven’t seen anything like it from other security cameras, giving Vivint a top spot in our rankings for best home security system.
If you want to learn more, our Vivint camera guide has more details about Vivint’s indoor, outdoor, and smart cameras.
The Vivint Smart Drive is essentially a hard drive that saves up to 30 days of continuous security footage. We like local storage like this because it's typically more secure than storing videos in the cloud, though you shouldn't put it in an obvious location where burglars can find it.
Vivint Car Guard plugs into the OBD II port you find on most cars made after 1996. It allows you to monitor important information about your car using your smartphone:
- Location
- Battery life
- Check Engine messages
It also records a variety of trip statistics (including your impeccable driving habits).
This GPS vehicle tracker also boosts your car's security by telling you if someone bumps it or if a tow truck picks it up. Thanks to built-in GPS and an LTE cellular signal, you'll always know where you parked your car too.
Although the trip statistics and monitoring are the main reason to get Vivint Car Guard, it's also a useful addition to a Vivint security system. We like that the Car Guard can trigger lights and cameras in your home in reaction to thieves breaking into your car.
While Car Guard works with Vivint security systems, it doesn't require one. There's no contract, but you pay a $10 monthly fee for the first car and $5 for each additional vehicle. If you already have a Vivint system, the monthly payment drops to $3.33 for each car.
Vivint's third-party smart home support is among the best in the home security industry. We especially like that it sells many of these devices directly to customers, making it easier for you to outfit your Vivint system in one fell swoop.
Vivint has two Alexa skills that allow you varying degrees of control over your Vivint system when you use an Amazon Echo smart speaker. The Complete skill has the highest functionality of the two since it can arm your system in addition to typical smart home requests. But you need to use the phrase "Ask Vivint to . . . " before you issue a command.
The Basic skill works more like a regular Alexa command and doesn't require you to ask Vivint anything. While it works with lights, thermostats, locks, and cameras, this skill doesn't offer an arming feature.
Feel free to browse our Alexa guide if you want to learn more about Amazon's smart home platform.
