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Does anyone have CPI Security's 2-way feature where in the event of an emergency a live person speaks to you over a 2-way intercom that is installed in your home and wired to their monitoring station for live and immediate response (similar to Onstar in cars)? I am trying to get some feedback on whether anyone finds this feature valuable and/or even worth it.
I have been checking out security companies and found that CPI has a pretty decent track record and primarily services the Carolinas. I am leaning towards using them, but wanted to get feedback on this feature and their overall service from fellow members on this forum.
We DO NOT have it, and I hate to crash your thread uninvited if you want only feedback from those who DO have it, but I would dispense with the over-reliance on yet another technical fad that will cost you hard-earned money and play into profits for CPI.
That's what dialing 911 is for. If you can get to a wall panel, you can get to a phone. You can WEAR a phone. What happens if your emergency is in the shower, or back yard? Your "help" is not within easy reach.
I personally find this stuff to be yet another example of big companies telling you what you need for their own good.
We DO NOT have it, and I hate to crash your thread uninvited if you want only feedback from those who DO have it, but I would dispense with the over-reliance on yet another technical fad that will cost you hard-earned money and play into profits for CPI.
That's what dialing 911 is for. If you can get to a wall panel, you can get to a phone. You can WEAR a phone. What happens if your emergency is in the shower, or back yard? Your "help" is not within easy reach.
I personally find this stuff to be yet another example of big companies telling you what you need for their own good.
Well said. Thanks for your contribution ... appreciate it.
The Have alot of complaints against them beside who would want someone to be able to just listen into your house at any time ? They advertise 99 installed but by the time your done it's over $50 a month. I choose a local smaller local alarm company and they did a professional installation American Alarms.
We have them and they're fine--no problems ever. My husband actually did set off the alarm by accident once and we actually liked a live person coming on to talk to him. I guess it seems like it might be a good deterrent. We don't pay $50 a month, and we didn't pay for installation, either. I just wish we didn't sign a 2-year contract (or was it 3?).
I have CPI and don't have any complaints. My system has the two way feature and we used it once when my wife opened the door from inside the house without first disarming the alarm. They asked for our code which we gave and no further action was needed. I personally like the feature and can see where it would be useful. I pay $35/month but I have had my system for over 3 years.
That's what dialing 911 is for. If you can get to a wall panel, you can get to a phone. You can WEAR a phone. What happens if your emergency is in the shower, or back yard? Your "help" is not within easy reach.
I personally find this stuff to be yet another example of big companies telling you what you need for their own good.
Yeah but you can't call 911 if you are not home while someone is breaking into your home. Isn't that really why people get security systems? To protect their house from breakins.
Yeah but you can't call 911 if you are not home while someone is breaking into your home. Isn't that really why people get security systems? To protect their house from breakins.
Don't be so biased.
No they get security systems because they think they will protect their house from break ins. In reality the alarm is all you need and even if you have monitoring and crooks break in and head for the bedrooms by the time the cops get there it's all over anyway.
Yeah but you can't call 911 if you are not home while someone is breaking into your home. Isn't that really why people get security systems? To protect their house from breakins.
Don't be so biased.
Not biased bro, we also have an alarm system, pay $30/mo for that, but don't need/want bells/whistles that do "too much".
Also have Smith&Wesson, Beretta and Colt. All paid up on those.
Here’s my two cents. I had CPI for about 4 years. Twice, I did something stupid that should have brought the cops. Once, we had friends staying with us and I had to leave early for work. I armed the system, like I always do on my way off to work. Apparently my friends got up right after I left and set of the motion detector. The CPI 2 way thingy came on, they didn’t know the passphrase, and CPI called the police. Thirty minutes later I get to the office and have a voicemail from CPI that my alarm had gone off and they had called the police. I knew then what I had did. I called CPI, told them it’s a false alarm, I absent-mindedly armed the system forgetting I had sleeping guests in my home. They said they would call the police but didn’t know if they would be able to stop them from arriving. Well the cops never showed. My alarm goes for 30 minutes, CPI’s vaunted two way speaker communicated with people in my home that don’t know the passphrase and the cops still did not show.
Incident #2, is similar to the first. I was leaving home and started up my Roomba vacuum cleaner. I set the alarm and went on my way Twenty minutes into my drive, I realized my error and called CPI. Same old story. They had called the cops 20 minutes ago, I called them and said it’s false, they called the cops and nobody ever showed up. Now I think these two incidents probably have more to do with the Raleigh PD than CPI, but the fact is so many people have these things now, they simply don’t come screaming with lights flashing when these residential alarms go off.
Last, and this is why I would not do business with CPI. They advertise $99. By the time you are done, it will be 3 or 4 times that. Their advertised deal simply doesn’t have all the components you need to do the job adequately. When I cancelled with them, they said they would send out a technician to take the control chip from the system. I’m like I spent over $400 and you said the system was mine to keep when my 3 year contract is up not to mention I've been with you for 4 years without one late payment. They said the system is yours, but the control chip is their property and it is in the contract. I got out my contract, and sure enough in like 1.5 font, it was buried near the bottom of the page. They never mentioned it and the sales guy kept emphasizing I was purchasing a great system that was mine even if I don’t continue monitoring with them when my contract is up. You have this wonderful expensive system that is worthless because the brains are gone and it's not a part you can buy off the shelf. They keep it, wait for you to sell the house, and come stick it in for the next sucker who buys the house. That’s what they don’t tell you. They are sleazy and I recommend you look at another company. Like some other posters said, the alarm system is nice to have and is useful, but the monitoring is worthless as far as the police go. Maybe the fire response is better, but I don’t know since I never had any false fire alarms. I’ve since moved and I just went with a really nice alarm system and no monitoring. If someone is going to break in, 95% of the time it will be during the day when nobody is home and the siren/buzzer is what’s going to scare them off, not the threat of the cops showing up an hour later. Hope this helps.
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