Home security products have expanded well beyond traditional alarm systems, now spanning standalone cameras, video doorbells, smart locks, and monitored systems that combine several of these components into one subscription.
The main categories
Broadly, home security products fall into a few categories: self-monitored systems that send alerts directly to a phone, professionally monitored systems that involve a monitoring company, and standalone devices like cameras or doorbells that operate independently of a larger system.
Each category involves different trade-offs around ongoing cost, setup complexity, and how a household is notified when something happens.
Questions worth asking before choosing
Before selecting a system, it's worth understanding whether it requires a subscription to function fully, how it behaves during an internet or power outage, and how footage or data is stored and for how long.
As with any connected home product, it's worth reviewing a company's stated privacy and data practices directly before making a purchase decision, since these vary significantly between providers.