All you Need to Know About Cove Security Systems

There are many options out there for securing your home. In recent years there has been increasing number of manufacturers providing DIY alternatives to the professionally installed and monitored traditional systems. One such security system that has made enormous inroads into the market is Cove Security Systems.

I’m a security and tech buff with experience of alarm system installation and monitoring. I’m also a business- and home-owner concerned with securing my assets and family. So, I’m interested in how Cove compares with the competition. In this article I dig into Cove, their products and services, their cost-effectiveness, benefits and drawbacks and and how they compare overall with the competition. Some other options I recommend (Arlo & Simplisafe), can be found here If you are interested in Arlo and

What is Cove Security Systems and What Do They Offer?

Cove Security, based in Utah, manufacturers and monitors home security systems. It has become one of the top 5 home security companies on the market. Its major selling point is that it combines the simplicity of a DIY security system with the reassurance of professional monitoring. The lineup of sensors that come with the Cove system are pre-paired making it incredibly easy to set up. In fact, Cove claim the average install time is just 27 minutes! There’s also touch-screen control panels which are very nice to use. And Cove’s 24/7 professional monitoring uses reliable cellular communication, does not require a contract, and starts at an affordable $17/month.

As far as overall cost goes, Cove’s pricing is very decent. Cove also often offers heavy discounts on it’s hardware and there’s a comforting 60-day risk-free guarantee.

Cove has won several awards in the industry and has gained a large following of loyal customers over it’s short lifetime.

How does Cove Security Systems work and how do I get Started?

Cove provides wireless security systems for your home. They have numerous sensors, such as motion detectors and door and window sensors that will trigger if they are breached. These trigger will alert you and the monitoring station of the breach and further action can be taken.

While the installation of these DIY devices is pretty straightforward, knowing how many sensor you should purchase, and where to install them for best coverage can be a little more daunting. There’s three ways you can approach this with Cove.

Option 1: Answer Some Questions and Cove will Build the System

Firstly, and probably the simplest place to start, is Cove’s website. On its website, respond to a few questions about the size of your home, how many outside doors and ground floor windows you have, whether you have dogs, and so on. It will then create a system for you. This way, you know you’ll have decent coverage without too much guesswork.

Option 2: Build Your Own System

A second option is to build your own system. This applies to those people that know what they need. If you know what you need. If that’s you, then you can kind of pick the various items a la carte, from their menu. The devices are self-explanatory, so it’s not a difficult task.

Option 3: Select a Pre-Packaged Bundle

The third alternative is to purchase a standard bundle. Cove offers some prepackaged equipment as a bundle that can get you off to a good start. You can always add to it later.

What Features Does Cove Offer

Cove offers a range of devices and services. However, these are kept simple.

Cove Devices

So Cove offers a nice lineup of devices. Their equipment includes all the sensors you could possibly need to secure your home from both burglars and environmental emergencies like fire, CO2 and flooding.

Touch Screen Control Panel

This is the brains of the system that connects the sensors from your house to the monitoring center. It looks good, kind of like a tablet, and can be placed anywhere. This is where the system is armed and disarmed. It’s possible to enter up to 20 users (friends/family you trust) in the system.

The control panel comes with cellular backup. If internet goes out it doesn’t matter, you are still connected to Cove’s monitoring center. The 24-hour battery backup ensures that you remain connected during a power outage too.

The control panel also boasts Smash and Grab protection. If anyone tries to tamper with the panel or moves when it’s armed, it immediately alerts your phone and contacts the monitoring center. Plus, the siren will alarm. All around, the control panel is a well-designed piece of equipment.

Door Sensor

The door sensor detects when a door is opened. Like most door or window sensors, it comes in two parts. One part the is mounted on the stationary section, in this case the door frame). The second part of the sensor is mounted on the moving section, in this case the door itself. These two parts are mounted adjacent to each other and can sense when the gap widens between them, initiating an alert to the panel.

The sensor is wireless with an impressive 5-year life expectancy. Like other sensors, it’s pre-programmed into your control panel.

Window Sensor

The second most common entry point for thieves is through windows. These window sensors operate the same way as a door sensor. They are compact and have a long 5-year battery life.

Motion Detector

The Cove motion detector is a really nice compact device. In fact it is one of the smaller motion detectors out there. This makes it less obvious when installed. It can go anywhere really, because it’s wireless. Install it in your hallway or in the corner of the living room. When the system is armed, the motion detector will provide an alert whenever movement is detected.

We installed Cove’s motion sensor in our downstairs hallway, as it is a high-traffic and central location. Again, the motion sensor was wireless with a battery life of five years, another “set it and forget it” type of device. And although we don’t have any pets of our own, pet parents will be happy to hear that the sensor won’t detect furry friends under 45 pounds, which should dramatically reduce the number of false notifications you receive.

With all of the sensors, Cove let us arm certain ones and not others, like if we were watching a movie upstairs but wanted the downstairs sensors on. This made us feel safe whether we were home or not.

Key Fob Remote

I consider this an essential device. It makes using your system so much more convenient. If you aren’t near your Touch Screen Control Panel, then the key fob is crucial to easily arm/disarm or even activate a panic alarm that contacts the emergency services immediately. This is ideal when entering or leaving your home as it works up to 100 yards away from the panel. Also, the Cove smartphone app is only available on the Plus plan. That means if you’re on the Basic plan, you don’t have access to the system via your phone! This is a major drawback. That’s why the key fob is so useful. It’s small and easy to transport along with your keys. It also has a monster battery life of 5 years.

Indoor Camera

The Cove Indoor Camera has a 1080p HD display with the option to zoom in four times. This allows details to be seen pretty clearly, which is important when collecting details of incidents. However, the field of view is limited at 112 degrees.

It is a wired camera, not wireless. That means is does have limitations in where it can be mounted. However, it is an indoor camera so locating near an outlet is not too much of an issue.

The camera’s eight infrared LED sensors allow clear night vision. The touch screen control panel can also be used to for two-audio with the camera, which is a very convenient feature, not just for security, but communicating with others in your home. Storing video footage is easy and 30 days of cloud storage comes in at $2.99/camera. That’s pretty affordable compared to other providers. Probably the cheapest on the market currently is Wyze. The provide cloud storage of 12-second recordings for free and which are available for 14 days. If you want Wyze continuous recording storage then it’s just $1.49/camera/month. With Cove Plus, you get 60 days of cloud storage. All in all, Coves cameras and storage plans hold up well to competition.

One area Cove indoor cameras lack is in the smart technology using artificial intelligence (AI). This technology is continually developing, making cameras “smarter”. Basically, AI allows the camera to determine people, vehicles, animals, and recognise faces. That type of thing. Cove has some of these features but they are not the most reliable. This can then be annoying when you receive non-emergency notifications because the camera alerted for a non-urgent event.

One interesting AI feature that is nice is the “cry-detection”. This could be used to re-purpose the camera as a baby cam.

Doorbell Camera

There are currently two door bell options: Kami Doorbell Camera and Skybell Doorbell Camera. Both look good although the Skybell is more small and more sleek looking. The Skybell requires wiring like a traditional doorbell to power it. The Kami though can be powered via doorbell wiring or via battery (up to 1 month life), or via USB. Both have 1080HD definition although the Skybell has a 15 frame rate versus Kami’s 20 fps.

The two-way communication is helpful and works well. The video is nice and clear on the Cove app. But overall, there are better doorbell cameras on the market.

Outdoor Camera

Like the Indoor camera, Cove’s outdoor camera shares similar features. With 1080p video resolution and night vision, motion detected recording and local video storage when an microSD card is inserted plus optional cloud video storage. Hwoever, the Outdoor camera boast a wider field of view (140 degrees). This isn’t as wide as Arlo though.

The night vision on the outdoor camera is also better than it’s indoor counterpart. With star light sensors that allow color night vision. This is an increasingly popular feature on cameras these days, like Wyze and Reolink.

The outdoor camera lacks a couple of the AI features of the indoor model- person detection and cry detection. This somewhat limits application.

The battery life is pretty good at an estimated 6 months and overall the Cove Outdoor Camera is decent. But it isn’t impressive. other cameras provide much better options and performance, like those from Arlo. That said, if you’re in the Cove ecosystem, it makes sense to go with their camera.

Glass Break Detector

A glass break detector does what is says, detects the sound of breaking glass. These are again wireless devices that have a great battery-life of 5 years. These are useful addition to areas where there’s a lot of windows or doors that could be tempting entry points for burglars.

Smoke / CO Detector

Supplementing the burglar side of things are Cove’s environmental monitors. One of these detects sudden increases in temperature and uses ion-based detection to distinguish between burnt food (they must have had my cooking in mind), and burnt furniture. These are a useful addition. Typically one per floor near bedrooms, hallways, or living areas is a good guide.

Flood Sensor

We can all take functional plumbing for granted… until there’s an issue. When there’s a leak, it can cause tremendous damage. Weather events can also create havoc. A flood sensor can help you catch a problem and deal with it before it becomes out of hand. These are wireless devices have a 5-year battery life. They’re inexpensive but may also help save you on your home insurance too.

Medical Button

This a nice add-on, especially for those with elderly folks in the home. Wear it like a necklace, and if there’s an emergency, press the button for 2 seconds. It will send a signal and alert the authorities that you need help. It’s Cove’s answer to “I’ve fallen and I can’t get up’ emergency.

Cove Monitoring Services

The services Cove offers underscores Cove’s commitment to professional, reliable 24/7 monitoring.

The Cove system communicates with one of six monitoring centers across the US. These are manned with trained response personnel. But Cove also offers some other features to ensure speed in communicating with the official emergency services should an incident warrant it.

In an emergency, Cove Monitoring applies a three-factor communication approach known as Triple-Touch Alarm Response to contact you. So, when an incident occurs, like a door sensor is opened while the system is armed, the system will communicate with you in three ways:

1. LiveAssist. This the first step. LiveAssist is a dedicated two-way communication channel between you and Cove built into your alarm panel. Whenever your alarm goes off, day or night, we’ll speak to you directly through the panel. This is a two-way communication channel between you and Cove. When an alarm occurs, Cove personnel will talk to you straight through the control panel. It doesn’t matter if it’s day or night.
2. InstaText. At the same time LiveAssist is activated, a text-message is sent to your mobile phone using Cove’s InstaText service. You can then choose to dismiss the alarm or initiate a dispatch of emergency services directly from the text. So, when you are away from home, you have the assurance you won’t miss anything.
3. Direct Phone Call. The last step of the three-factor response is a good old fashioned voice call. If Cove cannot reach you at that point, then they will dispatch the emergency services.

How much Do Cove Security Systems Cost and Where Can I Buy Them?

There are a couple parts to consider when investing in a Cove system. Firstly, there is the equipment cost. These are the sensors themselves. Then, there is the monitoring fees. And thirdly, if you require storage of video footage, you can pay for Cove’s cloud storage service. The Cove site is the best and most convenient way to purchase a Cove devices and plans.

1- Cove’s Equipment Cost

Cove offers some decent discounts on their equipment. Fill out the questionnaire on their site first to give you an idea of the recommended devices and costing. You can also check the prepackaged bundles. The following provides list prices (before discount) of Cove’s devices. Bear in mind that every Cove system will need a control panel.

Category	Name	Product Type	Normal Price	Current Price
Essential	Cove Touch Alarm Panel	Touch-screen Control	$249.00	$124.50
Essential	Security Key Remote	Control	$25.00	$12.50
Burglar	Door/Window Sensor	Entry Sensor	$15.00	$7.50
Burglar	Motion Detector	Sensor	$30.00	$15.00
Burglar	Glass Break Detector	Sensor	$35.00	$17.50
Cameras	Indoor Camera	Security Camera	$99.00	$49.50
Cameras	Outdoor Camera	Security Camera	$199.00	$99.50
Cameras	SkyBell Doorbell Camera	Video Doorbell	$189.00	$189.00
Cameras	Kami Doorbell Camera	Video Doorbell	$99.00	$99.00
Safety	Smoke and CO Detector	Environmental Sensor	$55.00	$27.50
Safety	Flood Sensor	Environmental Sensor	$20.00	$10.00
Safety	Panic/Medical Button	Help Button	$20.00	$10.00

Essential Equipment

• Touch-screen alarm panel: $249
• Key remote: $25 (not essential but incredibly convenient)

Burglar Devices

• Motion detector: $30
• Door/window sensor: $15
• Glass-break detector: $35

Safety Devices

• Smoke/heat/freeze detector: $30
• Carbon monoxide (CO) detector: $50
• Flood sensor: $20
• Medical panic button: $20

Cameras

• Indoor camera: $99
• Outdoor camera: $199
• Kami Doorbell Camera: $99
• Skybell Doorbell Camera: $189

[Information current at publish date. Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change.]

2- Cove’s Two Available Monitoring Plans

There are two monitoring plans from Cove. The Basic plan is $0.50/day or ~$15/month. The Plus plan is $0.83/day or ~$25 a month. Remember there are no contracts and you can cancel any time.

Both Cove Basic and Plus plans offer:

• Environmental monitoring of smoke sensors or other environmental sensors.
• 24/7 professional live alarm monitoring
• InstaText notifications and responses. Cove claims this response is 10x faster than their DIY security competition.
• Two-way communication through the touch panel with monitoring personnel
• Three-factor alerts using the touch control panel, phone call, and text
• Smash and Grab Protection which alerts you if the control panel is moved or tampered with while armed
• A 100% Verizon / AT&T 4G LTE cellular connection
• 24-hour battery backup in case of power outage

The Cove Plus monitoring plan additionally provides:

• Home automation options via Alexa and Google Home
• Lifetime equipment warranty
• Lifetime monitoring rate-lock guarantee
• Equipment credits of $5/month for purchasing additional devices

[Information current at publish date. Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change.]

3- Cove’s Security Camera Cloud Storage

You have three options:

1. Free storage with a microSD card. If you want to save on video footage storage you can do it for free by using a microSD (up to 32GB) card in each camera. However, if you want cloud storage of video, there are two options:
2. Cove Plus. This comes with support for unlimited cameras and provides one day of cloud storage.
3. Cove Cloud+. This allows you to extend the amount of video you can save to 30 days of video clips in the cloud. This is an added $2.99 / month / camera.

[Information current at publish date. Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change.]

What Are Some of The Benefits and Drawbacks of Cove Security Systems?

Cove keeps things nice and simple while crossing off the major requirements in a DIY security system. In a sense it’s a hybrid system, because they combine the ease of DIY install with the assurance of 24/7 professional monitoring. So, what does Cove excel in, and where do they lack?

Benefits of Cove

1. No Contracts. You can cancel monitoring service any time.
2. Touch Screen Control Panel. Cove have done a great job with this device. It’s familiar in look/feel to a tablet. It’s convenient for talking with central station personnel but also those on the other end of cameras. The grab
3. The 24/7 monitoring. The 24/7 professional monitoring is very proficient and it is really affordable. It’s also Cellular-based, making it reliable.
4. Options for Communications. The three-level communications with the monitoring station is a positive feature. Having three distinct methods (LiveAssist, InstaText, as well as Phone) provides diversity and convenient options. In particular, the text is helpful when away, being able to communicate with human personnel in the central stations is helpful.
5. DIY or Pro install. The system is incredibly easy to install. Like really easy. BUT, if you did need some help, you can pay to have it professionally installed. The $79 fee is reasonable too.
6. 60-day Money Back Guarantee & Life Time Warranty. This is a reassuring gesture from Cove. They have full confidence that you’ll love it!
7. Free camera often included. Yes, Cove likes to discount and offer freebies. They often include a free camera worth a good amount, when you purchase a system.

Drawbacks of Cove

1. Decent but Unimpressive Cameras. Lacking in features and performance. Other cameras offer better in both departments, like Arlo on the higher price end, and Wyze, which provides impressive bang for your buck.
2. Camera cloud storage. For useful storage in the cloud you’ll have to fork out additional $2.99/month/camera. If you have a few cameras, this can quickly add to the monthly cost!
3. The Cove Mobile App. The Cove app for mobile costs $27.99/month. A Cove Plus plan is required for you to use it. This is a major limitation.
4. No self-monitoring option. You’ll have to fork out at least $14.99/month to have your system for their professional monitoring. Instead, users will have to pay a monthly fee for professional monitoring.
5. Home Automation options. There is integration with Alexa and Google Home but more extensive options like other systems can offer is somewhat limited.
6. Cove Siren. The Cove siren is lacking in output compared to those from their competitors. More volume the better- it alerts but also scares!

Consider Cove if…

If you’re on a budget but want professional monitoring, Cove is a great option. It’s equipment is frequently and heavily discounted making it cheaper than most of its competitors. The cameras, which can often be a significant investment from any service provider, are often free or half-price when you purchase a Cove system. That’s a big savings!

If you want the assurance of professional monitoring, then Cove is a good choice. You’ll be able to communicate directly with the monitoring stations via the convenient touch panel control panel, as well as via text and phone. This is a feature lacking in many other companies.

Don’t Consider Cove if…

While Cove has some nice features at a very competitive price, it does lack. If you are interested in home automation options or third-party integration with other smart devices, then Cove currently isn’t for you. If you would like to opt out of professional monitoring service and self-monitor the system, then Cove isn’t for you. Other systems like SimpliSafe offer professional monitoring and self-monitoring with similar simple DIY systems and price points. If you want extra smartphone features and configuration options, Cove also falls short compared to others. And if you want a camera-based security system, then other systems like Arlo, do a better job.

The Final Score: Is Cove Security Worth It?

Is Cove worth the investment? Yes. It is very affordable and the professional monitoring is a great service. If you are looking for other more advanced features like home automation, self-monitoring, better camera quality and advanced smartphone options, then look at other systems. However, Cove is very solid and a really great option, especially for those on budget that don’t mind forking out $18-27 monthly for professional monitoring. Check out other simple ways to enhance your security using the 6 D’s.