Review: ADT+ is the best security system for Nest users, but Google is holding back the future

Security systems have existed since a long time now, but for many they are still overly complicated, overly expensive, and not so well integrated with the new wave of smart home products. ADT, one of the biggest names in home security, is on a mission to change that, and after a false start in 2023, the new ADT+ system represents a huge upgrade, especially for those in Google’s Nest ecosystem .

ADT+ – The app and what you can do with it

The new ADT+ platform isn’t just a hardware overhaul, it’s a complete reinvention of ADT’s home security hardware AND software. The same sensors and hardware are used whether you install the system yourself or have it installed by a professional.

For our tests, ADT set up a professional installation for me, where technicians came to my home and, within just an hour (minus some troubleshooting specific to my home), installed my new lock, some door sensors and also the new base station. As someone who has installed a lot of smart home devices and dealt with the countless, unexpected frustrations that often come with setting these devices up, having a professional make it happen was a welcome change of pace, but I’m happy that ADT still let users do everything themselves.

During the initial setup, you’ll need to download the ADT+ app and sign in to your Google Account to connect any Nest devices. After the initial installation, you can also add any additional ADT equipment. This includes new sensors and devices launched by ADT, as well as older sensors that worked with the 2023 system. One of my biggest complaints last time was that users had to call back ADT to add any new sensors after the fact. That’s still true now, but ADT tells me that will change soon, with sensors available for purchase online.

In terms of future-facing software, things look pretty familiar compared to the 2023 system. That is to say, you’ll do everything via the ADT+ app, which is as well-made an app as smart home apps get. ADT notes that it is among the most popular and I can see why. The app does a good job splitting the difference between offering fairly granular settings and features, but presenting them in a way that’s easy to understand and navigate. The app has gotten much faster over the last year and no longer asks for your PIN as often as it did a year ago, which was a very frustrating aspect of my experience with the previous system. It’s pretty obvious that ADT has listened to the feedback regarding its app.

Behind the scenes, though, the entire system is based on a brand new platform that ADT has developed. Instead of relying on software provided by others, ADT built its own platform from scratch. As mentioned above, you won’t notice it directly, but this opens the door to a lot of good possibilities in the future, the company tells me.

Inside the ADT+ app you will get the basic options you would expect from any security system. You can turn the system on or off and check the status of the sensors, but you can also see a live view from connected Nest cameras and even the ability to control a Nest thermostat. This is all limited to Google’s latest cameras (though they’ve been ported from the Nest app to the Home app), but it works well enough and previews and live feeds load a lot faster this time. But you’ll still need the Home app for most things, like viewing your camera history.

However, the app goes beyond this.

Using sensors, ADT allows you to create “Rules” which are useful automations. You can combine sensors and various conditions to automate many things. For example, I also have a motion sensor in my living room that I set up to allow the system to automatically disarm between certain hours in the morning only if the front door is still closed. It only runs on ADT’s hardware, which brings me to one of the best new features, but also one of the biggest areas of potential improvement.

Google Home integration is no longer a one-way street with ADT

Finding a security system that integrates with Google Home has been virtually impossible since the death of Nest Secure. There are options out there, but they usually come in two forms. Either they integrate with Google Assistant, not Google Home, and therefore have limited functionality outside of voice commands, or their integration with Google Home is decidedly one-way.

ADT created its new platform to benefit ADT+ with the use of Nest cameras in the app, but it also began developing proper Google Home integration.

When you initially pair your accounts, your ADT hardware will be added to your Google Home app. You can see the base station and sensors in Home and actually use these devices. Routines can interact with the base station to arm the system, while arming status or sensors can be used as triggers in automations. This is still a bit limited, with some integrations not working perfectly, but it’s the best integration I’ve seen to date. ADT tells me they’re looking to improve this over time, and I’m looking forward to that.

For now, I mainly use it to arm the system at night, but the possibilities go much further. One of the automations I loved and relied on with Nest Secure was the ability to link my internal cameras to whether the system was armed or not. So if the system was armed to “Away”, my internal cameras would turn on. If he were unarmed, they would be turned off. ADT’s integration with Google Home allows me to replicate this, something I’ve sorely missed.

There is still a lot of room for improvement here, as some ADT devices list “triggers”, such as state of charge, which are completely irrelevant and therefore useless. I hope to see these improvements come, but even in its current state, it’s definitely better than anything else I’ve tested.

The best of Nest Secure hardware

The hardware side is also full of improvements over ADT’s previous hardware and it really feels like someone just looked at Nest Secure and made a checklist.

It all starts with the base station. ADT’s new base is big and tall just like the previous generation, but with a new circular design that has a ring of lights at the top. The station can detect when you approach and illuminate the keypad, as well as display a countdown to alarm or arming with the ring. Does this sound familiar? It’s very similar to the Nest Secure system that Google killed off earlier this year, a scheme you’ll find throughout the hardware here. In my opinion these two aren’t as elegant as Secure was, but it’s a step in the right direction.

The base station has a number of different radios inside it, including a cellular backup for when Wi-Fi is absent, as well as DEC/ULE which is used to connect to the ADT sensors. This connection is fast and generally interference-free in most homes, providing a very stable experience for the sensors. In my testing over the past couple of months, connectivity hasn’t been an issue once, and I’ve noticed that the sensors are much quicker to respond within the app than the previous generation system.

In my home I mainly use three sensors, starting with standard door sensors. These detect and open and close motion using a magnet, just as you would with any security system.

They work quite well, but the real benefit this time is the addition of a “Premium” sensor that has a built-in button to temporarily disarm that particular sensor. This is really useful, for example, for letting the dogs out at night while the system is armed or in the morning before the system is completely disarmed. A quick press opens a 10-second window to open the door and reactivates the sensor as soon as the door is closed.

The other novelty is the deep integration with a Yale lock. This block connects to ADT’s hardware and is completely controlled by the ADT app and is the key to the most important part of the new ADT+ system: “Trusted Neighbor”.

“Trusted Neighbor” is a futuristic version of giving someone the key to your house

The idea behind Trusted Neighbor is essentially to modernize and make the practice of handing over house keys more secure. This is done using a combination of the ADT system, Yale Lock, and Google’s Nest cameras to intelligently allow you to unlock the door and disarm the system based on a wide variety of different conditions.

This starts within the ADT+ app. As with any modern security system, you can assign a code to a family member, friend, or anyone else, but the trick with Trusted Neighbor is that you can decide when that code will and won’t work. There are three types of roles, starting with “Family”. A family member, administrator or not, will have an always active code and will also be able to download and use the ADT+ app to view and control the system.

Then there are the “Neighbors”, who can be relatives, friends or your real neighbors. The idea is that these users are not given 24/7 access to your home, but rather on a schedule and/or when an event may occur in your home. The user is assigned a code and can use the ADT+ app to unlock the door, but only within the conditions set.

The “Helpers” role is similar, but designed to be used for people who may need temporary access to your home on a regular schedule, such as a dog walker or cleaning service.

Anyone you invite can simply enter a code to unlock the door, or they can download the ADT+ app to receive controls for the door – always under the conditions you set – from their phone.

The idea here is to allow the system to automate asking your neighbor for a helping hand. You can have the app grant them access when a package is delivered, when a water leak sensor is triggered, or even if a burglar alarm goes off. The neighbor, or a friend/family member, is notified of the event and is granted access to the house based on the conditions you previously set. In the example of a water leak (see below), you as the homeowner may be on the road, while ADT will detect the leak and notify your neighbor to give them access to hopefully fix the problem. It’s a brilliant idea.

However, I think this idea hinges on two significant problems.

The first problem concerns the most interesting feature of Trusted Neighbor.

Using the Yale Lock and Nest Doorbell, the ADT+ app can automatically unlock your door when you or your neighbor approaches. It works by detecting when a smartphone with the app installed comes within range of the Yale lock and when the doorbell detects a “familiar face” approaching. ADT uses that data and the conditions you set to unlock the door.

In theory it’s a brilliant idea. In practice… it’s another story.

The first big problem is the simple fact that “Familiar Faces” is perhaps Google Nest’s best, but least reliable feature. It varies a lot from person to person but, at least in my case, my Nest cameras don’t easily recognize me half the time. Instead of getting a notification that “Ben” has been seen or seeing my wife’s name when the camera pans on her, only “Person” or even “Unknown Face” appears. Oddly, this seems to happen less with visitors, but Google’s cameras rarely recognize anyone listed in “Familiar Faces” at first glance.

It is very intermittent and unreliable. In turn, ADT’s decision to focus on the most futuristic part of its new security system fails in its intent.

I have the ADT+ system set to automatically unlock the door when the system recognizes both me and my phone, but I’ve only had it work a couple of times because the vast majority of the time Nest doesn’t recognize my face. At first I attributed this to a lot of phones confusing the ADT system, but even making sure I was logged in on only one device (with the app not even installed on anything else), I found no success and I was able to verify that the issue was with Nest because the notifications I received said “Person” or “Unknown Face.” Even when it recognized me, it was unsure whether or not the door would actually unlock before I stood there for a few seconds, at which point it’s quicker to just enter the code.

The results were not better with friends and family, but above all for another reason.

I think it’s incredibly unrealistic to get people to download an app AND create a new account just to help you with your home or even to moderately improve the way they can enter your home when they come to visit you. I walked my dad (who lives nearby) through setting up the app, but I don’t think he touched it once because it’s much easier to enter the code when he walks up to the door. The same goes for friends I gave access to and a friend who helped us watch our dogs for a few days while we were out of town. Deploying code is infinitely easier than getting people to download an app.

This isn’t to say that Trusted Neighbor hasn’t improved this process. Being able to set granular conditions on these codes, or even link them to house events, makes me feel more confident in deploying these codes. I know someone won’t come in when I don’t want them to.

But, of course, giving someone access to your home all the time isn’t really the point. Even more important is when there is a task to perform, such as a water leak or transporting a package. This is a slightly easier sell as it means they don’t have to simply guess when something is wrong or an event has occurred, but are actually told, and all while knowing that they aren’t disturbing their neighbor’s day or holiday.

And, depending on how your home operates, this could be it a lot more useful than that. Giving a key or code to someone who stops by to walk the dog, clean the house, or do any other task is an act of trust and something that can be abused. Being able to set granular conditions for these individuals is a Huge increased security and I think ADT’s implementation of how to program codes makes that a reality in a way I’ve never seen before.

But I still believe that it’s very difficult to get someone to go through the hurdle of setting this up when I actually have no faith that it will work.

In a perfect system, ADT+ and Google would be able to recognize the person approaching, send the notification to open the door, and then wake up the system when everything is done perfectly. That would be great. But, in practice, Familiar Faces really drops the ball and leaves the ADT side unable to do their job as promised, through no fault of their own. I think getting someone to download an app My house is a huge ask, but I don’t even feel comfortable worrying about it knowing full well that, a good portion of the time, it probably won’t work. The backup is, of course, that the app simply provides the user with manual control over the lock and system when conditions are granted.

ADT tells me that aside from actually getting people to download an app, this should improve with time. An update was launched in mid-October that uses a geofence and home Wi-Fi to speed up the handshake between your phone and the door lock, and the lock’s range was also improved. However I haven’t noticed any impact from this. ADT also says it’s working with Google to leverage data from multiple Nest cameras, such as a spotlight camera, for Trusted Neighbor that would be able to recognize your face before it reaches the door. It would be a huge improvement, but unless Google massively improve Familiar Faces, I think Trusted Neighbor’s biggest and best feature will continue to suffer.

Overall, Trusted Neighbor is a great idea and what ADT has done is implemented very well, there is only one hole thanks to Google. A hole that I’m not sure will be repaired.

The vision, however, is simply fantastic, as shown in some ADT demos, but I think it’s very telling that the demo shows the neighbor using the app controls rather than the “auto unlock” features.

ADT could greatly simplify everything by perhaps offering notifications via SMS/RCS as an alternative to downloading the app. This way a neighbor can still be notified and still use a passcode, but without having to manage an app or account.

He would get things done Very Easier.

Prices and what you can do for free

The shortcomings in “Trusted Neighbor” make the price a little harder to swallow, as the $45 per month price for the “full” ADT Pro monitoring location needed (which includes Nest Aware) may not be worth it for some who just wants a burglary deterrent who just wants to self-monitor. You can still use the hardware without a monitoring plan, but Trusted Neighbor won’t work. There is also a $29.99 per month monitoring plan that doesn’t support Trusted Neighbor, but still supports the usual professional monitoring. I haven’t done much testing with ADT monitoring, but I really appreciate that it’s not as aggressive as others I’ve tried. If I turn on the burglar alarm by accident, I don’t get the call 30 seconds later as long as I turn it off in a reasonable amount of time.

So what can you do for free? The core hardware still works, which is great. You’ll also continue to use ADT’s “Rules” automations, as well as Google Home and Nest integration.

However, the big downside of losing a trusted neighbor is you you will also lose your guest codeswho are locked behind that paywall. And, since the door lock is coupled directly to the ADT system, there is no easy way around the problem. I would strongly urge ADT to rethink this, because it’s a basic feature expected for free from any smart lock, and I personally would be wary of installing all this hardware only to have basic functionality unavailable if I can’t afford it monitoring.

Final thoughts… for now

ADT+ is, to date, the best security system I’ve tested as far as a Nest Secure replacement, or simply an option for those living in the Google Home ecosystem. I don’t think the issues surrounding Familiar Faces will sour ADT’s new system as a whole. ADT+ is a system that works very well and integrates better than any other system I’ve tried with Google’s Nest/Home ecosystem. There is obviously still room for improvement, and ADT has told me time and time again that the improvements will continue to come – I will continue to use this system for the foreseeable future to observe those improvements.

The hardware is smart, the app is good, and the price of the hardware itself is generally right. From a software point of view, the future is also bright. But you shouldn’t buy things with the promise of a better future. To date, ADT+ is a highly capable and well-integrated system for both Nest users and the general customer, but it is doing Some promises that fall a little flat while others that are very well made are kept.

ADT+ is available today starting at $269 for hardware, and as mentioned, you’ll need the “Full” monitoring plan for $44.99 per month to get Trusted Neighbor. Through January 14, 2025, ADT is offering significant discounts with larger systems that include over $719 in hardware spend.

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