7 min readADT Self Setup is the company's most recent DIY home security system, but is it any good? ADT Self Setup offers three different cameras for your home security needs: an indoor camera, an outdoor camera, and a doorbell camera.
Though they have their differences, all three share some benefits and pitfalls. Overall, if you want a decent, affordable camera, these are definitely worth checking out.
Model | Image | Price | Fire/CO siren detector | Learn more |
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Data effective 09/13/2022. Offers subject to change.
You’ll mostly get a great user experience, but there are a few kinks to work out
We've been pleasantly surprised by ADT Self Setup's cameras, particularly because SafeStreets, an authorized ADT provider's typical cameras aren't the most impressive we've seen. The DIY cameras look pretty darn good, and they have a few standout features we really like.
Best of all, while the all-around $200 price is a bit expensive for an indoor camera, it’s right on target for most outdoor or doorbell cameras. So these aren’t going to break the bank.
You can buy and use these cameras without an accompanying security system. And if you decide later that you want a ADT Self Setup system too, you can easily add it at any time.
If you’ve never used a modern DIY camera system before, you might be surprised to learn that the whole thing centers around an app.
You’ll use the app to set up the cameras, look at the video feeds, and respond to notifications from your devices.
All ADT Self Setup cameras have facial recognition. Pretty cool, right?
Unfortunately, based on customer experience and our own product tests, the facial recognition doesn’t really work. And while that’s sadly true of most facial recognition systems, we were surprised at how poorly ADT Self Setup’s facial recognition performed even compared to other erratic recognition software.
The facial recognition also has a strange design that only allows it to recognize account users, even when it works. So if you have dreams of getting your camera to recognize every neighbor or distant relative who might pass by, that’s not happening. And if you want the facial recognition to keep an eye out for a stalker or angry ex, this setup won’t work for that purpose.
That said, when the facial recognition operated properly, we liked it. It was nice knowing when a stranger passed by our cameras.
All ADT Self Setup cameras come in two color choices and offer push notifications, 24 hours of free storage, 1080p resolution, two-way audio, night vision, and customizable motion detection.
Your ADT Self Setup camera will come with a rolling 24 hours of cloud storage. Also, the outdoor camera has local storage as well. So you can get away without paying for a cloud storage plan (although we recommend you get one).
When you do go for cloud storage, you’ll get 60 days’ worth, which is, well, a lot. Surprisingly, ADT monitoring doesn’t charge an arm and a leg for this service.
Data effective 09/13/2022. Offers subject to change.
If you have an entire ADT Self Setup system, camera storage is included in the $20 monitoring plan.
This is a solid indoor camera
Apart from the faulty facial recognition, this camera worked well for us.
It’s one of the prettier indoor cameras we’ve tried, which was a plus for putting it in our test living room. It also listens for your smoke and carbon monoxide alarms to let you know when they go off.
ADT Self Setup indoor camera features:
That’s a surprising number of features for indoor cameras, which sometimes come up a little lacking compared to their outdoor counterparts.
The indoor camera should be plugged in, which is a hassle. The battery backup is only there in case of an outage.
Imagine you’re not home, and your smoke or carbon monoxide alarm goes off. If you have a smart smoke/carbon monoxide detector, you’ll know right away. But if not, you won’t know about the risk until you return home, potentially putting yourself or your home in danger.
This indoor camera comes equipped with a listening device that’ll send you a notification when your alarm goes off. So you’ll know about these hazards right away without spending extra cash to smarten up your detectors.
The outdoor camera also has this feature, but it makes a lot more sense for an indoor security camera, which is more likely to be within range of the alarms.
The first step to installing any smart camera is to set up the app and create an account if you haven’t already.
Then you’ll plug your indoor camera in, select Devices, and let the app walk you through the (quick and easy) installation process. When we tried it, it didn’t take long at all.
This camera is great in theory, but in practice, it tends to struggle
While we had a good experience with the motion detection on this camera, we didn’t love that there were huge lapses in connectivity.
ADT Self Setup outdoor camera features:
You’ll notice that the indoor and outdoor cameras are very similar. The main difference, to our knowledge, is that the outdoor camera has been weatherproofed for outdoor use.
Like other ADT Self Setup cameras, the outdoor camera has motion detection with customizable motion zones.
While the motion zones didn’t let us get as specific as we wanted in designing the target areas, we enjoyed playing with the motion-sensitivity level. There were even options to exclude non-person movement by turning on the “People” setting.
The connectivity on this camera stood out, but in a bad way. We had a hard time keeping it connected to our Wi-Fi, and it sounds like we’re not the only ones. Because of that, we missed out on notifications and couldn’t fully test all the camera features.
Once again, to install this camera, you’ll download the app and create an account. In the meantime, you’ll charge the camera and, when it’s ready, either set it on a flat surface or mount it with the included mounting plate. (Mounting takes some effort and some tools.)
You’ll then go to the Devices page and follow the app’s instructions to connect to the camera and finish installation. If the camera is connecting correctly to your Wi-Fi and phone, it shouldn’t take too long. But if it’s struggling, setup time is anyone’s guess.
For a more thorough look at this camera, read our ADT Self Setup Outdoor Camera Review.
You’ll get 180° vision with this camera
For the most part, this is a pretty standard doorbell camera. The field of view and the facial recognition (even though it doesn’t work as well as we’d like) do stand out, though.
ADT Self Setup doorbell camera features:
This doorbell is the only ADT Self Setup camera that doesn’t include local storage. You’ll be reliant on cloud storage for this one.
180° give you an extra-wide view that should cover your entire porch and more. But if you don’t want the camera capturing the full spread, you can choose your focus areas with the motion zone feature.
One of the only other video doorbells with such a big field of view is the innovative Vivint Doorbell Camera Pro. Not even the latest Ring doorbell sees this much.
This camera requires significantly more effort than the other two.
As usual, you need to have the app and a ADT Self Setup account to get started. You’ll then select Devices and follow the app’s instructions.
You’ll need a screwdriver to install the doorbell camera.
While the option to install the other two cameras without any tools at all, for this job, you’ll need a screwdriver and some gloves. (The camera comes with the pieces you’ll need, like brackets and screws, to wire up the camera and replace your existing doorbell.)
If you want more information, ADT Self Setup provides installation videos. And you can also look at our ADT Self Setup Doorbell Review.
The indoor one is the overall best
There are only three ADT Self Setup cameras, and we think the company has done a bang-up job of selling easy, not-too-expensive cameras with some unique features. It just needs to get everything working correctly.
Of the cameras, the one that seems to be easiest to use is the indoor camera, followed by the doorbell. While we’re not completely ruling out the outdoor option, we’d typically recommend other outdoor cameras first.
ADT Self Setup Indoor Camera: This camera is a smidge pricey but comes with facial recognition and an early warning system for fire and carbon monoxide poisoning. It’ll also look really nice with your home decor.
ADT Self Setup Outdoor Camera: You can customize the motion settings on this camera in several different ways: perfect for outdoor use. Just know it may not always stay connected to your network.
ADT Self Setup Doorbell Camera: The video doorbell has an extended field of view, but it doesn't have color night vision, and you have to do some wiring work to install it.
If you’re not crazy about ADT Self Setup cameras, check out our overview of SimpliSafe and Arlo cameras as potential alternatives.
No, ADT Self Setup and SafeStreets, an authorized ADT provider, operate as two separate entities.
The equipment isn’t compatible between the two systems, so you can’t use ADT Self Setup equipment with ADT Command (previously ADT Pulse) or SafeStreets, an authorized ADT provider stuff with the ADT Self Setup app.
No.
There can be a lot of nuance with camera types, so sometimes it’s tricky to know what you’re getting. But to our understanding, the ADT Self Setup security cameras are not IP or VoIP.
ADT Self Setup offers some pretty great third-party integration. You can use the app to connect to Google Home or Amazon Alexa to add voice control to your system or Z-Wave which enables adding devices like smart thermostats, smoke detectors, and carbon monoxide detectors to your smart home suite.
Check out our top tricks and tips to learn more about more features, third-party integration, and customization options for ADT Self Setup.
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