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Securifi morphs its router into a smart security hub

Almond Guard is a Wi-Fi mesh system, smart home hub and security system for your home.

Dan Dziedzic Associate editor
Dan has been a professional writer for more than a decade and now specializes in routers and networking devices. Originally from Chicago, IL, Dan studied comedy writing at Second City and worked as a Chicago sports journalist for a number of years. With a background in physics, he spends his spare time learning about the intricacies of the universe.
Dan Dziedzic
2 min read

Securifi was one of the first companies to add a touchscreen to its routers and have since built on that hook from the original Securifi Almond. Its newest product, Almond Guard, is a Wi-Fi mesh system, smart home hub and a home security system wrapped in one device. 

The kit, which includes a router and multiple accessory devices, will start at $250 when it ships (international pricing isn't currently available, but roughly converts to £190 for the UK and AU$330 for Australia). Almond Guard isn't available yet, but you can back its Indiegogo campaign starting today.

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Almond Guard's app lets you monitor your home when you are away and automatically arms your system when you leave.

Securifi

Almond Guard communicates with your devices via Wi-Fi, GPS, ZigBee and cellular signals to keep everything connected. The home security feature uses wireless sensors placed around your house and a free iOS or Android app, which lets you keep tabs on what's going on from anywhere. There's camera integration and you can connect up to 100 sensors. 

The system can also track your phone's physical location, using it to automatically arm or disarm the system whenever you leave your house or return home (hopefully optional). Should that not be enough, it even offers no-contract professional 24/7 emergency monitoring for $20 per month (roughly £15, AU$25).

Almond Guard also acts as a smart home hub and mesh Wi-Fi system, allowing you to control all your smart devices, while also integrating with Amazon's Alexa assistant. You can expand your Wi-Fi broadcast area with up to two additional units for better coverage throughout your home. 

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As a smart home kit, Almond Guard feels pretty complete. It includes the Almond 3S router, which has all the features of the original Almond 3 router plus a battery and SIM slot for cellular backup, and an assortment of sensors for motion, leaks, doors and windows. I've reached out to Securifi for clarification on the router hardware, but haven't receive more detail yet. 

Securifi says that the Almond Guard package is essentially a mash-up of all of their previous devices -- which include the Almond 3 Wi-Fi system, the Almond+ router/range extender and the Almond 2015 router/range extender -- with an added home security component that's unique to the Guard.

Securifi is discounting the price of the system for Indiegogo backers, dropping the hardware kit down to $150 (roughly £115, AU$200) and the security monitoring to $10 per month (roughly £7, AU$15).

As always, please note that CNET's reporting on crowdfunding campaigns is not an endorsement of the project or its creators. Before contributing to any campaign, read the crowdfunding site's policies -- in this case, Indiegogo -- to find out your rights (and refund policies, or the lack thereof) before and after a campaign ends.