Secure your house with Viper Home

Viper is a Directed Electronics brand that sells a bunch of car-related accessories -- remote access, keyless entry, window film, security systems. So, why is this an appliance post, you ask? Well, folks, Viper is branching out.

Yes, they will continue to sell all of that car goodness discerning motorists have come to love, but as of today, they will also offer something called Viper Home. Viper Home is a DIY home security system that shares similarities with the $199 iSmartAlarm, the $199 Canary Smart Home Security Device, and the $229 Piper. Not only are these DIY systems competing with one another, they're also trying to appeal to those of you interested in -- but not quite sold on -- larger home security companies. Viper Home is available for purchase now exclusively at Best Buy.

The Viper Home starter kit will set you back $229 and it comes with a hub, an indoor motion detector, and a door/window sensor. The hub connects directly to your Wi-Fi router, and the motion detector and door/window sensor can be placed at any potentially vulnerable spots in your home. Like iSmartAlarm, you have to pay extra for a camera. Viper's camera doubles as a motion detector and will cost you an additional $149. You can also spend $49 more to get an indoor siren, $49 for additional motion detectors, and $24 for extra door/window sensors.

In total, Viper Home can handle up to 64 devices. That's eight indoor cameras, four sirens, and a whole bunch of door/window sensors. All of this stuff can be tracked via the Viper Connect app available now for Android and iOS. When the motion detector or door/window sensor notices something fishy, the system will send you an alert immediately. And if you have the camera and motion detector, a $9.99 monthly subscription to ViperWatch lets you see what's going on in your home in real-time.

Viper Home can also be customized in other ways. Add a Z-Wave Bridge and you can incorporate several home automation gadgets into the fold. That way, you can operate your lights, thermostat, and much more remotely. Viper Home seems to combine the a la carte options of iSmart with Piper's Z-Wave integration. It has something else going for it, too -- Viper is already known for delivering high quality (vehicle) security systems.

And that's an important distinction. Viper's 30 years of experience selling car security systems puts it in a unique position to offer a home and car monitoring system in one. If you already have Viper's SmartStart system, you can consolidate your home and car monitoring into a single app. If you don't already have SmartStart, there are a few options at different price levels. One possibility costs $299 plus a $4.69 monthly fee that lets you lock and unlock your car from the app and get notifications if there's a security breach. And if you just want the home security system, that's OK too.

Viper Home claims to be easy to install -- the whole thing is supposed to be up and running in under 15 minutes. I am starting a full review of this system shortly, so I will be able to offer more information on design, usability, and performance soon. It remains to be seen how this product compares to the others. So far, though, I think the optional integration with SmartStart is a clever move that sets Viper Home apart from iSmart, Canary, and Piper. You can get home and car security in one fell swoop.