Powermax+ - Visonic Powermax Wireless Home Security System

A deadbolt is not a security system. Sure, it can help, but it easy to add something a bit more high tech, without breaking the bank. After all, you may not live inside Fort Knox, but that doesn’t mean you can’t act like it. Instead of calling in a pro, digging into Drywall and insulation, and having a programmer tweak a system beyond your comprehension; there are a variety of products out there that can start protecting your most precious belongings within minutes.

The Visonic PowerMax Plus is one of those systems that can take the guesswork out of setting up security for your home. It’s perfect for a smaller home or apartment, or someone that’s just starting out with home security. Many of those people don’t know what they need or don’t want to make a big financial commitment at the beginning. This kit is a fraction of the cost of custom systems. However, it does provide a complete security solution, as well as the option to add on more features and equipment later—again, without having to call in a pro.

Think about the most vulnerable areas of your home. This would be a great place for one of Visonic’s MCT-302 magnetic contact transmitters. Two of these are included in the starter kit. Each one can be easily placed at any door or window opening. Don’t worry about Fido interfering with the system, either. The included K9-85 MCW will take care of your four-legged friends. This sensor can distinguish between man and man’s best friend (or friends); working with the system so that pets won’t constantly trigger the alarm. Instead, if a guarded window or other area is opened, the MCT-302 will send a signal back to a two-way wireless keypad. Want to protect additional areas? Transmitters can also be purchased separately, and added to any area around your home.

The keypad is sort of the brain behind the system. This is the point where all of the action happens. When a transmitter is triggered, it sends a message to this device. Then, the system will call your cell or send an email. Of course, it’s also one of the spots where you will arm and disarm the system. However, if you don’t feel like standing, the MCT234 keyfob will allow you to be lazy and protected. This 4-button controller comes with the system, and can arm or disarm the unit from anywhere within range. It’s actually perfect for when you are fumbling to get into a dark house at night

Although the system comes pre-programmed, the keypad area is also where you would add in other products. Of course, there are plenty of those! One neat idea is to add a few cameras into the mix. This will allow you to take a peek at your property, when you are inside the home. Two PowerLink packages are also available, and can provide those shots to you anywhere there’s a web connection. It’s not just convenient for when you’re out of town, but also to see if there has been a delivery, when the kids get home from school, and any other day-to-day activities.

PowerMax+ Features:

• Supports camera connectivity for real-time viewing
  
• Plug and Protect™ fast and easy installation
  
• Supports advanced modules for GSM full backup connection, Internet access, wireless external siren, etc.
  
• Remote home management – alarms, lights, appliances, A/C – via telephony, cellular or Internet connections
  
• Optional GSM-based backup communication channel – for uninterrupted connectivity even in case of tampering with the system
  
• Complete home control solution – provides status updates & controls up to 15 electrical devices (dim/bright, etc.)
  
• Detectors supported: PIR and pet-immune motion detectors; glass-break, flood, smoke and gas detectors; door/window magnetic contact, and more
  
• Event reporting to: monitoring stations, pagers, SMS messages, e-mail, web applications, mobile phones and regular phones.
  
• Family message center with standard and remote access for voice recording/playback.
  
• Remotely initiated hands-free 2-way voice communication.
  
• Latchkey mode informs parents of a child's arrival to the home.
  
• Easy and convenient programming options.
  
• Intuitive textual and audible user interface with language adaptation.
  
• Advanced jamming detection in compliance with the highest industry standards.
  
• Full compliance with international standards and regulations.
  

Rating: (4.37)   # of Ratings: 121    Sort: New to Old RE-SORT REVIEWS: Helpful to Less Helpful Less Helpful to Helpful New to Old Old to New High to Low Rating Low to High Rating Showing comments 1-20 of 121 (Next 20) 1. Darrell on 10/26/2009, said: Awesome system. Very easy to install. Total installation just took a couple of hours. Would be nice if the window and door contacts were smaller, presently they are a little bulky. I am happy with my purchase. Was this comment helpful? yes no   (3 people found this comment helpful, 0 did not) 2. Kimberley on 9/20/2009, said: Great system. Easy to setup and works flawlessly. Do yourself a big favour and watch the DVD guide before doing anything else. Was this comment helpful? yes no   (6 people found this comment helpful, 0 did not) 3. Anonymous User on 9/14/2009, said: Installation was very easy after watching the included DVD. Additional custom programing took a little extra reading to accomplish. I have not added anything extra to the system yet,but feel that it will not be to big of a problem to program. So far I think this is a great system for the price. Was this comment helpful? yes no   (7 people found this comment helpful, 0 did not) 4. Anonymous User on 9/14/2009, said: Excellent reliability. 3 years now and not one false alarm. Wireless battery life is great. Easy to install and configure. Been gradually adding more components over the years. I like being able to control the system from my phone (i.e. arm/disarm/status) as well as turning on remote lights throughout the house. Was this comment helpful? yes no   (6 people found this comment helpful, 0 did not) 5. Jim on 9/11/2009, said: I have 2 college degrees. 1 Computer Science and 1 Business degree and I had issues. The video was "ok", but didn't explain what the settings represented. Once I set everything up after spending the better part of an entire Sat. afternoon I began testing. WELL, this was very disapointing. NOT 1 device set off an alarm!! So, I called tech support, after he jumped around and around he said he'd have to call me back in an hour because it was his lunch time. Early troubleshooting was none of the 4 doors and none of the 5 motion detectors set the siren off, but did send a chime during "armed" mode! Go figure. Now, here I sit waiting for his call back and the likelihood of having to re-arm all 5 motion detectors and resetting the system - UGH! What's another 2-3 hours huh? Jim Chance, jim_chance@yahoo.com A very disatisfied customer! Was this comment helpful? yes no   (5 people found this comment helpful, 3 did not) 6. Anonymous User on 9/11/2009, said: I've had this system for 2 years and rate it a solid A. Did the install myself (about 18 sensors) and it's never let me down. Was this comment helpful? yes no   (4 people found this comment helpful, 1 did not) 7. Anonymous User on 8/28/2009, said: Easyest system. I can't believe it took longer to view the video than install. GREAT STUFF Was this comment helpful? yes no   (4 people found this comment helpful, 1 did not) 8. Anonymous User on 8/7/2009, said: Great system all around! Instructional DVD's make installation and programming additonal components easy!I have unit programmed to call my cell phone and although it has never been activated...testing has worked everytime.Can not recommend this unit enough! Was this comment helpful? yes no   (4 people found this comment helpful, 0 did not) 9. Michael on 7/18/2009, said: Bought this about a week ago. It's my first alarm and first experience installing one. I am a bit of a techie but no formal training in this. In the end it was pretty easy to install. A lot of the reviews dissed the manual, but I thought it was very complete, if complicated. The unit is so feature rich that any documentation is bound to be hard to follow. A few things I haven't seen mentioned elsewhere: It came with a DVD with a step-by-step instruction video that was totally awesome. I scanned the manual, watched the dvd and then installed the system. I can't emphasize too much how helpful the video was. Also, the system came with two window/door sensors and a motion detector and all were pre-enrolled with the main panel. This meant there was little installation required other than mounting the devices and pulling tabs on the batteries (all shown on the video). It was basically plug and play at first and then I followed up after more reading of the manual with heavier customization. Only drawback so far: the main panel is big and unsightly. I will keep it upstairs with a smaller secondary panel downstairs but I still think the design could have been made more attractive. Another drawback, although a minor one, you need to wire the A/C transformer both to the unit and to the cord itself. This seems silly and if they can go through the trouble to pre-enroll the sensors it would have been nice to pre-wire the transformer as well. Was this comment helpful? yes no   (15 people found this comment helpful, 1 did not) 10. Anonymous User on 7/16/2009, said: Easy to install, great value. I would buy it again. I intended to use the 8.95 monitoring but web form did not work and the receptionist did not send the form twice as she said she would. Needless to say my monitoring is elsewhere. Was this comment helpful? yes no   (5 people found this comment helpful, 1 did not) 11. Anonymous User on 7/4/2009, said: I have had this system for years. It works great, the batteries have not died yet in the window sensors, and I have really had no problems with the system. Was this comment helpful? yes no   (4 people found this comment helpful, 2 did not) 12. Anonymous User on 6/24/2009, said: The system works great and I have not had any false alarms and I have had the system up and running for 5 months with 3 cats in the house. I purchased the GSM Module as I use VOIP and it has worked great for me. I just put a SIM card from ATT into the unit and it works fine. Was this comment helpful? yes no   (4 people found this comment helpful, 1 did not) 13. Anonymous User on 6/11/2009, said: Great for Small Church. As the pastor of a small country church, this system was SIMPLE and EASY to install and program. Since it was designed for the home setting, I had to use only 2 of the Custom Zones when programming. I simply have it to call me and then 3 others should the alarm be triggered. I purchased enough Magnetic Door sensor to cover all entrances and 2 additional IR Motion Detectors and the entire church is protected for under $500!!! I am very satisfied and will share with my other pastor friends. Was this comment helpful? yes no   (5 people found this comment helpful, 1 did not) 14. Anonymous User on 6/7/2009, said: Spent about 2 hours in setting up and testing the sensors/accessories, and another 1-2 hours configuring and testing the alarm system. I then put the system away in a box (with power applied to keep the battery charged) for 6 weeks. On travel day, I disconnected the power and put the box in my car and drove 8 hours to the remote location. On arrival, plugged back in; the battery held up ok during the travel. Next day, I installed the system... found a safe place to stash the alarm panel... activated the batteries and hung up the door sensors, IR sensors, and remote siren/strobe (purchased extra). Spent about an hour tuning/pointing the IR sensors for ideal coverage. The key fobs (some purchased extra) were delivered to the operators and the system worked flawlessly to protect a building for the week. No false alarms, and we tested the system each evening to be sure it was effective. At the end of the week, we pulled down the gear, boxed it up, and stowed it in a place where the system could be plugged-in for charging the battery, This system worked perfectly for our needs, altho it needs a techie-like person to set it up and configure it. It should serve our needs for years to come. Was this comment helpful? yes no   (6 people found this comment helpful, 1 did not) 15. Shane on 1/26/2009, said: I just bought this system for a rental unit, after a couple of break ins in the neighborhood. I think I will be able to get this thing programmed, as I'm pretty good with things like this. The trouble, however, is that I am unsure about how to wire this to power. I don't want to crack open the case and mess it up. I decided to call tech support. I was in queue for over a half hour, with no indication as to how long my wait would be. I knew that tech support closed at 3pm pst, so I figured that I would not get the opportunity to get help if no body answered soon. Then, somehow I got disconnected from the system. (Home security store's system...NOT my cell) I called the operator, asking if she could help. She put me through when a line opened up. This was. Still before 3pm. The tech guy's voicemail came up. I'm quite frustrated. I wasted probably 40 miinutes cell time. I hope he calls back tomorrow, as I promised my tenants to get this installed this week. Was this comment helpful? yes no   (8 people found this comment helpful, 4 did not) 16. Khanh on 1/20/2009, said: After reading user's guide and installer's manual twice, I was able to set up my system at home without problem. I would certainly recommend this system to friends and family. Was this comment helpful? yes no   (3 people found this comment helpful, 2 did not) 17. craig on 1/14/2009, said: Great system with many features. take your time and fully read the instructions, it will seem over complicated, but it's not Was this comment helpful? yes no   (5 people found this comment helpful, 1 did not) 18. Jorge on 1/14/2009, said: Very nice security system, a bit complicated to properly tune up but once you have there it's awesome. Was this comment helpful? yes no   (3 people found this comment helpful, 2 did not) 19. Howard on 1/12/2009, said: Excellent product. I bought it on the recommendation of a friend who has it and I'm completely satisfied.The setup manual was a little hard to understand at first when I tried to read it and do the initial setup at the same time. I decided to sit and read the manual first. The setup then became much clearer and it was very easy to setup. It took about 30 minutes to get the settings and preferences the way I wanted, then about an hour to install the system. I highly recommend reading the manual completely before attempting the setup of the unit. It works flawlessly. I will be purchasing some extras later to make it even better. Was this comment helpful? yes no   (4 people found this comment helpful, 1 did not) 20. Rodrigo on 11/20/2008, said: It was easy enough to install and it works really well. I have a friend who is a cop and he says that home alarms that call the police when the alarm is triggered are not taken seriously. If they police do come, it is often too late to catch any burglar. Hence I installed my alarm without the monitoring service. The siren is loud enough to startle a burglar. I am happy with my purchase. I feel good knowing it is there.--Ben Was this comment helpful? yes no   (5 people found this comment helpful, 1 did not) Showing comments 1-20 of 121 (Next 20)

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(1) Controller, Receiver, Sounder, and Keypad
(1) 4-Button keyfob (MCT234)
(2) Mini Magnetic Contact (MCT302)
(1) Wireless Pet-Tolerant Digital PIR Detector (K9-85MCW)
(1) Transformer
(1) Backup Battery