2GIG GC2 Verizon-LTE 10-1 Kit Posts

As the sunset for 3G cellular networks is quickly approaching, Alarm Grid has some important news regarding support for Verizon's 3G CDMA network. This news affects both the Alarm.com service and Honeywell's AlarmNet server.

As of today, June 1st, 2018, Verizon will no longer activate Alarm.com CDMA cellular communicator SIM cards as they prepare for their CDMA network sunset. If the Verizon SIM card is already activated, which is done during manufacturing, Alarm.com will still allow the account activation to go through.

However, if a communicator is manufactured and never activated with Alarm.com, or if it's activated with Alarm.com but then cancelled, the Verizon SIM will eventually become deactivated. Therefore, it's possible that a CDMA module you already have won't be able to be used if it's not currently active with Alarm.com.

If you have an existing Alarm.com CDMA communicator with a different monitoring company, it can still be "recycled" and brought over to a new alarm company, as long as the communicator is re-activated with the new monitoring company soon after it's cancelled by the existing monitoring company.

Any existing Alarm.com CDMA communicator that is already active with Alarm.com will continue to work for the time being, but will be sunsetting soon.

If you need to purchase a new cellular communicator for an Alarm.com panel, we recommend one of the following Verizon LTE options:

For 2GIG GC3:

• 2GIG LTEV-A-GC3 (requires GC3 Firmware 3.0.2 or higher) (discontinued)
• 2GIG LTEV1-A-GC3 (requires GC3 Firmware 3.1.3 or higher)

For more information on GC3 Firmware Updates, please click here. Also see this guide to upgrade the GC3 communicator.

For 2GIG GC2:

• 2GIG LTEV-A-GC2 (requires GC2 Firmware 1.17 or higher) (discontinued)
• 2GIG LTEV1-A-GC2 (requires GC2 Firmware 1.19 or higher)

For more information on GC2 Firmware Updates, please click here. Also see this guide to upgrade the GC2 communicator. You can also review the FAQs 2GIG GC2 Firmware Update Instructions Using UPCBL2 and How to Upgrade GC2 Firmware Using a Cable for more information.

Starting June 30th, 2018, Honeywell AlarmNet CDMA cellular communicators that were manufactured before March 1st, 2018 can no longer be activated. If you have an AlarmNet CDMA communicator that was manufactured before this date, you must activate it by June 30th.

At that time, it will also be impossible to bring a Honeywell CDMA radio from one monitoring company to another. AlarmNet CDMA communicators that were manufactured after March 1st, 2018 can be activated until December 22nd, 2018. Any AlarmNet CDMA communicator that has already been activated will continue to work until the CDMA network is shutdown.

If you need to purchase a new cellular communicator for a Honeywell Alarm System, we suggest buying an LTE module. Alarm Grid recommends the following options based on system type:

Honeywell Lyric Controller: LYRICLTE-V supports Verizon LTE

Honeywell L5210 and L7000 (Firmware 9+): LTE-L57V supports Verizon LTE

Honeywell VISTA Systems: LTE-XV supports Verizon LTE or LTE-IV supports Verizon LTE & IP

Additionally, if you have a CDMA communicator that has not been activated, you will no longer be able to return it to Alarm Grid for a refund. We will not be taking any CDMA returns as of today. Our company stopped selling CDMA communicators roughly three months ago, and we have been preparing for the 3G sunset for quite some time.

Cellular service providers have already discontinued support for their 2G networks, and they are currently preparing to do the same for their 3G networks. This includes the Verizon 3G CDMA network. Instead, cellular service providers are shifting their focus to their newer and more advanced 4G and LTE networks. If you need to upgrade an alarm system to cellular, you should purchase an LTE module if possible.

Remember, existing CDMA communicators that have already been activated can still be used for the time being. These modules will continue to work until the CDMA network is discontinued. At that point, any CDMA cellular module will need to be replaced and upgraded to a newer communicator.

If you have any questions about this news, please send an email to support@alarmgrid.com. You may also call us at 888-818-7728 from 9am to 8pm EST M-F.

Edit (6/8/18): This blog post previously stated that as of June 1st, no Alarm.com CDMA module that wasn't currently active with Alarm.com service could be activated on a new Alarm.com account, which has changed since it was written. It has been edited to reflect the correct information.

Alarm Grid would like to announce that we are making some very exciting changes to our Security System Kits. Most of our Security System Kits will now include an ultra-convenient Honeywell LT-Cable for powering the alarm system. All Honeywell Lyric Kits and 2GIG Kits will also now include VERSA-2GIG Door and Window Contacts. These are outstanding sensors that look and operate in exactly the same way as the Honeywell 5800MINI. Finally, we reduced the price of our kits by as much as in price, providing significant savings to our DIY users. These new changes will go into effect immediately. Now is truly the best time to get started with a brand new security system from Alarm Grid!

We have found that most of our DIY customers already go out of their way to purchase a cable. Rather than chasing customers to purchase the items, we now include them in the kits. These electric cables make supplying power to a security system significantly easier. The cable requires no wire-stripping, and it can easily connect with any security system transformer. This makes it great for use with the Honeywell Lyric Controller, any Honeywell LYNX Touch, the 2GIG GC2 and GC3 systems, and even the wired Honeywell VISTA Panel. The cable itself is 8-feet long. It includes male and female adapters for simple installation and connecting.

Another major change for our Security System Kits is that all Honeywell Lyric Kits and 2GIG Kits will now include VERSA-2GIG Door and Window Contacts. The 2GIG-VERSA Door/Window Contact is a fantastic device that is designed for use with Honeywell and 2GIG panels. These sensors are the most reliable sensors that we have found. They are small and discrete.

Additionally, with these new system kits, we are focused on modernizing what you get. Most of Alarm Grid's customers are controlling their system using Total Connect or Alarm.com. We are getting more and more requests that the key fobs be removed from the packs. So we did that. The key fobs are pretty cheap a piece. They are for sale individually. If you think that the key fob would be a great convenience, we highly recommend you purchase whichever one is compatible with your system. This will give you the flexibility to get as many key fobs as you need or want.

Finally, we are officially reducing the costs of our Security Kits. This makes now a better time than ever to get started with Alarm Grid. Take advantage of these reduced prices on our Security Kits right now! If you have any questions about any of these new changes, feel free to contact our support team online or over the phone. Thank you for choosing Alarm Grid, and we look forward to providing you with top-quality support. We have a number of new systems as well. Below are some of our favorite, most popular systems.

The prices of kits are hugely reduced. Some have come down as much as $100. The price of the Lyric 10 door/window sensor and LTE communicator kit, for example, has been reduced in price from $578.99 to $489.99, $97 or 20% reduction in price. This is the sort of change that has happened all across our listed kits. The Lyric kit with 3 door/window sensors and an LTE communicator has been reduced by 10% or $40. Additionally, we've made available never before seen Qolsys kits. These 4 Qolsys kits, are the traditional 3-1 and 10-1 kits. We do not include the Qolsys sensors. Instead, we have included VERSA's 2GIG sensors. These sensors look and act the same way as Honeywell's 5800MINIs.