Smart, chic and seamless, the Hive HomeShield home security system is just what tech should be

I am lucky enough to live in a spectacular Art Deco block of flats in East London. We have giant curved arches at the entrance of the property that make you feel as though you’ve entered into a time-warp arriving in 1930’s Palm Springs. The apartments have wraparound balconies, woodwork and trims are painted in an eye-catching lime green and all 42 flats boast those glorious Crittall windows everyone is always coveting these days.

It’s a dream, however feeling fully secure in a period property is tricky. Being a listed building we aren’t allowed to change any original details to upgrade to more secure modern windows or gated entrances. There are stairwells that run along the back of the flats that are charming and convivial in the summertime but can leave some residents feeling vulnerable after dark or in the winter.

Community Benefits

My apartment is in a development that operates as a close community - what’s been great about Hive HomeShield is that multiple users can have access to view the camera so we can all monitor it. 

You simply invite people through the app and assign them PINs to login - each user can have a different level of permissions too. The outdoor camera records anyone coming into the side gate of our property and all activity from the dark back path behind our building that streams motion and noises directly to my phone - alerts are turned off on this as otherwise i would be in-undated every time a bird chirps or squirrel runs up a tree  but I can go back to any time and date if there is an incident which is so beneficial for our community as garages and ground floor flats have had break-ins in the past. 

Seamless Installation for the Time Poor

Like most of us I'm time poor - so the Hive customer service team were a dream to liaise with - booking in my service to suit my time slots and with engineers keeping in touch en-route by calling or texting personally (unheard of in this automated age!) I even had to cancel last minute one morning and they chased me up to re-book without missing a beat. Similarly my fabulous Hive engineer Scottie was an absolute gift - efficiently unboxing all the many baffling wires and items that came with my HomeShield system whilst quickly and simply explaining what each one did.

Scottie soon found out what my needs were for my home and within an hour I had two sensors installed - one on my front and back door (the one that gives me sleepless nights) and one 24 hour outdoor camera which to everyone’s joy will be used for the whole block of flats. The engineer even took my phone from me - which i gratefully handed over and set everything up into my existing Hive App. Hive Heating and Hive HomeShield have separate tabs to change modes, view event history and configure your settings and there's what is called the central 'Beehive' tab for quick actions. Now when I go into the app there’s a pleasing pattern of circles i can tap to control everything from the front door, back door, view the camera and control my heating wherever I am. What a buzz! 

A Sense of Wellbeing

Blissfully ignorant of the dangers of modern life to date - I’ve never had a security system so didn’t know what to expect after it had been fitted, but within days of installation the process has seemed to lift a level of uneasiness I didn’t know I possessed and has been replaced with a sense of well-being.

The best thing is to be able to tap a button on my HomeShield dashboard for when i’m ‘Asleep’, ‘Home’ or ‘Away’ so my alarm will know when to very loudly activate itself if there is an intruder.

Oh - and it also looks really chic - the sensors, keypad and alarm boxes all have curved retro silhouettes and finished in a neutral shade of glossy cream and are a perfect fit for any modern interior.

Find out more about the Hive HomeShield here.