DMP XR500 vs. DMP XR200

btw, the 200 is a very cool panel and easy to use. I even have it controlling a few zones of my landscaping sprinklers.

We have been talking with our alarm company about the XR500 vs XR200 panel for use in our home.

I prefer the XR500 since it has built-in Ethernet (vs a module add-in), flash upgradeability, and generally upgraded electronics relative to the XR200 which by now seems to be getting a bit long in the tooth (for example the XR200 runs on a Z80 micropocessor which I believe powered the original TRS-80 PC back in the late 70's). In general, the XR500 seems to offer better future-proofing.

On the other hand, the installer is pushing the XR200, saying that the XR500 is really only for commercial installations. Specifically, he says that it doesn't even support "home" and "night" modes and that it is much more complicated to use.

Any first hand knowledge and recommendations out there?

I guess I'll buy to play with. Only 32 areas? ... and what 900 users ? :-)

Have you tried one of the new glass keypads yet? Just wondering

Rob

Not sure why he wouldn't want to sell you an XR500. It costs less for a dealer than the 200 with an iCOM router. It just has area arming (32 to be exact) Rather than the home/away mode or the perimeter/interior modes of the

200. As far as the Processor goes, both communicate via SDLC Protocol, which is practically 40 years old, and still the fastest in the Industry today, I wouldn't let that be a decision. The "Flash" on the 500 is nice for updates though, which there has been 12 so far. Both come with 10 zones on board, so size really isn't the issue, just the expansion. All DMP panels and devices are "future proof", as they are all backward/forward compatible, and have been for over 25 years. The 500 is better priced on the Internet Monitoring side of things, if that's also what you're looking at.

Jack

Umm....10,000 users. Yeah, I already know what you're thinking.... They're supposed to working on a 32 door version of the panel as well. I've seen the Glass Pad, and have all the pricing as well. I thought it would be slightly over priced, but it's actually not to bad. The "Big" Boss won't let me get anymore play toys, so I don't have one....yet. I've been too busy lately to even have time. I'll be at the ISC show in Aug' in New York. Haven't even had time to take my boat out. When it rains....it pours.

The advantages of the XR500 would be pruely in a commercial environment. Larger zones, sure, but it plays out more in a commercial installation. I doubt seriously you would ever have 242 zones in your house. Wired or not. Which is what the 200 can do.

Gives you the ability to arm "ALL" or each and every area, up to 32 of them.

Sure. You could even incorporate "Easy Entry" to allow them to only disarm the areas you assign them, with a simple swipe of a credential.

Such as....what? Alarm panels are pretty simple. It's not a processor being used to make complex mathmatical decisions, just simple TTL decyphering. The

200 performs very well, and very fast, for the given tasks. Both platforms offer great stability, the 500 more expandable.

From the 500 standpoint, future changes to the platform are "flash" upgradeable. I like that, as a dealer, because things do change, and the panel is really still in it's growth period. I lived through much of these same changes with the 200 platform, and am confident that the 200 platform will meet even 99% of my installs as it sits today. But, it took about 6 years to get it there. DMP has a long track record of Industry firsts, which typically go up and down the product line, so basically future technologies are incorporated across the board, not just one platform. I'd try the 200 for your application, chances are it will more than meet your expectations. Plus, you can always upgrade the panel down the road.

Jack

- What if anything would be the disadvantage of going with the 500?

- Does the "areas" paradigm get me everything that home/away/stay has and more? e.g., could I have the equivalent of the "cleaning person mode" where everything is armed except for the one door that I give them the key to.

- Also, I understand the backward/forward compatibility, but when I think of "future proof" I think of the ability to take advantage of new technologies that might be hard to add-on to a slower/less advanced processor in the 200-series.

So I guess I am really asking whether the XR500 is really inherently more powerful (not just in number of zones) that it will allow me to do more home automation and monitoring stuff in the future that would be difficult with 200-series?