Using an app on phone for burglar alarm

bjbyorkshire

Hello,  I am on PAYG from Three.  I have an app on my phone from the alarm company which I use when needing to set or unset our house alarm.  Just wondering how or if I am charged for this usage?  Is it a text or is it a call? It didn’t matter on 1,2,3 but at 35p per min or the new text charges, it will matter a lot.  Anyone use their phone this way for setting an alarm?  
Thanks

[Deleted User]

It will depend on the app. It will explain it in the set up details.

Olinda99

if it is an app it could also be data rather than text or call.

bjbyorkshire

We pay a fixed sum per year to use the app so not sure if this is how the usage charge is made but I would have thought the mobile phone company would want a share of the price to use the app.  I can and will ask the firm who installed out system but they are closed until Monday.  It is only now that three are upping their prices that I am wondering about the cost of using the app.  

I can set it when sitting in the car in the drive, I can also access the app to see if the alarm is on or off from anywhere in the country, This has to have a cost I’m thinking.

I don’t know how to access the set up details as we have had it installed since we were burgled over 3 years ago now.  Three of us living here can set and unset the alarm on our phones so we will have to do a trial by checking before and after setting whether our credit has gone down.  Easy to do on PAYG phones but not so easy on a monthly contract I guess.

Thanks

Rodders53

Check with Alarm company / App developers?

Most likely is it will be data, but how much passes each way is an unknown without more information - such as the App name.  Your phone might well log the data used by each app? e.g my Smart Plug app (used daily) has used 77kB in the last 28 days... but that use may result in a daily minimum charge on 3's PAYG, even though well under the 1,000 kB (1 MB) figure.  Check 3's T&Cs re charging.

Normally if setting un-setting the alarm at the house you'd be connected via the home wifi so no mobile charges.  But may be wise to wait a few moments on arrival / see that wifi is connected if you want to be sure.

Change mobile phone company to get better rates than 3 payg. (3/2/1 became 10/10/5 and will be 35/15/10 from 12th July it appears).

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/cheap-mobile-finder/sim-only/ has the current base payg rates for a number of providers.  You can port your number across by requesting a PAC code by text from 3.

We went to Lebara on an MSE blagged pay monthly (30 days in fact) deal from 3 payg as it doesn't take long to rack up quite a few pounds worth even at their current rates.

bjbyorkshire

Rodders53, yes I am now in the process of thinking about changing phones to a different provider.  Hubby and I are extremely low users of our phones so I am thinking about how much we use which bits, calls, texts, data to determine whether a monthly package is now the way to go.  We have a house phone which includes our broadband (Talk talk) so the mobile phones are mainly for us to make a very few calls which are usually to each other.  I send the odd text but almost never use it for browsing the net.  Phone too small and fiddly for either of us to play on line.  I am looking at Asda or Tesco sim only deals just now but the topping up every so many months etc needs taking into consideration too.  35p a minute would still not be a huge cost the way we use our phones but in an emergency, away from home, then it could easily rack up considerable charges.  Why oh why is life so complicated.  I was happy with 3,2,1 but they obviously made little or no money out of either of our two phones.

Thanks for your detailed reply.

flaneurs_lobster

3,2,1 PAYG rates still available (at least for the moment) on O2 Classic SIMs, available on eBay for a quid or so, £10 top-up to activate.

Could also look at RWG Mobile, 50mins/texts + 250MB free each month for (non-expiring) £5 up front.

400ixl

Turn off mobile data and wifi on the phone and see if you can still do what you need to on the phone. Make sure it is just data and not airplane mode.

If it stops being able to do what you need then it will be using data, which will be over wifi if you are on one, or your mobile data if you aren't.

If you only arm/disarm outside of the house it could only ever be using your wifi if it is connected to that.

This is the most likely scenario for an app. Unlikely it is using bluetooth. It won't be using the calls allowance as you would have to be using voice activation or following verbal instructions using the keypad. And SMS Text is unlikely as well except maybe for notification if the alarm has been triggered.

bjbyorkshire

Great idea, I will try turning off mobile and data.  I just have to wait until no one is in the house before I try that.  Will report back when I have tried that.  If I look oh the apps on the phone it may, just may, show how much I used in the last 24 hours using this particular app.

Every day is a learning day. 
Thanks

I just looked on the phone and it says that the data used by this particular app since March 5th is 195KB.  So that is peanuts isn’t it.