5 Things To Consider When Buying a Safe

No-one wants to consider the possibility that their home could be subject to a break-in or theft, but the reality is that there’s always a risk. It's important to protect your valuable possessions to ensure they’re safe from burglary or damage.

A home safe is a great investment for your home security system but there are some considerations you need to make before making a purchase. Here are five things to consider when buying a safe to ensure you choose the right one for your property and requirements. 

Should I Have A Safe At Home?

Good quality home safes are certainly worthwhile for certain items. The first thing to consider when looking at buying a safe is: do you need one? If you have sums of cash in your home, important legal documents or personal files, insurance documents and valuable collectables in your property, a safe is the best way of protecting them against theft if your home is burgled. It provides peace of mind that the things that are most important are kept safe from theft or fire hazards. 

Where Should I Put My Safe Box In My House?

There’s no one answer to this question, as it depends on the layout of your home and how much access you need to the safe on a regular basis. If you want to store personal possessions like jewellery in your home safe, your bedroom might be the best location, whereas a safe that’s going to be used to protect files and documents from fire or flooding may be best suited higher up in the property. 

Consider the purpose of the safe before you choose a location – one that’s as safe and secure as possible, while also accessible. However, the one place you shouldn’t locate your safe is a garage. Garages are easier to access for burglars than your home, and this puts your items at risk. 

How Heavy Should A Home Safe Be?

Ideally, you want your safe to be as heavy as possible in order to prevent someone being able to pick it up and walk out of your home with it. Even the lighter safes should be too difficult to carry out of your property. Plus, by choosing a heavier safe, you’re also gaining more durability. If you require a portable safe, make sure you choose a stronger lock system that’s harder to break into. 

What Size Safe Do I Need?

It’s a good idea, before buying a safe, to think about the items you want to store in it. This will help you determine the size you need to protect everything in one place. But in addition to the items that will be inside, also think about where it will be located. If you’re going to be storing your safe in your wardrobe, for example, you may want something on the smaller side that’s less conspicuous, whereas a safe that’s going to be in your loft or basement can be larger as it’s out of sight. Your budget may also be a factor in the size of safe you want to buy, as the larger and heavier the safe it, the more expensive it will be. 

What Type Of Safe Is Best?

The type of safe you choose depends on the level of protection you want. There are various styles on the market, from fire resistant safes to luxury cabinets, freestanding safes and data safes. Each offers its own pros and cons to think about, depending on where you’ll be installing it and how much protection you need. There are also different lock types, such as PIN access safes, combination locks or biometric locks, for varying levels of security and accessibility. 

Stay Safe!

Having a home safe is a primary way of protecting the items that mean most to you, whether it’s jewellery and keepsakes, photographs and collectables, or documents and cash. But knowing how to choose your safe and where to put it are important in making sure your items are as protected as possible. Think about the items you want to secure, the size of your home and the budget you have available when looking for a safe, as these will all factor into the model you decide to buy. 

What Does RFID Mean? Beginner's Guide To RFID Cards

RFID is a technology that utilises radio waves to identify tagged objects. It’s used in a variety of applications, from tracking objects in supply chains to identifying items checked out of a library. But what does RFID mean and how does the technology actually work? In our beginner’s guide to RFID cards, we explain how the technology works, which industries can benefit and the distances that RFID waves can be read from.

What Does RFID Mean?

RFID stands for Radio Frequency Identification. It’s a wireless contact-free use of radio frequency waves, which are used to transfer data. It was first used to identify airplanes in World War II, but the technology has evolved considerably over the years. Depending on the RFID used, the read range can span just a few centimetres to over 20 metres. 

RFID cards are one application of this technology, providing secure identification and access control, such as for key cards for door access to buildings for employees. But RFID can also be used in file tracking, rental item tracking, marketing campaigns, logistics tracking and pharmaceutical tracking, to name just a few of the ways businesses use this technology. 

How Do RFID Cards Work?

RFID cards are used in many industries, from logistics and healthcare to transportation and for access control. RFID cards store information on a chip embedded in the card. This chip contains an embedded secure microprocessor and internal memory, with an antenna in the plastic section of the card.

RFID technology is used to communicate between the card and the reader using radio frequencies – when the card is brought into the electromagnetic field of the reader, the chip is powered, and a wireless communication is established to provide the data transfer.

How Far Away Can RFID Be Detected?

The distance RFID can be detected depends on the strength of the frequency – lower frequency RFID tags typically read less than 30cm, but usually around 4cm. High frequency passive tags can read up to 1 metre, ultra-high frequency Gen 2 tags can read up to 12 metres. Ultra-high frequency active tags can read up to 500 metres. 

Active tags have a power source, typically a battery, while passive tags do not, which impacts the distance from which the tag can be detected. Active tags essentially broadcast a signal in a similar way to a mobile phone, so they have a much longer read range. Passive tags, on the other hand, reflect the energy from a reader antenna back to the antenna in the tag or card.  

Another factor that influences how long of a distance RFID can be read from is the size and design of the antenna. An antenna that’s been specifically designed to gather more energy from the reader and send a stronger signal back will perform better from a longer distance, and can compete with some active tags in terms of the range they can be used in.

Is RFID Still Used?

RFID is still widely used by businesses today, for a number of reasons. RFID technology is secure, particularly for the likes of RFID cards, as the reader can’t read data from other smart cards and the data is encrypted. It’s a cost-effective way of tracking and controlling items and assets, but it’s also incredibly versatile and can be used in a wide variety of ways. Many of the world’s biggest brands utilise RFID, including Amazon, H&M and Zara, to name just a few, as well as in healthcare to improve patient safety and manage workflows. 

Final Thoughts

RFID technology has its place in a large range of industries and business sectors, from small businesses who want to improve their systems and processes to large organisations who need to keep track of products or assets. From RFID tags that can be used for products to RFID cards that can be used as ID cards or asset management, there are many ways that companies can implement this innovative technology going forward.